– I wish there were more people who started with me. We need more teachers.
18-year-old Inger Christine Hystad sits at her school desk at the teacher training college in Baren Stort.
She spent five years as a primary school teacher from class five to class ten.
But the classroom is not overcrowded.
Only seven more people attended the first day of the same education. In addition, seven started primary school teacher training in years 1–7. steps.
– We will get to know each other better anyway, says Parane.
Inger Christine Histad Barane will start the primary school teacher training together with the rest of the gang from 5.–10. steps.
Photo: Olav Rolli / NRK
Fewer will become teachers
At Stord, they have been training teachers since 1839. 20 years ago, around 100 new student teachers started their education here.
Only 15 prospective teachers came to the school on the first day today.
– The trend has been downward in recent years. And it’s part of a larger national trend, says Sigurd Sandvold, vice dean for regional development at HVL.
This year’s decline is particularly noticeable.
– On average, I have enrolled about 50-60 new students in teacher training courses over the last ten years, says Sandvold.
Detailed management of teachers is limited
Stort’s presence of few student teachers is part of a national trend.
Samortna Aptak figures show that this year’s teacher training applicants are 21.9 per cent lower than last year. Since 2008, there have been no applicants for teacher training in Norway.
Education Minister Sandra Porch tells NRK that she is taking the drop in applicant numbers very seriously.
– The most important thing we can do for recruitment is to ensure that nurseries and schools are good places to work. We want to increase trust in teachers and reduce extensive administration in schools, he says.
Together with Education Minister Donje Brenna, he is now developing a new strategy to recruit and retain teachers.
Inger Christine Hystad Barane and Marie Elisabeth Kolstrand think five years of higher education is too much.
Photo: Olav Rolli / NRK
I think five years of study is too much
Both Inger Christine Hystad Baren and her fellow freshman Marie Elisabeth Kolstrand believe the length of the course may have affected the number of applicants.
From autumn 2017, a five-year master’s degree was introduced for primary school teachers.
– I think you should consider the length of education. Starting a five-year course is difficult, says Barane, especially if you come straight from secondary school.
He hopes that politicians will come up with measures to get more people into teacher training.
– He says that education is the basis of most everything, and the effects of the fewest teachers are the best.
“Music geek. Coffee lover. Devoted food scholar. Web buff. Passionate internet guru.”
