Teachers and students

Fredrik Malm (L)

Madam Speaker! Today we have approximately 120 different motions regarding teachers and students from the general motion period last autumn to deal with. I would like to begin by moving for the approval of the proposal in the committee's report.

What happens in the classrooms today determines what Sweden will look like tomorrow and in the future. Therefore, it is catastrophic that Swedish schools are in such a serious situation. One in seven students does not pass primary school. Mathematics and literacy skills are at some of the lowest levels of the 2000s, according to the PISA measurements. Violence and threats have unfortunately become everyday occurrences for many students and teachers.

Sweden once had a world-class school. We Liberals want to re-establish that school. We want to see a strong knowledge school with a focus on factual knowledge and abilities such as reading, writing, and arithmetic. We want a secure school that sets clear requirements and has high expectations for everyone, regardless of their background. The school must return to the basics. It would be good for everyone, especially for those children and young people who need the school most.

The solution to the country's challenges regarding segregation and long-term growth lies in a high-quality education system. Children and young people who become increasingly better in school would, in the long run, lead to a better supply of skills in the labor market and a stronger and more competitive Swedish economy.

Mr. Speaker, good education is not just an engine for growth. According to us Liberals, it is the absolute cornerstone of a prosperous and democratic society. Through schooling, the individual's power over their own life is strengthened. An equalizing effect is also created if everyone, regardless of home circumstances, is allowed to attend a tuition-free school.

More people must want to work in schools, and more people must want to become teachers. The government is currently implementing a number of important measures to manage the teacher shortage and strengthen the teaching profession. This involves, for example, state grants for career positions and measures for qualification-granting education. In the autumn budget for 2024, we allocated 850 million kronor in state support to schools in the form of the so-called knowledge grant so that more schools can retain their teachers. The municipal and independent school providers, however, have a significant responsibility when it comes to the conditions for school staff.

It is no secret, Madam Speaker, that the Liberals want to see a re-statification of the ownership of Swedish schools. It would be the single most effective way to guarantee equality across the country and secure stable and uniform funding of the school system. Additionally, it would raise the status of the teaching profession.

Teachers' working environment must improve, and teachers must be allowed to be teachers. As little time as possible should be spent on administrative side tasks. The Government has appointed an inquiry to conduct a review and submit proposals to reduce the administrative burden. We are also anxiously waiting to hear the proposals from the inquiry regarding strengthened safety and study environment in schools.

Teachers in disadvantaged areas have a particularly important mission. Therefore, the Riksdag has decided to allocate 165 million kronor per year this year and the next two years for a better working environment for teachers in schools with socioeconomic challenges.

Madam Speaker! Just over 30 years ago, very large changes were implemented in the Swedish school system. The responsibility for the schools was moved from the state to the municipalities. A few years later, the free school reform was introduced, which gave private actors, both non-profit and for-profit, the opportunity to start and run schools with tax funding. With the free school system, municipalization, and some other changes, including reduced regulation, some things that were previously self-evident in Swedish schools—for example, that there is a dining hall, a gym, and a school librarian—did not become as self-evident.

The Liberals want to re-regulate the foundations of Swedish school. We have commissioned inquiries regarding mandatory teaching time for students who need it. Students who are in need of more teaching time must be able to receive it. It can also be conditional on an obligation to participate in, for example, holiday school.

We are investing in more special education teachers, smaller teaching groups, and staffed school libraries. We are now enabling very large investments in real books in schools, both textbooks and fiction in the school libraries.

We are reviewing the curricula. For example, there should be more focus on factual and subject knowledge. Reading and literacy are also something that should be significantly upgraded. Furthermore, the teacher education needs to be reformed.

At the same time, Madam Speaker, it cannot have escaped anyone that mental ill-health - to be honest - has spread like wildfire, also among young and very young children in Sweden. We must do something about this.

The school cannot in itself reverse a trend that we see today in the entire Western world and even far beyond the Western world, but it is very good that the government has now proposed an investigation on strengthening student health. Several of the different parts can be included in this. Mental ill-health is a huge problem among our children and young people today.

We also take the fight against screen addiction and excessive use of digital tools in schools. Children learn best with paper and pen.

Madam Speaker! There is a goodwill within Swedish schools that sometimes becomes misplaced. This applies, for example, to the system of so-called extra adaptations. That students with reading difficulties are denied the opportunity for intensive training with special teachers and instead receive as an adaptation, for example, to "ear-read" texts—in practice, to listen to an audiobook—is a great betrayal of the students who need school the most.

The shift towards inclusion and more extra adaptations has, in practice, in many cases led to exclusion for many students. It has also created an unreasonable working environment for many teachers. It should be said that the inclusion of all students in the same classroom, as well as the regulations regarding extra adaptations, were made with good intentions, and this has certainly also been helpful for many children. But it risks becoming very negative for particularly vulnerable students and for the teachers' working situation. The investigation on student health shall also look at this regarding the extra adaptations.

Pedagogical experiments have their place, Madam Speaker, but what is most important for Swedish schools is that we return to the basics.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Paula Örn (S)

Madam Speaker! I thank Fredrik Malm for the speech.

As is known, resources are required to carry out all the fine proposals the member speaks of. That municipalities and regions are in a cost crisis and do not have these resources is due to inflation, which in turn is directly caused by Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine. It appears quite unreasonable that the state in this very special situation, which could not be foreseen by the municipalities, should not take a greater responsibility than it does. In fixed prices, the resources for the school today are lower than when the government took office, and the cuts that were made in the budget for 2023 are in no way restored.

It is also strange that Member Malm claims that if the school had been state-run, it would have received more resources. Does the Member mean that the municipalities should be punished by the state not providing enough resources even if the state can, because the state does not have the entire responsibility? It seems unlikely that the school would have received more resources from the government even if it had been a state responsibility.

Why should anyone in Skolsverige believe that one would have invested when it would have cost a huge amount to add resources if one had had the entire cost responsibility, when one is unable to invest when one has responsibility for a relatively smaller part of the costs? Does the member mean that the SD government would have prioritized the school over tax cuts of 13 billion for those with the highest incomes if the state had had the entire responsibility for the school?

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Fredrik Malm (L)

Madam Speaker! Let me begin by pointing out that the Moderate-led government consists of the Moderates, the Christian Democrats and the Liberals, and that it has a cooperation with the Sweden Democrats through the Tidö Agreement. When my party cooperated with the Social Democrats during the previous mandate period, no one called the government the L-government or the C-government. I think we should be accurate and that such rhetorical looseness fits better on Twitter than in the chamber.

Madam Speaker! Now to the economic part. Sweden has an inflation target of 2 percent, and it is assessed that we can reach it at the end of 2025. New reports from the European Union point to a brightening in the Swedish economy, and the peak level of inflation at around 10 percent has been pressed down. But we are far from finished. All activities in Sweden's public sector and welfare, and also many private providers with procured contracts, testify that inflation is eroding the possibility of increasing quality. It is a broad problem that a government, regardless of color, would have had to grapple with.

We do everything we can to invest more in schools, but we, the Social Democrats, know that money does not grow on trees. However, we have made major investments in Swedish schools and will continue to do so. But the situation is strained, even for households.

Sweden must collectively fight the inflation monster so that the government can then take action and make new extensive investments in Swedish schools.

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Paula Örn (S)

Madam Speaker! I thank Fredrik Malm for the answer.

That we call the government the SD-government is because the Sweden Democrats are the largest party in the government base, and especially in the area of schools, it is becoming increasingly clear that it is the Sweden Democrats who are setting the pace and deciding which reforms the government shall implement. That we did not call the previous government the L-government was because the Social Democrats were the largest party in that government cooperation.

Everyone, of course, cherishes fighting inflation. That it is now down to a more normal level is crucial and will improve the situation. Some things are, however, interesting. Fredrik Malm lets it be known that more resources to municipalities and regions is a problem when we are to fight inflation, but it was no problem to lower taxes by 13 billion for high-income earners. We must be restrictive and hold back, but at the same time, the banks paid out 123 billion in profit last year - as if that would not constitute a problem for inflation.

It usually sounds like Fredrik Malm still wants to take responsibility for more resources for the school, and he often speaks about the Liberals being the guarantor for the resources. Who is it then who sees to it that the resources from the state today are completely unsatisfactory? Who is it that holds back the Liberals? Which party in the government cooperation prevents the Liberals from making the investments that Fredrik Malm says are needed? Is it the Moderates who instead want to lower taxes? Is it the Sweden Democrats who, in this issue as well, forbid the Liberals from doing what they actually want? Which of the Tidö parties constitutes the obstacle for more resources to go from the state to the Swedish school, Fredrik Malm?

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Fredrik Malm (L)

Madam Speaker! The single most important factor for why the Swedish system looks the way it does is the Social Democrats. In 1989, they pushed through a municipalization of Swedish schools, which means that today we have a municipal ownership. Let me point out to Paula Örn and her party colleagues that the Social Democrats pushed through a reform that over time has contributed significantly to a very lacking equality in Swedish schools and which has caused many Swedish municipalities to fail in their mission as the owner of the school. It is a fact.

In Sweden, we have the 80-20 distribution. Municipal funds constitute 80 percent, and general and targeted state grants constitute approximately 20 percent. Instead of taking their own municipal councilors and municipal politicians by the ear and telling them that they must invest in the school, the Social Democrats blame the government. We do what we can but want to see increased state responsibility. We are making large investments in teaching materials and knowledge grants, among many other things, precisely to enable the municipalities to fulfill their mission in a better way. But fundamentally, it is the municipalities that have the primary responsibility for Swedish schools, and then Social Democratic municipal councilors must also be prepared to take this responsibility.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Paula Örn (S)

Madam Speaker! The report we are debating is titled Teachers and students - quite simply the most important thing we have in Swedish school, and many measures are needed to improve their conditions.

An early and wonderful social democratic vision is that all children shall meet in school. The director's child shall go to the same class as the children of the person who cleans the premises where the director's company is located. Even though this remains in the preamble paragraphs and it is equally important that we have an equal and cohesive school system, it has become increasingly less of a case of all children meeting in school. We see increased segregation where students from different backgrounds and with different circumstances have very different opportunities to succeed.

At the core, we have a problematic residential segregation which in itself creates large gaps. The sad thing is that the current government base, instead of trying to find ways to counteract the effects of residential segregation, has driven forward a school market that blocks and accelerates the inequality in Swedish schools. It is a market dominated by very large profit-driven school corporations that establish themselves where it is easiest to make money, i.e., where there are students who can be educated at a lower cost so that more remains for profit – students with a family background that means they find it easier to manage school.

Madam Speaker! All students have the right to an equal education, regardless of their socioeconomic background or where they live. To ensure equality in Swedish schools, we must strengthen the schools that have the greatest needs. This means continuing to direct resources to schools with the toughest conditions and ensuring that they also have access to more and qualified teachers and good teaching materials.

Madam Speaker! This is exactly what the previous Social Democratic-led government did with the equality grant. It has a clear socioeconomic focus but was also designed broadly with a trust in the profession's ability to prioritize what was most needed in different schools and municipalities within set frameworks.

We also took the steps to do what has long been requested by both the teachers' trade union organizations and Sveriges Kommuner och Regioner, namely to merge and consolidate scattered grants with different regulatory frameworks.

It is extensive support. It amounts to more than 7 billion kronor today. It was very important for us Social Democrats that it was a substantial and clear investment that could really make a real difference.

The equality grant has made a difference. The National Audit Office wrote in an evaluation from 2020 that the equality grant to schools is well-utilized and appreciated, and that the grant's unusually broad scope of use makes it easier for the principals to use the grant effectively.

Efficiency with tax money, I hope, is something that we all strive for.

The previous two teacher organizations expressed that the equity grant has been significant, as today, principals with a greater school challenge contribute more, relative to principals with a smaller challenge, compared to how it looked before the grant was introduced. Ultimately, everything we want to do to develop the conditions for teachers and students requires resources.

In some of our motions, we highlight the importance of hiring many more teachers but also other professional categories, such as teaching assistants, class mentors, counselors, and special educators. Instead, we see that these types of support resources are currently being reduced in the Swedish school system. There will be fewer student assistants and fewer support resources when most schools are forced to cut back on their operations because the SD government does not take its responsibility to provide sufficient resources from the state side.

Madam Speaker! We Social Democrats are also concerned that the cuts hit those who are already suffering the most even harder. There are far too many children and young people who are suffering mentally today. I would even go so far as to say that addressing the constantly increasing mental ill-health is one of the great fateful issues of our time.

Here I really want to emphasize the importance of not making political points. I do not doubt that this government, just like previous Social Democratic governments, has seen and is concerned by this development. One major problem, however, is that we do not quite know what it is due to.

Mental ill-health has increased over many years, and young girls are those who are suffering the worst. It is a complex issue, and there are many things that are highlighted in the debate. The massive use of social media is certainly a part that plays a role. All the impossible demands on how young girls should look become even more present in TikTok's many tutorials on how to best apply makeup, and the bullying from the schoolyard and the classrooms follows home on Snapchat, around the clock. Many students also testify that the expectations and demands in school are so great that they feel unwell every day.

It is clear that we must take responsibility for not organizing and designing our school in a way that increases the pressure and stress on our young people. But above all, we need better knowledge in the area. We must all do more to try to understand what is driving this development in order to also be able to implement the right measures.

Madam Speaker! I have so far touched upon a number of prerequisites regarding the school and our students to create good conditions for learning for everyone. But the most important resource is, after all, our teachers. It is in the meeting between teacher and student that learning occurs. Skilled teachers who have time for their students are the single most important factor for better knowledge development. We must get more people who want to become these skilled teachers who make all the difference for the students they meet.

Many measures have been taken over the years to address the teacher shortage, and more will be needed. One thing I would like to raise here today is the proposal to establish some kind of system for teacher candidates, to make it easier for those who are currently unqualified but working as teachers to educate themselves. It is a group that has sought out the profession and who have been judged suitable to be teachers by colleagues and principals. Perhaps it is often slightly older people with life experience that one benefits from in school. It would be a great gain to facilitate the conditions for this group to become qualified teachers.

Madam Speaker! As usual, we Social Democrats stand behind all our reservations, but I will only move for approval of reservation 24.

In conclusion, I would like to paraphrase a well-known statement by saying: Furthermore, I believe that the pursuit of profit in the Swedish school should be prohibited.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Noria Manouchi (M)

Madam Speaker! I would like to say a few words about those who form the backbone of Swedish schools: our teachers. Through their tireless work, they convey knowledge and inspiration. Their efforts extend far beyond the classrooms and affect not only each of the students but also society as a whole.

We have all experienced them. I had a history teacher who, during the first lesson, stated that she is a communist. I naturally raised my eyebrows a bit as someone very active in the Moderate Youth League and felt a little stressed about having that type of history teacher. But not a single time during the teaching was this evident; not a single time did it affect what stories or knowledge she conveyed to us. She was an absolute professional.

I had a social studies teacher whom we called the military. He was the only teacher in the school where the entire class went to be taught, including even those really rowdy guys whom we today find either underground or behind locks. They also attended his lessons because he kept order, he had a disciplined teaching style, and he earned all the students' respect. We owe Swedish teachers gratitude and respect. But we also owe them more colleagues.

Madam Speaker! The teacher shortage is great. Approximately 72 percent of today's full-time positions are held by teachers who are qualified. The rest are not. According to the latest forecast, the need for teachers will decrease until 2035, and yet 12,000 teachers will be missing. Over time, far too little has been done. Without teachers, there will be no school.

That is why the government has taken several measures to make the profession more attractive, to reduce the administration, to make it easier for people with relevant expertise to become teachers, and to get the working environment in order.

There are some things I want to highlight in particular. Teachers must be allowed to be teachers. It cannot be expected of them that they should perform ever more work tasks during their workday that are not related to teaching. Therefore, the government has appointed a special investigator who shall conduct a broad review of which tasks take time away from teaching.

Is it filling out amounts of paperwork from the School Inspectorate, or is it spending hours at testing sessions, guarding fire alarms so that no one sets them off to escape the test? Reduced administration, fewer work tasks that are not related to teaching, and the hiring of other types of staff who are needed in the school world are measures that must be taken.

It shall become easier and faster for people who already have the necessary expertise in a specific subject, for example a researcher in mathematics, to train as teachers through pedagogical education. We shall shorten the time where it is possible. Everyone who wants to and who should be allowed to become a teacher shall be allowed to do so.

We have allocated funds to improve the work environment and working conditions for teachers in schools with socioeconomic challenges, and we prioritize the unqualified staff at these schools in continuing education initiatives to give them the opportunity to qualify as teachers during their employment. The goal must be that every student should receive a proper basic education and be able to proceed to upper secondary school, and then the compensatory mission must be carried out.

If we are to get more people to want to become teachers and want to stay as teachers, we must get the working environment in order. It cannot be that students and teachers go to the workplace, feeling insecure and with a lump in their stomachs, and have to endure threats, spitting, and violence. It must not continue in this way in Sweden.

We shall strengthen the powers of principals and teachers, but also their responsibility for safety. We shall have clearer rules of order in all schools, and we shall increase efforts against particularly violent students. A student who subjects their classmates or their teacher to repeated violence must be moved from the school.

It must end with politicians year in and year out saying that it is the bully and not the bullied who should be moved. Now we will ensure that this is done. The victim shall not have to move once again, but it is the perpetrator who shall be moved.

We must close the schools to unauthorized persons. How can we have compulsory education in Sweden – the only mandatory instance where children must attend for nine years – and at the same time not close the doors to unauthorized persons? How can it be free for adults and others to enter schools? How could this have been the norm? That ends now. Close the schools to unauthorized persons!

And introduce a reporting obligation! When a student is subjected to a crime, no adult at the school should be able to downplay it. No one should be able to avoid making a report to the police when a crime has been committed. It is not reasonable that it has been that way.

Madam Speaker! During the year, a series of teacher councils will be held. Teachers and preschool teachers from across the country will, together with the union Sveriges Lärare, get to meet the government to discuss issues concerning the operations. From this, important insights and inspiration for new proposals will surely emerge. It will be needed. The question of the teacher shortage is not simple to solve, but to address it, close cooperation with the profession is required.

There are, however, some teaching assistants, teachers and other employees within the Swedish school system that we would like to avoid, that we need to get rid of and that we need to separate from their employment in the school world: multi-criminal individuals who have committed crimes before employment and who continue to commit crimes during the period of employment. They have been able to go under the radar.

Some things provoke me so much as that that type of people have been given access to our children and young people - people who steal, assault, and sell drugs. That type of people should never be allowed to set foot in a classroom in the role of teaching assistant or teacher. They should never be allowed to serve as role models for children and young people in Swedish school.

The last time there was an opportunity to make changes in this area of the legislation, the Social Democrats chose to make it even easier for that type of people to get away with it and fly under the radar. They chose to make it so that the burden register, which was already too thin, would no longer need to be archived. It would not even be possible to follow up on whether it had been requested in the correct way. This was the last thing the Social Democrats did, and it was not many years ago - 2021.

Now we have a government that does not accept that this is allowed to continue, and we are taking measures to tighten things up. The Moderates want to see that more crimes are included in the criminal record that is requested, and that it should be possible to request it continuously. People who are employed within the school world can keep this employment for a long time. If they commit crimes during this time, this must be uncovered.

The register must not be allowed to be a year old as it is today, and archiving shall take place again. Never again shall a principal have to hire criminal persons blindly, and never again shall parents have to be worried that these persons constitute role models for their children. It matters who is in power.

I vote in favor of the committee's proposal.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Daniel Riazat (V)

Madam Speaker! I have some questions for Noria Manouchi.

Noria Manouchi stated from the rostrum that bullies should be moved instead of the one who has been bullied, and I believe that all of us in this chamber agree with that. She spoke about that unauthorized persons should not be allowed in school and that is enough. I believe that everyone agrees with this as well.

But I wonder why unauthorized teachers should be allowed to remain in schools. Why do the Moderaterna still want a system where teachers who do not have a teaching license and who are not qualified to teach can continue to work within the school system? This exception exists primarily for the school groups - could it be for that reason that Moderaterna want it? It is, for example, English-language schools, which are primarily owned by profit-driven school groups in Sweden today, that are granted this exception. Why do the Moderaterna not want to change this? That is one question.

The second question is: How is all the wonderful stuff that Noria Manouchi said from the rostrum going to happen when the Moderaterna are simultaneously carrying out a slaughter of the Swedish school system in purely economic terms? How is the Swedish school to be improved? How are the children who are subjected to the bullying that Noria Manouchi spoke about here today to receive support from the school health services if the school health services must cut back because the Moderaterna thought it was more important to give millionaires and billionaires a tax cut than to put money into the Swedish school?

I cannot make sense of this, but Noria Manouchi is welcome to explain.

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Noria Manouchi (M)

Madam Speaker! Thank you, Daniel Riazat, for your reply!

Daniel Riazat began by stating that the Moderaterna have said that the bully should move instead of the bullied and that everyone in this chamber agrees with that. So perhaps that is the case, but it is not everyone in this chamber who ensures that it actually becomes so. During all the years that Vänsterpartiet has had an influence over previous governments, one has not ensured that it becomes so. In the municipalities where Vänsterpartiet is involved in governing, one has not ensured that it becomes so.

Daniel Riazat also informs that the Moderaterna have established that unauthorized persons shall no longer be allowed access to Sweden's schools. That is correct; it is the Moderaterna's announcement. The member notes at the same time that we all in this chamber agree with that. Perhaps you do. Perhaps the Socialdemokraterna, Vänsterpartiet, and Miljöpartiet do. But it is only other parties that ensure it becomes so.

During all the years that Vänsterpartiet has had an influence over previous governments, they have not ensured that unauthorized persons are kept away from Swedish students. Vänsterpartiet has not done this. Vänsterpartiet has not used its influence to protect students who are subjected to violence in school. They are subjected to continuous harassment in school, and they are met on the schoolyard by strangers who do not belong to the school.

The Left Party has not used its influence to stop this. And why has it not done so? Yes, because the Left Party's priorities, Madam Speaker, are to talk about millionaires, billionaires, or whatever it may be. In the Left Party's world, it is never the individual student, the individual if you will, who is prioritized. They are not the ones they take into account. They are not the ones they defend. They are not the ones they talk about—not now, not previously, and perhaps never ever.

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Daniel Riazat (V)

Madam Speaker! This must be the strangest answer I have received since I entered the Riksdag, and I have, after all, sat here for ten years. I also saw that the representatives of the troll factories applauded Noria Manouchis's speech.

I would like to ask again: How is it that the Moderates talk about helping children who are subjected to bullying but at the same time cut back on school health services? How is it that the Moderates talk about us not having unauthorized persons in schools when it is going very well with unauthorized teachers?

What is the biggest key factor for children to do well in school? It is, of course, among other things that they should have qualified teachers who can teach them in, for example, source criticism so that they do not start creating fake accounts on social media. It is part of this: to foster children to become democratic citizens.

But how is one supposed to do this if massive cuts are to be made to the Swedish school system? The teachers' union is forced to organize demonstrations every other week to take a stand against the cut policy that the Swedish government is pursuing.

It is possible to stand here and speak vaguely and fuzzily without answering the questions being asked at all. But as the governing party, the Moderaterna and Noria Manouchi will be held accountable for explaining how cuts and tax cuts for multi-millionaires are supposed to help these children. Is it not investments in schools that help the children? Is it not strengthened student health that helps the children who need student health?

Or are we standing here and talking nonsense? Do we think that the more cuts, the better help children who have been subjected to bullying will receive? That is not the case. Why do the Moderaterna pretend it is otherwise? Why do you see to it that resources to the Swedish school are reduced?

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Noria Manouchi (M)

Madam Speaker! This government is investing in Swedish schools. We are investing in the students, in student health, and in continuing education and special competence for teachers. We are also investing in making it easier for all of the 28 percent who are unqualified among our teachers. We are investing in them receiving education to make it possible for them to become qualified without losing their jobs. These are investments and priorities that the government is making.

We intend to use every possible means to ensure that the teacher shortage is reduced. In my speech, I presented several of these proposals.

We do not, therefore, share the Left Party's ambition that these almost 30 percent of the staff should be dismissed. The member began their first speech by asking: If the Moderates want to remove unauthorized persons from the schoolyard, how can you then allow unauthorized teachers? Well, because we need them. Swedish schools today need the staff we have. We cannot do without them. We cannot fire 30 percent of the employees even if that is what Daniel Riazat and the Left Party want.

It is clear that we would like every teacher to be qualified. Therefore, we are investing in the opportunity for those who are employed today to become qualified. It is about prioritizing the school and the students.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Jörgen Grubb (SD)

Madam Speaker! For the sake of time, I move for only the approval of the Sweden Democrats' reservation 16 concerning register control.

Being a teacher in today's school is not always a walk in the park. I have understood this after all the meetings with teachers over the years. That being the one who educates students one moment and being an extra parent and counselor the next puts high demands, and sometimes they become unreasonable.

The responsibility must lie with the politicians who have made decisions that have worsened the teachers' working situation through municipalization, vague steering documents, and mass immigration. The list can be long. Finally, the responsibility rests on parents who do not take full responsibility for their children's upbringing and who scold teachers when they, in their professional role, reprimand the little gems. Against this background, it is admirable that we have so many good teachers and that more are studying to become them.

Madam Speaker! What is it then that drives teachers? What I often hear is that it is that feeling one gets when one sees that the student understands what one is teaching. It is often said that it is when the so-called light turns on. That feeling is worth whatever it takes. Gratitude and joy in the students' eyes - that is the fuel for a teacher's drive.

Now it is up to us here, we politicians, to increase the status of teachers and give them the fuel to continue with their important task of equipping our children with the knowledge required for a bright future.

A great deal must change in the school, and in this speech, I only have the opportunity to mention some of all this.

The school's core mission, the knowledge mission, must be strongly emphasized in the curriculum. Vague statements such as realizing the values that lie in a cultural diversity must be removed. Parents' responsibility for their own children's upbringing must be written into the Education Act. It is completely unreasonable that the school and its teachers are expected to bring order to children who do not show basic consideration and respect towards adults and schoolmates.

Teachers should not have to endure anything in the exercise of their profession. Students who disregard teachers' reprimands and who threaten and exercise violence must leave the classroom and be taught in another location so that the teaching teacher can conduct their lessons and other students can receive study and knowledge.

The Education Act must become clearer regarding the powers of teachers and principals, national rules of order must be developed, and consequence ladders must be established and meticulously followed up when students break rules. What is nice about the last things I mentioned is that they are not particularly cost-driving.

Madam Speaker! The government base is pushing forward for the urgent changes required for an improved school environment for both teachers and students. A number of investigations have been commissioned, and many propositions for the benefit of the school will soon be decided upon in this chamber. I would particularly like to mention some investigations in the report Teachers and Students.

In the investigation *A reduced administrative burden for preschool teachers and teachers*, a broad regulatory review is conducted to submit proposals on how more of the teachers' working time can be freed up for planning, quality assurance, and teaching. Among other things, the School Act's extensive requirements for student-oriented documentation are to be limited, for example, regarding the requirements for individual development plans, IUPs. In addition to this investigation, which aims to make the teaching profession more attractive, the relief of teachers through strengthening student health and the employment of more special education teachers are on the negotiating table, as well as the reintroduced teaching obligation, which has long been requested in the industry.

In the investigation *Varaktigt förbättrad trygghet och studiero i skolan* (Lasting improved safety and study environment in school), it includes, among other things, the principal's primary responsibility to maintain safety and study environment; the establishment of expectation documents between school, student, and parents; zero tolerance towards bullying, graffiti, and vandalism; stricter provisions regarding relocation and suspension of students, as well as a constitutional amendment clarifying that it is the teacher who decides on the teaching and its organization. In the classroom, the teacher is the boss, and this must actually not be misunderstood.

There is also an investigation concerning student health, with the intention of curbing the mental ill-health that affects more and more young people. It is very tragic. A broad reform for improved student health aims to introduce a student health guarantee and increased accessibility, as well as maintain the school's healthcare mandate, i.e., the cooperation with healthcare services.

Madam Speaker! We believe that education, to the extent that it is possible, should be organized in such a way that it stimulates mobility and exercise. If the school gives students the opportunity for some form of daily physical activity, it is a great gain for learning. For the same reason, we want to reintroduce the regulated outdoor days. Unanimous research shows that increased physical mobility is good for health, but it is also good for the ability to learn. That is, it increases.

Madam Speaker! The previous government, despite protests, pushed through a proposition stating that the extract from the criminal record, which previously was to be submitted upon employment at a school, should instead only be shown and not archived. Furthermore, it has been shown that the register extracts do not show serious crimes such as acts of terrorism, assault, drug offenses, robbery, etc. This lax and naive handling has opened the door for the employment of former criminals who have committed very unpleasant acts in school, for example, rape. In my hometown Malmö, we have unfortunately had several such incidents recently.

We move for stricter handling of criminal record extracts, that they are submitted to the principal for archiving, that they are renewed annually, and that they show the full criminal record, i.e., no censored extract.

Madam Speaker! It is a long way to walk to restore a Swedish school where students and teachers are safe and engage in acquiring knowledge without disruption and extraneous tasks. With the changes that the parties in the government cooperation are now working on, one thing is certain: The future for both teachers and students looks significantly brighter.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Paula Örn (S)

Madam Speaker! I am very concerned about many of the order problems in the Swedish school. The previous, Social Democratic-led government was also very concerned about that development and took it very seriously. One example is that the Education Act was amended so that it now explicitly states that teachers and other staff have the right to intervene physically to avert violence, harassment, and other disruptions of order. We have also strengthened and clarified the possibilities for teachers and principals to take measures in many other ways.

There is an overrepresentation of boys among the students who are responsible for the disciplinary problems in school. I am convinced that it is linked to the fact that boys' school results have been worse than girls' for several decades. Just last year, there were almost 10,000 boys who did not qualify for upper secondary school. They run an increased risk of unemployment and crime. It is a betrayal of all boys who fail in school. It is also incomprehensible given the risks that follow in the wake of school failure, not least for crime. Therefore, we Social Democrats in the Education Committee proposed an initiative in the autumn for Skolverket to receive a clarified mandate to propose measures and work to strengthen boys' school results based on research and proven experience. But the Sweden Democrats, as a government support, said no to it. Why, Jörgen Grubb?

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Jörgen Grubb (SD)

Madam Speaker! The Social Democrats ruled for eight years before we formed a government basis. During that time, not much was done, but rather very little. Before that, not much was done either.

We are talking here about a concern in school that is not a new phenomenon. It has existed for a long time. Proposals are submitted where they want to point out specifically boys. Boys certainly cause more trouble, but girls also cause trouble. We do not make a distinction based on gender, but we want order in the school for everyone. We do not care whether it is a boy or a girl who behaves badly or does something good, it is the same for everyone.

We in the government base put forward proposals and we do this for real. I truly hope that the Social Democrats demand approval when investigation reports and bills are submitted regarding increasing study time in the classrooms and in the entire school. It benefits both students and teachers. I truly hope for this. It feels almost in this exchange of remarks that it will be so.

Madam Speaker! One of my highest desires now is that we get the Social Democrats on board when the bill arrives, which in various ways makes it much better. I cannot, of course, go into the details.

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Paula Örn (S)

Madam Speaker! It makes it even more difficult for me to answer when Jörgen Grubb cannot account for the details, but we shall have to see what kind of proposal it will be.

The focus of my question was that boys unfortunately fail to a greater extent in the Swedish school today. It is a major problem in the school because it contributes to the disorder. That does not mean in any way that it is not a problem that there are girls who cause trouble or behave badly in school. But I spoke about boys' school results and what we must do to reverse that development. We see that school failure leads straight into gang criminality. We must work preventatively and take more preventive measures.

I hope that Jörgen Grubb agrees with me that the best violation is a violation that never occurs. That children succeed, feel well, and achieve learning outcomes in school means that we do not have to take repressive measures. They are also needed, but we must invest in the preventive work.

Jörgen Grubb also spoke in his speech about investments in student health and more special education teachers, but the member becomes equally responsible as the committee chairman Fredrik Malm and the Moderate Party's representative when it comes to why one does not invest the resources that are needed in the Swedish school. Why do the Sweden Democrats prioritize tax cuts, and why do they not take responsibility for ensuring that the fine things they paint a picture of become a reality in the Swedish school? Instead, they fail all these children by not prioritizing the resources. Why do they not want the school to have the resources it needs?

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Jörgen Grubb (SD)

Madam Speaker! I want to say the following to the member: I do not believe that I, as a Sverigedemokrater, or any of my Sverigedemokrateriska colleagues, are responsible for anything regarding how things look in the Swedish school system. We do not owe the Socialdemokraterna anything.

The Swedish school system has, over several decades, approximately 30 years, gone from the top to now being mediocre. This can be seen when one looks at all the results and compares them with all other countries. The Sweden Democrats have had nothing to say about during these 30 years, but the Social Democratic Party has. You have, among other things, had an extreme mass immigration to Sweden which has affected the school in an extraordinary way, and you implemented the municipalization. There has been a laxity in the school law which has made it unclear who governs and decides in the classroom.

All of this is the Socialdemokraterna's responsibility. Yet you tell us that we are solely responsible. Yes, we will do everything we can to rectify all the mistakes that you have made. We will not succeed during the two years we have left until the next election, so we hope that we can continue. This is going to take time. But we fight and work as much as we possibly can. I promise the members that we are fighting incredibly hard to improve the school. Our goal is for Sweden to reach the top, where we were about 30 years ago.

We do not owe the Social Democratic Party anything. But we owe students and teachers to do our best for them so that the students receive a superb education and a bright future.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Mathias Bengtsson (KD)

Madam Speaker! For a long time, the school has been characterized by a striving for inclusion. It has been considered mean and undemocratic to single out certain students with special needs and give them special instruction.

This idea of inclusion, which means that all students should be taught in the same classroom, has naturally had good intentions, but the result has not been good. Many individual students have suffered, especially those who need school the most. Students with neuropsychiatric functional variations and students within the autism spectrum can, in fact, conversely be helped by not being in large classes but instead receiving instruction in smaller groups with clear structure.

The inclusion principle has also complicated the working situation for teachers. When all students are to be taught in the same classroom but with extra adaptation for different students, it has many times become unsustainable. We need to move away from the idea that all students should be in the same classroom with extra adaptation. Instead, we should improve the possibilities to arrange special teaching groups in different configurations.

We therefore need more special education teachers in schools who can handle the practical teaching in special groups. Some children should even be able to receive all their teaching in such a group instead of in a full class. Some students may need to receive support in a special teaching group for a limited time, in certain subjects or during certain segments.

Our school managements simply need more flexibility and greater freedom to be able to expand and design specific teaching groups so that the students who have the greatest support needs receive the support they need.

Madam Speaker! It is the teachers who build the school strong. It is teachers with a warm heart and a firm hand who speak about what is right and wrong and how to treat others who create a school for children to long for. It is they who lay the foundation for a safer society in the whole country - a safer Sweden - through the work they do in the school.

We can all think back to our school days and remember a teacher who meant extra much for our well-being in school and who had a decisive significance for our development as human beings. Sweden has many fantastically skilled teachers who, thanks to their subject knowledge and pedagogical knowledge, inspire students to more knowledge, who lead the class forward and who maintain order in the classroom. It is thanks to them that Sweden has become the country that we are.

Sweden is dependent on the teachers in schools, and we are dependent on them staying in the profession and also on more people wanting to take the step into the teaching profession. The attractiveness and status of the teaching profession therefore need to be raised. One way is to raise the eligibility requirements for the teacher training programs. Today, there are too many who enter the programs but who do not have the opportunity or ability to complete them. This leads to the programs having poor quality and low status.

Another way to raise the status of the teaching profession is to develop the career path reform, so that skilled teachers can take new steps within the profession.

Teachers primarily need to be able to work with what they have been trained for, namely to teach. Therefore, the administration needs to be reduced, peripheral tasks minimized, and the proportion of other staff in the school increased.

Madam Speaker! If the best teachers are to choose to stay in the profession, we also need to settle the issues of order and rowdiness in schools once and for all. It is important to improve the teachers' working environment and so that they can focus more on teaching. It is naturally also important for the students.

The teacher's powers need to be clear, and disciplinary measures such as confiscating objects or expulsion, detention, temporary relocation or, in the worst case, suspension must be able to be used to a greater extent. It is about having high expectations of the students to be able to show respect for one another and for the teachers.

The turmoil and insecurity in schools must therefore be removed for the sake of the teachers' work environment but also for the students' sake. It is clear that a student who does not feel safe in school very easily falls behind. One finds it difficult to keep up with the teaching, which can also affect mental health.

Just the increasing mental ill-health among children and young people is one of our time's greatest societal problems. The proportion of young people who feel depressed has doubled over the last 20 years. Of all young girls, 25 percent suffer from fear, worry, or anxiety. At Bris, the number of curative conversations has doubled in just the last ten years.

This likely has many different causes. The insecurity in schools does not contribute positively, but negatively, of course. The mobile phones and screens probably also play a role. It is hardly a coincidence that children's increased worry, anxiety, stress, and self-harming behavior coincides with the increased use of social media at all hours of the day. It cannot be avoided that many of children's and adolescents' psychological problems seem to begin and end with the screen.

To be constantly connected, to have one's value constantly measured in likes, and to constantly be afraid of having missed something is a lifestyle that takes a toll on the brain. It also pulls the children away from other things, such as exercise, sleep, family, friends, reading, climbing, or playing outdoors.

We need to take this development seriously. The Public Health Agency needs to do its part and provide clear recommendations. Parents must receive help and support in setting boundaries, and social media companies need to be regulated at the EU level. But the school also needs to be cautious. The school must be a counterweight to the screens' dopamine-seeking second-game with children's brains. The zeal for digitalization that has been allowed to prevail in schools for a long time, where everything digital in the name of modernity has been considered good regardless of content, must be stopped.

School needs to return to the basics with a focus on arithmetic, writing, and reading longer texts - old-fashioned boring but honest drudgery, quite simply.

In conclusion, Madam Speaker: Mental ill-health must naturally be met with accessible school health services. There needs to be a school health guarantee that ensures every student at every school gets access to school health services within a reasonable time.

The Christian Democrats have also worked for a long time so that the responsibility for student health should be reviewed. I believe we would see several positive effects if the regions took over the responsibility and in that way ensure that no child falls through the cracks in the handover between student health and child and adolescent psychiatry.

I vote in favor of the proposal in the report.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Paula Örn (S)

Madam Speaker! I thank the member for an engaged speech.

When I have listened here over the past few days, I have wondered what it could be that is the problem for the government parties with providing the resources that we know so well the Swedish school needs. I asked Fredrik Malm, chairman of the committee, and he said it is the Liberalerna who want to invest more resources. Liberalerna are apparently the party that ensures that the school is prioritized at all. And just a moment ago we heard how the member Jörgen Grubb from Sverigedemokraterna fights and fights for the school.

Then I wonder: Is it the Christian Democrats' fault that the government is not investing in the school? Is this a question where a fairly small party in the government has gained influence? Is it you who ensure that the resources from the state side are completely insufficient to meet the challenges in the school? Could that be the case, Mathias Bengtsson?

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Mathias Bengtsson (KD)

Madam Speaker! I do not quite know if one can say that it is the Christian Democrats' fault that resources are limited, that there is not an infinite amount of money or that money does not grow on trees. Much can be attributed to the Christian Democrats, but just that is perhaps not something my party is responsible for.

When one prepares a budget, as everyone knows, there is a certain amount of money to work with. One makes priorities and trade-offs. This government has prioritized welfare. It has also prioritized the school. We allocated 1.2 billion in the budget for 2024. We added an additional 500 million in our supplementary budget. The state's contribution to the school is the largest in 20 years measured in current prices and the third largest measured in fixed prices. The share of GDP and the share of the state budget that goes to the school are the largest ever. I want to say that the government prioritizes the school. When 40 percent of the reform space goes to welfare, I also want to say that a prioritization of welfare is being made.

But I can also be struck by Member Paula Örn's description in the exchanges that have occurred - it is always just a lack of money that is the problem in Swedish schools. I would like to say that one of the points in PISA's criticism of Sweden is that we have no efficiency. We do not get bang for the buck. If you compare with other countries, they succeed better with less money; Sweden, which spends quite a lot, does not succeed as well anyway.

I also believe that it is, for example, about increased safety and study environment—one should be able to concentrate on the schoolwork during lessons without being disturbed—and about the contact with parents and the home and about student health. One may need to take a different approach regarding mental ill-health and regarding bullying. I would like to ask Paula Örn: Why did the Social Democrats not do enough to remove the noise during lessons so that the students can concentrate? It doesn't cost any money.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Paula Örn (S)

Madam Speaker! Yes, of course a budget is about prioritizing. And what has this government prioritized? I repeat it again – you know that repetition is the mother of knowledge: 13 billion in tax cuts for those who earn the most.

We have a school that today, in fixed prices, has fewer resources than it had when this government took office. We Social Democrats have, budget after budget, allocated twice as many resources. Most recently, in the spring budget, we allocated 1 billion instead of 500 million to the school. It is obvious that the government has not chosen to prioritize the school. It is practical when GDP decreases and we have no growth – then the school's share of GDP becomes larger. But that is not due to you having invested, but unfortunately on completely other things.

It is clarifying for the country's teachers and students to hear the member of parliament say that no money is needed to get more special education teachers in schools or for the many more small teaching groups that principals and teachers should be able to flexibly arrange. They do not cost money, according to the member of parliament, but one just needs to become more efficient. Other staff also need to be strengthened, and an elevhälsogaranti (student health guarantee) shall be introduced. But apparently, no resources are needed linked to all the fine promises that the member of parliament from Kristdemokraterna stands and delivers in the rostrum. This, I believe, worries many in Swedish schools. It worries me, at least.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Mathias Bengtsson (KD)

Madam Speaker! The Social Democrats' solution when it comes to the budget is always about raising taxes. Perhaps they want a theoretical bank tax that no one believes will work in practice. The reason I do not stand behind that policy is that I believe it is growth-inhibiting and causes people not to choose to work more hours. In the long run, this will not lead to greater revenues for Sweden's state budget.

My point is also that I believe there are other measures that can help the teachers and students than just pouring more money into Swedish schools. The special educators who today work in the classrooms to support the teacher could also have special teaching groups—it would therefore be the same staff. If one gets more security and study time, so that it becomes calmer during the lessons, I also believe that it creates an efficiency that would enable more teachers and special educators to sit with special teaching groups.

I also believe that moving from screens to physical learning materials could increase knowledge without costing much money. I believe that more disciplinary measures in the teachers' and principals' toolbox could increase safety and study without costing money. I believe that more cooperation with parents and families, a parental contract and clearer expectations for the students are among the measures that could solve the problem without costing more money.

But the truth is, Madam Speaker, that the government chooses to allocate 40 percent of the reform space to welfare. That is this government's priority. The state prioritizes the school. It is also the case that the Social Democratic municipalities do so.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Camilla Hansén (MP)

Madam Speaker! Old tedious dragging - fun!

We have talked quite a bit about science and proven experience. I am curious about exactly where the evidence of experience lies. Where is the research support that a boring and tedious school is a success factor? Are there perhaps examples from other countries? Is there anything in the Pisa results that can be picked up? One also usually talks about motivation and that it should be fun to learn; that is something that makes it easier to learn difficult things.

I am also considering science and proven experience when it comes to digitalization. I wonder whether the science and the proven experience regarding how teaching materials should be chosen in the classrooms exists within the Government Offices or among the trained teachers, who work based on science and proven experience.

It is difficult to know what the government wants, as the government has abdicated its oversight of the school's digitalization. The interest among the members of the Education Committee for knowledge can still be measured somewhat. When the Swedish Research Council organized a seminar a few weeks ago on precisely the digitalization in preschool and school, the Education Committee was also invited, but only two members from the committee came. If one is interested in science and proven experience when it comes to digitalization, it would have been a good opportunity to attend.

What I wonder, Mathias Bengtsson, is: How do you view science and proven experience in relation to the issues you raised in your post?

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Mathias Bengtsson (KD)

Madam Speaker! There is quite a lot of science and proven experience that reading longer texts is good for learning and knowledge acquisition. There is also quite a lot of science and proven experience that writing, preferably with paper and pen where one shapes the letters by hand, is good for learning and knowledge acquisition.

The ambition has existed in Swedish schools that the education should be fun and enjoyable, and therefore we send in screens, iPads, computers and everything of the sort. It has naturally been a laudable ambition, but the problem is that it has not worked. It has resulted in more disruption, more distraction and poorer learning outcomes.

We are not moving away from the fact that screens are a major problem in schools. In many schools, iPad sets and one-to-one computers have been thrown into the school. Then people have held their thumbs crossed and hoped for the best. The result has been that teachers and students do not know how to use the tools. Students become more restless and learn less, and it becomes rowdier in the classroom.

A responsible government does something about that problem. That is why we are investing in physical learning materials. We are reversing the development and ensuring that digital tools are only used exactly where they are useful. They should not be used as gaming machines or as distractions, as it unfortunately appears to be in many schools today. I mean that it is to take responsibility.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Camilla Hansén (MP)

Madam Speaker! The Member says that in many schools, digital learning tools are used as slot machines, entertainment, and that it just came about as some funny invention. It is something of a mockery of the trained preschool teachers and teachers who take very seriously the preparation of children and students for the future they are to enter and the present we are living in now.

The government takes no responsibility for the school's digitalization. A year ago, the Minister for Education thought it was very important to have a strategy from the government for it. Since then, they have changed their minds and have now left a limited mandate to Skolverket to develop support.

I would welcome the government taking responsibility so that we know where we are headed, beyond simple phrases like from screen to folder. Reality, the present, and the future do not look that simple.

Something else that Mathias Bengtsson highlighted was the importance of discipline to ensure peace and quiet in the classroom. Among other things, the student organizations highlighted evidence showing that it is about the importance of building trusting relationships between teachers and students to create a study environment.

I do not hear that people are talking as much about teachers having enough time for their students and time to build the trusting relationships. What we see now is that teachers are getting less and less time with their students and that important people can no longer remain at the schools. They are the important adults for the students and especially for those students who perhaps have slightly tougher circumstances in school.

It is a choice the government is making. The government is not investing in the school. The government is hardly doing the bare minimum that is needed. We are several parties who see opportunities to invest in the school. Why is the government not doing it?

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Mathias Bengtsson (KD)

Madam Speaker! I choose to answer the questions from back to front. I will begin with the Green Party's inflation bonfire, which is what the budget that has been presented actually is.

We simply have different policies, Miljöpartiet and Kristdemokraterna, regarding what it means to invest in the school. To borrow money and break the state's budget framework for running expenses is a bad idea, because it will fuel inflation. It does not help the municipality, the schools, and the students. On the contrary, it means that they will receive less money in the end.

When it comes to time for the children and discipline, I mean that Miljöpartiet is starting at the wrong end. They say that teachers have too little time for the children, and therefore one cannot maintain order and discipline. I believe it is the other way around. It is because one does not maintain order and discipline that one does not get time for the children.

It is too rowdy in the lessons today. One has to devote a lot of time to the rowdiness and to managing the disorder. Therefore, one does not get time for teaching and time to build relationships with the children. I certainly mean that the government's initiatives for safety and study environment will provide more time for the teacher with the children.

When it comes to digital tools, I feel that the member is putting words in my mouth when she claims that I have mocked the teachers who use digital tools in a good way. That is absolutely not the case. I have nothing against people using digital tools where it works.

The problem in Swedish schools is that it has been thrown in without having a plan for how it should be used. There are far too many schools where students do other things on their computers and screens and where teachers do not use the digital tools in any evidence-based way in the teaching.

When we also know that screens are harmful for children to use in too great an extent, I think it is reasonable to remove the screen requirement from, for example, preschool. It is a good policy that I gladly stand behind.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Daniel Riazat (V)

A well-functioning education, from preschool to vocational training and universities, is absolutely crucial for all people to have a strong foundation to stand on throughout life. We want to see a school with a broad mandate and the capacity to support every child during their upbringing. It has an important role to play in compensating for class differences and other differences in circumstances.

The school needs to build on a view of humanity and pedagogy that is grounded in science and proven experience and aimed at strengthening people's opportunities to live good lives. It is an important part of the democratic infrastructure that can build cohesion and strengthen the ability to participate as an active citizen in society. Therefore, students and pupils shall also have the right to influence in and over their education throughout the entire education system.

The market school is a historical failure that shows what profound consequences incorrect ownership forms, market logic, and reduced collective governance can lead to. Collective ownership is the safest alternative to ensure that schools are run with a holistic view and genuine care for the students' best interests. To build up and rebuild the egalitarian school, we in Vänsterpartiet believe that the state needs to take over the primary responsibility for the Swedish school and that the market logic of the independent school system needs to be abolished fundamentally.

A question that is particularly important when it comes to the market system in schools is that some private school groups have exemptions in the legislation regarding the requirement for a teaching license because they conduct a large part of the instruction in English. Those who teach in a language other than Swedish do not need a teaching license. This is something that we in Vänsterpartiet believe must be changed. The exemptions that apply to certain private school operations, primarily school groups, regarding the requirement for a teaching license must be removed. Equal conditions shall apply throughout the entire Swedish school system.

It is not so illogical that the exception exists. We unfortunately have a majority of the parties in the Riksdag that year after year have done what they can to enable school corporations that only care about profit to also come up with new methods to expand their profits and their market logic. Systematically employing unqualified teachers is part of this system and of the market logic.

Furthermore, it is important to improve the working conditions for teachers and all school staff in order to counter the shortage of teachers and other professional groups in schools. The work environment and the work situation in schools are the most common reasons why teachers today choose to work with something other than what they are trained for. To improve teachers' work environment, teachers need to get more colleagues who have competencies other than being specifically teachers. But more teachers who are qualified are also needed. Improved student health is needed, among other things. If children are unwell, it is important that they receive a professional response. Today, the responsibility falls all too often on already overburdened teachers. But what is the government's answer? Yes, cuts and continued market logic. With a better work environment and larger investments in schools, we can get more qualified teachers to return to the teaching profession and work within schools. With the path that the government has chosen, this will not happen.

Another important issue that Vänsterpartiet has a reservation about is that, at the current time, it is only through the school that all children and young people can be reached by a full and proper education in media and information literacy. Teachers need, as a first step, a knowledge boost in this area. We know that source criticism is important and that trust in sources is an important component in the work of promoting democracy. If a young person does not dare to trust established media and does not learn to distinguish between what is fact and what is opinion, this will damage Swedish democracy. It is enough to look at the documentary that has come from Kalla fakta in the last few days to understand how this damage can arise in a democracy.

We mean therefore that the government should task responsible authorities to establish a knowledge lift for teachers in media and information literacy. In the name of honesty, perhaps the Riksdag and the members in certain parties should also receive such training.

Another question that is very important and which goes hand in hand with what I mentioned earlier is the mental ill-health among children and young people, which has increased in recent years. It places demands on school health and on child and adolescent psychiatry that we have not seen before. At the same time, this is occurring during a period when there are major cuts in both child and adolescent psychiatry and school health.

This challenge also raises the question of how we best prevent mental ill-health. In order to be able to work preventatively in an effective way, we need to delve into the question of what has led to the increase in mental ill-health among children and young people. There is not just one answer to this question, but there is a collection of different answers that we as politicians are duty-bound to investigate and ensure are countered. Therefore, we have today joined forces with the Social Democrats on this issue, and the Left Party will also vote in favor of our joint reservation, number 24, which the Social Democrats' representative moved for approval of.

School nurses, school nurses, school counselors and school psychologists must be present in school activities to a significantly greater extent than today. Like the forecast that Skolverket compiles regarding the need for teachers and preschool teachers, it is necessary to also take the need for staff within student health more seriously and also investigate it.

Vänsterpartiet argues that these functions should be strengthened. It is time that we take young people's mental health more seriously. We therefore believe that the school authorities should be tasked with investigating the need for more school doctors, school nurses, school counselors, and school psychologists during the coming years.

I move for approval of reservation number 6 in the report.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

ANDRE VICE TALMANNEN

I would like to remind of the parliamentary custom we have here in the chamber that a speech is addressed to the Speaker and should therefore begin with "Mr. Speaker" or "Madam Speaker". Just "Speaker" is also acceptable.

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Mona Smedman (C)

Madam Speaker! Here we are today, May 16. For many students, school ends within a month. Many are the children who look forward to the summer holidays - strawberries on the stem, legs that will soon be covered in mosquito bites, cooling baths and hanging out with friends.

Of course, that is the feeling we want all our children and youth to enter the summer holidays with? Yes, Madam Speaker, I see from the members' dreamy gazes that they are now returning to their summer holiday feeling.

One must also carry with them the fine thought: Now I have spent another year in school and acquired knowledge and skills that I will benefit from in the future, and that is certainly shown in the envelope containing my grades.

But the reality does not look like that for everyone. One in four students leaves school with a failing grade, F, in at least one subject. What signal do we send to those students? Yes, that you are not good enough. The bright future is not for you.

Consider that thought, Madam Speaker: The school, the adult world, does not think I am good for anything. How easy is it then to go astray? What does it do to the young person's mental health?

A few weeks ago, I stood here in the speaker's chair and spoke about general school issues. At that time, I cited research showing that the single largest factor for you getting a good life after school is that you pass school with passing grades. It is clear that there are many factors that play a role in ensuring all students manage to get passing grades, but something that really needs to be investigated is the grade F. What function does that grade serve other than elimination?

The hard passing grade that exists in today's school and the associated grade F can have major negative consequences for students and also leads to negative consequences for the teachers' working environment. Even the Productivity Commission, which has been appointed by the Ministry of Finance, and Sveriges Lärare want to review the grade F. Abstract grading criteria and a sharp boundary do not work together.

Well, Madam Speaker, perhaps someone is sitting here thinking, does the Center Party want to lower expectations for the students? I can reassure you on that point. That is not what we want at all. On the contrary, a good school is characterized by high expectations. There is unambiguous research showing that high expectations are crucial for all students' learning outcomes - high expectations and clear goals. When there are abstract grading criteria, that clarity is lacking.

Just as a chain is connected by its links, students' health is closely linked to their opportunities to achieve the learning goals. It must therefore clearly and explicitly appear in the Education Act, we in the Center Party believe, that the principals are responsible for and coordinate student health. That, Madam Speaker, shall be a responsibility that cannot be delegated away. It is largely about the fact that the principal is the one who has budget responsibility and can therefore ultimately make decisions on more resources and recruitments. By raising the responsibility to the highest level in the schools, there will be a legal requirement to take student health seriously in all schools.

School management and school principals also need better support in their mission to promote students' health and development. Specific guidance on the responsibilities of principals and school principals regarding health and medical care should therefore be designed so that student health work becomes more equitable regardless of where in the country the school is located. In order for us to be able to obtain a holistic picture of young people's needs and challenges and offer more comprehensive support, further better cooperation between student health services, health and medical care, and social services is needed.

Madam Speaker! Everyone should be given the opportunity to embark on a life journey and achieve their life dreams. Therefore, I move for approval of the Centerpartiet's reservation number 22.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Camilla Hansén (MP)

Madam Speaker! The teaching profession is the most important profession we have in Sweden. It is every country's most important profession. Does that also apply in the engineering nation Sweden? One could imagine that engineer is the most important profession. But there will be no engineers if they do not meet teachers first. Is the teaching profession the most important profession in the knowledge nation Sweden? Yes, it is.

Each one of us sitting here in the chamber can conjure up an image of a teacher who has meant something special to who we are today. I, as a teacher, know that this also applies to teachers. One remembers students who have also shaped oneself as a teacher.

Right now, I am thinking about my art teacher from junior high school whom I ran into a few weeks ago during an election campaign. It was a bit overwhelming. It became a touching meeting for both of us. We haven't seen each other in very many years. I imagine that you here also have such memories. Now, you can therefore take out your phones, find that teacher's phone number and send a text message or something.

This applies to all professions in the entire education sector. It applies to school leaders, special education teachers, student health services, the school librarian, the cook, the caretaker, and those who clean. All are important for the students they meet.

Miljöpartiet wants more people to dream of becoming teachers, of being the one who meets the children at the preschool, sees them grow and conquer languages and social skills, and sees them go from drawing stick figures to becoming artists and from reading picture books to the book-devouring age and to becoming full-fledged novel readers. They get to see the student carefully write their name for the first time, perhaps with some letter mirrored, in order to then be able to develop writing into a tool for thinking and learning.

When we talk about the teacher shortage and the conditions for the teaching profession, I want you to remember that teacher education is the largest program at our higher education institutions. So many people dream of becoming teachers at different levels in our school system. Our task is to ensure that they are given the conditions to practice their profession.

I often say that what I want and what I believe would be important for Swedish schools is that we have skilled teachers who have enough time with their students. Many of the problems that we nevertheless, at least in some ways, have a common view of, would be prevented if skilled teachers had enough time with their students.

But what does that mean? It means teachers who have a solid basic education with a strong scientific connection. It means that one has continuous continuing education and can develop in their teaching profession over a long period. It means that one should have enough time with their students. It means that one cannot have just one course or a teaching group for several years on the run. It also cannot be as many students as possible in each teaching group. One needs enough time to be able to see, encourage, support, and guide.

Miljöpartiet has great confidence in teachers' competence and experience. We need to return to a society that has great trust in the school and those who work there. The task of politics is to create the conditions for a school where we can trust the students' curiosity and the teachers' competence. Teachers should have the conditions and the mandate to do a good job and to meet each student based on their individual circumstances and natural desire to learn. This applies especially when the student has a need for special support. The task of politics is not to micro-manage what should happen in the classroom. It is to give the school's employees the conditions to use their full competence.

This requires resources. We have touched upon this earlier in the debate. We now have a reality with a government that chooses to let the municipalities bear the economic responsibility for an inflation that is rooted first in a pandemic and then in a war, which has exposed vulnerabilities, for example when it comes to energy independence in Europe. That is what is driving the inflation.

It is not teacher salaries that, compared to other salaries, in any magical way drive up inflation. There are no reasons to hold back in the school. Economists who looked at the government's and the opposition's budgets in the autumn wished for more room for reform and argued that the government was not cautious but stingy.

There are other parties, including Miljöpartiet, who are actually prepared to invest in the school and in welfare. Yes, Miljöpartiet is also prepared to invest in the sustainable transition. That means we can also invest in welfare when we invest in the transition through loans. But it is not inflation-driving. It is something we need to do.

Madam Speaker! Preschool, primary school, and upper secondary school are the natural arenas for health-promoting and preventive work, because most young people are there. Students who have attended preschool and completed primary school and upper secondary school with sufficient knowledge will have an easier life than those who have not. Society's task is to provide the conditions for this. Those who want to build a strong society invest in an education system that strengthens children, pupils, and students and ensures that they receive the knowledge they need to have a good life.

In addition to ensuring an equal school for all, it is also necessary to increase knowledge in schools regarding the identification of risky behaviors and to cooperate with several different actors to strengthen crime prevention work. A school that truly leads to a good education is crime-preventive in itself and prevents ill health.

The government spends a lot of time talking about its repressive measures and what should happen when crimes have been committed. It is no surprise that crimes should be followed by well-considered consequences. It is, however, much more interesting to ensure that crimes do not happen and that ill health does not arise. I really miss a preventive and promoting perspective in the government's policy.

There are some things that are central. This includes, among other things, well-functioning student health services, which also work preventatively and not just curatively. They must have the opportunities to do that. That is their actual mission, but they do not have those opportunities. It is also important that resources are distributed according to need. We want to see that a basic staffing level is regulated so that one knows that there is a student health service to rely on.

When we talk about the school's importance in terms of, for example, preventive and crime-preventive work, it is important to remember that it is by being just a good school that provides a good education that the school becomes a strong protective factor.

Finally, I want to say something that is not written much about in the report. It concerns student democracy and student influence. These are important points. There are, after all, some who are real experts at being students in Swedish schools: those who are students. They shall have the right to influence their lives. A living democracy requires participation. This means that teaching about basic democratic values is not sufficient. One must also carry out and conduct the teaching in that manner.

Madam Speaker! I want students to get more time with skilled teachers. I want more students to look forward to the next day at school because it is fun to be there, to learn and to develop. I also want more people to dream of becoming teachers and want to work in schools - Sweden's most important workplace.

Madam Speaker! I move for the approval of reservation 9, which concerns showing greater trust in the teachers and the professionals who work in schools.

(Applause)

The deliberation was hereby concluded.

(Decisions were made under § 10.)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)