– It is quite educational, and very nice to get to know the others. Having a job and getting an education is important for everyone, says Tone Brynhildsen (42), who studies in Stavanger. Tone Brynhildsen from Stavanger is fighting to ensure that studies for people with developmental disabilities can continue. Photo: Anett Johansen Espeland / news She is one of eight students studying human rights at VID university of science. Four study in Stavanger, and four in Oslo. After one year, she has received 30 credits. Second academic year is now being planned. – We had themes such as racism, history, power and research. I am equal. The sorting society is no good. We must also be allowed to develop ourselves, says Brynhildsen. The education is a pilot project. It has been developed by VID, together with Oslo municipality and the Norwegian Association for Developmentally Disabled (NFU). Applicants must have completed upper secondary school, but since they have not been given the opportunity to take the exam, admission is not based on results. – Depending on state support The starting point for the study is the human rights convention CRPD. It is about the rights of people with disabilities. Everyone should have the opportunity to develop as a person and prepare for working life. Professor Inger Marie Lid at VID Oslo is one of the project managers for the study. Photo: Anett Johansen Espeland / news – This is a social responsibility. We have not seen any good reasons why these people should not have the right to study. According to the CRPD, which Norway committed to in 2013, we must have an inclusive education system, says project leader and professor at VID Oslo, Inger Marie Lid. The project is financed by the DAM foundation, which has provided a total of NOK 3.5 million. Now the private college has applied for NOK 5 million in state support. Associate professor Anna Chalachanova is the project manager for the education at VID in Stavanger. Photo: Anett Johansen Espeland / news – We are dependent on government help to be able to continue beyond the pilot project, says the other project manager, associate professor Anna Chalachanova at VID Stavanger. – Embarrassing for Norway The NFU also believes that the state must step up now, in order to catch up with developments. – It is embarrassing for Norwegian society that they are not in place with public support. An example of how not everyone gets to take part in our society, even if they have the legislation with them, says confederation leader Tom Tvedt in the NFU. Tom Tvedt is the leader of the Norwegian Confederation of Developmentally Disabled, NFU. He expects the authorities to address the matter. – For us, this is absolutely crucial to getting people into work. Today we educate people for nothing. The Storting must finance this. There is a lack of knowledge. We have no intention of giving up until there is an offer, says Tvedt. Similar educations can be found in Iceland, Canada, Australia, Ireland and Germany, among others. – Previously, Norway was looked up to outside the world. We closed the special schools and focused on inclusion. Now we notice at conferences in Europe that we are on our way back. We have been lagging behind, says secretary general of the NFU, Hedvig Ekberg. Hedvig Ekberg is secretary general of the Norwegian Association for the Developmentally Disabled, NFU. Photo: NFU One argument NFU refers to is the desire to get more people into work. – The government’s work line must also apply to people with disabilities. The problem is that there are often no expectations for them at school either, says Ekberg. – But what can they use the education for? – They get something that can give them strength in the jobs they are going to do – both permanently arranged workplaces and regular workplaces that are arranged. Self-determination and rights are important to take with you into everyday working life. This year is used for planning next year’s studies. Then the plan is for the students to go into practice. Photo: Anett Johansen Espeland / news No promises for the time being Minister for Research and Higher Education Sandra Borch (Sp) could not be interviewed, news has been informed. The Ministry of Education replies in an e-mail that the application will be assessed in the work on the national budget. Furthermore, the ministry writes, among other things: The response from the ministry “Students with disabilities and special needs have the right to adapted individual adaptation of study conditions, teaching, teaching aids and exams to ensure equal educational opportunities. Exceptions can be made if the arrangement constitutes an unreasonable burden, but the institutions do not have the opportunity to reduce the professional requirements… The government has set up a legal expert committee to investigate how the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities should be incorporated into Norwegian law. .. Section 109 of the Constitution emphasizes that the authorities must ensure “equal opportunities for higher education on the basis of qualifications”, which means that all applicants must meet the same admission requirements in order to be considered. – There are priorities Christoffer Petterson (24) believes the education has given him useful tools. – Competence is the core of being able to have a job. We must have competence in what we are entitled to. Because the state or others can forget about it and override the individual. Then I have to know about my rights, and I have learned that here. Christoffer Pettersson is a student at VID Stavanger. Photo: Anett Johansen Espeland / news – Why has it taken so long to get education in place, do you think? – If we go back far enough, women didn’t even have the right to vote. So it’s just about who has been prioritized first, says Pettersson. He believes the state has everything to gain by supporting the study financially. – I hope we can get more studies for people with different needs. There are a record number of disabled young people, and it costs the state a lot of money. Perhaps more people can manage without social benefits, if they get an education, says the 24-year-old. The UN Convention CRPD The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) shall help to counter discrimination on the grounds of disability The convention does not contain any new, special rights, but shall contribute to ensuring that persons with disabilities also receive their human rights fulfilled. Norway signed the UN convention in 2007, and ratified it in 2013. This means that the state is obliged to follow what is written in the convention. In 2023, a national project will be launched to get the State Administrator and the municipalities to incorporate the CRPD into their tasks. In Norway, we also have our own Discrimination and Accessibility Act, which prohibits discriminating against people with disabilities in education, working life and other areas of society. Source: United Nations association
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VID has Norway’s first university education for people with developmental disabilities – news Rogaland – Local news, TV and radio
