The Danish educational system – values and opinions
Individualism and active social participation
The values of the Danish educational system may be best grasped from the point of view of the international students that have come here to discover it for themselves. One said: The way of studying is much more free than elsewhere - here everything is open to discussion and every opinion is valued.
Another student described the teaching along the same lines: I like the teaching and that we are all encouraged to be independent and to participate in the discussions. Treating students as independent people with a right to form their own opinions and a duty to participate actively is one of the main characteristic values of the Danish educational system. This is encouraged from kindergarten, through folkeskolen (primary and lower secondary school) and all the way up to the higher education institutions.
Thus, the student's own critical and analytical initiative and the ability to communicate with others are important elements of education in Denmark. This is also reflected in the way the students are evaluated throughout the educational system, where both written and oral examinations are obligatory.
Education for all and lifelong learning
Another characteristic value is that education itself is regarded as an “equality-promoting formative tool” and it is therefore an overall goal of the Danish educational system that as many as possible receive a qualifying education. Thus, the folkeskole is comprehensive and do not select the pupils according to for instance abilities or social background. As a result of this policy, the educational level is relatively high in Denmark. About 4/5 of a youth cohort finish an upper secondary education and almost half finish a higher education.
In addition to this, lifelong learning is also widespread in Denmark and it is possible to follow various kinds of adult education programmes. This present idea of lifelong learning to a large extent builds upon the ideas advocated notably by the 19th century Danish clergyman and philosopher N.F.S. Grundtvig. He emphasized that a prerequisite for active participation in a democratic society was to provide education for all citizens on a lifelong basis. In order to make the idea of education for all possible, it has been decided that education should be free of charge. Thus, Folkeskolen, upper secondary education and higher education do not charge tuition fees.
High quality education, group work and informal teachers
A third characteristic of the Danish educational system are high standards, institutional and personal commitment, interdisciplinary studies and project work. From primary school and all the way up to higher education, the students both attend classes and carry out projects either on an individual basis or in small groups.
The project work is often surprising for the international students as they might not all be familiar with this kind of work. One of the previous international students in Denmark said: I like the way of studying, the students are free to choose what subjects they want to write about. This makes the students more self-reliant and independent.
The fact that education is not only given as lessons to the students, but also requires project work at times, make the teacher and student relations less formal. An international student described it this way: I like the close relations between the teacher and the students. We call them by their first name and we work with them side by side.
International outlook
A fourth characteristic is that we are keen to preserve the values and principles within the Danish educational system, but at the same time willing to learn from other countries. Thus, more and more educational institutions at all levels are getting involved in some kind of international cooperation activities either concerning the students or the teachers/researchers.
This is made possible through the various programmes from the EU, the Nordic countries and bilateral agreements with other countries all over the world.
