Sweden considers merging Swedish and Swedish-as-a-second-language school subjects
Sweden's government has ordered a review that could replace the two Swedish-language school subjects, changing how pupils are assigned to language teaching.
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The investigator must propose either a new division into Swedish and beginner Swedish, or a single subject with two syllabuses. She must also propose compulsory language assessments before schools decide which subject or syllabus a pupil follows.
The review, announced on 4 September, covers compulsory schooling, upper-secondary education and specified adult-education programmes.
The existing subjects have equal value when grades are used for admission to further study. Their staffing differs: about 59% of lower-secondary teachers in Swedish as a second language were qualified in 2024/25, compared with 78% in Swedish, according to the government.
The directive cites Skolverket's 2022 review, which recorded teachers' concerns that more varied pupil groups could make teaching harder and that expertise in teaching Swedish as a second language could decline.
Mona Holmqvist, a professor of education at Lund University, will lead the inquiry. She must examine teacher supply, training and qualification requirements and deliver her proposals by 6 December 2027.
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