– We were the ones affected by the strike. I think it is completely fair that we got the money back, and that it did not go elsewhere, says tenth grader Erlend Mathias Olsen. In Bodø, the politicians have decided that it is up to the schools to decide what the surplus after the strike will go to. At Hunstad secondary school, they have spent NOK 400,000 on new books, and this week the pupils were able to unpack a load of brand new books. And it was about time. – The old books should be retired. They hang in the covers, and several pages are missing. Therefore, we have not always been able to use the books. That’s what pupil Erlend Mathias Olsen, who is in 10 C at Hunstad secondary school, says. Outdated information Over 8,000 teachers from the Education Association, the National Association of Schools and Norwegian Lecturers’ Association went on strike for almost 14 weeks, before the government intervened with a forced wage board. The strike saved the municipalities hundreds of millions. In Bodø alone, the municipality saved around NOK 1.2 million a day in wage costs during the strike. Although Olsen is not necessarily happy about new books, he is very pleased that the money saved has gone back to the students. Erlend Mathias Olsen, Karoline Marie Vollen and Sondre Meisler Arntsen are students at Hunstad secondary school. They believe it is fair that the profits from the strike go to them. Photo: Marius Guttormsen / news – I’m guessing that a lot of people are happy to get new books. Erlend Mathias Olsen believes that the old school books from the beginning of the 2000s are so bad that it has been difficult to take them home. – When you have to take them home in your bag, it has happened that the books simply take the evening on the way home. Some of them are in such bad condition that the entire book falls out of the cover. – Paradox that a strike is needed for the Head of the Education Association in Bodø, Trond Are Fjordtun, thinks it’s a shame that it’s a shame that another strike was needed before the students got new books. Head of the Education Association in Bodø, Trond Are Fjordtun, thinks it is important that the students get textbooks for the subject renewal (LK20) Photo: Dina Jeanett Danielsen / news – It is good that money is spent on textbooks, but a paradox that there needs to be a strike before the municipality will be able to afford to buy books from the new educational institutions. Contact teacher for 10 C at Hunstad secondary school, Eva Kielland, oozes with joy at finally getting new books. – I think it’s absolutely great, because in the end it’s the students who benefit from it, says teacher Eva Kielland. And adds: – The most important thing is that there is no longer any outdated information. That is the best, and they are more user-friendly; with colors, not so boring and with lots of writing on each page. They are a little more exciting for the students. The cover of a science book has detached from the rest of the contents. Photo: Marius Guttormsen / news The class has already received both Norwegian and science books, but they are still waiting for the most anticipated book. – We hope we will get social studies books, there are especially old books. They are from 2006, and that is too old. Putting money into more teachers In Bergen too, they saved many millions on the teachers’ strike. But there they have chosen to prioritize differently. Bergen municipality had a surplus of approximately NOK 42 million after the strike. Photo: Astri Kamsvåg / Bergen municipality The Director of Finance for schools in Bergen municipality, Frode Nilsen, considered increased teacher density and homework help as the best way to support the students. – Together with the principals, we stitched together a plan where the main input from the principals was that they wanted increased teacher density in Bergen. A total of NOK 11.5 million has been allocated to schools with secondary education in Bergen. Slåtthaug and Gimle secondary schools are among the schools that have received money to increase teacher density. – The two schools that had been on strike the longest were granted money for increased teacher density, which can be used both now in 2022 and for the rest of the school year. – It was a priority because the pupils who have been outside needed a little closer follow-up in relation to learning. Children and young people want their voice Municipal director in Tromsø municipality, Stig Tore Johnsen, believes it is important to talk to the students before they decide how the strike funds will be distributed. – It will be a nice package of measures that are very specifically aimed at the schools that were hardest hit by the strike. Photo: Julie Bendiksen – The most important thing of all is that we want to get children and young people’s voices into the design of these measures, so we will discuss it with those who actually apply. Like Bergen, Tromsø has chosen to focus on the schools that have been hardest hit by the strike. – Concrete measures can be strengthening teaching, social measures for the teaching environment, trips for pupils, leisure measures and perhaps particularly measures aimed at mental health.
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Bodø schools buy textbooks for strike money – news Nordland
