ULF – Education, Learning, Research

ULF is a national initiative for practice-based research in collaboration between schools and academia. For the Dance Pedagogy Unit at SKH, this means practice-based research with a focus on dance pedagogy. The main purpose of ULF is to strengthen the scientific foundation of schools through collaboration between academia and schools in research, school activities, and teacher education.

Organization – SKH’s role in ULF

A total of 27 higher education institutions are part of ULF, and SKH is included in the Capital Node together with representatives of school authorities and Stockholm University, Konstfack, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, the Royal College of Music, GIH (Swedish School of Sport and Health Sciences), and Södertörn University. Collaboration between universities and school authorities is regulated in local ULF agreements. SKH has signed ULF agreements with Huddinge Municipality, Kulturama Upper Secondary School, and Fryshuset Upper Secondary School in Stockholm.

Facts about ULF

Purpose and background

The government assignment ULF is based on three pillars:

• education
• learning
• research

The goal is for universities, colleges, and school authorities to jointly plan and implement a pilot initiative for practice-based school research. This pilot initiative is intended to develop and test models that can contribute to long-term and sustainable collaboration between higher education institutions and school authorities. Collaboration must take place on equal terms and be grounded in scientific principles.

Why is ULF needed?

According to the Swedish Education Act (Chapter 1, Section 5), all education must rest on scientific grounds and proven experience. Teachers are expected to use research in their professional practice, and school development should be characterized by a scientific approach. In practice, however, this happens to a far too limited extent. Many also experience a gap between theory and practice, which means that educational research does not always have an impact in everyday school life. Therefore, there is a great need to develop sustainable collaboration models between schools and academia – something ULF aims to make possible.

Research is carried out in collaboration between researchers, teachers, school leaders, and student teachers in compulsory and upper secondary schools, including special needs schools. These collaborations create creative environments for knowledge production and the exchange of ideas. The research aims to ensure that subject teachers have a strong voice throughout the research process and that the projects contribute to school development.

Collaboration with other higher education institutions

To strengthen research on aesthetic knowledge traditions, SKH collaborates with Konstfack and Kungliga musikhögskolan (KMH).

Projects

The Dance Pedagogy Unit at SKH runs ULF projects that develop teaching rooted in dance pedagogy. The projects also strengthen subject didactic research in dance.

• Project 1: Dance and language development. SKH and Långsjö School in Huddinge.
• Project 2: Assessment in aesthetic communication. SKH in collaboration with Konstfack and KMH.
• Project 3: Improvisation in classical ballet. SKH, Kulturama, and Fryshuset.