Sensory reflections: towards the development of cooking literacy in Swedish Home Economics

In Swedish Home Economics (HE), some students struggle to understand and apply instructions in their cooking. Based on Dewey’s theory of experiential learning, the aim of this study was to explore the conditions for developing cooking literacy in Swedish HE, focusing on teachers’ and students’ use of instructions and sensory reflections. Observations were conducted in 19 student groups across four schools. Five teachers and 57 students were recorded with Dictaphones. An additional 35 students were observed. Reflexive thematic analysis yielded five themes: (1) Shifting emphasis on different sources of instruction, (2) Vague instructions required ability to make sensory-reflective decisions, (3) Shifting emphasis on different types of sensory reflection, (4) Sporadic connection between sensory reflections and the cooking process, and (5) Need for quick problem-solving favoured instructions over reflection. To increase opportunities for experiential learning, I suggest using systematic and continuous sensory reflections based on repetition, variation, and comparison.