2_1_ScanMag_71_Dec_2014_Text_MADS_Scan Magazine 1 29/11/2014 12:13 Page 49
Scan Magazine | Special Theme | Educatin in Denmark
Alongside standard academic classes, students can focus on fishing, hunting, horses, adventure as well as music and theatre.
Putting students first – naturally At Aalestrup Naturefterskole, pupils engage in outdoor pursuits, mixing academic learning with their hobbies. By Tina Nielsen | Photos: Aalestrup Naturefterskole
Aalestrup teacher Søren Lund-Petersen says it is a school with few and simple rules. “We do have many important rules that we need, such as banning alcohol and drugs,” he explains. “But beyond that we use conversation above discipline as a tool in the day-to-day running of the school.” This, he says, means that they meet the young people exactly where they are in their development. “Some find it easy to fit into this environment, others less so and we work with them,” he says. “The philosophy is that we do not leave anyone behind.” Aalestrup is one of the first efterskolers in Denmark with a focus on nature. Students pick one of five specialist areas that they can focus on alongside standard academic classes: fishing, hunting, horses, adventure as well as music and theatre. Lund-
Petersen concedes some of these socalled “learning lines” are quite nerdy. “They have often practised these activities since their childhood, so those who choose fishing have always enjoyed it and are attracted by the fact that we offer it at a very high standard,” he explains. The teachers in the specialist areas all come with bags of experience in their subjects and offer lessons at a high level. The adventure line is a brand new specialist area with a focus on expedition and biology, and sees students learn about all of nature – whether that is from a canoeing trip or through abseiling. Students live in shared rooms in independent houses on school campus, which benefits from its proximity to large nature areas and nearby cultural facilities.
While one of Aalestrup’s slogans is an invitation to bring your hobby to school, the expectation to learn academically remains and all tests are compulsory – they are just not the be all and end all. The students are always involved and at centre focus. “It is easy to tell young people what they should be doing but it does not mean that they will do it,” explains Lund-Petersen and says the education system today is very test- and result-driven. “You forget the person behind the results and the grades; those people break because they can’t meet expectations. Those who do fulfil them and succeed break too, just because they feel they are not doing enough. You forget the individual person.”
For more information, please visit: www.naturefterskolen.dk
Issue 71 | December 2014 | 49