Pedagogy

Education/pedagogy is a wide field of research covering education, upbringing, and learning and how these phenomena relate to, as well as are shaped by, the institutional, economic, political, cultural, and social contexts of which they are a part.

The discipline of education/pedagogy at Malmö University emanates from a societal context focusing on processes of upbringing, education, and formation/Bildung in preschool, school, higher education, and adult education, as well as in non-formal and informal settings. Processes of knowledge formation and meaning-making in everyday situations and in education are considered relational and intertwining. The discipline of education/pedagogy at Malmö University is characterized by close connections with praxis and educational professions, by an interest in inclusive education and diversity, and by the philosophy of education and childhood sociology.

Childhood and Education

Philosophical Studies of Education

The research group Philosophical Studies of Education (PSE) organises researchers who engage in foundational questions concerning education and pedagogy in their widest sense. Through historical and philosophical perspectives, we aim to study and elucidate central questions, controversies and subjects concerning educational processes and relations.

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Morten Korsgaard, for the research group Philosophical Studies of Education (PSE)

Philosophical Studies of Education (PSE)

Phenomenography, Variation Theory and Learning Study (PeVALS)

The common theoretical base is research on phenomenography, variation theory as theoretical perspectives on learning, but also action research and improvement science. Based on these approaches, the group studies intentional learning at pre-school or school together with teachers, with a focus on the learner’s perspectives. By studying the relationship between instruction and learning processes, results are used to develop learning and design new teaching approaches based on scientific knowledge.

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Jan-Eric Ekberg

Research on Diversity in Education and Society

The research group consists of researchers, teachers and PhD-students, preferably from the Institution School Development and Leadership but also from other institutions at the Faculty Learning and Society. A central theme for the research in the group is diversity, which is studied in relation to teaching, learning, language/multilingualism, communication, profession, ethics, health and cooperation.

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Anna-Karin Svensson, Research on Diversity in Education and Society (ReDES)

Research on Adult and Higher Education

The researchers are studying adult learning in education in relation to previous learning, experiences and professional skills. The aim is to provide knowledge about the field of tension between adult students’ professional skills and previous experience-based learning through different theoretical and methodological approaches. The group investigates the way in which this affects different learning processes in various contexts during education mainly at distance, regardless of whether students attend a professional or postgraduate degree. The group also targets an interest in students with non-academic backgrounds.

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Marie Jedemark, Research on Adult and Higher Education (RAHE)

Educational Leadership and Development in Schools and Preschools

Multidisciplinary research on leadership and school development in preschools, schools, high schools and academia, with the aim of problematizing and creating an understanding of the role of leadership in the transformation of agents, structures, cultures and practices. Researchers within ELD conduct critical organizational research, including on how companies and businesses engage in Swedish schools, and on how school development is driven by different interests and ideas. Additional focus areas are analysis of leadership for professional learning communities; development of practices; cross-sectoral collaboration; and self-reflexivity. ELD-research is based on several different organizational and leadership theories, as well as on the educational history and educational philosophy, and includes different perspectives, such as special education, social background, gender and ethnicity.

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Magnus Erlandsson, the research group Research on Educational Leadership and Development in Schools and Preschools (ELD)

Pedagogy in higher education

Pedagogy in higher education deals with adult learning within the framework of higher education. Students' learning within formal learning situations is explored with an interdisciplinary approach, based on different theoretical perspectives and with different research methods. Academic subject specialists from all over the University meet to jointly explore and design academic teaching. Ongoing research spans areas such as learning environments, professional development, broadened participation, digital learning, challenge-based learning and academic literacy.