The difference : How upper secondary school teachers view and use national tests as a basis for grading in the subject of Swedish

The aim of this study is to contribute to greater knowledge of the basis on which teachers award grades and how they view the national test. Five upper secondary school teachers of Swedish were asked in semi-structured interviews to say what significance they ascribe to the national test in general, what reasons they can see to explain why the course grade differs from the test grade, how they reasoned when they awarded a course grade that differed from the grade on the national test, and how they view a strengthened and clearer relationship between national tests and course grades in order to increase equivalence in Swedish schools. The material was then analysed with a method inspired by phenomenology. The study shows that there is no agreement in the outlook on the national test. One of the teachers does not think that the national test is more important than other tests, three think that it is more important, and one uses the national test chiefly to confirm previous results. There are three reasons why the course grade can differ from the national test grade: (1) the design of the test, (2) that the test result does not reflect the pupil’s knowledge and skills, and (3) that the teacher deliberately awards a wrong grade. The teachers was to see greater equivalence. Some think that a clearer and stronger relationship between national tests and course grades is not the right way to go, while others are in favour of the suggestion. Regardless of their opinion, however, most of the teachers wonder how it will be possible in practice to link the test grade to the course grade