Lärarperspektiv på läsförståelse. En intervjustudie om undervisning i årskurs 4-6.

Teacher perspective on reading comprehension. An Interview Study on Education in Grades 4-6

The purpose of the study was to investigate teachers’ statements about reading comprehension in grades 4-6. What aspects of reading comprehension do teachers emphasize, what constitutes and distinguishes successful teaching of reading comprehension, what methods and activities do teachers use in their teaching, and what opportunities and obstacles do they encounter? The theoretical framework of the study is based on practical theory. The teachers′ statements relate to the cultural, economic and social conditions to which the school is subject. Twenty-two teachers were interviewed about their own teaching of reading comprehension skills. The questions concerned the methods the teachers say they use and how they perceive the conditions offered by their schools in terms of resources and skills development. The interviews gave a somewhat unclear impression of teachers’ systematic work to equip students with a broad repertoire of reading strategies. Teaching was influenced by the resources that the school could offer. The responses reveal that, to a certain extent, the interviewed teachers lacked sufficient resources in terms of training, knowledge, time, and material to carry out the intended teaching. These shortcomings make it difficult to conduct effective teaching of reading comprehension. The teachers would like more knowledge on how to best design the reading comprehension instruction. The teachers perceived a discrepancy between the skills development they needed and what was offered by their schools.