The recent changes in Swedish schools have, among other things, meant an emphasis on a new form of course objectives. Students will develop their ability to reflect on their own learning in different subjects, develop their ability to use ways of working to support their own learning and develop an ability to take responsibility for their own learning, and so on. These objectives can be linked to the globally growing movement The 21st Century Skills Movement, which focuses on the question of what it takes to be a highly educated and skilled citizen in the 2000s. In addition to the traditional core skills of reading, writing and arithmetic, it finds also that initiative, ability to take responsibility for their own learning and the ability to choose learning strategies is necessary.

Another change in recent years is the increased amount of assessments, not least in the form of national tests, of which there are currently two in grade three, and...