Minister of State Sandra Borch (Sp) and former Minister of Knowledge Jan Tore Sanner (H) agree on one thing: When the Storting is to adopt rules for admission to higher education, these rules should be able to stand up over time. From 2018, the Solberg government introduced a minimum requirement of grade 3 to enter nursing and teacher training. This has led to a sharp decline in the number of applicants for nursing education, as shown by a count carried out by the trade journal Sykepleien. “Stand over time” According to Sandra Borch (Sp), minister for research and higher education, the government has not decided whether they want to remove the grade requirement, but: – It is important to find a solution that stands up over time, says Borch. And the whistle has about the same sound with the opposition. – It will be a clear advantage if we agree, precisely because it will stand up over time, says Høyre’s Jan Tore Sanner. Sandra Borch in the Center Party. Photo: Tordis Gauteplass / news Wants high requirements But the agreement may end there, at least if the government were to decide to defy the Conservative Party and move to remove the grade requirement. And the Conservatives are categorical, and issue ultimatums. – It is not relevant for the Conservative Party to relax the character requirements. The pupils must meet qualified teachers in the classrooms, teachers with good competence. Grade requirements for teacher training also contribute to a higher status for the education. It is not only a wrong signal, but also wrong policy, to lower the requirements when there are fewer applicants. We must set high standards for such important educations, says Sanner. Jan Tore Sanner in the Conservative Party. Photo: Azad Razaei And Høyre receives support from the nursing students’ union representatives in Tromsø. – The government should step in to keep the grade requirements. It ensures a minimum requirement for nursing students, and it helps ensure the safety of our patients, says Henriette Karlsen Brenna, who is a student union representative in the Norwegian Nurses’ Association. The student teachers’ union representative in Tromsø has come to a slightly different position. – The advantage of a grade requirement is that the students can get a feeling that they have achieved something that not everyone else can achieve. The disadvantage is that you can miss out on many who could have become very good teachers, says Fabine Fjellberg Moldenæs, who is a shop steward in the Education Association. She points out that the teaching profession is practical. – The skills you acquire as a teacher are much more important than the results you had at upper secondary school, says Moldenæs. Fabine Fjellberg Moldenæs is a student union representative in the Education Association. Four universities applied for exemptions On 20 December, it became known that Minister Sandra Borch (Sp) said no to four universities, which had applied for exemptions from grade requirements for teaching and nursing education. Borch announced that she would not grant any dispensation now, but would wait until an overall assessment of the admission rules has been made next year. If the attention seems to be directed to the wrong place, Vice Chancellor Kathrine Tveiterås at UiT – Norway’s Arctic University, gives the politicians a clear recommendation to drop the grade requirement. – In the debate, I miss greater attention to which candidates we get out into society after graduation. As a university, we believe that we can teach students a few things. So it is important that we maintain national partial exams, so that we can assure those who might wonder about it, that the quality of those we send out into working life will not change, says Tveiterås. After discussion has now arisen about changing the grade requirement again, Tveiterås demands that the Storting should at least come up with a solution that will stand. Kathrine Tveiterås, vice chancellor at UiT Norway’s Arctic University. Photo: David Jensen / UiT – What is important is that we get predictability, and that there are no new requirements and the criterion of changing governments, we have seen that in other education policy issues, such as those related to Christianity and religion in schools. The most important thing is predictability and the long term, says Tveiterås. Recommends Labor to cut grade requirements Where Minister Sandra Borch says the government has not made up its mind, the Labor Party’s spokesperson for higher education and research has made up its mind. – I would recommend the Labor Party’s parliamentary group to remove the grade requirements. We need to get more through both teacher and nurse training. There are major challenges in the districts with recruiting for schools, nursing homes and other places. We must try all possible methods to solve this, says Lise Selnes (Ap). Lise Selnes in the Labor Party. Photo: The Labor Party The government will submit its proposal for a decision to the Storting closer to next summer. Minister of State Sandra Borch (Sp) will use the time ahead to draw conclusions. – It is important for me to say that the government has not decided what we should go for, but we welcome the discussion. We see that the educational institutions have opinions about this, and that will affect our assessments. And then there will be a dialogue with the Storting about getting a political majority. We know we need more nurses and teachers, so we have to set up a system that ensures we get the hands we need, says Borch.
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The Conservative Party demands that grade requirements for teacher and nurse training be retained – news Troms and Finnmark
