Current Temp: 34 F
Current Amount of Snow: about 1.5 ft
Current Conditions: ICY

Hei! Many people from home have been asking me what the public schools are like here in Norway. I think it can be described best in one sentence: Students don’t wear shoes.

What does this mean? Basically, Norwegian schools are the most relaxed place I’ve ever been. I am placed at an ungdomsskole (lower secondary school, basically our equivalent of a middle school) in year 9. Schools in Norway are split into 3 levels: barneskole (primary school: grades 1-7, ages 6-13), ungdomsskole (lower secondary school: grades 8-10, ages 13-16), and videreg�ende skole  (upper secondary school: grades VG1-VG3, ages 16-19). The last level of schooling is not required by law, but many jobs and most universities require it.

My placement at the Charlottenlund Ungdomsskole has been wonderful so far, even if it is a little difficult to get to. I get up at 5:30AM to catch as 7AM bus (that is usually early anyway) to the main street of town (Munkegata) to catch another bus by 7:30AM to get me to school by 8AM. Classes start at 8:15AM. I rarely hit traffic going to school, but coming home is a different story.

My first day of school was extremely overwhelming. My fellow student teacher, Megan, and I arrived to school extremely early since we were unsure of the bus system. Somehow upon my entry into the school I met my mentor teacher, Ove. He introduced himself and told me to go to the wardrobe to take off my heavy winter coat and boots. It was a bit surprising at first to hear that I must take off my shoes upon entering the school but thankfully I was warned about this so I brought an extra pair. We then went to the teacher’s office room. Rather than having a desk in the classroom, teachers at Charlottenlund have a desk in a separate room. Megan and I were assigned the conference table for our “desk”, but unfortunately the conference room was being used our first day. Megan met up with her mentor teacher and we split up. Megan and I are both teaching year 9, but the grade is split up into 3 blocks (A, B, C). Each block of roughly 50 students is further split into 2 classes. Each block has about 3 teachers who teach multiple subjects. My mentor teacher instructs Norwegian and samfunnsfag (“society subject”, or social studies). I will be teaching samfunnsfag, an English language/culture class, and fagfordyping, a social studies elective class. Megan and I teach the elective class together and pretty much have free range on the non-existent curriculum. It’s kind of a teacher’s dream and a teacher’s nightmare at the same time. What to teach?

Attendance is taken at the beginning of the day and is rather quick. The students are usually in the room before the teachers arrive. As soon as the teachers prompt them, the students stand up. They wait for the teachers to greet them with a god dag (“good day”). After that, attendance is taken and then the classes are split into their two groups. Schedules here are VERY different than the middle/high school class schedule I had. It is much more like a college class schedule. The students do not have the same classes every day. For example, they have samfunnsfag Mondays and Tuesdays, English Mondays and Wednesdays, and fagfordyping only on Fridays. It is extremely confusing as an outsider looking in, but the students seem to know what is going on. What is even more bizarre is the fact that when teachers do not have class, they do not have to be in school. There is no such thing as a standard school day. For example, my students have school from 8:15AM-2:15PM on Mondays but from 10:00AM-3:15PM on Tuesdays. I don’t even teach a class on Wednesdays! There are at least one or two scheduled coffee breaks per day. I can leave whenever my classes are finished. Apparently this type of schedule is a little different even by Norwegian standards and I’m still having quite a bit of trouble grasping the fact that I don’t have to be in school until 12:45 on Fridays. I don’t feel like I’m doing enough work!

Now onto the big question: why don’t students wear shoes? The answer is actually quite simple. The weather conditions outside can be pretty terrible (snowy, slushy, etc) so the students simply take off their shoes and put them in the locker room. They just wear their socks all day. Some wear socks and sandals (which goes against everything I stand for morally) but most just hang out in their socks. I’ve got to say, they seem pretty comfortable! Schools here try to create a sense of community by having their students take pride in their school. This means that each year and block have certain duties that they must do each week. This includes running the snack bar and sweeping the floors of their classroom. The schools here do not have sports (those are run by outside clubs) so I guess this is a way for them to build school spirit. Everyone here seems pretty relaxed. No one rushes to class. There are no bells telling you when to start and end class. Teachers have quite a bit of freedom here. One thing I found rather odd is that the students still have recess. Outside. In the winter. In Norway. If you are a student you are going outside after lunch whether you like it or not. They literally lock the doors behind the students and don’t let them in until the teachers have finished eating lunch. Fresh air is good I guess!

Honestly, it has been a bit difficult for me to wrap my head around this entirely new system. The first week was a little rough due to sheer confusion. My mentor teacher and the rest of the staff did the best they could to make sense of the schedule and atmosphere for me. Its hard enough being introduced to a new school system but add on top the fact that most of the classes I will teach are still being taught in Norwegian and you get quite a stressful situation. It is just so completely different than anything I’ve ever experienced before so it takes some getting used to. Once I figure out a schedule and begin teaching I’m sure things will begin to make a lot more sense. I’m also still waiting for some instruction and guidance from the College of Education so things have been a little stressful!

As far as non-school life goes, I spent the weekend sightseeing with Megan and our friend Espen, who was kind enough to play tour guide for us. We went up to the old fortress for some absolutely breathtaking views of the city and the fjord (even if it was a little bit cloudy). Hopefully I’ll be experiencing some more of the Trondheim culture soon!

Location: Edgar B Schieldropsvei 42-18 7033 Trondheim Norway