Promoting reading 1
jects of a study due to their awareness of being
observed; they act differently than they would if they were not being observed. It is possible that the parents who were included in the study increased the language stimulation of their children not due to the information they received, but because they were being observed and the expectations on them as a result of the study. Despite such limitations, Svensson’s thesis points out the opportunity presented by this type of program to positively impact both language development of children and parental involvement. The library and the preschool An important collaboration concerning the language development and reading motivation of younger children is between the library and the preschool. According to the curriculum for preschools, they should strive to develop in every child: • Nuanced spoken language, vocabulary and concepts as well as ability to play with words, tell stories, express thought, ask questions, argue and communicate with others; • An interest in written language and comprehension of symbols and their communicative functions; • An interest in images, texts and different media as well as an ability to use, interpret and converse about these; • Creative abilities and an ability to communicate experiences, thoughts and experience using many forms of expression such as play, images, movement, song and music, dance and drama. Collaborations between public libraries and preschools are a matter of course in many parts of Sweden. Several projects have also been initiated with the aim of developing collaboration between libraries and preschools, for example the Leka-språka-lära (Playtalk-learn) project, which ran from 2002 to 2004, initiated by what was then the Schools’ Development Agency (Myndigheten för skolutveckling) and the Swedish Arts Council. Public libraries play an important role in children’s access to literature and as an additional source of pedagogical skills. Preschools are not subject to the Education Act in terms of access to school libraries, which makes the issue of access to literature in the preschool a matter of particular concern. In a compilation of a number of Masters theses, it is apparent that many preschools do not see libraries as obvious collaborators (Rydsjö 2003). The knowledge review Studier av barn- och ungdomsbibliotek (Studies of libraries for children and young people) by Rydsjö & Elf (2007) concludes that collaboration between libraries and preschools has waned in many parts of Sweden due to funding cuts and organisational changes implemented in the 1980s and 1990s. The working methods have also changed. This applies for example to book talks, which have come to target adults in the company of children rather than children themselves. Litteraturutredningen (The enquiry into literature) (2012) found that many, but far from all, preschools had established collaborations with public libraries. A report from the Swedish Schools Inspectorate (2012), which covered a total of 42 preschools, points out that the staff at some preschools have a conscious method of choosing books and placing books in the preschool, while many “seem to have an unreflective approach to handling children’s literature, and treat it more as a pastime than learning opportunity”. 35