Technological education research examines education in technology, by mainly asking questions about motives (why?), content (what?) and teaching methods (how?). Since technology education is a relatively young area of research where many aspects of technology teaching are still unexplored, the research is characterized by diversity, both in terms of theoretical and methodological approaches. At TESER (Technology and Science Education Research), where I am a professor and head of research, the main research consists of praxis-related or praxis-relevant research that aims to understand and problematize conditions for learning, teaching and education in, for example, preschools, leisure-time centres (fritidshem), schools and teacher education. The research conducted at TESER is currently organized under the following four common themes:
- Historical, philosophical and cultural perspectives on science and technology
- Language, tools and representations in science and technology
- Digital tools and the effects of digitalisation in science and technology
- Assessment and school governance
My own research interests primarily relate to the historical emergence of technology as knowledge content in the school, the epistemology and subject philosophy of technology, various subject content (e.g. technological systems) as well as the attitudes to and knowledge of technology and technology education of students, student teachers and teachers. My research also relates to technology teaching in relation to e.g. design, gender (girls and technology), authentic learning, models and modelling and STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) education.
Within TESER there is the Swedish National Graduate School in Science and Technology Education Research (FontD), as licentiate research school (lic-FontD4) and graduate research school (FontD5), with Konrad Schönborn as scientific leader and me as chair. I am also responsible for research at the Swedish Centre for School Technology Education (CETIS).
