Wow what a week it has been!
On our arrival we met with Annfrid and Silje who helped us settle in well. The first thing we noticed when we arrived is the very cold weather. The locals kept saying how nice the weather is because there was sun, but we could only feel the cold because we are not used to snow and ice-cold temperatures. We had pizza at a local pizza restaurant in Tromsø and we were very impressed with the flavours that are strictly found here in Tromsø. We also had an opportunity to see the northern light, that was really a fun experience, and it was just magical to see the lights in real life because before then we had only heard of them through stories and TV.
After taking the whole day of Sunday to rest, we went to the university on Monday and there we met Annfrid and Brynn for an introduction to the program. We learnt a lot about the history of Norway and about the laws in place for learners and teachers in schools. we wrote down our expectations for the experience in schools and were given time to reflect on how the laws and structure of the education system in Norway is different to the System in South Africa. For example, there are 13 grades in Norway and South Africa only has 12 and we (South Africans) are tested and marked from grade 1 whereas in Norway marks and formal tests are only done from upper secondary school and before that learners are required to just learn to understand without the pressure of exams and formal assessments.
We have noticed that there are many differences compared to similarities between the schools in South Africa and Norway. It was interesting to see that the learners know what to do all the time as they are on a set schedule that they are made aware of. The week plan is shared with the learners so that they know what they are doing each day, whereas in South Africa the plan isn’t shared with the learners and the learner’s schedule is based on what the teacher tells the learners in each class.
Another shock element we noticed is that learners call their teachers by their first names, whereas in SA teachers are called by their surname or by teacher or ma’am/sir.
Upon entering the school building, you see the learner’s shoes at all the exits. This is because, in Norway people do not wear shoes inside the buildings so they leave the shoes at every entrance that they get to except for public places such as restaurants. It is different to us because we (in SA) wear school shoes and a uniform whereas here in Norway learners wear casual clothes and walk around in their socks or inside shoes which is usually slippers, sandals, or sneakers. The Grade 1 learners wear reflectors over their clothing for easy identification as teachers go outside with the learners during break time and play with the learners upon request.
The school is uniquely small with small classes as there is only one class for each grade, from grade 1 to grade 7. The number of learners in a classroom is way less than what we have in South Africa because on average, here in Borgtun skole there are 28 learners in a classroom and in South Africa it could even be more than 35 learners in a single classroom. There are 3 teachers in each class most of the time and the number of educators can get up to 6 per class where there are mostly 28 or less learners. We have noticed that having 3 or more teachers is advantageous as the learners get more one-on-one time with the teachers and their level of education is easier to detect than in our South African classrooms where there is only 1 teacher for 30 or more learners. We’ve also realised that the play area is very limited, and the fields are also not that big so the grade 6 and 7 learners do their gymnasium or Physical Education at a different area outside of the school.
We have seen that majority of the teaching in the school involves some form of technology and its different because most South African schools do not rely on technology as much as the Norway schools. The curriculum is flexible and can be altered to meet learner’s needs whereas it is more set and formal in SA as curriculum set needs to be followed according to a timeline.
The grade ones in Norway are more advanced when it comes to content learning. In the other grades the content isn’t as complex as the south Africans schools. For example, grade 1 learners in Norway do calculations on Money whereas in South Africa grade 1 learners are only introduced to the concept of money and currency. In the grade 1 class, the weekly plan is shared with the learners whereas in South Africa the plan isn’t shared, and learners usually don’t know what their schedule is for the week. Homework in lower grades is adjusted to the level of each learner and each learner receives homework that best suits their capabilities in the subject. In south africa all learners are given the same homework to do regardless of their level of capabilities. There aren’t special needs schools in Tromsø because they are against segregation. In SA, however, we have separate classes or schools as this makes it easier for classroom management and to ensure each learner is taught in a manner that appeals to their needs.
Learners in Norway are free to do what they want or are comfortable with, whereas in SA there are strict rules set in place. Teachers in Norway have their planning time during school hours to plan lessons, teachers don’t have much free time to do that in SA.
The lower grades have many learning activities outdoors that are planned. There are no cameras in Norway schools unlike SA. Learners aren’t bothered by weather in Norway, they play in rain or snow. However, in SA they keep learners in the class, learners do not enjoy the rain or cold weather. There are similar teaching strategies like having “stations” in Norway or “group work” in SA for the lower grades. There are similar structures with subjects, we have the same subjects besides the home language being Norsk in Norway. They also have 2 languages, one home language and one additional.
We are so excited that we are here and are experiencing so much. It has only been a week and we have already seen, noticed and experienced so much that is similar and different to our own country. We cannot wait to see what more we can learn from the beautiful city of Tromsø.
– Nicole, Samkelisiwe, Rorisang and Dineo.
