Slo A special feature of the Icelandic education system
23 April 2024
As the project is about to end, we travelled to Iceland between 8 and 12 April 2024 to visit several partner and other educational institutions, namely the Technical College in Reykjavik, Akureyri University and Akureyri Comprehensive College, and Ólafsfjörður Secondary School.
The Icelandic secondary education system is quite unique. With its relatively high autonomy, each school develops its own work plan to achieve outstanding results. Due to the long distances between major towns and schools, teaching is mostly done remotely or in blended way, which means that teachers also need to be digitally competent enough to deliver this type of teaching. Their timetables are much more flexible, and students and teachers can choose whether to attend classes at school or remotely. Teachers take on the role of mentors or guides in their learning process, encouraging them to take responsibility, learn, work and get to the desired level of education through weekly assignments that foster creativity and innovation.
Teachers and decision-makers in the education system are aware that this type of education typically leads to a lot of time spent with digital technology, but they also encourage students and staff to spend quality time in their free time, to exercise and to disconnect from technology from time to time.
During the study visit, which was the final step in our partnership work, we presented the teaching materials that the project has developed to support blended learning. There were also practical workshops to continue networking and cooperation.
The visit ended in the spirit of true Icelandic hospitality, with a promise that the digital paths of our schools will cross many times to come.
