Why Sweden’s young people are so good at English

Swedish is a vibrant language spoken by about 10 million people, mostly in Sweden and Finland. But Swedish young people are often proficient in English, too.

Sweden consistently ranks very high in English proficiency comparisons, with young people in Sweden speaking such good English that other countries are eyeing them with envy.

Although English has no official status in Sweden, proficiency in English is a formal requirement to progress in education, and often for employment and social activity as well. The Swedish national curriculum points out that “the English language surrounds us in our daily lives and is used in areas as diverse as politics, education and economics”.

Like many national languages in Europe, Swedish is increasingly sharing its space with English. Public spaces have long been papered with signs and advertising in English, or both Swedish and English.

There is a lack of interest in learning other foreign languages among Swedish young people: English is thought to be enough.

English is the default language (lingua franca) for Swedish speakers in any situation where someone is thought not to be fully proficient in Swedish, both in international travel and at home in Sweden when talking to visitors or migrants. In fact, migrants report finding it hard to get Swedes to speak Swedish with them.

Young Swedes seamlessly switch to English and increasingly speak English together. Many young people envision a life outside Sweden and see English as the language of their future.

English at school and beyond

In Swedish secondary schools, English language teaching aspires to help students speak English with confidence. English communication skills – listening, speaking, reading and writing – are taught and assessed, with national testing beginning in year six (age 12). The emphasis is on implicit language knowledge (being able to use the language) rather than explicit language knowledge (knowing about the language).

Accurate language production is not an explicit aim in the curriculum. Consequently, young people, though often orally proficient due to widespread exposure to English, may lack knowledge of grammar and conventions, allowing them to communicate effectively but not always with full accuracy.

This potential lack of accuracy does not stop young Swedes from gravitating towards English. Outside of the classroom, Swedish students engage with English more extensively than many of their peers abroad. English retains significant appeal due to its prominence in media and advertising, the popularity of British and American culture, and the prevalence of Swedish music artists using English in songwriting.

What’s more, many young people are inclined to use English on social media platforms, for swearing, and in slang expressions. Much of the language young people in Sweden encounter online is English. Youth media consumption in Sweden, from Netflix to YouTube, from TikTok to Snapchat, is primarily in English.

Many Swedish influencers generate content in English. Gaming in Sweden has always been overwhelmingly in English.

Although schools provide exposure to formal language aspects and a chance to receive some corrective feedback, students will usually simultaneously be acquiring English informally outside the classroom.

This English language use is based on students’ personal interests, such as gaming, sports, pop music and reading. The students are not actively aiming to develop their English, but pick up vocabulary, pronunciation and structure while doing something that interests them.

Willingness to use English is not the same thing as a solid knowledge of the language. Most students benefit from combining classroom learning with out-of-school exposure to fully develop their English proficiency. Ideally, teachers should acknowledge and integrate this language use into their instruction.

The new upper secondary English syllabus reflects this by emphasising the value of raising students’ awareness of how language can be learned beyond school.

What goes on in schools is only a small part of how young people learn English in Sweden. Formal instruction and informal language use offer much more together than separately.

The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.