Reading practices in transformation. Re-designing print-based literacy mindsets in the Swedish digital classroom

Various reading projects aimed at stimulating students’ reading are carried out on a regular basis in Swedish schools. Beyond L1, a common structure is also to include other subjects and teachers in these projects. By focusing on norms and values connected to the reading and teaching of literature, this article aims to deepen the knowledge about a reading practice project conducted in other subjects than L1, aiming to stimulate, develop and strengthen students’ reading. The analysis is based on ethnographic video material, where the students’ interactions and activities in the classroom are documented through video recording and screen mirroring of their computers and mobile phones. The analysis reveals challenges in relation to reading activities performed in classrooms where different digital devices are available. Results show that reading practice in the connected classroom is characterised by a print-based mindset that the students resist to varying degrees. This leads to situations where the printed book is given contradictory roles in relation to the reading activity in school, providing students with a cover behind which they can engage in alternative reading activities on their digital devices. Here, we highlight the access paradox as well as issues related to the issue of what texts, and what types of reading are sanctioned in reading activities at school, and not least what this means for male students in terms of their chances to join a reading community and identify as readers in the educational setting to which they belong.