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Norwegian town starts school Christmas holidays early due to Covid cases

Schools in western Norway town Ålesund will break up earlier for Christmas as the municipality manages a high number of Covid-19 cases. The Norwegian education minister has also outlined how other schools can follow suit.

Published: 10 December 2021 14:44 CET

Pictured is Ålesund.

Schools in Ålesund will break up for the Christmas holidays earlier due to staff absences and Covid-19 problems. Pictured is the city on Norway's west coast. Photo by Jesse De Backer on Unsplash

Ålesund Municipality’s crisis management services have given schools the green light to break up earlier for the Christmas holidays if they need to.

The municipality’s crisis services made the decision due to schools struggling with Covid-19 outbreaks and staff absences.

“We have had a very demanding situation with both coronavirus and a lot of sickness absence among employees, with respiratory disease and sick children,” municipal manager Bjørm Ivar Rødal told public broadcaster NRK.

Schools in the city will break up on December 17th. They were due to break up around the 22nd.

Nationally, Minister of Education Tonje Brenna, said that schools were free to start the holidays earlier but would need to make up for the lost days later on.

“The municipality can change its school dates so that the last day before Christmas is earlier than originally decided, but then they will have to catch up on the days during the spring,” Brenna told newspaper VG.

READ ALSO: What are Norway’s Covid rules this Christmas?

The education minister also reminded schools that if they were to break up early, they would need to consider the impact on parents who may have to be at home with their children.

“If the municipalities do change the school term dates, they must be aware that this means that parents must be home from work with children who can not be alone at home,” Brenna warned.

The Ålesund city said it would continue to provide before and after school activities (termed SFO in Norwegian) for parents and children that need them.

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Finding a school where your child will be happy and able to thrive is a huge consideration for parents relocating to another country.

Oslo, luckily, has plenty of options when it comes to international schools. The benefits of these schools are a consistent curriculum across countries, children of similar backgrounds, and lessons being taught in a language your child is comfortable with.

Oslo International School

Perhaps the most well-known out of the international school options in Oslo, Oslo International School was established in 1963 and offers education to students ages 3 to 18.

The school’s curriculum follows The International Baccalaureate (IB) programme, and classes are taught in English.

At the time of writing, the fees for kids enrolled in the school full-time are 264,200 kroner per year, and preschool costs 22,000 kroner per year.

The school is located in the town of Bekkestua in the neighbouring municipality of Bærum.

Pupils at the school can also choose Norwegian and other languages as subjects.

Asker International School

Located not too far from Oslo by train or car is Asker International School, which also follows the IB programme.

The school is partially supported by the Norwegian state, which means school fees are capped. Parents must pay 35,550 kroner per year to enrol their child in the school.

Classes at the school are taught in English, and education is offered to children aged from 6 to 18.

More than 60 staff members are employed at the school, and approximately 560 students attend the educational institution.

Norwegian and other languages are also taught at school.

Norlights International School

Established in 2015, Norlights is a partially state-funded international school with more than 40 different nationalities represented.

The IB programme is taught at the school, and as the school is partially state-funded, fees are capped.

Fees range based on the child’s stage of education but range between 27,195 kroner per year to 39,385 kroner a year.

The school is located near Holmenkollen in Oslo and offers education from the 1st through the 13th grade.

Deutsch Norwegische Schule Oslo

With its campus located fairly centrally in Oslo, the The German-Norwegian School Oslo, and its kindergarten, is part of a network of more than 140 German international schools.

The German and Norwegian governments fund the school, however there are still fees to be paid.

The curriculum taught at the school is both recognised in Germany and Norway, and upon leaving students receive both a German and Norwegian diploma.

At the time of writing, it costs between 3,466 and 2,472 kroner per month to attend, depending on the child’s age.

The French School in Oslo

The Lycée Français d’Oslo is home to nearly 700 students representing almost 40 different nationalities.

The school accepts French-speaking and non-French-speaking students and follows the official French curricula, which strongly emphasises language learning.

Norwegian, English, German, and Spanish are the other languages taught at the school.

Located fairly centrally, the school admits students aged between 3 and 18. It is one of nearly 500 French schools in countries other than France.

Fees at the school range from 33,550 kroner per year up to 145,000 kroner.

Blindern Videregående Skole

This Norwegian state school teaches the IB programme. It offers the last two years of the Middle Years Programme and the Diploma Programme.

As it’s a Norwegian state school, no fees are to be paid. Furthermore, the primary language of instruction is English.

Being a Norwegian state school, admissions are handled by the Oslo Municipality Education Agency Admissions Office, and the deadline to apply to the school is March 1st each year.

The IB programme is taught in English.

Manglerud School

Manglerud School is a state education institute that also offers the IB. This is taught in English. However, Norwegian classes at Manglerud School are also offered.

As it is a state school, there are no fees. Students and parents also go through the state school admissions system. According to the school’s website, the international classes were a trial which was extended to 2024. Therefore, parents who are thinking about their child’s future attendance should contact the school.

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