NEWS: APR 03, 2009 / ISSUE: 2-09
Back in the innocent 1970s he thought Sweden was an ideal, perfect society. Returning 40 years later, Jack Schwille, Professor at Michigan State University, is still highly impressed, notwithstanding the fact that the world has caught up with Sweden.
Jack Schwille sits all by himself in a large, spacious office in the old section of the Pedagogen building. But this does not seem to bother him at all.
“We Americans are not used to so much space, so having a private room is a privilege. This is very quiet and peaceful. We have more of an open-door policy in the US.”
Jack Schwille and his wife lived in Stockholm for two years in the early 70s. At that time he was a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Stockholm, in the same field as he is today. They took classes in Swedish for immigrants and over the years they have tried to keep the language alive.
“Oh yes, we try to keep clear of English programmes and we watch the Swedish news every night. But I frequently find myself turning to my wife and asking if she understood what that was all about?”
Following the main topics of public debate he has realised that the global recession and crises are very much afflicting Sweden, just as they are his home state of Michigan, with Detroit as the symbol of automobile industry.
“Before coming here I didn’t realise that so much of Volvo’s manufacturing industry was concentrated in this area. It feels as if we have moved from one district in distress to another one.”
For Jack Schwille, Gothenburg is an ideal place to come for a sabbatical semester. He was very happy to receive an invitation from professor Jan-Erik Gustafsson at the Faculty of Education, one of the key technical experts in the IEA organisation (International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement), which is sponsoring his project.
“I am working on an ambitious large-scale study of how prospective teachers prepare for maths teaching in primary and lower secondary school in 17 countries. We are collecting data that has never been collected before,” says Jack Schwille, Professor and Assistant Dean at the College of Education at Michigan State University. He is also responsible for international programmes at the faculty, hosting guest researchers, as well as receiving and sending off students.
In many ways being in Gothenburg is a contrast to the Michigan State University campus.
“I come from a family of dairy farmers. Frankly I was never interested in being a farmer myself but I was interested enough to be at a university with a lot of farmland. Our campus is very different. When you are in a wonderful city like Gothenburg or Stockholm, it is so interesting to be in an urban environment.
Looking back, of course Sweden is a totally different country than it was in the 1970s, but social democratic values are still a vital part of the society, believes Jack Schwille.
“Social democracy is an ideal for many liberal Americans. Back in the 70s, Sweden seemed to have everything figured out. As Americans we felt inadequate coming from a country with so many problems, racial issues and the Vietnam War.”
Jack Schwille remembers how impressed he was. There was a genuine concern for other people, the disabled for example, and the social welfare system did not exclude people.
Do you still think this a good society?
“Oh, yes I think this is an amazing country. There are only 9 million people – the same size as Michigan – but just imagine what this small country has done, the profile it has around the world. I am still in love with Sweden. But it is sad that Swedes themselves are not so happy with their society today. Even though there have been drastic cutbacks in the welfare system, we are so far behind the social welfare systems in the Nordic countries.” Jack Schwille recently joined the Hagabadet health club, and he proudly wears his Obama hat and T-shirt when he goes there. Even the woman in the coffee shop now calls him Obama.
“The reason we like him so much is the fact that he’s liked all over the world”, he says, laughing.
They are renting one of the University flats on Storgatan.
“It’s a wonderful apartment. I realize how privileged we are to be able to live in the city centre and to walk to work. We are right in the middle of things.”
“When I got the e-mail that they would pick us up at the airport, I was just blown away. Wow, they are going to pick us up at the airport, I told my wife. In the US this only happens on an ad-hoc basis.”
To get such a personal welcome from Guest Services is much appreciated, emphasises Jack Schwille with a smile.
“It is usually very frustrating if you have to do it all on your own, especially if you are in a strange place. Having such a good service for visiting researchers is a great advantage.”
Photo: Johan Wingborg
Jack Schwille, professor at Michigan State University, is very pleased with the Guest Services at the University of Gothenburg.
BY: ALLAN ERIKSSON
09-04-20 12:18
Great piece on your connection to Sweden and your international profile in educational research, Jack. I laughed at the mention that the woman in the coffee shop calls you "Obama." That's heartwarming. Best wishes with the rest of your sabbatical.
Steve Sharra
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Utskriftsdatum:
2024-03-29