– I think the scheme can have many negative consequences and I don’t understand why we should continue with it, says Eva Kahrs. Recently, Vågå municipality decided to continue with a four-day school week for the youngest. The mother of four, who is herself a teacher, has been critical of the scheme. – The children get longer school days and for those who have to be in after-school on Wednesdays, the total load for the whole school week will be greater. SFO “after-school program” SFO stands for after-school program, which in many places is also called AKS. The scheme applies to the youngest pupils at primary school (grades 1-4) and is a scheme for which the municipality is responsible. From the autumn of 2022, the government introduced an offer of 12 hours of free after-school care per week for all first-graders, and over 90 percent of first-graders now participate in the after-school program. Some municipalities also cover it for older pupils, Vågå val recently decided to cover SFO for both 1st and 2nd stage. Although several district municipalities have a four-day school week for the youngest pupils, there are quite a few schools that do not have an adequate after-school offer on the days they have off. At regjeringen.no you can read more about the after school holiday scheme. Kahrs also adds that the scheme imposes an expectation on parents to take time off to be at home with the children, which not everyone has the opportunity to do. She knows many people experience it as hurtful. What is a four day school week? Most go to school five days a week, but in the district there are some grades that have a four-day school week. The teaching time is the same, only spread over four days instead of five. How the school week is to be organized is up to each individual municipality. Primarily, the scheme applies to the primary level and often 1–2. step or 1–4. steps, but there are variations within the municipalities. Most municipalities like to add the day off to Wednesday, to create a break in the middle of the week. Municipalities often offer after-school care on days when there is no school. In recent years, many municipalities have had the school system up for discussion. It has caused great debate and opinions are divided. Fewer municipalities now than before In a survey recently carried out by news, it appears that 66 municipalities in Norway have a four-day school week for the youngest. A decrease from 2020, when 83 municipalities were registered as having the scheme. This does not mean that all the children’s schools in these municipalities have this scheme, but that one or more do. DECREASE: The table shows how many municipalities in Norway have a four-day school week in 2023, compared to 2020. These municipalities have a four-day school week 336 municipalities out of a total of 356 have responded to the survey. Some municipalities have variations of the school system and in some municipalities it does not apply to all schools, but to one or more. In total, there are 66 municipalities that have children’s schools with a four-day school week each week in the 2022-2023 school year. Viken: Inland: Alvdal Etnedal Lesja Lom (abolished from autumn 2023) Sør Fron (up for assessment) Nord Fron (abolished from autumn 2023) Rendalen Sør Aurdal Tynset Vågå Vestfold and Telemark: Fyresdal Kviteseid Tokke Vinje Agder Evje and Hornnes (abolished from autumn 2023) Flekkefjord Kvinesdal Hægebostad Sirdal Åseral Rogaland Bjerkreim Lund (abolish from autumn 2023) Vestland Askvoll Fjaler Gloppen Hyllestad Høyanger Lærdal Masfjord Solund Stryn Sunnfjord Vik Møre and Romsdal Gjemnes Tingvoll Fjord Rauma Stranda Volda Trøndelag Flatanger Heim Holtålen Høylandet Inderøy Leka Namsskogan Oppdal Rennebu Steinkjer Nordland Bindal Bø Flakstad Gildeskål (abolished from autumn 2023) Hattfjelldal Rødøy Vega Troms and Finnmark Balsfjord Karlsøy Lavangen Målselv Senja Tromsø Måsøy Some of the municipalities have introduced a five-day school week for the next school year (2023-2024). Several of the municipalities we have been in contact with are in the process of evaluating the school system. Reasons for a four-day school week Scholarship holder in the teacher education program at NTNU, Elisa Farstad Djupedal, has researched the use of time in school and points to some of the reasons behind the school system. Challenges with teacher coverage. Expensive transport arrangements and long journeys for the youngest. A cultural wish for more time at home with the children. Many parents in the district work part-time and some stay at home full-time. A good many appreciated WEDNESDAY OFF: – It’s nice to have a day off at home with dad and my rabbits, says Eiril. For the second-graders, Wednesday means school-free and quality time together with one of the parents. – Wednesdays free opens the door for us as parents to have more time together with our own children, says Sigurd Rønningen. The father of the family is happy that Vågå municipality has chosen to continue with the school system. He thinks it’s a good thing that many people appreciate. – The transition to school can be hard and my children have really benefited from a break in the middle of the week. Up to each individual municipality The teaching time is the same across the country, but the municipalities themselves can choose how they want to organize the school week, says Kjetil Vevle, State Secretary in the Ministry of Education. UP TO EACH MUNICIPALITY: Municipalities in the district have different needs, so it is important that they organize the school system themselves, says the State Secretary in the Ministry of Education. Photo: Ministry of Education – Every municipality has different needs and therefore needs the freedom to organize itself differently, says Vevle. He nevertheless encourages all municipalities to choose a solution that allows all parents to work full-time. – They can solve that by, for example, offering an after-school program all week or by extending the school week to five days. Researcher: advantages and disadvantages Senior researcher at NORCE, Nina Jentoft, was the leader of the research project which in 2019 carried out a consequence assessment of the school system. She believes that a four-day school week can have its advantages, but also some disadvantages. CONSEQUENCE ANALYSIS: Nina Jentoft has looked at the consequences the school system can have for young people, but also how it can affect the social structure. Photo: Pål Tegnander / news – Learning outcomes were the same for students who went to school four days a week, compared to those who went to school five days. Jentoft adds that for some children it can be positive to have a break in the middle of the week, but is aware that many children need school every day. – Not everyone has an equally good network or offers at home, for those children the arrangement will be negative. NO RIGHT ANSWER: Nina Jentoft believes that the school system can work well for many families, but it will require good measures from the municipality. Photo: Svein Sundsdal / news She emphasizes that society expects you to work full-time and not all parents can afford or have the opportunity to take time off to be with their children. Something she believes can contribute to social and economic differences. – Some of course take advantage of the after-school offer, but we saw that most chose to work reduced hours in order to be at home with the children and most of the time it was mothers, says Jentoft. Unfortunate part-time culture Culture and Equality Minister Anette Trettebergstuen believes a four-day school week can lead to an unfortunate part-time culture. Both with regard to employment in the municipality, but also for equality. UNHELLIDIG: Anette Trettebergstuen believes that the scheme imposes an expectation on parents to be at home with the children more. Something she thinks can have negative consequences. Photo: Stig Jaarvik – The scheme helps to underpin a stereotypical gender pattern that can weaken equality, we know that most of those who stay at home with the children are women. Trettebergstuen points out that this can lead to women losing wages and pensions. Although she knows that there are many good sides to a reduced school week, the school system can also have a negative impact on the social structure. Something she thinks the municipalities must take care of. – Not about equality POTATO PLANTING: School holidays make room for a different day for the family and today potato planting is on the agenda. Rønningen believes that the discussion about a four-day school week should be about the best interests of the child and not about equality. – Equality and the distribution of roles between the sexes is something that must be decided by the parents themselves. – Not all, but most, have the opportunity to work somewhat reduced. In our family, we have shared it equally and have every second Wednesday off. The father of the family knows several people who have solved it in the same way and knows that many appreciated the opportunity to be at home with their children. Kahrs disagrees, she wants an equal society where everyone has the same opportunities. DISAGREEMENT: Eva Kahrs is at home on parental leave and wants her three-month-old daughter to have a five-day school week like most others. Photo: Ingrid Turtum / news – School should not be a punishment. Most pupils are happy at school and it should be the school’s main responsibility to ensure that everyone has a good school day, not us as parents. 7 June 08:34: After publication of this case, we have added a clarification that not all the children’s schools in the 66 municipalities have the arrangement with a four-day school week, but that it applies to one or more schools in these municipalities.
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Vågå municipality continues the four-day school week and a number of other municipalities – news Innlandet – Local news, TV and radio
