Chapter 3: Will There be any Preschool Teachers in the Future?: A Comment on Recent Teacher-Education Reforms in Sweden

Nordic approaches to preschool-teacher preparation have rich traditions, with distinctive philosophical and methodological underpinnings. Until recently, professional preparation for preschool teachers in all Nordic countries differed in important ways from professional preparation for elementary-school teachers and for social workers. However, reform movements during the last 10 to 15 years in both Denmark and Sweden have brought dramatic changes in the structure and the content of teacher education, and mark the end of a separate and distinctive education for preschool teachers in both countries.

In Denmark in 1992 professional preparation programs for preschool teachers, child social workers, and after-school teachers were unified into one general education for social educators, who often adamantly object to being called by the general term, “teacher.” The fact that social educators and school teachers typically object to being confused with one another reflects the differing philosophies and professional practices of their respective specialties (Broström & Wagner, 2003).