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Lika chanser i gymnaiset? En studie om betyg, nationella prov och social reproduktion

Korp, Helena LU (2006)
Abstract
The general confidence in equal opportunity and equivalent grades are crucial to the moral justification of the social stratification in the modern society, in which meritocracy holds a hegemonic status. In Sweden, a political aim has been that everybody should get upper secondary education, and the government has established a National Agency for Education to promote and control the quality in education and grading. The national assessments are devised by the National Agency of Education for supporting equivalence in grading across regions, schools and programmes.



The thesis is based on an investigation, initiated by the National Agency for Education, of the national assessments as means for equivalent grading of upper... (More)
The general confidence in equal opportunity and equivalent grades are crucial to the moral justification of the social stratification in the modern society, in which meritocracy holds a hegemonic status. In Sweden, a political aim has been that everybody should get upper secondary education, and the government has established a National Agency for Education to promote and control the quality in education and grading. The national assessments are devised by the National Agency of Education for supporting equivalence in grading across regions, schools and programmes.



The thesis is based on an investigation, initiated by the National Agency for Education, of the national assessments as means for equivalent grading of upper secondary students in different programmes and schools. The investigation was motivated by the fact that statistics had indicated that the national assessments were used differently in different programmes and schools, and were considered to a different degree in the grading of students. It is based on interviews with teachers, students and principals in four upper secondary schools and four programmes, two theoretical programmes and two vocational. The sample included schools of different size, range of programmes and results. It included schools in cities as well as in rural areas.



The results of the investigation demonstrated a great variation between programmes and schools concerning the quality and mode of instruction in the core courses and in instructional materials and tasks. It also displayed significant differences in how the students were prepared for the national assessments, in the test-taking conditions, in how achievements were judged and in how the teachers made use of the test results in the grading of the students. Moreover, the items of the assessments corresponded unequally to the taught curriculum in the respective programmes and to the interests and out-of-school experiences of students with diverse backgrounds.



The thesis thus show severe problems in the realisation of the political intentions to equalise educational opportunity and to make grading equivalent between schools and programmes. (Less)
Abstract (Swedish)
Popular Abstract in Swedish

Under 1990-talet genomfördes en genomgripande reform av det svenska gymnasiet. Dels ersattes de tidigare gymnasielinjerna med treåriga program, som samtliga ger en grundläggande högskolebehörighet, dels flyttades ansvaret för utbildningens genomförande och ekonomi från staten till kommunerna. Ett kriterierelaterat betygssystem ersatte också det tidigare normrelaterade. Det betyder att eleverna betygsätts utifrån hur väl de uppfyller de kunskapsmål som är uppsatta i kursplanerna. Eftersom betygen används som urvalsinstrument är det viktigt att de är likvärdiga mellan skolor och program ? en elevs kunskaper ska värderas lika oavsett var hon har fått sin utbildning och sitt betyg. För att stödja en... (More)
Popular Abstract in Swedish

Under 1990-talet genomfördes en genomgripande reform av det svenska gymnasiet. Dels ersattes de tidigare gymnasielinjerna med treåriga program, som samtliga ger en grundläggande högskolebehörighet, dels flyttades ansvaret för utbildningens genomförande och ekonomi från staten till kommunerna. Ett kriterierelaterat betygssystem ersatte också det tidigare normrelaterade. Det betyder att eleverna betygsätts utifrån hur väl de uppfyller de kunskapsmål som är uppsatta i kursplanerna. Eftersom betygen används som urvalsinstrument är det viktigt att de är likvärdiga mellan skolor och program ? en elevs kunskaper ska värderas lika oavsett var hon har fått sin utbildning och sitt betyg. För att stödja en likvärdig betygsätting finns nationella prov för vissa kurser. Denna avhandling bygger på resultaten av en skolverksstudie av hur de nationella proven i matematik A, engelska A och svenska B, kurser som är gemensamma för elever i alla program, används och fungerar i betygsättningen i olika program och skolor, och hur de stämmer överens med den undervisning som ges i dessa kurser i de olika miljöerna. I studien intervjuades lärare, elever och rektorer i fyra program (barn- och fritidsprogrammet, byggprogrammet, naturvetenskapsprogrammet och samhällsprogrammet) på fyra skolor, som representerade mycket skilda miljöer för lärande. Studien visade att det finns en mycket stor variation mellan program och skolor i alla led från undervisning och förberedelser till genomförandet och bedömningen av de nationella proven, och slutligen i hur de nationella proven användes i betygsättningen. I avhandlingen sätts dessa resultat in i ett vidare perspektiv med hjälp bl.a. av reproduktionsteori. En viktig slutsats är att äldre utbildningsformers olika traditioner och uppdelning av elever med olika kön och bakgrund på olika utbildningsgrenar i stor utsträckning lever kvar i det nuvarande systemet. Eleverna differentieras genom sina val till och inom olika program och skolor, och väl inne får de undervisning med olika inriktning och som ger olika tillgång till de kognitiva verktyg som fordras för de högre betygen ? något som bl.a. återspeglas i att skilda läromedel används för samma kurs i olika program. I avhandlingen framkommer att kursplaner och betygskriterier såväl som de nationella proven är mera kongruenta med de studieförberedande programmens traditioner och koder. Att elever i olika program och skolor har olika förutsättningar att klara uppgifterna i de nationella proven och att svara upp mot betygskriterierna i de gemensamma kurserna kan förstås i detta perspektiv ? likaså att de nationella proven har olika status och används på olika sätt i betygssättningen. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
supervisor
opponent
  • Prof. Kroksmark, Tomas, HLK, Jönköping
organization
publishing date
type
Thesis
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Differentiation, National Assessments, Social reproduction, Pedagogy and didactics, Upper secondary education, Grades, Pedagogik, didaktik
pages
299 pages
publisher
Malmö högskola
defense location
Malmö Högskola, Lärarutbildningen, Nordenskiöldsgatan 10, sal D 138
defense date
2006-09-08 10:15:00
ISBN
91-85042-20-X
language
Swedish
LU publication?
yes
id
b1684a8c-a9b1-4b64-b90b-3727b4967aad (old id 25427)
date added to LUP
2016-04-04 11:55:50
date last changed
2018-11-21 21:08:02
@phdthesis{b1684a8c-a9b1-4b64-b90b-3727b4967aad,
  abstract     = {{The general confidence in equal opportunity and equivalent grades are crucial to the moral justification of the social stratification in the modern society, in which meritocracy holds a hegemonic status. In Sweden, a political aim has been that everybody should get upper secondary education, and the government has established a National Agency for Education to promote and control the quality in education and grading. The national assessments are devised by the National Agency of Education for supporting equivalence in grading across regions, schools and programmes.<br/><br>
<br/><br>
The thesis is based on an investigation, initiated by the National Agency for Education, of the national assessments as means for equivalent grading of upper secondary students in different programmes and schools. The investigation was motivated by the fact that statistics had indicated that the national assessments were used differently in different programmes and schools, and were considered to a different degree in the grading of students. It is based on interviews with teachers, students and principals in four upper secondary schools and four programmes, two theoretical programmes and two vocational. The sample included schools of different size, range of programmes and results. It included schools in cities as well as in rural areas.<br/><br>
<br/><br>
The results of the investigation demonstrated a great variation between programmes and schools concerning the quality and mode of instruction in the core courses and in instructional materials and tasks. It also displayed significant differences in how the students were prepared for the national assessments, in the test-taking conditions, in how achievements were judged and in how the teachers made use of the test results in the grading of the students. Moreover, the items of the assessments corresponded unequally to the taught curriculum in the respective programmes and to the interests and out-of-school experiences of students with diverse backgrounds.<br/><br>
<br/><br>
The thesis thus show severe problems in the realisation of the political intentions to equalise educational opportunity and to make grading equivalent between schools and programmes.}},
  author       = {{Korp, Helena}},
  isbn         = {{91-85042-20-X}},
  keywords     = {{Differentiation; National Assessments; Social reproduction; Pedagogy and didactics; Upper secondary education; Grades; Pedagogik; didaktik}},
  language     = {{swe}},
  publisher    = {{Malmö högskola}},
  school       = {{Lund University}},
  title        = {{Lika chanser i gymnaiset? En studie om betyg, nationella prov och social reproduktion}},
  year         = {{2006}},
}