Early-career teachers face numerous challenges when using digital technologies in their educational practices. This systematic literature review explores how early-career teachers develop professional digital competence in practice and identifies some of the contributing factors for this development. Twenty-five publications were selected for inclusion in the review study after a careful search strategy and detailed screening conducted in three popular and relevant databases (Web of Science, Scopus and ERIC). The analysis of the reviewed publications revealed four overarching themes (actively developing professional digital competence, taking advantage of development opportunities, mentoring as a way of development, and professional digital competence interwoven with early-career teachers’ professional identity development). The analysis also revealed five factors (institutional culture, accessibility and availability of resources, governance and leadership, insufficient or lack of technical and pedagogical support and a heavy workload) contributing to early-career teachers’ professional digital competence development. The systematic review offers conclusions and research implications.

A positive school climate is characterized by a higher degree of well-being among students, reduced bullying, and improved academic performance. While many initiatives are aimed at creating a positive school climate, discussions in both research and theory frequently fail to acknowledge the essential role of school personnel. This study examines a purposeful sample of Swedish middle-school students (4th to 9th grade) of school personnel’s noticing in fostering or hindering a positive school climate. Fifteen (15) focus groups and 19 semi-structured interviews were analyzed, covering 133 participants selected from three schools (age range 10 to 16 years) in a Swedish municipality. Drawing on a framework of professional noticing and positive school and classroom climate, the investigation was conducted using a case study approach and analyzed with the help of content analysis. The results highlighted the importance placed by students on school personnel noticing appropriate things/events and responding accordingly. For this to happen, personnel need to (a) notice and make themselves visible; (b) be actively observing as a prerequisite to their noticing; (c) be receptive to noticing; (d) notice and grasp a full picture, including students’ perspectives; and (e) connect their noticing with appropriate actions.

Developing children's abilities to act safely, respectfully, and responsibly in digital environments has been an essential component of educational systems for all ages. This study aims to explore what adequate digital competence is in early childhood education and how preschool teachers characterise young children's adequate digital competence. The research seeks to address these questions by conducting in-depth interviews with 13 preschool teachers at three preschools in Sweden. The collected data were analysed using thematic analysis in accordance with the Grounded Theory perspective.Preschool teachers characterize adequate digital competence in early childhood education as more than just a skillful and safe use of digital technologies. The study reveals seven key themes in which preschool teachers characterise children's adequate digital competence: (a) to become familiar with digital technologies; (b) to dare try digital technologies; (c) to use digital technologies; (d) to have a critical approach toward digital technologies; (e) to have ethical media competence, which includes moral, formal, and legal responsibilities; (f) to have problem-solving skills; (g) and to be producer, not just a consumer of digital technologies. By framing and exemplifying children's adequate digital competence, the findings of this study offer a potential framework for preschools and preschool teachers to foster children's digital competences at an appropriate level.

Rapporten är en sammanställning av en studie beställd av en kommun med syfte att få en ökad förståelse för varför förhållandevis många flickor på mellanstadiet i kommunen upplever sig mer utsatta än pojkar. Studien tar fasta på forskning som visar på att det inte finns starka biologiska förklaringar till eventuella skillnader mellan könen, vilket pekar mot vikten av att synliggöra kulturens inverkan på könsmönster, så kallad genusmönster. Det finns en ansenlig mängd forskning idag som pekar på att mobbning tar form och vidmakthålls i en socioekologisk miljö där mikro-, meso- och makronivåer samverkar. Med denna bas som utgångspunkt har 44 personer på tre skolor av olika karaktär intervjuats med stöd i semi-strukturerad intervjuteknik och kategoriserats med hjälp av fallstudier och innehållsanalys. De nästan 800 sidorna transkriberat material synliggör en nyanserad bild av elevers, lärares, skolledares, elevhälsopersonal och administrativ personals förståelse och beskrivna handlingar av hur de närmar sig skolans värdegrunds- och trygghetsuppdrag med särskilt fokus på kön. Det finns en stor kompetens och förhållandevis djup förståelse för frågor som rör utsatthet och mobbning i den grupp som har intervjuats – en kompetens som i mångt och mycket ligger i linje med forskning idag. Vi hoppas att en studie som denna kan bidra som ett systematiskt underlag och stöd för professionellt omdöme. Resultaten visar på; a) en bred variation av sätt att förstå vissa flickors utsatthet; b) metoder/åtgärder som används på de tre skolorna; samt, c) olika hinder för att stimulera en trygg socioekologisk miljö.  

De övergripande resultaten visar att de intervjuade är medvetna om att pojkar och flickor överlag är unika individer och där inte bara vissa flickor, utan även vissa pojkar mår dåligt och behöver lyftas fram liksom ges stöd. Samtidigt finns mönster avseende på hur flickor mår, beter sig och behandlas som är viktiga att lyfta fram. Beskrivningarna av flickors och pojkars skillnader handlar generellt om att de upplevs och upplever sig befinna sig på två olika arenor där könsstereotypa roller utvecklats vilka bygger på stereotyper om den utåtagerande och aggressiva pojken och den tysta flickan som förtrycks och tar åt sig och som ibland själv utöver mobbning i form av exempelvis subtila blickar, förtal och utfrysning. Det är viktigt att påpeka att de stereotypa föreställningar om kön som tycks finnas på skolorna, inte per automatik betyder att enskilda personers sätt att vara och handla i daglig praktik samstämmer med dessa förenklade föreställningar. Stereotyper handlar mer om att ordna och hierarkisera individer på ett visst sätt som stärker en viss maktordning. Användning av social media är något som särskilt tycks skada flickors välbefinnande och känsla av utsatthet, liksom platser i skolan där vuxna inte eller sällan finns och där tävling förekommer. I de fall där flickor är utåtagerande och högljudda så upplever vissa sig inte behandlas på samma sätt som pojkarna. Det framkommer även återkommande berättelser om att flickor och pojkar överlag leker olika lekar och inte blandas under rasterna vilket förstärker särskiljning av de två arenorna.

Samtidigt framkommer ett stort engagemang och bred repertoar av åtgärder i aktörernas intervjuer som bygger på en medvetenhet om att mikro, makro- och meso- nivån behöver samverka. Eleverna lyfter särskilt fram vikten av att lärare ser dem, skapar ordnade former av aktiviteter på raster och är konsekventa i sin hantering av olika former av utsatthet. När det kommer till hinder nämns; a) de genusnormer som finns i samhället inklusive social medias inverkan; b) negativa konsekvenser av ökad dokumentation; c) relationella och existentiella villkor; d) ökning av diagnoser; e) bristande tid; f) svårigheter att veta vad man förväntas se och synliggöra i enkät och praktik; g) inkonsekvent beteende bland personal; h) brister i kommunikation mellan olika aktörer; i) svårigheter att nå samsyn och svårigheter att rekrytera vikarier; j) att skapa långsiktighet i ledarskap i skola och klassrum på grund av personalbyten: samt, k) ökning av ett grovt och kränkande språk som väver sig in i dagligt tal.

The report is a summary of a study commissioned by a Swedish municipality with the aim of gaining a better understanding of why a relatively large number of girls in middle school in the particular municipality feel more vulnerable than boys. The study is based on research that shows that there are no strong biological explanations for any differences between the sexes, which points to the importance of visualizing the impact of culture on, so called, gender patterns. There is a considerable amount of research today indicating that bullying takes shape and is perpetuated in a socio-ecological environment where micro-, meso- and macro levels interact. Building on this perspective, 44 persons in three schools, differing in background characteristics, were interviewed using semi-structured interview techniques and categorized using case-study and thematic content analysis. The interviews generated nearly 800 pages of transcribed material and reveal a nuanced picture of how pupils, teachers, school leaders, health- and administrative staff understand and describe their actions in how they approach the school values and school safety, with a particular focus on gender. There is a great deal of competence and relatively deep understanding of issues related to vulnerability and bullying in the group if interviewees - a competence that is largely in line with current research. What a study like this can contribute is a systematic basis and support for professional judgement. The results reveal: a) a wide variety of ways of understanding certain girls' vulnerability; b) strategies/measures used at the three schools; and c) various obstacles to stimulating school safety within a socio-ecological environment.  

The overall results show that interviewees, in general, are aware of boys and girls as being unique individuals and that not only some girls, but also some boys do feel bad and do need to be identified and supported. At the same time, the results reveal patterns in how girls feel, behave and are treated that are important to highlight. The descriptions of girls' and boys' differences are generally about the fact that they are perceived and experience themselves as occupying two different arenas where gender-stereotypical roles have been developed, based on stereotypes of an outgoing and aggressive boy and an oppressed and silent girl prepared to take the blame, who sometimes blames herself, and who, in addition, may bully others in the form of, for example, dismissive staring, slander and ostracism. The negative use of social media appears to be particularly damaging to girls' well-being and sense of vulnerability. Girls are also vulnerable in unowned places in school where adults are not present and competition occurs. In cases where girls are outgoing and loud, some feel they are not treated in the same way as boys. There are also recurring stories that girls and boys generally play different games and do not mix during breaks, which reinforces the separation of the two arenas. 

At the same time, a great deal of commitment and a broad repertoire of measures emerge from the stakeholders' interviews, based on an awareness of how micro, macro and meso levels need to work together. In particular, pupils highlight the importance of teachers seeing them, creating organised forms of activities during breaks and being consistent in dealing with different forms of vulnerability. When it comes to obstacles, they mention a) the gender norms that exist in society, including the impact of social media; b) negative consequences of an increased burden of documentation; c) relational and existential conditions; d) increase in neuropsychological diagnoses; e) lack of time, f) difficulties in knowing what they are expected to observe and make visible school-safety questionnaires and practice; g) inconsistent behavior among staff; h) shortcomings in communication between different actors; i) difficulties in reaching consensus and difficulties in recruiting Swedish-speaking substitutes; j) evolving long-term leadership strategies; and k) an increase in coarse and offensive language that weaves itself into everyday speech.

This study aims to examine children’s actions in relation to the preschool teacher’s scaffolding action in a context where an interactive whiteboard (IWB) is used. Over five months, 22 children aged between 4 and 6 years old, along with their five preschool teachers, were video observed. The study of these teaching moments has provided a rich seam of evidence that details the ways children act in relation to their teacher’s scaffolding. The results show that children manifest 12 distinct actions including: Giving short responses, Approaching the IWB to engage in the teaching activities; Explaining, Experimenting; Smiling and laughing; Pointing and showing; Working together; Challenging each other; Solving a problem; Using language in meaningful contexts; Expressing emotions; and Comparing the similarities and differences. By mapping children’s actions in the scaffolding process, which are often undermined or ignored in the existing research, the findings of this study have expanded and deepened our understanding of the scaffolding process and the notion of scaffolding itself. The findings, further, exemplify how just providing support can contribute to early childhood education, since early interventions, such as the ways preschool teachers scaffold children’s actions, are particularly crucial for children’s learning and development.

This study, using a socio-ecological model of bullying, examines how school staff, in a Swedish municipality, identify and deal with cyberbullying among primary school pupils, focusing on gender differences to better inform staff participation in the municipality’s anti-bullying strategy. Twenty-five (25) semi-structured interviews were conducted with staff members (including non-teaching staff). Results indicate that cyberbullying, predominantly occurring outside school, impacts educational activities and practices within it. Results also suggest a higher prevalence of cyberbullying among girls. Seven anti-­cyberbullying strategies employed by school staff to identify, intervene in, prevent and deal with cyberbullying among primary school pupils were indicated, providing additional insights into the unique socio-ecological context in which cyberbullying takes place, characterized by ubiquitous ‘twenty-four-seven’ availability. The implications of identifying cyberbullying and addressing initiatives related to this form of bullying in schools are also discussed.