1 XVII ISA World Congress of Sociology Sociology on the Move

Since the mid-1990s several reforms have challenged the idea of educare, which is often held up as the main characteristic of the Swedish preschool (OECD 2001, 2006, Moss 2006). Educare in the Swedish context means good-quality care and education in a balanced mix. Unlike many European countries, there is not a split in the organisation between care of children below and above the age of three (Knijn, Jönsson and Klammer 2005, Letablier and Jönsson 2005). Contemporary reforms point to increased expectations of preschool as a preparation for school. Such ideas are included in the social investment strategy which is supported on the European Union level and by international organisations such as the OECD and the World Bank. According to White (2009), the social investment strategy implies a positive relationship between early childhood development and early childhood education programmes and children’s success later in life, which is related to a country’s economic success. The aim of the paper The aim of the paper is to discuss whether or to what extent the social investment strategy has an impact on the Swedish preschool and the reform work being done at th