"Hur använder man dem i ett sammanhang?”

: Begreppsutveckling i samhällsvetenskapliga ämnen i samverkan mellan ämneslärare och speciallärare

Abstract

Concept understanding is fundamental for active participation in a democratic society. The purpose of this study is to contribute with knowledge of how students in secondary school and upper secondary school develop their understanding and application of subject-matter concepts in social science education, and further how special needs-teachers can support teachers in this developmental process. With inspiration from practical action research, semi-structured interviews combined with introductory- and follow-up talks for preparation and reflection as well as classroom observation, qualitative empirical data from content-area teaching processes was gathered with concept understanding and application in scope. The analysis was built on a theoretical framework with Vygotsky’s proximal zone of development, scaffolding and a praxis model developed by Arevik and Hartzell (2007).
The result shows that teachers support their students’ understanding and use of concepts on all three levels of the praxis model - the students’ experiences associated with subject matter concepts (the A-level), their theoretical understanding (B-level) and highly prioritised application in written texts (C-level). The teachers acknowledge that students tend to recognise the significance of the concepts, yet they also point out the risk that students settle for reaching a fundamental theoretical understanding rather than taking a further step by applying the concepts in their own reasoning för analytic and reflective purposes. Oscillation between the different levels of the praxis model means that the purpose of teaching can be qualification as well as subjectification and socialisation.
Increased awareness of the use of concepts and opportunities for reflection has contributed to a shift from prevoius spontaneus micro level scaffolding to planned macro level scaffolding, which has effected the students use of concepts. Another finding is that the teachers consider two major supportive functions in the teaching process for further professional development: to direct focus on conceptual understanding in the content-area teaching and to function as a ”kick-starter” for critical reflection on their own teaching-methods. An implication for special education is that the development assignment for special-needs teachers can be realised through collaboration with content-area teachers, with the needs of students as the outset for the improvement of teaching.

Date of Award	2025-Jun
Original language	Swedish
Supervisor	Sofia Lindberg (Supervisor), Helena Sjunnesson (Assessor) & Helena Sjunnesson (Examiner)