The case in summary – Teachers feel that more students need individually adapted education (before called special education), but there are no figures to show this development. – The Directorate of Education is aware of violations of the Education Act on the point about adapted education. – Many students who receive adapted education receive not the resources they need. – The lecturers’ association and the Education Association propose solutions such as closer follow-up of teachers, more visible and accessible psychologists, social workers and health nurses in schools, smaller classes and a maximum limit on the number of students per class. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAI. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. – The classes have become larger and the curriculum more ambitious. In chemistry 1, I will assess practical skills among 30 students on eight points. Hans-Tore Fuglestad Hansen is a subject teacher in mathematics, chemistry and science at Førde secondary school. He is also an elected representative in the Norwegian Association of Lecturers at the school and therefore speaks on a general basis. He is one of many teachers who despair that teachers are being assigned more and more responsibility. Nevertheless, there are no figures that can point to this change. – Parents, counselors and health nurses have seen greater demands for the individual student to be followed up, says Helle Christin Nyhuus, leader of the professional association Norwegian Lecturers’ Association. Using simplified subject books is one of the many measures Hans-Tore Fuglestad Hansen uses to make the teaching understandable for everyone. Photo: Malene Laura Solheim / news A solitaire that doesn’t work out In mid-September, the Ministry of Education sent a message to the Storting on learning, motivation and well-being in 5.-10. steps. It states that it has become more demanding for schools to provide adapted teaching to an increasingly diverse student group, while at the same time teachers must take care of the community in the class. This is noted by the leader of the Vestland Education Association, Steinar Vegsund Strømsli. He receives almost daily e-mails from teachers. They despair that they have neither the time nor the expertise for the statutory follow-up to which pupils are entitled. – We have entered a vicious circle from which we cannot get out, says Strømsli. Steinar Vegsund Strømsli in Education Association Vestland is often contacted by frustrated teachers. Photo: Arne Stubhaug The Norwegian Association of Lecturers has close to 9,000 members, while the Education Association has just under 200,000. Both unions say that this is a big problem for many teachers. Due to the lack of figures on the problem, it is uncertain how many teachers this actually applies to. – A large part of the problem is that it is not seen in the system who needs what facilitation. Therefore, we know little about how teachers are affected by these changes, says Nyhuus of the Norwegian Association of Lecturers. Figures from the schools show that the number of pupils with individually tailored education (formerly called special education) has been fairly stable over the past decade. Nevertheless, teachers are experiencing a dramatic change. “Gray zone” In the secondary school, there are no figures on how many are formally individually adapted to their education. Many who receive customized training do not receive resources that meet their needs. The Directorate of Education admits that this is a problem. – We know that some parts of the Education Act are broken more often than others, for example the right to adapt education, writes director of the Directorate of Education (Udir), Are Solstad, in an e-mail to news. Nyhuus in the Norwegian Association of Teachers believes this puts too much pressure on teachers and weakens the learning environment in the classroom. Helle Christin Nyhuus is worried about what overburdening teachers does to the learning environment in the classroom. Photo: Joachim Engelstad / Norsk Lektorlag – The problem is that several parents, psychologists and health nurses demand that the teacher prepares an adapted plan without the student having a formal decision on it. We call this the “grey zone”. Strømsli in the Education Association has several theories as to why it has become this way. – Several pupils need language follow-up, or have psychological challenges. In addition, the health services at the schools are weakened year by year. Furthermore, he says that he is absolutely certain that this primarily affects the pupils and their learning outcomes. The chemistry teacher Hansen at Førde primary school knows this. on. – Challenges arise quickly if, for example, a student requires a lot of follow-up. Then the time I spend on one student becomes very high, which then has to go beyond other students in the class. With several work tasks for the teacher, Hansen does not always get the math to work out. – The frames do not match the order, he says. What does it mean to adapt teaching? Adapt education All pupils have the right to adapt education. This means that the training must be adapted to the pupils’ abilities and prerequisites (Education Act § 11-1). Adapted education is a fundamental principle in all education and must protect inclusion and equality for all pupils in the school. This is not an individual right for the individual student. The school must therefore not make decisions about adapting education. Individual provision On 1 August, the new Education Act entered into force. Here, the term “special education” was converted into three subsections: individually tailored training, personal assistance, and physical preparation and technical aids. In order for the student to receive individually tailored training, the student must have a decision on the need for such adaptation. It will then be formally arranged for the student, so that he/she can get a satisfactory result from the training compared to other students (see § 11–6 of the new law.) Source: Directorate of Education Wants more adults in the classroom Both the Association of Lecturers and the Education Association have proposals until solutions are ready. Strømsli at the Norwegian Education Association believes that more funds for the municipalities will strengthen the schools. – Ideally, we would like the eye mark to be milder, but first of all we need the state budget to prioritize the municipal economy. The Norwegian Association of Lecturers wrote in a submission to the state budget that they want the government to aim for quality and capacity in secondary education. They write that “county municipalities are cutting the school budget. The cut will weaken the offer for the pupils, the quality of the education and reduce the possibility of follow-up of each individual pupil.” Furthermore, the Association of Lecturers and the Education Association tell about the following solutions: Closer follow-up and documentation of the workload for the individual teacher. Other professional groups are better equipped to solve certain tasks in the school than the teachers. Psychologists, social workers and public health nurses should become more visible and available in schools. Fewer pupils per teacher. Classes must be smaller. Introduce a maximum limit on the number of pupils per class in the secondary school. The Danish Education Association has no overview of what it will cost to increase the number of teachers per pupil and reduce class sizes. In response to these demands, Solstad wrote to Udir that they are working on several measures to strengthen the team around children and pupils. – Among other things, we have initiated a competence boost for special pedagogy and inclusive practice which will contribute to ensuring that special pedagogic help is close to the children who need it, writes Solstad. Published 06.10.2024, at 16.46 Updated 06.10.2024, at 17.54
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Udir believes that teachers have too little capacity as many pupils require special education – news Vestland
