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In this article, we explore writing as a recurring and structured practice in the teaching of history. A teacher and her Grade 6 students were followed for 12 weeks’ teaching about the Vasa era. The material consists of field notes, transcribed voice recordings, teaching material, and samples of students’ writing. Drawing on the sociology of education, functional theories of writing, and concepts of historical thinking, the result shows that the teacher prioritized organizing information about the era while also, through writing based on images, creating opportunities for imagining, exploring and participating in content-related interaction. Social semiotic analysis highlights how the students employed different ways of taking notes explicitly modelled by the teacher. While the writing practices created some opportunities for learning about important events, understanding the historical significance of the Vasa era, and approaching a historical perspective, ethical dimensions and critical examination of evidence were de-emphasized. Implications for using writing in critical literacy practices of school history are discussed.

Tracing writing. Students writing in the context of Social studies education. This doctoral thesis is a contribution to the field of writing research and to the understanding of literacy practices as part of disciplinary learning. The thesis deals with writing as a literacy practice in the context of Social studies education in Swedish secondary school. Writing is understood in a broad sense, which include the use of different modalities and semiotic resources. The aim of the study is to explore and describe what characterises literacy practices, focusing on students´ writing in their daily school life, both inside and outside school. This is conducted by studying how writing emerge when students learn a subject content about law and order as part of the teaching of Social sciences. The analytical framework employed draws on the research of The New Literacy Studies (NLS), The Triadic model, (Triadmodellen), the Wheel of writing, (Skrivhjulet) and the sociological concepts of ritual, strategic and communicative actions. The concepts writing events, acts of writing and writing practices are central for the study. To form the foundation of an ecological understanding of writing as a literacy practice the data has been collected during a longer period of ethnographic fieldwork. The study employs a combination of ethnographic methods to enable a qualitative analysis and to establish a thick description. The collected materials include field notes from classroom observations together with audio- and video recordings combined with interviews with students and the teacher, students´ journals, assignments and a written test. The data also includes a survey, a collection of various texts such as teacher planning material, work material and instructions, textbook, policy documents, reflection notes and photos. The empirical results are presented in three chapters, each one of them focusing on students´ writing during teaching, writing in connection to an oral presentation and writing in conjunction with a final written test. The results show that writing in social sciences are used, primarily to store, organize and structure subject content, mainly by answering questions in the textbook which, together with the teaching, strongly mediates the subject content. This results in reproductive writing strategies and texts sticking close to the textbook. Furthermore, the results show that students´ disciplinary writing practices depend on where the writing is situated, in school or outside school, and that the acts of writing are conducted to prepare for oral participation in teaching. As spoken modes dominate during lessons, the writing practices appears in a supporting rather than independent role. A final important result is that the writing practices in general seem to be shaped by those required during a final written test. The results demonstrate how students´ writing is strategically and ritually motivated and that communicative actions are rare. It is argued that this is a result of the school culture´s and the teaching practices´ strong focus on final tests, assessment and grading, which in turn has to do with the Swedish school system governed by a national curriculum based on performance culture and measurement.

Syftet med denna studie är att få kunskap om speciallärares erfarenheter av språkutvecklande arbete i skolan, med fokus på återkoppling till elever när datorn som skrivverktyg används. Studien baseras på en intervjuundersökning av tio speciallärare. Det är en sociokulturell ansats som har använts vid analys- och tolkningsarbetets genomförande. Resultatet av studien visar att elevers delaktighet i ett språkutvecklande sammanhang hade betydelse när återkoppling gavs. Det är i samspel och i dialog mellan lärare och elev som möjligheter och villkor för barns delaktighet har synliggjorts. Det är när återkopplingen har skett direkt, i processen, som det har funnits förutsättningar att möta elevers olika behov och möjliggöra lärande. Det är då som eleverna har fått vägledning om hur de kan ta sig vidare för att närma sig målen. När återkopplingen gavs mot ett färdigt resultat blev återkopplingen fördröjd och ledde bort från lärandeprocessen. Då synliggjordes svårigheter att möta elevers individuella behov. Den praktiska datorkompetensen hos lärarna har i studien visat sig ha betydelse för elevers möjligheter att närma sig sina lärandemål. The aim of this study is to gain knowledge of special education teachers´ experiences from language development in schools, with focus on feedback to pupils when the computers is used as a writing tool. The study is based on interviews with ten special education teachers. A socio-cultural model was used during the interpretation and analysing phase. It is through interaction and dialogue between teacher and pupil, that possibilities and terms for the pupil´s participation has been made visible. It is when the instant feedback given during the process, that you can find the possibilities to meet with the needs of that particular pupil to enable learning. That is when the pupils has been given guidance how to further approach his or her goals. If feedback is only provided later and is more goal-oriented, the learning process is delayed, with greater difficulties to meet with the pupil´s particular needs. The study also shows that the practical competence in computer usage among the special education teachers is important for pupils´ possibilities of reaching their goals.