“Swedish” Values and Norms in Language Courses and Social Orientation for Adult Migrants in Sweden: A Critical Analysis of Teaching Materials and Education since the 1960s.

• This chapter is a critical review of “Swedish” values and norms in education over time for adult immigrants in Sweden, in language courses, SFI (Swedish For Immigrants) and in civic/social orientation. Values and norms are linked to a societal context and steering documents. During last years’ increase in refugee and migrant flows, a lively debate has arisen in various contexts, with controversy over what can be defined as “Swedish” values and norms and how these can best be transferred or communicated to new arrivals for better integration. Previously, there was a stronger emphasis on “multiculturalism” in various steering documents. In practice, however, steering documents, textbooks and teaching itself already contain many normative “Swedish” perspectives linked to ethnicity, gender and not least “Swedish” culture. Since 2010, social orientation for newcomers, which must now be separated from language teaching, has become increasingly homogenized in order to provide a national standard. Uniformity is expected in terms of both organization and content. The statute contains a number of defined standardized themes at the overall level. In this chapter, a critical, discourse-analytical perspective together with a narrative approach will examine what content is highlighted over time in policy documents and, above all, in educational material such as textbooks in relation to societal context and politics. The analysis shows how gendered, culturalized and ethnified discourses can be discerned over the years and how the constructions of the immigrant and the Swede play out together and fostering accompanying attitudes.

Ämnesord

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Sociologi (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Sociology (hsv//eng)

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Annan samhällsvetenskap -- Internationell migration och etniska relationer (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Other Social Sciences -- International Migration and Ethnic Relations (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

Keywords: adult education

norms and values

migrants

“Swedishness”

civic education

gender and ethnicity

Publikations- och innehållstyp

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