University of Gothenburg
University of Gothenburg
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Camilla Björklund

Professor

Department of Education, Communication and
Learning
Telephone
+46 31-786 21 82
Mail
camilla.bjorklund@ped.gu.se
Visiting address
Läroverksgatan 15, Hus C
41120 Göteborg
Room number
C1 15
Postal address
Box 300
40530 Göteborg

About Camilla Björklund

Camilla Björklund is Professor in Education at the Department of Education, Communication and Learning at the University of Gothenburg. Research areas of interest are mathematics learning and teaching in the early years and teachers’ professional pedagogical development.

During 2021-2024 Camilla is the PI of the research project SATSA - Structural approach in teaching as foundation for sustainable arithmetic learning. The project aims to characterize and conceptualize key elements for sustainable and developable development in pre-primary mathematics education (6-yearolds), building on a structural approach to numbers and arithmetic skills.Investigations and interventions are conducted in 100 pre-primary classes in Sweden, two programs with a structural approach will be implemented and studied during one school year. Co-researchers are Angelika Kullberg (IDPP University of Gothenburg) and Anna-Lena Ekdahl (Jönköping university).

Björklund is currently project leader for the researh project DUTTA - Educational studies of toddlers’ number sense and emerging arithmetic skills 2019-2021 (funded by Swedish Institute for Educational Research). The project aims to study how toddlers (1-3-yearolds) develop from “not knowing” what numbers mean, to “knowing” how to use numbers in basic arithmetical problem solving. The intention is to empirically investigate in close collaboration with preschool teachers what makes this learning occur (or not occur) and thereby provide a model of prosperous teaching strategies based on empirical findings and theoretically solid conclusions.

EXTENT is also a project funded by the Swedish Institute for Educational Research 2019-2021, in which Björklund is participating researcher. The project stems from earlier findings of the necessity of a structural approach to young learners developing powerful strategies for arithmetic problem solving. In close collaboration with teachers in grade 1 (Sweden) interventions and teaching activities are developed and implemented to enhance students' number knowledge and arithmetic skills.

During 2015-2018 Björklund is the project leader for FASETT - The ability to discern the first ten numbers as a necessary ground for arithmetic skills (funded by the National Research Council). Preschool children's experiences of numbers as part-whole-relations are challenged and stimulated in interventions, involving preschool teachers who implement theoretically driven activities in preschool practice. 103 children are participating in the project and their experiences of number and arithmetic skills will be followed during two years (preschool and preschool class).

Björklund is also a researcher in the project Play-based didactics: developing early childhood didactics theory in cooperation between researchers and preschool teachers (2017-2018, funded by the Swedish Institute of Educational Research). The project aims to develop the theoretical ground for play-based didactics through empirical studies of children's play and learning and preschool teachers' involvement in play.

Björklund held a post-doc position 2011–2013 (funded by the National Research Council) working with the project ”Learning about space”. The project involved research in early childhood practice aiming to develop pedagogical strategies in mathematics education suitable for preschool and preschool class contexts. Learning Study was used in the project as design for professional development and knowledge production, involving the researcher in a close developmental process with participating early childhood teachers.

In 2007 Björklund defended her doctoral thesis ”Critical conditions of learning – toddlers encountering mathematics” (in Swedish) at Åbo Akademi University in Finland. The thesis builds upon an empirical explorative study of 1–3-year olds encounters with mathematics in preschool. The theoretical and analytical framework is Variation theory of learning.

Björklund has been involved in several projects within the field of mathematics learning and teaching in early childhood education, for example ”Att skapa rum för matematiklärande” (Åbo Akademi University) and LukiMat (in collaboration with the Niilo Mäki Institute and University of Helsinki).