”Man ska ju inte bara behöva läsa för att liksom lära sig något”: Gymnasieelevers levda erfarenheter av läslust och läsmotivation

Sammanfattning

The aim of this study is to explore Swedish upper secondary students’ attitudes towards reading fiction in and outside of school. A central starting point is the alleged reading crisis that is widely discussed in Swedish media and politics. Focus is particularly placed on the phenomenon of reading for pleasure and reading motivation through a phenomenological lifeworld perspective, in combination with self-determination theory. The data consists of qualitative interviews with six students aged 18-19, and the interview-data has been analyzed through thematic analysis. The study’s most prominent results show that students are motivated by being involved in book choices as well as being able to relate to a text’s themes and characters. They also express a wish to conduct oral exams that invite them to reflect and discuss literature with their peers. Further results show that reading for pleasure is difficult to achieve when students experience reading as being forced upon them. Although, having multiple reading choices and more flexible lesson plans seem to present a possible solution to this problem. The attitudes expressed towards reading fiction are predominantly positive, and while half of the students already see themselves as active readers, the other half express a desire to read more and wish to gain pleasure from reading. Furthermore, the students highlight the importance of reading regarding both instrumental and aesthetic values; which is also reflected in the new Swedish curriculum that now highlights reading not only as an instrumental skill, but also as an opportunity for aesthetic experiences. In the final discussion of this essay, didactic difficulties and possibilities regarding students’ reading motivation and engagement are further explored.