Additional support for pupils with reading difficulties – a case study

ABSTRACT

The importance of reading competence has been increasingly acknowledged in the Swedish educational system, not least through the demands for higher standards in reading in all subjects stated in the national curriculum. Still, in the school year 2018/19, approximately 7% of all Swedish pupils did not achieve the learning goals related to reading competence stated for the subject Swedish in the national curriculum for compulsory school (grades 0–9) (Skolverkets statistikdatabas).

In order to identify and support pupils with reading difficulties as early as possible, compulsory reading development assessments are conducted in grades 1, 3, 6 and 9 according to which all pupils displaying a delayed development are to receive additional support. The provision of this support is the responsibility of every municipality, but in what form and to what extent and duration it should be given is not prescribed.

The present study aims to give insight into how Swedish policy reforms to improve reading ability among pupils in compulsory school are operationalised in one Swedish municipality during the school year 2018/2019. Further, the study seeks to exemplify how the policy guidelines are implemented at three schools and how policy and practice are related.

KEYWORDS:

• Reading development
• intensive reading
• reading support
• special needs

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the teachers and special education/needs teachers in the literacy network who participated in this study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1. .In the original: ”En individs förmåga att förstå, använda och reflektera över och engagera sig i texter för att uppnå sina egna mål, utveckla sina kunskaper och sin potential och för att delta i samhället.”

2. .The Swedish National Agency for Education.

3. .The Swedish School Inspectorate.

4. .In Sweden there are special needs teachers and special education teachers. While the focus of a special needs teacher is advising and supporting class teachers as well as working with individual students, the special education teacher works primarily on an organisational level and coordinates work in relation to pupils with special needs on a school-level. In practice, however, working responsibilities often overlap. In this article, we only use the term special needs teacher, but refer to both professions.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Yvonne Knospe

Yvonne Knospe is a senior lecturer in Language teaching and learning at the Department of Language Studies, Umeå University. Her research interests are reading and writing development among pupils with language and/or intellectual difficulties, foreign language and multilingual writing and writing strategies. Recent research has focused on how to promote the narrative writing of students with intellectual disabilities through strategy instruction.

Erika Sturk

Erika Sturk has worked with teacher education and professional development for teachers. Currently, she is a PhD student at the Department of Language Studies, Umeå University. Her research interests include teaching of literacy at compulsory school.

Parvin Gheitasi

Parvin Gheitasi is a senior lecturer in English at the department of language studies at Dalarna University, Sweden. Her research interests include early language learning, formulaic sequences as well as sociolinguistics.