Disciplinary literacy in the social-science subjects of history, religious education, civics and geography will be explored in this project. With the goal of strengthening, the students´ subject knowledge it will seek to identify and develop effective teaching strategies for the social science subjects in multilingual classrooms compulsory School (year 7-9). The project includes teaching newly arrived young people in preparatory education and thus focuses on inclusive practices. The ultimate goal is to impact on the students´ possibilities to interact both in school, and in their everyday life in society, and thus is also of importance for promoting active citizenship among young people of today.
Theoretical perspectives from disciplinary literacy as well as the theoretical concepts such as teaching-learning circles, and scaffolding are central in this research project. The findings will contribute to grasping subject-specific content and concepts that organize and communicate subject knowledge in the social science subjects. These findings may also reflect the modes of thinking, as well as the epistemology, of the social science subjects. The project will explore questions -such as: What specific literacy challenges can be identified in subject teaching in the social sciences-field in multilingual classrooms?
Multiple methods such as workshops with teachers, classroom observations, questionnaires and interviews with teacher students during their education will be employed. We will initiate a research circle that joins researchers, teachers and teacher students around questions of how to transform subject literacy into teaching practices. We expect that results from the project will have an impact on how teachers can support each pupil from their starting point, developing their subject knowledge regardless of linguistic background.
