Poject Københavns Kvindedaghøjskole

Description - The Local Context - Response

Response

In Denmark employment is a privilege which everybody has a right to and is obliged to achieve. Therefore the employment percentage becomes one of the central indications of well-fare. Throughout the years from the mid seventies and 20 years ahead unemployment rates have been high. However, because of the economical development and an active education-, labour market-and social- policy, the number of people who are on maintenance allowances has since 1994 decreased with 150.000 persons. The official unemployment in Denmark is only 5%, which is among the lowest percentage in the world. And yet in 1998 the group of people on social security counted 873.000 persons, in spite of the fact that Denmark's societal effort to secure everybody education and employment is great. However, there are still groups, among these young, psycho-socially burdened mothers, that risk to become or remain marginalised in relation to employment.

Since 1993 the objective of education for everybody has been a top priority on the government's educational political agenda. The goal was that before year 2000, 95% of the youth group should get an education. The fulfilment of such an objective demanded a special effort, especially in regards to the so-called "risk-group".

The most pronounced effort became EGU (basic vocationally training), which is a special way to achieve qualifications, designed for weak youngsters and FUU, which is an alternative education where the young person herself/himself organises her/his education with minimum three different formal and non-formal courses.

The 3rd module in the present project's series of courses can be part of this FUU. On a national level the FUU was evaluated in 1999. The result is regarded as positive, as many youngsters have used the possibility to organise their education themselves, but at the same time it has been shown that the education has recruited wrongly within the target group. The users tended to be well-equipped or youngsters with average means who wanted a creative influence on their choice of education. This result could be explained by the risk-group's lacking possibility to fulfil the demands of competence for decision-making and reflection. Today - where we have reached year 2000- 83 % of the youth group complete an education, but we are still far from the 95 %. The government's last ambitious goal for its "Education To All Young People"-policy is now: before year 2005 the 95% must be reached, while 50 % should have completed a higher education - against 42% today.
Our project is to be seen on effort to reach a particularly high-risk part of the risk group.

Project experience
The participants' involvement and motivation is based on the tutor's ability to arrange learning situations that respect, as well as meet the individual participant's need for individuality to give her the experience of being part of an exciting company, where enjoyment is central. By experience we have realised the necessity of choosing different practical and creative teaching methods instead of letting the cognitive method dominate teaching. As a consequence the traditional teacher's role is challenged, as the emphasis is laid on the pedagogical domain with its high degree of spontaneity, and not merely on didactic planning. An evaluation thus becomes even more important.

On basis of the above mentioned experiences, the school has decided to follow up this project by a new parallel project targeting immigrant and refugee women. A mini survey has been carried out in order to probe the need of the target group. The feed-back has been unequivocally positive. It is estimated that there is an acute needs for a similar option for pregnant women and mothers with small children with another ethnic background than Danish. Furthermore, the school has recently has been contacted by a crisis centre for women in order to enter a co-operation on a similar support project.

Description - The Local Context - Response
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