The overarching aim of the Nordic Council of Ministries is to create possibilities for all children and youth to find their place in society and reach its’ full potential. To learn the local language is a key factor for inclusion and integration in society.

From this backdrop, the purpose of this project is to identify and summarize scientific knowledge on how the Nordic countries work in addressing development in Nordic languages among children and youth with foreign backgrounds. The project might also identify good and less functioning models and programs used in the Nordic countries.

Drawing on existing research synthesis on second language learning and instruction in the Nordic countries, this project aims to map, describe and analyze current scientific knowledge in the field. The overall aim is to identify which effect different models have for second-language learning based on existing research, highlighting solutions which have worked out well and models which were less successful. To address this objective, we suggest two overarching review questions and several sub-questions: – to be discussed

• What ambitions do the language policies in the Nordic countries have to develop language teaching and learning?
• What programs, here comprising different policies and methods, are used in the Nordic countries to facilitate and support language acquisition in basic education?
  • Which programs work best and for which groups?
  • What is the role of the mother tongue?

To address these questions, we will conduct a so-called “rapid review” a type of a systematic review by using methodological and explicit approaches. (Wollscheid & Tripney, 2021). Rapid reviews have been developed in response to the need for reliable evidence as a basis for political decision-making, which takes less time and is less resource-intensive than a full systematic review. The literature search (data collection) is limited in scope, for example, restricted by timeframe, databases, and/or language (Petticrew and Roberts, 2006).

Systematic review ("rapid systematic review")