Learning to read and understanding what they read is a prerequisite for students’ further learning. At the same time, several research reports – including the international PIRLS study, which examines the reading skills and attitudes to reading of students in year 4 – show that students with Swedish as a second language are disadvantaged in the Swedish school system. At IES Eskilstuna, 84 per cent of the 1,109 students have a foreign background. Through a systematic approach from preschool class and throughout the entire compulsory school years, the school is going against the grain in Sweden and has achieved great success in helping its students learn to read, understand and interpret the written word. As testimony to this, 95 per cent of year nine students who graduated in spring 2025 were eligible for upper secondary school.
“For many students who come to our school, Swedish is their third language. They may not hear Swedish at all in their spare time. Some have illiterate parents and nowadays many homes don’t have any books. These are just some of the challenges,” says Annika Zentio, assistant principal for school years F-3 and a driving force behind the school’s increase in reading and writing proficiency.
The ability to read is crucial for a student’s future success in school. Students with poor language understanding find it increasingly difficult to keep up in class – and may give up altogether when the bar is raised.
“This is particularly noticeable when students move from year three to four. For the past two years, the school has had students from as early as preschool class, which has given us a better chance to identify needs and deploy resources at an early stage,” says Ms Zentio.
“We use digital tools such as LegiLexi to monitor each individual student from preschool class up to the end of middle school to check reading skills and suggest interventions based on the individual’s test results. We continuously test both reading comprehension and reading speed,” she continues.
Digital tools for analysis and learning
IES Eskilstuna, like all IES schools, uses the Bornholm model to stimulate language comprehension. Picture cards, letter cards and word cards are used to bring the games to life and make them tangible. Through a structured programme of language games over a long period of time, students are prepared for reading and have a better start in reading.
“All children benefit from this – but studies show that students with weak language skills benefit the most,” says Annakarin Sandman Johansson, head of academics at IES.
“It’s not only about being able to decode the words, but also understanding what they read and being able to interpret things that aren’t directly expressed in the text, reading between the lines. This is essential for students to succeed in their studies in all subjects. Our students’ language development and reading comprehension are thus a matter for all teachers in all subjects,” she continues.
Through the Lexplore reading development tool, many IES schools are now using AI and eye tracking to objectively measure reading skills. The aim is to get an early picture of all students’ reading skills in an equitable way in order to allocate resources effectively and target the right interventions. Shared methodologies provide the organisation and individual schools with the opportunity for deeper collaboration and wider peer learning between all IES schools across the country.
Creating a love of reading
IES has traditionally offered years four to nine in our schools. For a number of years now, all new schools have been open to students as early as preschool class, and more schools are reorganising to receive students for all compulsory school years, from preschool class to year nine. Today, this is half of all IES schools.
“This gives us a chance to create a good foundation, not least linguistically, for the students’ future schooling – and also a desire for lifelong learning”, says Magdalena Bull, primary years manager at IES.
“By getting to know the children and their parents early on, we are able to design reading support for each individual more effectively,” she continues.
Good digital tools can be helpful in providing children with the right conditions for learning to read – but reading traditional books is the most important thing. Reading books can improve children’s imagination and ability to form ideas, spoken language and vocabulary, storytelling and the ability to express thoughts, interest in pictures and text, and their ability to understand their environment. At IES, school libraries have always been a core part of the school, but 2022 saw the launch of a new initiative to increase student reading, focusing on empowering teachers and librarians to work together. By providing a stimulating reading environment and a wide variety of texts, school libraries can support the school’s reading education.
“We read a lot with our students and encourage them to borrow books from the library. We also have a reading project where the older students read to the younger ones – and vice versa – aimed at removing prestige and making it a fun experience,” says Ms Zentio.
“One important goal of our efforts to make all students comfortable with reading and writing is to help them create dreams for the future and make them feel equal to others. With patience and dedication, we hope to give students a different future than the one they thought they were destined for,” she continues.