Contemporary education policymaking, especially the one revolving around education technology, is no longer confined within national borders but expands to new policy channels, which challenges the traditional notions of education governance. In recent years, computer programming has been introduced into school curricula in several national education systems across the world making it a key issue on the education policy agenda. In March 2017, the Swedish Government announced their decision to introduce programming as a mandatory teaching element as of the first grade of primary school. This study traces the policy networks and processes that contributed to the introduction of computer programming into the Swedish curriculum and its promotion in schools. The primary focus lies on the actors and actions that brought about this change, nationally and internationally.

The method of network ethnography is employed to map the policy field of programming and identify the key policy actors involved, starting from the area of Stockholm (Ball, 2016; Ball & Junemann, 2012; Player-Koro, 2019). Network ethnography is an analytic technique which borrows elements from ethnography and social network analysis for the study of contemporary policy and governance structures. Additionally, it involves a mapping of the policy field using qualitative data. The data for this study is comprised of: websites, online links and texts both written by or about actors involved in the policy agenda on programming; interviews with key policy actors; as well as national and international policy documents on the introduction of programming in schools.

Through the policy network on programming, this study followed and mapped the evolution of the policy agenda on programming in Sweden. A wide range of actors were involved in the promotion and subsequent introduction of programming into the Swedish curriculum including governmental and inter-governmental agencies, national and multinational companies, for- and non-for-profit organizations and educational institutions. The findings show that the curriculum changes on programming in Sweden have been influenced by neoliberal rationalities that shaped both the way the policy was assembled and circulated. External actors both influenced and participated in the policymaking process, which led the policy agenda on programming along mixed policy arenas extending beyond national and institutional spaces and towards international and private ones. These findings indicate the emergence of a networked governance on education policy and the importance of out-of-the-parliament processes both locally and internationally in influencing policymaking. Emphasis is placed on the pervasive influence of external interests and the private sector in education policy, specifically on the area of education technology. Another important contribution has been the impact of the local space – i.e. the municipality of Stockholm – in aiding the inclusion of programming in the Swedish education. Through this study, a case has been made for the increasing complexity characterizing education policymaking and the role of diverse actors in the production and circulation of policies, especially in the field of education technology.

Ball, S. J. (2016). Following policy: Networks, network ethnography and education policy mobilities. Journal of Education Policy, 31(5), 549–566. https://doi.org/10.1080/02680939.2015.1122232 Ball, S. J., & Junemann, C. (2012). Networks, new governance and education. Policy Press. Player-Koro, C. (2019). Network Ethnography as an Approach for the Study of New Governance Structures in Education. Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Education. https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190264093.013.323