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The Digital Student. Challenges and Opportunities Using EDI in Swedish Music Education

Houmann, Anna LU ; Barfalk, Joakim LU ; Lundahl, Erik and Berlin Englund, Per (2025) In European Perspectives on Music Education 13. p.243-259
Abstract
This chapter is situated in the intersection between a practice paper and a scienti!c paper. The authors of the chapter are researchers and teachers in teacher education and upper secondary school. All are part of a funded practice-based research project focusing on EDI (electronic digital instrument), within a national pilot project commissioned by the Swedish government from 2017 to 2024, an initiative in the ULF agreement, (Utveckling [Development], Lärande [Learning], Forskning [Research]) (ULF-avtal, 2023). The national pilot project aims to develop and test sustainable collaboration models between academia and school regarding research, school activities and teacher education such as establishing research environments, conducting... (More)
This chapter is situated in the intersection between a practice paper and a scienti!c paper. The authors of the chapter are researchers and teachers in teacher education and upper secondary school. All are part of a funded practice-based research project focusing on EDI (electronic digital instrument), within a national pilot project commissioned by the Swedish government from 2017 to 2024, an initiative in the ULF agreement, (Utveckling [Development], Lärande [Learning], Forskning [Research]) (ULF-avtal, 2023). The national pilot project aims to develop and test sustainable collaboration models between academia and school regarding research, school activities and teacher education such as establishing research environments, conducting development and/or research projects, increasing collaboration with teacher education by integrating research with education and internship or linking student’s thesis with practice-based research projects.

In Sweden, as well as in other countries, efforts to make education research-based
have been manifold (Aasen & Prøitz, 2004; Adolfsson & Sundberg, 2018), focusing, not least, on the collaboration between researchers and practitioners. Thus, what we henceforth will call practice-based research (also known and referred to as practice-near [Magnusson & Malmström, 2023] and participatory research [Godfrey-Faussett, 2022]) has been on the agenda (Somekh & Zeichner, 2009), both in policy and the media. This is an international trend in educational policy to stimulate better links between research and practice, and to bring close-to-practice issues to the forefront in educational research (Wyse et al., 2018).

An important reason for the emphasis on practice-based research in Sweden is
the wording in the Education Act (SFS# 2010:800), which declares that education should be based on “scienti!c knowledge and proven experience”. The Swedish National Agency for Education (SNAE), (2014), explains “scientific knowledge” as “theoretical rooting, elaboration and development, as well as an empirical basis”, and “proven experience” (p.11) as teacher knowledge that is tried and tested collegially and documented. These understandings are widely used, even though disputed (Persson & Persson, 2017). In the specific Government Official Report (SOU2018:19) on practice-based research, Forska tillsammans [Do Research Together], practice-based research is described as research that concentrates on the needs of the practitioners, with the purpose of improving practice. Bergman and Hansson (2020) show how SNAE endorses implementation of the Education Act, both as evidence-based, that is the transformation of research results of what works in teaching, and as evidence-informed, where the experiences of the teachers and the local context are
important aspects of how research results can be used (cf. Levinsson, 2013). An important way in which practice-based research differs from other kinds of research and previous collaboration between academics and schools is the emphasis on collaboration on an equal footing. This means, for example, that professional groups within schools should be able to initiate research projects, not just researchers. Hence, the teachers, whose activities are being studied, are also subjects in planning, implementing, and reporting the result of the research. The vision is that the collaborative models should be the basis for professional practice within school and teacher training. Research questions developed must, therefore, be formulated together by researchers and teachers, making sure that the research conducted is based on the needs of practitioners on a deeper level. Since practice-based research and collaboration between research and practitioners are endorsed in policy and politics, and since the !eld is ever-increasing, it is important to highlight results, insights and experiences from research conducted in the intersection between practice and research.

Our practice-based project, presented in this chapter, has the aim of generating
knowledge about how teaching and learning an electronic digital instrument (EDI) is experienced by teachers and students in the upper secondary school Aesthetics Programme Music (APM) and teacher education staff and students. As part of the national pilot project, the project also aims to develop and gather experiences of a model for practice-based research where schoolteachers’ questions are raised to a full-scale research project where researchers collaborate with teachers and students in schools, and in teacher education, in developing scientific knowledge. The project focuses on EDI and aims at answering the following research questions: What does EDI mean and how is it characterised in the APM? What are the speci!c challenges and opportunities involved in teaching and learning EDI in the APM? How can teaching and learning in and about EDI be designed to develop teachers’ and students’ abilities to take on new instruments and soundscapes in times of constant change? (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding
publication status
published
subject
host publication
Liberty – Equity – Creativity : Innovating and Inventing Music in the Classroom - Innovating and Inventing Music in the Classroom
series title
European Perspectives on Music Education
editor
Buchborn, Thade ; Gall, Marina ; Hennessy, Sarah and Stumpfögger, Margret
volume
13
pages
243 - 259
publisher
HELBLING Publishing
ISBN
978-3-7113-0531-2
project
The Digital Student – Challenges and Opportunities for Teachers and Student Teachers in the Digitising Upper-Secondary School
Utbildning, Lärande, Forskning (ULF)
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
7725a935-3c93-45dc-961b-d786b824213f
date added to LUP
2026-02-19 17:12:50
date last changed
2026-02-23 11:20:58
@inbook{7725a935-3c93-45dc-961b-d786b824213f,
  abstract     = {{This chapter is situated in the intersection between a practice paper and a scienti!c paper. The authors of the chapter are researchers and teachers in teacher education and upper secondary school. All are part of a funded practice-based research project focusing on EDI (electronic digital instrument), within a national pilot project commissioned by the Swedish government from 2017 to 2024, an initiative in the ULF agreement, (Utveckling [Development], Lärande [Learning], Forskning [Research]) (ULF-avtal, 2023). The national pilot project aims to develop and test sustainable collaboration models between academia and school regarding research, school activities and teacher education such as establishing research environments, conducting development and/or research projects, increasing collaboration with teacher education by integrating research with education and internship or linking student’s thesis with practice-based research projects.<br/><br/>In Sweden, as well as in other countries, efforts to make education research-based<br/>have been manifold (Aasen &amp; Prøitz, 2004; Adolfsson &amp; Sundberg, 2018), focusing, not least, on the collaboration between researchers and practitioners. Thus, what we henceforth will call practice-based research (also known and referred to as practice-near [Magnusson &amp; Malmström, 2023] and participatory research [Godfrey-Faussett, 2022]) has been on the agenda (Somekh &amp; Zeichner, 2009), both in policy and the media. This is an international trend in educational policy to stimulate better links between research and practice, and to bring close-to-practice issues to the forefront in educational research (Wyse et al., 2018).<br/><br/>An important reason for the emphasis on practice-based research in Sweden is<br/>the wording in the Education Act (SFS# 2010:800), which declares that education should be based on “scienti!c knowledge and proven experience”. The Swedish National Agency for Education (SNAE), (2014), explains “scientific knowledge” as “theoretical rooting, elaboration and development, as well as an empirical basis”, and “proven experience” (p.11) as teacher knowledge that is tried and tested collegially and documented. These understandings are widely used, even though disputed (Persson &amp; Persson, 2017). In the specific Government Official Report (SOU2018:19) on practice-based research, Forska tillsammans [Do Research Together], practice-based research is described as research that concentrates on the needs of the practitioners, with the purpose of improving practice. Bergman and Hansson (2020) show how SNAE endorses implementation of the Education Act, both as evidence-based, that is the transformation of research results of what works in teaching, and as evidence-informed, where the experiences of the teachers and the local context are<br/>important aspects of how research results can be used (cf. Levinsson, 2013). An important way in which practice-based research differs from other kinds of research and previous collaboration between academics and schools is the emphasis on collaboration on an equal footing. This means, for example, that professional groups within schools should be able to initiate research projects, not just researchers. Hence, the teachers, whose activities are being studied, are also subjects in planning, implementing, and reporting the result of the research. The vision is that the collaborative models should be the basis for professional practice within school and teacher training. Research questions developed must, therefore, be formulated together by researchers and teachers, making sure that the research conducted is based on the needs of practitioners on a deeper level. Since practice-based research and collaboration between research and practitioners are endorsed in policy and politics, and since the !eld is ever-increasing, it is important to highlight results, insights and experiences from research conducted in the intersection between practice and research.<br/><br/>Our practice-based project, presented in this chapter, has the aim of generating<br/>knowledge about how teaching and learning an electronic digital instrument (EDI) is experienced by teachers and students in the upper secondary school Aesthetics Programme Music (APM) and teacher education staff and students. As part of the national pilot project, the project also aims to develop and gather experiences of a model for practice-based research where schoolteachers’ questions are raised to a full-scale research project where researchers collaborate with teachers and students in schools, and in teacher education, in developing scientific knowledge. The project focuses on EDI and aims at answering the following research questions: What does EDI mean and how is it characterised in the APM? What are the speci!c challenges and opportunities involved in teaching and learning EDI in the APM? How can teaching and learning in and about EDI be designed to develop teachers’ and students’ abilities to take on new instruments and soundscapes in times of constant change?}},
  author       = {{Houmann, Anna and Barfalk, Joakim and Lundahl, Erik and Berlin Englund, Per}},
  booktitle    = {{Liberty – Equity – Creativity : Innovating and Inventing Music in the Classroom}},
  editor       = {{Buchborn, Thade and Gall, Marina and Hennessy, Sarah and Stumpfögger, Margret}},
  isbn         = {{978-3-7113-0531-2}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  pages        = {{243--259}},
  publisher    = {{HELBLING Publishing}},
  series       = {{European Perspectives on Music Education}},
  title        = {{The Digital Student. Challenges and Opportunities Using EDI in Swedish Music Education}},
  volume       = {{13}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}