What motivates reading? : A Qualitative Study of Motivations for Reading in the English Subject Syllabi of the English and Swedish Curricula

The purpose of this study is to compare and contrast the motivations for reading in the subject syllabi for English in England and Sweden in the hopes of discovering how the English steering documents can inspire Swedish teachers to adopt new perspectives and approaches to reading. The aspects explored are epistemological approaches, reading content, general aims and aims within the subject, skills, requirements, discourses, and language usage. The study analyzes each of the subject syllabi from both countries and the final phase involves a comparison, which demonstrates the profitable and non-profitable similarities and dissimilarities. The study provides valuable perspectives on how teachers can broaden their interpretation of Swedish steering documents for the subject of English by departing from critical reading concepts and using a more encouraging discourse than that found in steering documents