Engelska för högstadiet och gymnasiet

09.15 Skolporten hälsar välkommen

09.30 Engelskundervisning i flerspråkiga kontexter

Ungefär var tredje elev har ett annat förstaspråk än svenska, och kursplanen i engelska beskriver hur undervisningen ska uppmuntra eleverna att utveckla sin flerspråkighet samt utgå från deras intressen och erfarenheter. Detta ger utmärkta förutsättningar för en engelskundervisning med flerspråkiga perspektiv. Trots det utgår undervisningen ofta från svenskan som norm, vilket kan missgynna flerspråkiga elever. Även genom enspråkiga normer så som English only-klassrum, riskerar vi att begränsa möjligheten till en mer mångfacetterad undervisning.  

Presentationen tar avstamp i forskning om engelskundervisning för nyanlända men är relevant även för andra lärare. Vi tar bland annat upp flerspråkiga undervisningspraktiker, enspråkiga normer och språkhierarkier inom engelskundervisningen i grundskolan och gymnasiet. Målet är att ge inspiration och idéer för hur dukan öppna klassrummet för fler språk än svenska och engelska, och på så sätt skapa mer likvärdiga förutsättningar för alla elever. 

Jenny Bergström

FIL. DR I PEDAGOGISKT ARBETE

Jenny Bergström är fil. dr i pedagogiskt arbete, verksam vid Umeå universitet och Högskolan Dalarna. Hon har lång erfarenhet av undervisning inom gymnasiet, vuxenutbildningen och högre utbildning. Jenny är utbildad gymnasielärare och har undervisat i svenska, engelska och svenska som andraspråk. Hennes forskning handlar bland annat om engelskundervisning, maktperspektiv, språkideologier och andrafiering.

 

10.30 Kaffepaus

11.00 Practicing interactional competence through narrative tasks  

Second language interactional competence (L2 IC) represents the ability to use a range of resources to perform social actions, like making proposals or telling a story. In recent years it has been suggested that this competence should take a more central role in teaching and assessing oral proficiency. IC can in fact be considered one of the “all-round communicative skills” that are the aim of L2 learning, according to the Swedish syllabus for English. 

The ongoing research project “Tell-ability: Storytelling as a life skill and interactional competence in second language education” focuses on important aspects of IC: 9th graders’ ability to share experiences and to create and tell stories. In this presentation we will show examples of students working with different types of narrative tasks and we will analyze their interactional competence. We will also present some implications for teaching and assessment and discuss how, through carefully designed tasks, students can develop life skills that are relevant for their future.  

Erica Sandlund

PROFESSOR I ENGELSKA

Erica Sandlund is Professor of English Linguistics at Karlstad University. She conducts research into various aspects of language learning and teaching, language testing, and social interaction. Erica has recently published a book on the assessment of second language oral proficiency together with Pia Sundqvist, and she is the principal investigator for the research project on second language storytelling.

Silvia Kunitz

UNIVERSITETSLEKTOR I ENGELSKA

Silvia Kunitz is a Senior lecturer at Linköping University, where she is involved in teacher education. In her research she works with conversation analysis to study how second language learners interact with others. Silvia also collaborates with schoolteachers in the network for English and Modern Languages at Stockholm Teaching and Learning Studies (STLS).

12.00 Gemensam lunch

13.00 Making Vocabulary Stick: Research-Based and Engaging Strategies for Vocabulary Learning

Vocabulary acquisition is a fundamental part of language learning, and yet it is an area in which many instructors rely on intuition, misconceptions or even avoidance. This workshop offers tried-and-true teaching strategies grounded in established research on vocabulary acquisition: 

• using corpus lexica to inform what words you teach
• working with students’ cognitive processes to consolidate new vocabulary
• exploiting the “test effect” to ensure that new words become part of students’ long-term vocabulary. 

Most importantly, it highlights ways to engage students and make vocabulary learning fun. In addition to a pedagogical background on vocabulary acquisition, you will get practical classroom strategies and templates to implement.

Ben Grimm

GYMNASIELÄRARE

Ben Grimm was born and raised in the U.S. and got his start as a boarding school teacher at Deerfield Academy. He got his B.A. in Religion and Scandinavian Studies at Harvard and his M.S.Ed. at University of Pennsylvania. Ben currently works as an English teacher at Nacka Gymnasium in Stockholm. 

14.00 Fikapaus

14.30 Challenging students of diverse abilities in English

Although efforts have been made to make education more inclusive for learners of diverse abilities, a recurring claim in research and by official policy agents is that not enough support is given to students who are ahead in their learning. In English they may range from native speakers to students who are highly able in extra-mural English activities, or those who are defined as linguistically able or even ”gifted”. Frequently identified consequences of this lack of support include having to wait for their peers, being given ad-hoc activities and having to rehearse already attained skills.

This talk explores the concept of giftedness and how English can be taught in a way that challenges and stimulates a variety of abilities, including students who are ahead in their learning.

Caroline Sims

UNIVERSITETSLEKTOR I SPECIALPEDAGOGIK

Caroline Sims (PhD) is a senior lecturer in special education at Mälardalen’s University. Her research focuses on differentiated teaching and how the concept of giftedness is understood in an educational context in Sweden. She is frequently appointed as a guest speaker on questions to do with gifted education. Caroline is also the editor and co-author of the anthology Särskild begåvning i praktik och forskning (2021), which gives support to teachers in their work with students who are ahead in their learning.

 

15.30 Avslutning dag 1

09.00 Meningsfull litteraturundervisning i engelska – vad säger forskningen?

Vi vet att det är bra för elever att läsa och arbeta med litterära texter i skolan. Men vilken roll bör litteraturen ha just i engelskundervisningen, och varför är det viktigt? Och hur kan man organisera litteraturundervisning så att den blir meningsfull för eleverna samtidigt som den bidrar till läroplanens mål? 

Föreläsningen presenterar forskning om varför elever bör ges möjlighet att läsa och arbeta med litterära texter i engelskklassrummet. Du får även konkreta, forskningsbaserade förslag på hur undervisningen kan organiseras. Särskild vikt läggs vid undervisning som metodiskt bygger upp elevers vilja och förmåga att uppleva, ta till sig och lära sig av litterära texter.

Katherina Dodou

DOCENT I ENGELSK LITTERATUR

Katherina Dodou är docent i engelsk litteratur med inriktning mot litteraturdidaktik, och forskare i engelskdidaktik vid universitetet i Oslo. Hon har bland annat forskat om litteraturläsningens position och legitimeringar, samt om litteraturundervisningspraktiker i skolan. 

10.00 Kaffe och smörgås

10.30 From #BookTok to the Classroom: Leveraging Voluntary Reading in English Education

In parallel with the ongoing reading crisis in Swedish schools, many upper secondary school students are more than happy to read books in English and they actively share their reading tips on #BookTok. How can we use this unique situation to stimulate learning? And what are the benefits of consciously and actively working to combine students’ voluntary reading with the teaching of literature which is a core part of the English curriculum? 

By tapping into the interest that already exists in students, we can assist them in developing their reading towards increasingly challenging books, to make them grow as individuals and discover new perspectives on the world around them. This presentation offers practical examples of conscious and systematic teaching of literature, aiming to make fiction important and interesting for students.

Björn Kohlström

GYMNASIELÄRARE

Björn Kohlström works as an upper secondary school teacher of English and Swedish at Per Brahegymnasiet in Jönköping. He is also a freelance writer and a literary critic. Björn serves on several literary prize committees and is a member of Expertrådet för läsning, founded by Lärarstiftelsen and Sveriges Lärare.

11.30 Gemensam lunch

12.30 Unlocking Creativity: The Meaningful English Classroom  

 Although many young people in Sweden are comfortable with the English language and find it enjoyable, studies show that the English school subject can be less engaging than the ways pupils use and learn English in their free time. Moreover, a large number of pupils find English too difficult and fail in the subject. Indeed, such a broad spectrum of proficiency presents a challenge for the English teacher. 

 This talk will demonstrate ways to craft activities and lessons that are both playful and serious – drawing on authentic English that can stimulate creativity and be meaningful for all pupils. You will get ideas for role play, fan fiction and other creative writing exercises, and you will be provided with examples of the texts of skilled and experienced writers for young people that can be used as input. The aim is to build the confidence and motivation of all pupils to learn English in a multilingual classroom, where language education overlaps with visual art, literature, film and music. 

Paul Morris

MODERSMÅLSLÄRARE

Paul Morris currently works as a teacher of English (mother tongue), based at Centrum för flerspråkighet in Västerås. Previously, he has taught at different levels in schools in England and Sweden, and worked as a teacher educator at Mälardalen University, where he also completed his licentiate study: “Creative Writers in a Digital Age” (2022) . 

13.30 Fikapaus

14.00 Amerikansk (o)frihet, politisk polarisering och vårt behov av USA

USA firar sitt 250-årsjubileum som självständig nation 2026. Självständighetsförklaringen från 1776 är naturligtvis central i berättelsen om USA som frihetens land, men den har alltid levt jämsides med historien om amerikanska ofriheter, präglad inte minst av slaveriet och dess efterverkningar. Idag har dessa konkurrerande historier blivit politiskt sprängstoff och en del i den starka polarisering som präglar USA:s politik och samhällsliv. 

I föreläsningen får du en historisk överblick över betydelsen av begreppet ’frihet’ i USA, samt över statens roll i det amerikanska samhället och hur det påverkar dagens diskussioner om yttrandefrihet och akademisk frihet. Vi kommer att titta på den politiska polariseringens utveckling och betydelse, och även den underliggande frågan om vilka behov vi i Sverige har av USA.

Adam Hjorthén

DOCENT I HISTORIA, UNIVERSITETSLEKTOR I NORDAMERIKASTUDIER

Adam Hjorthén är docent i historia och universitetslektor i nordamerikastudier vid Svenska institutet för nordamerikastudier (SINAS), Uppsala universitet. Han har tidigare varit verksam vid bland annat JFK Institute for North American Studies vid Freie Universität Berlin och varit gästforskare vid George Washington University och University of Minnesota. Adams nuvarande forskning handlar om etnisk identitet, den amerikanska konstitutionen och politisk polarisering i USA.

15.00 Konferensen avslutas