Student Teaching Observation and Thoughts on Education in Sweden

[pennswoods]

I just completed my first week of teaching observations where I had the chance to observe my students teaching in 7th, 8th and 9th grade classrooms (the pupils were 13, 14 and 15 respectively). Some things stood out, and I'm not sure yet if I'm seeing a trend that signifies Swedish educational norms, or if this is just a few isolated cases. Some of what I noticed were other issues that I think are more universal:

1. In my first class (9th graders), I sat next to a group of boys who misbehaved. Two were clearly bored and unmotivated, but the third was dealing with something else. He wore a hoodie that nearly covered his face and sat hunched over his iPhone, fiddling with it the whole time. He had no paper, no books, no computer. He made eye contact with no one. Never have I seen a student so closed off. The student teacher was trying to get him to do the work and got him a computer and other things, but even that didn't seem to matter. I was getting such a strong feeling from him that something was wrong, I almost wanted to cry. I spoke with the teacher afterwards. It turns out that the boy had lost both his parents in the past few months and the fact that he even bothers showing up to school is a victory of sorts. I don't think my student teacher knew this, but he handled the boy gently. However, this made me think how working with the problems of children and all the trauma they can face is another part of a teacher's job. I don't know that we prepare future teachers sufficiently for dealing with this.

2. In my second class, (7th graders), I observed that all the students had the same pencil, shared a common eraser and wrote in identical notebooks to do their in class activities. This made me think of the first class where all the students had school issued laptops for working on. At one point, a few of the students had filled up their notebooks and the teacher had to go to the supply closet to get more. This is when I realized that students weren't required to supply their own school supplies like paper and pens and pencils. It's all provided by the school/the city. I observed the same thing in today's school. This stands in such contrast to the long list of school supplies that US parents have to buy for their children at the beginning of the year and the increasing tendency in some places for parents to have to raise money to buy other supplies for under-funded schools (e.g. tissues, toilet paper).

3. None of the classes I have visited have more than 20 students in them.

4. Every school has a large kitchen and coffee room with sofas and magazines and tables and chairs for the faculty to have lunch separately from students. This is completely separate from the staffroom where teachers have desks and computers and copiers and other supplies. The break room/lunchroom is not meant to double as a workspace.

5. No uniforms. None at all. None on the teachers either. Teachers with piercings and tattoos have no problem and are not required to cover or remove these as they would in many US public schools where such body modifications are considered unprofessional and distracting. There are also US school districts and schools where teachers are not allowed to wear knee length boots with skits because they are too sexy and distracting to male students (Philadelphia), where teachers cannot wear headbands because the students are forbidden from wearing them as they can signal gang affiliation (San Antonio), where teachers can wear black or blue patent leather shoes but not red patent leather shoes because they are too sexy and distracting to male students (San Antonio).

6. Everyone is on a first name basis. Students refer to their teachers by their first name. I was introduced by my first name. There is no Ms. or Mr. anybody going on. I wonder if the students even know their teachers' last names.

7. There are people on Tumblr and in fandom who are 14 and 15, quite visibly so. Sitting among a groups of 14 and 15 year olds today made me think of these fans and see them as really, really young. I normally observe fan interaction online through my own lens. It's been 25 years since I was 15, and I really wonder just how false my memories of my 15-year-old self are. At the same time, there are 15-year-olds and 16-year-olds whose ages surprise me, and I don't know how much harm we actually do to young people by forever sequestering them with people the same age. How is a teenager ever to learn how to be an adult if they are kept away from adults (who are not their parents?) The pressure of the peer group is so merciless, and I appreciate that online fan communities are a place where teenagers and adults can mix.

8. There is no security when going into a Swedish school. I made arrangements for my students to meet me in a certain location so I can find the classroom. But I do not ever have to check in at the front desk, go through a metal detector, have my bag searched, file a background check with the police, or have to wear a badge identifying me. Some of the teachers I spoke with today shared their experiences visiting American schools (where any combination of these things is the norm) and expressed discomfort and horror at the process.

Comments

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

because they are too sexy and distracting to male students
because they are too sexy and distracting to male students

because they are too sexy and distracting to male students

[pennswoods.livejournal.com]

Yes. I know. Institutional sexism disguised in 'think of the children' discourse. So many school dress code policies are about 'reacting' to the overpowering and uncontrollable specter of male teenage hormones.

And there is so much crap that teachers and teacher trainees have to comply with in order to be allowed to do such a thankless job sometimes.

[foxestacado.livejournal.com]

This is really so interesting. I think about my European friends who look down on these aspects of American education. But it's really eye-opening to read about what the academic education system is like in Europe. Or at least, in Sweden.

[pennswoods.livejournal.com]

Comparative education is incredibly eye-opening. I'm only describing some of the logistics issues, but differences in ideologies run very deep as well and that can pose a challenge when trying to motivate students.

[dickgloucester.livejournal.com]

Interesting.

Schools here supply stationery, and the primary schools supply all pens, pencils etc. - when we were in France and had to buy huge amounts of stuff at the beginning of each year, that was initially a surprise and quickly a very unwelcome one, because of the cost.

As you know, here the children wear uniform, and teachers are expected to be conventionally smart. Suits and ties for the men, smart clothes for the women. No first name nonsense! Kids refer to their teachers as "Sir" or "Miss".

Sadly, there's more security here than there was. One can't just wander into a school now - they have to admit visitors, there are electronic locks on school gates, and if you're going to be wandering round, then you have to wear a "Visitor" badge. I think Sweden must be either a safer or a less paranoid society than here. Maybe both.

[pennswoods.livejournal.com]

School supplies are tremendously expensive and really add up when you have multiple children.

There's apparently a historical legacy as to why there are only first names used. Historically, female teachers were called Miss (because they were required to retire when they married) and male teachers (who often taught the upper grades) were called something like Master. The legacy is that the equivalent of Miss in Swedish is still considered patronizing when used to address a female teacher, so to equalize things, only first names are used. Sweden is very much anti-hierarchy.

Nobody ever calls me Dr. Pennswoods here and that makes me a little sad sometimes.

I was surprised at not having to wear a badge or sign in the office, but I was accompanied at all times. And Sweden is really a tinier country, so the majority of schools are rural and I think that influences part of the lack of security-mindedness.

[lindenswallow.livejournal.com]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009%E2%80%9310_Malm%C3%B6_shootings

[pennswoods.livejournal.com]

There is more violence in Sweden than people might expect or be willing to acknowledge, but ideologies run deep. This is not a society that is motivated by fear.

[ellie-nor.livejournal.com]

I think part of it is ideology, part of it that Sweden generally has a very low density of population, and part of it is that relatively speaking the culture is very homogenous. It is horribly sexist, but in different ways than US/Canadian, British or French culture is horribly sexist.

All that to say, though, I think the Swedish education system is much more humane.

[pennswoods.livejournal.com]

Yes. There are a lot of different factors here, and it's interesting to see how they play out in how students and teachers are socialized. Education is a powerful tool for molding a country's population and national identity (and perpetuating social problems). It's so interesting to see this as an outsider.

The system is much more humane on so many levels for both teachers and students, but I see deep issues with unacknowledged pervasive racism here that would not stand in other places, and that disturbs me.

[sofisticat.livejournal.com]

Schol uniforms are not common in my part of the world. Most of us would find the idea very odd. I guess American schools are much more formal than Scandinavian schools.

[pennswoods.livejournal.com]

It depends on the uniform and the school district in the US. In places where there are uniforms, it can be an attempt to reduce gang issues and control student behavior. The uniforms may be a simple polo shirt and khaki trousers with restrictions on make-up and piercing and shoe style. It's kind of like prison.

In other places, the uniforms are more flexible or attractive and allow for individual modification. But these are usually private schools.

[sofisticat.livejournal.com]

Kind of like prison. Now that doesn't sound very nice.

[winnett.livejournal.com]

I like all the differences you're posting about. It's interesting how one country does things differently than ours. One reason I love school asian dramas.

[holyfant.livejournal.com]

Very interesting to read. :-) The Swedish system is probably closer to what I'm used to here than what you were used to in the States; the school here aren't fully responsible for school supplies (though part of the supplies do come from the schools and pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds get everything for free) and teachers are addressed by Mr/Ms last name here. Other than that, everything you describe here is my daily practice as well.

I didn't know uniforms were so common in the US? When I was in highschool we still had a colour code we had to adhere to (dark blue and white), though not a real uniform, and in my fourth year the whole thing was abandoned altogether. There were the arguments that uniforms allowed for more social uniformity and less opportunities for bullying, but I think that on the whole pupils will be creative enough to still show individual variety in their uniforms and that they will always find reasons to pick on someone even if everyone's dressed the same.

The idea of having to go through a metal detector also upsets me, I must say. I know that some schools in the area of Brussels have started applying this kind of security recently because of an upsurge in urban tensions and violence and I think that's just terrible. I literally find it hard to imagine having to go to work in an environment where people have to be scanned for weapons, wow.

[mudblood428.livejournal.com]

This is absolutely fascinating. (You can tell I'm playing LJ catch-up this morning, right?) I'm showing this post to my husband, who teaches high school English. I've had an opportunity to observe his classroom, and while I think his school is pretty forward thinking in a lot of ways, I find it really interesting that the seemingly informal constructs (tattoos, first names, etc.) do not diminish the authority of the teacher or have any other negative impacts. And imagine that - a lunch room for lunch only! I wish more American teachers could step outside our borders to see this for themselves.