The CIDRE group participants had the honor of meeting with education researchers at two Copenhagen universities. We were graciously hosted by Dr. Ulla Jensen at Aalborg University and by Dr. Jesper Bremholm and by Dr. Anna Karlskov Skyggebjerg of the National Centre for Reading at University College Copenhagen(KP).
We started the day at the Copenhagen campus of Aalborg University. Dr. Ulla Jensen met us and gave us a quick tour of the light-filled and modern campus.
A light-filled interior in Aalborg Copenhagen's main campus building.
Dr. Jensen shared her research on students' perceptions of their participation in "FGU" programs in Denmark. These are programs designed to scaffold higher secondary education (vocational school or gymnasium) for students who don't initially proceed further than their compulsory schooling. As in the U.S., there is a persistent disproportionality in "dropping out" between students whose parents completed higher levels or schooling and those whose parents did not.
We then walked to Copenhagen University College ("KP"). We were greeted by Dr. Jesper Brenholm of the National Center for Reading. Dr. Brenholm gave us a tour of the education building, which is a center to training teachers and others in the "helping" professions, such as social workers and nurses. He used his own trajectory of schooling to map out the levels of Danish schooling and the trend over time towards higher levels of compulsory schooling and educational attainment.
In a classroom at KP in the Frederiksberg community in Copenhagen.
Talking with Dr. Jesper Brenholm at KP.
After a delicious smorrebrod lunch, we learned about the intersection of children's literature and sustainability in Nordic countries from Dr. Anna Kalskov Skyggeberg, also of the National Center for Reading.
We saw several examples of the "cli-fi" genre, including graphic novels and children's books that confront seriously the looming effects of climate change and human inaction.
We finished the day much better informed about the structure and goals of Danish schooling, options for Danish students who need support to access higher levels of secondary education, and the ecocritical trend in Nordic children’s literature.
Den Rustne Verden, a Danish "cli-fi" graphic novel
(Photo source: kulturmor.dk)
We’re grateful to these scholars for their time and insights and found many shared connections between the U.S. and Danish educational contexts (Screen time concerns and social-emotional learning sound familiar?).
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