Educational policy
Empowered teacher roles and liberated schools - with the freedom to grow.
Status
The public school is the foundation of our education system and plays a central role in developing children's basic skills as well as their understanding of Danish culture and society.
In Odense Municipality, the public school faces serious challenges. Parents are opting out of their local public school - not because there is free choice. But because the public school does not meet the parents' basic needs.
The number of teachers in the public school is falling, and several schools are threatened with closure. Today, 25 percent of children start in a private school, and there has been a significant turnover of teachers. 216 and 238 teachers resigned in 2022 and 2023, respectively, which is significantly higher than in previous years.
Needs and challenges
The public school in Odense Municipality faces several challenges including;
- Many parents face a dilemma, when they see their children thriving poorly and experience that discipline and teaching do not live up to expectations.
- Many parents believe, that their district school does not meet the desired quality standards.
- Additionally, there is a clear need for decentralization, so schools can adapt to local conditions.
Summary
Odense's public schools need greater freedom, which improves quality and strengthens the parents' role in school choice. Parents should have the right to choose the school for their children, and schools must have greater responsibility and flexibility to meet local needs.
A model with self-governing schools under a municipal operating agreement could be a solution. Here, we can advantageously draw inspiration from the experiences of our neighbors in Sweden.
Political proposals for the school sector
- Free school choice and autonomy for the schools: Parents in Odense Municipality must have the right to choose the public school that best fits their children's needs. At the same time, schools must gain greater autonomy to adapt teaching, class size, and management based on local needs, including trials with self-governing schools under a municipal operating agreement.
- Strengthening teacher authority: To improve discipline and the learning environment, the teacher must have the opportunity to restore their authority. The individual school can choose to prioritize fewer students per class to ensure a better learning environment and more time for each student.
- Prioritization of academic standards and well-being in the public school: The public school must prioritize both academic standards and well-being as equal goals. There must be room for academic school profiles, and the students' well-being must support their academic development, not be an alternative.
- Decentralization and better protection of school staff: Schools must have more self-governance, and municipal initiatives such as the shared vision on children must be removed. Teachers and management at the individual school must have greater freedom to determine how they work with the students. At the same time, acute teams must be set up and intermediate functions established at schools with high levels of violence and disruption to protect both teachers and students.
- Evaluation and flexibility in the school districts: School districts must be evaluated and potentially removed, so that school boards gain greater responsibility for student distribution and school operations. Schools should be able to adapt to student needs themselves and create a better match between students and the school environment.