Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Mother Tongue Plus Two European Languages in Sweden: Unrealistic Educational Goal?

  • Published:
Language Policy Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

For several years now, there has been much debate concerning the status and importance of the various languages in use in Sweden, both in society and in the field of education. In 2000 a ``new'' linguistic situation developed when in addition to English, which holds an overwhelming position and has been taught compulsorily since 1962, five minority languages were also recognised. In December 2005 the Swedish parliament introduced a new language policy asserting Swedish as the main - but not de jure language of the country. However in the educational arena, the situation of second foreign language teaching is often described as ``catastrophic''. The main purpose of this article is to broaden the scope of research about language policy in Sweden to include issues related to foreign language education. While this study includes the needs factor at national and individual levels, it also illustrates the assertion that ``language policy is about choice'' (Spolsky, 2004: 217)

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Andersson I., & Nilsson I. (2000). New political directions for the Swedish school. Educational Review, 52 2, 155–162

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Beacco J.-C., & Byram M. (2003). Guide for the development of language education policies in europe – from linguistic diversity to Plurilingual education. Strasbourg: Language Policy Division, Council of Europe

    Google Scholar 

  • Bonnet G. (Ed.) (1998). The effectiveness of the teaching of English in the European Union. Paris: DPD Edition Diffusion, Ministère de l’Education nationale

    Google Scholar 

  • Bonnet, G. (2002). The Assessment of pupils’ skills in English in eight European Countries. The European Network of Policy Makers for the Evaluation of Education Systems.

  • Boyd S., Huss L. (2001). Managing multilingualism in a European Nation-State: Challenges for Sweden. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters

    Google Scholar 

  • Cabau-Lampa B. (1997). Suède: un vent de réformes (Sweden: A wind of reforms). Revue internationale d’Education, 13, 11–20

    Google Scholar 

  • Cabau-Lampa B. (1998). L’Enseignement des langues-cultures en Suède : un enjeu multidimensionnel. Université de Lille: Presses Universitaires du Septentrion

    Google Scholar 

  • Cabau-Lampa B. (1999). Decisive factors for language teaching in Sweden. Educational Studies 25 2, 175–186

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cabau-Lampa B. (2005). Foreign language education in Sweden from a historical perspective: Status, role and organization. Journal of Educational Administration and History, 37 2, 91–111

    Google Scholar 

  • Cooper R. L. (1989). Language planning and social change. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

    Google Scholar 

  • Edlert M., & Bergseth E. (2003). Attitydundersökning om språkstudier i grundskola och gymnasieskola [Attitudes survey on language studies at compulsory and upper-secondary school]. Myndigheten för Skolutveckling, Stockholm: Andreas Lund & Co

    Google Scholar 

  • Elfving, E. (2002). Språkdöden i svenska skolan [Language death at Swedish schools]. LMS-Lingua, Nr:5.

  • Enkvist I. (2005). Trängd mellan politik och pedagogik: svensk språkutbildning efter 1990 [Caught between politics and pedagogy: Language education in Sweden after 1990]. Hedemora: Gidlunds Förlag AB

    Google Scholar 

  • Eurobarometer 54 Special: Europeans and Languages (2001). Report produced by INRA for the Education and Culture Directorate-General of the European Commission, Brussels.

  • European Commission (2006). Europeans and their Languages. Special Eurobarometer 243.

  • Eurydice (2005). Key data on teaching languages at schools in Europe. European Commission, Brussels.

  • Gunnarsson B.-L. (2001). Swedish tomorrow – a product of the linguistic dominance of English? In: S. Boyd, L. Huss (Eds.) Managing multilingualism in a European Nation-State: Challenges for Sweden. Clevedon: Multilingual matters. (pp 51–69)

    Google Scholar 

  • Högskoleverket (2003). Doktorandspegeln 2003 [A Mirror for postgraduate students 2003]. Stockholm: Högskoleverket.

  • Högskoleverket (2005). En gränslös högskola? Om internationalisering av grund- och forskarutbildning [A university without frontiers? Internationalisation in undergraduate and postgraduate education]. Stockholm: Högskoleverket.

  • Holmberg G. (1981). Foreign languages in Swedish schools. A survey. Stockholm: Skolöverstyrelsen

    Google Scholar 

  • Hult F. M. (2003). English on the streets of Sweden: an ecolinguistic view of two cities and a language policy. Working Papers in Educational Linguistics, 19 1, 43–63

    Google Scholar 

  • Hult F. M. (2004). Planning for multilingualism and minority language rights in Sweden. Language Policy, 3, 181–201

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hult F. M. (2005). A case of prestige and status planning: Swedish and English in Sweden. Current Issues in Language Planning, 6 1, 73–79

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hyltenstam K. (1999). Svenska i minoritetsspråkperspektiv [Swedish in minority language perspective] In: Hyltenstam K. (Ed.) Sveriges sju inhemska språk: ett minoritetsspråkperspektiv [Sweden’s seven domestic languages: A minority language perspective]. Lund: Studentlitteratur, pp 205–240

    Google Scholar 

  • Josephson O. (2004). Uppskjuten språkpolitik [Postponed language policy]. Språkvard, 3.

  • Kaplan R. B., Baldauf R. B. (1997). Language planning from practice to theory. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters

    Google Scholar 

  • Lainio J. (2001). The protection and rejection of minority and majority languages in the Swedish school system. In: S. Boyd, L. Huss (Eds.) Managing multilingualism in a European Nation-State: Challenges for Sweden. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters. (pp 32–50)

    Google Scholar 

  • Lambert R. D. (1999). A scaffolding for language policy. International Journal of the Sociology of Language, 137, 3–25

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lambert R. D. (2001). Adult use and language choice in foreign language policy. In: R. L. Cooper, E. Shohamy, J. Walters (Eds.) New perspectives and issues in educational language policy – A festschrift for Bernard Dov Spolsky. Amsterdam, Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company. (pp 171–196)

    Google Scholar 

  • Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research (2004). Country Report: Norway, 2003/04

  • Oakes L. (2001). Language and national identity: Comparing France and Sweden. Philadelphia: John Benjamins

    Google Scholar 

  • Oakes L. (2005). From internationalisation to globalisation: Language and the nationalist revival in Sweden. Language Problems & Language Planning, 29 2, 151–176

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Radái P. (2003). The status of language educators. European centre for modern languages. Strasbourg: Council of Europe Publishing

    Google Scholar 

  • Regeringens proposition 2004/05:162. Ny värld – Ny högskola [New World – New University]. Summary in English. http://www.regeringen.se/content/1/c6/04/74/37/584698ea.pdf. Accessed 16 January 2006.

  • Regerings proposition 2003/04:140. Kunskap och kvalitet – Elva steg för utvecklingen av gymnasieskolan [Knowledge and Quality – Eleven Steps for Improving Upper Secondary Education].

  • Prop. 2005/06:2. Bästa språket – en samlad svensk språk politik [Best Language – A Concerted Language Policy for Sweden].

  • Riksdagsdebatten om “Bästa språket” den 6/12 2005, http://www.sprakforsvaret.se/Notiser/riksdagsdebatten.htm. Accessed 16 January 2006.

  • Riksföreningen för Moderna Språk (2002). Yttrande Mål i mun. Betänkande av kommittén för svenska språket SOU 2002:27 [Statement about Speech, Report of the Committee for the Swedish Language SOU 2002:27].

  • Riksrevisionsverket (2003). Resursstyrning inom högskolan – Hur hanterar högskolorna en vikande efterfrågan? [Control of resources in the university sector – how does higher education manage declining demand?]. Stockholm.

  • Skolverket (2002). Barnomsorg, skola och vuxenutbildning i siffror 2002: Del 2 [Childcare, school and adult education in figures 2002: Part 2]. Skolverkets rapport nr 214. Stockholm.

  • Skolverket (2004). Attityder till skolan 2003 – Elevernas, lärarnas, skolbarnsföräldrarnas och allmänhetens attityder till skolan under ett decennium [Attitudes towards school 2003 – attitudes of pupils, teachers, parents and the public towards school over a decade]. Stockholm.

  • Skolverket (2005a). Grundskolans ämnen i ljuset av nationella utvärderingen 2003␣[Compulsory school subjects in the light of national evaluation]. Stockholm: Fritzes.

  • Skolverket (2005b). Barn, elever och personal och utbildningsresultat – Jämförelsetal för huvudmän Del 1 [Children, pupils, staff and education results]. Stockholm: Skolverket.

  • Skolverket (1999–2006). Statistical series Utbildningsresultat – Riksnivå Sveriges officiella statistik om förskoleverksamhet, skolbarnsomsorg, skola och vuxenutbildning. Del 1. Stockholm.

  • Skolöverstyrelsen (1962). Läroplan för grundskolan [Curriculum for compulsory school]. Stockholm: Kungliga Skolöverstyrelsens skriftserie 60.

  • Sörensen C. (2000). Språkvalet i grundskolan – en pilotundersökning [Language choice at compulsory school – a pilot survey]. Stockholm: Skolverket

    Google Scholar 

  • SOU 1992:94. Skola för bildning. Huvudbetänkande av läroplanskommittén [School for life, report of the commission on the curriculum]. Stockholm: Norstedts.

  • SOU 2002:120. Åtta vägar till kunskap – En ny struktur för gymnasieskolan [Eight pathways to knowledge – a new structure for upper secondary school]. Gymnasiekommitténs slutbetänkande. Stockholm: Fritzes.

  • SOU 2002:27. Mål i mun – Förslag till handlingsprogram för svenska språket [Speech: Draft action plan for the Swedish language].

  • SOU 1948:27. 1946 Års skolkommissions betänkande med förslag till riktlinjer för det svenska skolväsendets utveckling [Report of the 1946 school commission. Proposals for guidelines for the development of the Swedish school system]. Ecklesiastikdepartementet.

  • Spolsky B., & Shohamy E. (1997). Planning foreign-language education: An Israeli perspective. In: T. Bongaerts, K. de Boot (Eds.) Perspectives on foreign-language policy: Studies in honor of Theo van Els. Amsterdam, Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company. (pp 99–111)

    Google Scholar 

  • Spolsky B. (2004). Language policy. Cambridge: University Press

    Google Scholar 

  • Spolsky B., Lambert R. D. (2006). Language planning and policy: Models. In: Brown K. (Ed.) Encyclopedia of language and linguistics. Boston: Elsevier, pp.561–575

    Google Scholar 

  • Teleman U. (1992). Det svenska riksspråkets utsikter i ett integrerat Europa [The Swedish language’s prospects in an integrated Europe]. Språkvård, 4, 7–16

    Google Scholar 

  • Teleman U. (2002). Ära, rikedom och reda - Svensk språkvård och språkpolitik under Äldre nyare. Stockholm: Norstedts Ordbok

    Google Scholar 

  • Teleman U. (2003). Tradis och funkis: svensk språkvård och språkpolitik efter 1800. Stockholm: Norstedts Ordbok

    Google Scholar 

  • Thorson S., Molander-Beyer M., Dentler S. (2003). Språklig enfald eller mångfald...? En studie av gymnasieelevers och språklärares uppfattningar om elevers val av moderna språk. [Linguistic simplicity or diversity? An opinion survey among upper-secondary pupils and language teachers about pupils’ language choice]. Göteborgs Universitet: Utbildnings- och forskningsnämnden för lärarutbildning. UFL-Rapport Nr 2003:06

    Google Scholar 

  • Trim J. (1994). Some factors influencing national foreign language policymaking in Europe. In: R. D. Lambert (Ed.), Foreign language policy: An agenda for change, pp. 1–16, The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, vol. 532. Thousand Oaks (CA): Sage Periodical Press

  • Utbildningsdepartementet (1994). Läroplaner för det obligatoriska skolväsendet och de frivilliga skolformerna [Curricula for the compulsory and non-compulsory school system]. Stockholm.

  • van Els T. (1994). Planning foreign language teaching in a small country. In: R. D. Lambert (Ed.), Foreign language policy: An agenda for change, (Vol. 532). Thousand Oaks (CA): Sage Periodical Press, pp. 35–46, The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science.

  • Viberg Å. (2001). Bilingualism and language learning in school and outside. In:␣Skolverket (Ed.), Languages – Syllabuses, grading criteria and comments. Stockholm: Fritzes, (pp. 29–43), Gy 2000:18.

  • Westman M. (1996). Har svenska språket en framtid? [Does the Swedish language have a future?] In: L. Moberg, M. Westman (Eds.) Svenska i tusen år: glimtar ur svenska språkets utveckling [Swedish in one thousand years: Reflections of Swedish language development]. Stockholm: Norstedts. (pp. 182–194)

    Google Scholar 

  • Winsa B. (2000). Language planning in Sweden. In: R. B. Baldauf, R. B. Kaplan (Eds.) Language planning in Nepal, Taiwan and Sweden. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters. (pp. 107–203)

    Google Scholar 

  • Wright S. (2004). Language policy and language planning: From nationalism to globalisation. Palgrave Macmillan: Basingstoke

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Government and International Studies, Hong Kong Baptist University, David Lam Building, 34 Renfrew Road, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong

    Beatrice Cabau-Lampa

Authors
  1. Beatrice Cabau-Lampa
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Beatrice Cabau-Lampa.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Cabau-Lampa, B. Mother Tongue Plus Two European Languages in Sweden: Unrealistic Educational Goal?. Lang Policy 6, 333–358 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10993-007-9055-6

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10993-007-9055-6

Keywords

Search

Navigation