On Tuesday, it became clear that the teachers’ strike is over. Today, the students are therefore back in schools all over the country. In Bodø, over 5,000 pupils have been affected by the strike. Some have lost a full five weeks of schooling. How will they make up for what was lost? Extra school, the county council proposes. The students are not sure if they are willing to. – Many have lost a lot. County director for education and skills in Nordland, Nina Ellingsen Høiskar, says that they are now looking at various measures to make up for what has been lost. – Many have lost a lot, both academically and socially. It is important that we put measures in place that cover the need that is there, says Høiskar. Nina Høisaker, county director for education and skills in Nordland, says that they will use the money saved during the strike for the measures they choose to implement. Photo: Thor-Wiggo Skille / Nordland County Municipality The county municipality has now started a working group. They are looking at, among other things, these measures: Extra teaching and homework help in the afternoon Strengthening of resources in ordinary teaching Assessing the need to strengthen the pupil and apprentice service this school year for closer follow-up of pupils and preventing dropouts, e.g. increased resources for environmental workers/advisors/the follow-up service Organize homework help, e.g. with student teachers Offer “intensive courses” on specific subjects – We will not rule anything out and we will look at everything. We are surveying the status of the pupils now, and working in parallel with future measures, says the county director. Do you want extra school to make up for lost time? Yes No Fortunately, I’ve finished primary school Show result Student: – Don’t have time In Bodø, the two big schools have Bodin viderageningen and Bodø vgs. been severely affected by the strike. Sondre Hegreberg is a student at Bodin primary school. in Bodø. He has lost over a month of school. When he and his fellow students were hit by the teachers’ strike, he told news that he was worried about how it would affect his grades. – I know that the grades can get worse, because I lose a lot of what I would normally do. The students at Bodin School were worried about how their grades would fare when their teachers went on strike almost five weeks ago. Photo: lars-bjørn martinsen / news Now the county council wants to give him extra school. But Hegreberg has no intention of making use of that. – I don’t have time for that, he says. – The school hours I have are the time I have to be at school. I’m not going to do anything more than that. – But what about the exam and your grades, then? – I hope that no topic comes up that we haven’t had time to learn about at school. The student organisation: – Mental health is most important Aslak Berntsen Husby is head of the student organisation. He is concerned that the politicians will look for measures from the pandemic and bet that they will work just as well now. He does not imagine that supplementary school is the best for all students. – I think that the most important thing is that before you come up with any measures, you have to talk to students and teachers locally about which measures they think will work best for them, says Aslak Berntsen Husby, head of the Student Organization. Photo: Eivind Lotsberg / Elevorganisaisonen Therefore, he hopes that local authorities will not choose to add more subjects after the strike. – Pupils are not empty thoughts that can be filled with information. They are people who you have to make sure are well, safe and motivated. He believes that more teaching with more unqualified teachers is not the solution either. – But what is the solution then? – It is work that needs to be done a little from all parties. Mental health is the most important thing to work on. As well as making the school a safe and good arena for learning. The Education Act is not complied with. Students in Norway have the statutory right to a minimum number of hours in all subjects. Deputy director at the state administrator in Nordland, Gunn Randi Skjerve, says that they are fully aware that the pupils’ rights under the Education Act have not been fulfilled. – During a strike, various laws come into force, she writes in an e-mail to news. At the present time, they do not want to comment on how the students will get back the tuition they are entitled to. – We will be in dialogue with the Norwegian Directorate of Education to ensure equal understanding of the law for all students and any subsequent measures. The students at Bodin upper secondary school have lost a lot of school. Now work is being done on solutions for how they will be able to recoup what was lost. Photo: Lars-Bjørn Martinsen Does this mean that students who have not had any school for over a month now have to work twice as hard? The county director for education and skills in Nordland does not think so. – It will be voluntary for the students if they wish to accept offers of extra teaching. They have their regular timetable which they must follow. – Will the extra school mean that the teachers have to work extra now after the strike? – We do not want to impose extra teaching on the teachers who already have full employment. It is important to avoid too high a workload, says Høiskar. – Therefore, we have to see if we have part-time employees in the school who can be promoted. It may also be relevant to hire temporary staff where there is a need, or engage retired teachers.
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The pupils are offered extra school to make up for what they lost – news Nordland
