Livskunskap – en gränsöverskridande praktik i skolan

Life Competence Education (Sw. livskunskap) is a new school subject thathas developed in Swedish schools over the last decade. Life Competence Educationis non-mandatory and lack national guidelines, due to which there are no unanimousdefinitions. Consequently, Life Competence Education can be just about anything:Some schools apply cognitive programs to train pupils’ social and emotionalcompetences, whilst others use this new subject as a way of contextualizing sex andrelationship education (a. a.). Despute the divergent interpretations of what LifeCompetence Education should consist of there are some common features in localcurricula, such as prevention (and solving) of bullying and segregation, genderequity, relationships, ethics and values. These themes harmonize well with theconcerns of childhood studies, where the marginalization of childhood is highlighted.Life Competence Education can be seen as an example of schools’ attempts tointegrate children and childhood into society