{"id":17062,"date":"2022-10-11T09:43:47","date_gmt":"2022-10-11T09:43:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/the-students-are-no-longer-allowed-to-pray-inside-the-school-news-vestland\/"},"modified":"2022-10-11T09:43:48","modified_gmt":"2022-10-11T09:43:48","slug":"the-students-are-no-longer-allowed-to-pray-inside-the-school-news-vestland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/the-students-are-no-longer-allowed-to-pray-inside-the-school-news-vestland\/","title":{"rendered":"The students are no longer allowed to pray inside the school – news Vestland"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A bunch of junior high school students at Sagatun school in Balestrand have in recent years met for devotion and Christian fellowship during the lunch break on Wednesdays. Now the headmaster has put a stop to the gatherings, pointing out that the school must be ideologically neutral and that there must be no religious gatherings during school hours. – I am frustrated with the school leadership, says Eva Bente Ohma, who has two daughters in the Christian school team. The case was first reported in Sogn Avis. news has been in contact with the headmaster at the school, who refers to the municipal director in Sogndal municipality. In a justification for the decision, he writes that Christian meetings in school can be “perceived as noisy and offensive to those who belong to other faith communities”. This is what the director of the municipality says to news – In 2017, we got a new chapter in the Education Act which tightens the requirement that everyone must have a safe and good school environment. Through the strict activity obligation in \u00a79a, the headmaster and the school must be in charge of the content of the education during school time. The municipality stands firmly by this interpretation. This applies to all teamwork and not the exercise of faith. – It is important to clarify that the schools are open to all teams and organizations outside school hours. This is offered and arranged for after school hours, free of charge. A bunch of junior high school students at Sagatun school in Balestrand have in recent years met for devotion and Christian fellowship during the lunch break on Wednesdays. Now the headmaster has put his foot down. Photo: Kjell Arvid St\u00f8len \/ news \u2013 Here the municipality has the roadblock With reference to the Education Act (paragraphs 2-3, 2-4 and 9-6), the director further writes that religious gatherings during school time “can lead to a discriminatory school environment and hinder play and social learning across religious orientation’. The letter is addressed to group leader in Sogndal KrF, Frode B\u00f8thun, who has complained about the decision. – Here the municipality has a roadblock. Norway must be a society open to life views where people with different views can practice their faith, side by side, he says. “Det livssynopne samfunn” is the title of the report to the St\u00e5lsettutvalet, which went through the Norwegian trust and life-view policy. The work culminated in the new antitrust law, which came into force last year. In its recommendations, the St\u00e5lsettutvalet writes that schools should show “roominess in relation to school pupils’ own voluntary organization of religious or philosophy-based groups and gatherings”. WRITE THIS THE ST\u00c5LSET COMMITTEE The committee wants to emphasize that the public school educates everyone, regardless of religious or ideological affiliation. The school must look after freedom of religion and outlook on life and has as one of its ideals, formulated in the purpose clause, that it should work for freedom of spirit. The school is not a place for preaching, but it should not be a religion-free space either. Freedom of religion and belief also applies to school children, who must have the right to express and exercise their religious or ideological affiliation also within the framework of the school. School children must be met with respect for their religion and their outlook on life, and flexibility should be shown in relation to the need for religious practice, including the possibility of using clothing and symbols based on outlook of life and the possibility of student-initiated gatherings, for example during recess, unless this is possible in addition to teaching, peace and order. This follows from the committee’s principle that freedom of religion and belief is protected for everyone and that everyone should accept being exposed to the practices of religion and belief of others in the public space. The committee will also refer to the principle of equal treatment. This must also mean that other religions and views of life than the majority religion are given an equal place. The selection requires flexibility in relation to school pupils’ own voluntary organization of religious or belief-based groups and gatherings and in relation to the desire for access to rooms for prayer and other gatherings. The leader of the committee, Sturla St\u00e5lsett, tells news that the decision at Sagatun school “is not only unnecessarily restrictive”, but also “in direct conflict” with the principle of openness of life in the new antitrust law. – The extent to which pupils must have access to rooms for self-initiated activities at school is regulated by the individual municipality, says Minister for Children and Families Kjersti Toppe (Sp). She adds: – Having said that, I would encourage the municipalities to listen to the St\u00e5lsett committee. A neutral society is not the same as an empty society. I hope that the principal and others understand the difference. This is what Minister for Children and Families Kjersti Toppe (Sp) says – The government wants a society with an open outlook on life, where everyone has respect for and knowledge of the outlook on life of others. The school is the most important common arena in Norwegian society and helps to lay the foundations for peaceful coexistence across beliefs and outlooks. School pupils have the right to observe and exercise their religious affiliation. At the same time, there is a balancing act between the school as a common arena where everyone should be able to participate, regardless of belief or outlook, and respect for the individual student’s freedom of belief and outlook. – The extent to which pupils must have access to rooms for self-initiated activities at school is regulated by the individual municipality. When the activities take place during school hours, the schools and school owners are obliged to ensure that all pupils have a safe and good school environment. Gathering about social activities organized by the students themselves or various teams, groups or organizations can contribute to a good school environment, but it must not interfere with the school’s general activity or the rights and interests of other students. The individual school knows the situation best and can balance the different needs against each other. – Having said that, I would like to encourage the municipalities to listen to the St\u00e5lsett Committee, which writes in its report that they “recommend a broad approach in relation to school pupils’ own voluntary organization of religious or outlook-based groups and gatherings and in relation to the desire for access to room for prayer and other gatherings.\u201d Culture Minister Hadia Tajik (Ap) accepted the proposal from Sturla St\u00e5lsett in 2013. Photo: Berit Roald \/ NTB – The school must be a place for intellectual freedom In 2018, Minister of Education Jan Tore Sanner (H) sent a letter to all municipalities in which he encouraged the schools to open the classroom for student-initiated meetings during school hours. The letter was sent after a unanimous Storting asked the government to ensure that children’s and youth organizations have access to schools and other public buildings. – This is completely unheard of Karl-Johan Kj\u00f8de, general secretary of the League (Norwegian Christian Student and School Youth Association) – In his eagerness for a “viewpoint-neutral” school, the municipal director forgets that every single student and member of staff at Sogndal School – including himself – has a view of life , and that it is quite concretely a Christian and humanistic heritage that underlies the Education Act. That is why you do not find the term “viewpoint neutral” either in the Education Act or in various circulars from the Ministry of Education. That Christian youths who invite to a meeting to, among other things, talk about the Bible and Christian faith are not only sent to the hallway, but actually completely out on the field – because someone can be “offended” by their faith – is completely unheard of. In return, it is magnanimous that the pupils who turn the other cheek take an umbrella to school and hold a team meeting on the outdoor lawn. Margrete Bj\u00f8rge Katanasho, National Council for Norwegian Children’s and Youth Organizations (LNU) – Children and young people should be able to rally around what they believe in and are passionate about. That the municipality intervenes in this way is unfortunate. Figures from the Ungdata survey show that every year since 2015 there has been a decline in how many people enjoy school. The same survey also finds that there are more and more people who are bored at school, and that more people now than before are truant. The reasons are clearly complex, but with such a backdrop, schools should in any case make arrangements for children and young people to organize themselves at school. Children and young people have freedom of association. There is good reason for that: through organizational life, children and young people get the opportunity to develop and challenge themselves, in community with others, while at the same time learning that their voice matters. Therefore, schools should also open up to democratic and voluntary child and youth activity, not close the doors to it. Aslak Berntsen Husby, Elevorganisaisonen – If there is anyone who has been offended by this incident, it is the students who organized a religious gathering during recess. The school, as an institution, must be neutral, but by prohibiting the voluntary practice of one’s outlook on life, one has not created a safer school day for any religious pupils. Yes, perhaps not all the students were part of the prayer circle, but this is a wonderful opportunity to create a good discussion between students about the practice of religion in everyday life. It is simply disappointing to see that the school primarily resorts to bans before engaging in dialogue with the students. I hope the municipality and the school reconsider their decision, and work for a safer school day, also for pupils who wish to practice their religion one day a week. Kjell Ingolf Ropstad, KrF – The practice of the municipal director leads to less diversity and a less open-minded society – completely contrary to what both the Storting and the government have stated is the goal. I want a school that dares to show what a life-oriented society is. A school that teaches pupils to live in a multiplicity of opinions and expressions of faith. A school that builds on voluntary student involvement. A school that promotes freedom of belief, freedom of assembly and freedom of expression. Not a nervous, convulsive secular school that tries to brush all panty expressions under the rug. A similar signal came from Kristin Halvorsen (SV), when she was minister of knowledge. In response to a written question from parliamentary representative Dagrun Eriksen (KrF), she pointed out that the school should be “a place for spiritual freedom” and that “there should be an opening for school pupils to organize their own religious activities, for example during recess.” Bishop in Bj\u00f8rgvin, Halvor Nordhaug, says he is “disappointed and very surprised” by the decision at Sagatun school. He is not familiar with other schools that practice an equally strict line. – This line contributes to promoting an attitude where faith and outlook on life are considered potentially harmful for young people, because people think and believe differently. She does not want to promote a society where we can live together in openness and tolerance. – Many students may feel excluded from participating in other activities that take place during school hours, such as football, karate and chess. But they are not banned for that reason, says the Bishop of Bj\u00f8rgvin, Halvor Nordhaug. Photo: Jon Olav Nesvold \/ NTB – There must be some limits Leader of the Human-Ethical Association, Christian Lomsdalen, for once is in complete agreement with the bishop: – It cannot be the case that the school allowed sporting, political, literary or democratic activities , and then recruit students who wish to carry out religious or religious activities during the same period. As long as the initiative comes from the pupils, we must allow the pupils to gather in groups during certain breaks. He nevertheless takes a small step back: – There must still be some limitations on such meeting activities. It is important that she is not a nuisance to the other students.
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