– I want to live at home with mum and dad, I want to study specialization in my village, at my local school. And then I hear that it’s not happening. That I have to stop my leisure activities, I have to travel far to go to school, and spend my whole day there. It is quite a crisis to think about. It’s not the way it should be! The words flow out of 15-year-old Thilde Kveum Bergheim from Skjåk. She is distraught and feels powerless, but at the same time ready. Ready to fight against the politicians who want to close her school. – They must listen to us, because it is important and goes beyond us who live in Lom and Skjåk. On Tuesday, the 15-year-old meets politicians and others at Debatten at 9.15pm. School, homework and journey The tenth-grader from Skjåk is one of over 700 who will be affected if the position in the interior gets what they want. Her school in Lom is one of six proposed to be closed. The school closure is a hot topic among the friends, says Thilde Kveum Bergheim. – People have to travel so far to go to school. That’s not how it should be. There must be freedom of choice. Photo: Tom Balgaard / news Bergheim fears a future where she will have to spend four hours round trip to get to the nearest upper secondary school, Otta in Sel municipality. That will mean she has to get up at half past seven in the morning to catch the bus – and won’t be home again until six in the evening, she claims. Then she has to do homework. – Then I have to stop playing handball, and have less time with my friends in my spare time. So I sacrifice my free time to be at school. Inflamed school debate The debate about school structure in Innlandet county has been heated. The position consisting of the Labor Party, the Conservative Party and the MDG is to close two schools and four school sites: Skarnes and Dokka upper secondary schools, the Dombås and Lom sites at Nord-Gudbrandsdal upper secondary school, and Flisa and Sønsterud at Solør upper secondary school. In Dokka, over a thousand residents turned up to protest against school closures on Monday evening. Photo: Stine Bækkelien / news Innlandet has lost 3,500 pupils since 2013, and is seeing the birth rate go down. Therefore, the politicians expect even fewer students in the future. In the last 20 years, structural changes have been made in primary schools. – Now it is upper secondary education that must take some measures to ensure quality and predictability for both students, employees and business. We do this by strengthening the offers in each individual region, even if we reduce the number of school places, county mayor Thomas Breen (Ap) has explained. The cut proposals have led to several torchlight processions, employees who cry at the thought of closure and a minister of justice who intervenes in the debate by comparing county mayor Thomas Breen (Ap) to a sex worker. Several upper secondary schools in the country exposed Innlandet is not the only county planning changes to the school structure. Østfold is planning cuts of NOK 170 million next year, and is considering removing study programs in music, sports, art and media subjects, and increasing the number of students in vocational classes. In Vestland, there was a recent breakdown in the negotiations on a new school structure. This spring, the county came up with a proposal to close down or merge several upper secondary schools. Published 15.10.2024, at 21.03
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Thilde Kveum Bergheim (15) from Skjåk will have to commute for four hours if the school in Lom is closed – news Innlandet – Local news, TV and radio
