My intention with this study was to examine the concepts “mother tongue” and “mother tongue education” and how these concepts are understood by some parents. To reach this goal I’ve conducted a qualitative study, wherein I’ve interviewed eight parents with foreign backgrounds. The study is inspired by hermeneutics in its interpretation of results.

From this study I can reach several conclusions. To begin with, all parents had a positive view of the mother tongue concept and mother tongue education. It is very important for their children. They need their mother tongue and mother tongue support to be able to communicate with others who speak the same language, and to strengthen their self confidence and achieve a strong personality and identity. Another thing the study shows is that there are some deficiencies in this area, for instance the insufficient amount of teaching hours, the unsuitable scheduling, large class sizes and mother tongue teachers not speaking the same dialect as the children. A third recurring result is the deficient communication between teachers and the parents in the study. The informants had a desire to improve these aspects to allow for the development of the childrens’ mother tongue.