Reconstructed task orientation and local time governance in compulsory schools: the Swedish case

Recently, a five‐year trial period without a set timetable for compulsory school education in 79 municipalities was concluded in Sweden. The overall idea of the trial was to facilitate local participation, local time governance and flexible learning. Within the pilot trial, each individual pupil’s school activities were supposed to be designed to suit his/her needs, interests and prerequisites. This article examines how teachers, principals and students describe students’ schoolwork as being located in the intersection between school/home, work/leisure, time/task and individual/collective spheres. Three empirical studies indicate that the essential part of new temporal habits of school concerns a reconstructed task orientation. Time has been taken into the service of tasks and clock‐time is not always a taken for granted regulator in educational settings. Potential disadvantages with a more task‐oriented education are also discussed.