Response to interpellation 2024/25:391 on resource schools for upper secondary school students
Translated from Swedish by AI; the translation may contain errors. The Swedish text is the original.
Summary AI, written in advance
L argues that a resource school is a way to organize education for students with special needs where municipalities have the freedom to determine their school activities 1 2. L emphasizes that the government has taken measures for equivalent regulations, investigations on school funding norms, and improved student health 1. L argues that previous initiatives on total inclusion have led to exclusion and that the government is now investing in special education teachers and school social teams 3. L argues that more support and a reformed upper secondary school are needed. S considers that there are too few resource schools at the upper secondary level and that the support to the municipalities is too poor 4. S wants to stick to small groups and resource schools 4. S considers that there is a lack of a statutory obligation for principals to offer resource schools in upper secondary school 5.
Written by AI in advance and may contain errors. The numbers lead to the speech a statement builds on; check against the text below.
Utbildningsministern Johan Pehrson (L)
Madam Speaker! has asked me if I and the government are prepared to take measures to ensure that students at the upper secondary level with extensive needs for support get access to resource schools and to ensure long-term funding and equal access to resource schools throughout the country. Mats Wiking has also asked if I and the government are prepared to take the initiative for a national strategy for resource schools at the upper secondary level.
Students who are in need of special support shall be given such support. It is important to remember that the resource school is not a separate school form but a possible way to organize education for students in need of special support. Municipalities have great freedom to decide for themselves how the municipal school activities shall be organized. There is therefore no obligation for municipalities to establish resource schools. Municipalities also have the possibility to establish resource schools within upper secondary school and adapted upper secondary school.
A private principal of an independent school is replaced in some cases by a supplementary amount in the event that a student needs extensive special support. It has been established that there are deficiencies in the regulatory framework regarding the compensation from the home municipality to private principals. Among other things, this has resulted in the assessment of the right to the supplementary amount and the size of the amount varying greatly between municipalities. Furthermore, the application process has often been complicated and administration-heavy. Education in the Swedish school system shall be equivalent within each school form and within the after-school center regardless of where in the country it is organized.
The government therefore decided in April 2024 on a clarified regulatory framework aimed at making the system of supplementary amounts more equitable and fair across the country and being able to contribute to increased predictability for the many independent resource schools. In addition, the government has appointed the Inquiry on a national school funding norm for increased equity (U 2023:05). The assignment includes investigating and submitting proposals for a system for financing independent resource schools that is designed in a way that is adapted to the resource schools' special character and conditions. The assignment shall be reported on November 1, 2026.
The Government has also appointed the Inquiry on Improved Student Health (U 2024:01), which has been tasked with submitting proposals to strengthen student health and reviewing the regulation of support measures in schools. The inquiry shall, among other things, submit proposals that mean it will be easier to place students in smaller and flexible teaching groups or to give students individual instruction. This assignment is to be partially reported on March 7 this year.
Furthermore, from this year, the government is investing in a collective state grant for staff reinforcements to strengthen schools' conditions to increase safety and study environment in school, relieve teachers, improve student health, and better meet students' needs for support. Over the next two years, this implies a comprehensive investment in, among other things, more special education teachers in Swedish schools.
The question that Mats Wiking raises is broader than just concerning upper secondary school students' access to resource schools. It is about efficient resource distribution and a clear regulatory framework so that the system becomes more equitable, so that students with needs for special support shall receive it. The Government takes the issue most seriously and has taken measures by consolidating state grants and proposing that funds be added to the budget, as well as by appointing the aforementioned state inquiries. I look forward to taking part in their reports when they eventually arrive.
Mats Wiking (S)
Madam Speaker! Over 15 percent of students in Sweden do not achieve a passing level in primary school. Many of these students have special needs and, despite various support measures during school time, have had difficulty meeting the knowledge requirements.
For some, the solution has been to receive instruction in smaller study groups or in resource schools. It has made a big difference. More stay-at-homes have started coming back to school. Students who previously had difficulty functioning in the teaching have been given a chance to develop and have, for the first time, felt that school is for them.
But when the step from primary school to upper secondary school is taken, major problems arise. Many students with special needs fall between the cracks. Those who enter a national program encounter an environment that is often completely different from what they are used to. They move from small groups with individualized support to large classes with higher demands for independence. For many, it becomes a major transition that leads to stress, failure, and in the worst cases, dropping out.
Madam Speaker! For those students who do not get into a national program, it remains to go through an introductory program. There, there may be smaller groups, but the possibility of receiving instruction in an adapted environment is far from guaranteed. It can mean that a high-functioning student with autism ends up in the same teaching group as an outgoing student with completely different needs. It is a situation that neither benefits the student themselves nor creates a functioning teaching environment.
There is a great risk that the upper secondary schools will lose students who would have needed a resource school or instruction in smaller groups together with other students with similar difficulties. The consequence is that students who previously had support and functioned in school will now end up in a situation where they once again have to struggle to complete their schooling or, in the worst case, drop out entirely.
We Social Democrats believe that students who already in primary school have needed support and instruction in a small group or resource school should have their needs assessed also during the transition to upper secondary school. No student should have to start over from the beginning and risk failing because the support the student previously had suddenly disappears.
Madam Speaker! Today, unfortunately, there are far too few resource schools at the upper secondary level, and many students who attended a resource school during primary school lack corresponding support when they move on to upper secondary school. What does the Minister for Education intend to do to ensure that students with special needs receive the right support even in upper secondary school, including the possibility of continuing in a resource school or smaller teaching groups?
Utbildningsministern Johan Pehrson (L)
Madam Speaker! The issue that Mats Wiking raises here is central. It must be remembered that measures need to be taken across the board to get more young people to pass school. It must begin with measures in preschool, not least measures for the Swedish language.
The government is now working on introducing a ten-year primary school; the proposal is ready and in place. It is about more people moving on to upper secondary school. We are also preparing the investigation that exists regarding more paths into upper secondary school. Today's individual programs are perhaps not the optimal way to act.
We will also in the near future receive the investigation on a new grading system to address fraudulent grades and the brutality inherent in the fact that the grading system today is designed in such a way that many are prevented from moving forward and are instead referred to individual programs. We will therefore soon have a good basis to, not least together with the Social Democrats, discuss the future of the grading system and what should be done. This is relevant, as is discussing more paths into upper secondary school.
With this said, it is impossible to avoid that the investments the government is now making are a result of having let go of the very good will that has existed regarding total inclusion in school. There has been a very good will and an incredibly beautiful idea, but this has led to an extensive fallout. That was why the previous government recreated special education teacher training. We have ensured that we now continue with this, not least for more teaching groups. I see this as central for students to manage their education and receive the support that is so important for everyone to be able to reach relevant knowledge goals to the greatest extent possible. We will continue this work.
I mentioned the investigation on student health. It is central to this. There can be many reasons why one is unable to achieve sufficient results in school. One reason can be that one feels unwell, either because of a constitutional condition or because one is having an extremely difficult time at home. This is where we come to the government's initiative on school social teams – which has gained broad traction in Skolsverige, I have noted – and the initiative on safety teams. This is completely central.
Something else that is central is a broader reorganization of teacher education. This will have an effect in the long run; it does not happen all at once. How do you teach and care for students who are struggling and who may be close to a special education group?
We are doing all this now so that more people can complete the training.
In Stockholm, the Social Democrats have for various reasons been hesitant about further investments in resource schools. I do not want to criticize this, but I assume that the Social Democrats in Stockholm do everything for the sake of knowledge and the students and to invest in more and smaller teaching groups. There is nothing that suggests such investments are unwise – on the contrary.
Mats Wiking (S)
Madam Speaker! The Minister for Education mentioned generally which initiatives the government is making. One can, of course, discuss what support municipalities and regions receive. We consider the support to the municipalities to be far too poor. My home municipality, Trollhättan, is forced to save several million, which will mean that there will be fewer teachers and special education teachers. The consequence of this will be poorer student health.
The government has said that this is the municipalities' own responsibility, but it is not that easy to be a municipality out in Sweden today. One receives fewer state grants, which means that one must cut back on various measures.
I want to stick to small groups and resource schools in upper secondary school. We already have this in primary schools. The government has also signaled an investment in resource schools, small teaching groups, and social teams.
One can say that there is an explicit will to implement resource schools and small teaching groups in primary school. But what I am pointing out is the problem when one moves from primary school to upper secondary school and still has these needs, which are very clear for many students who attend resource schools. One can have NPF diagnoses or other concerns that make it necessary to be in a special teaching group.
Many of these students may have been away from school for a number of years. As a social worker, I have seen young people who have been away for three or four years and who are entering the primary school system and gradually the upper secondary school system. These need special support in their education, and it is difficult for them when they enter upper secondary school and the support ceases. They have to start over from the beginning when they enter a program but may notice after a couple of weeks that they cannot manage because they do not have the special support they previously had. This hits the individual first and foremost, but also society. The government talks about how everyone should be able to manage a job and be available to the labor market, but here we lose further individuals when the right interventions are not made.
Let me still take a good example. Sofiaängen is a resource school with a special pedagogical profile. They mainly have students with neuropsychiatric diagnoses and adapt the schooling from a pedagogical and psychosocial perspective in line with the student's development and progress. At the school, students are in smaller groups to create a safer environment. The staff is properly educated in special pedagogy and neuropsychiatric disabilities so that the students receive an adequate and secure schooling. The school is also equipped with a so-called treatment wing that operates in parallel with the education. The practitioners collaborate with social services and BUP regarding the students' specific difficulties. Treatment staff are also available in the operation at all times. The operation is very professional. The staff, as mentioned, has the right competence and thanks to the small teaching groups, one can see that the students are truly making the progress they need.
The Social Democrats believe that these measures are also needed in upper secondary school, not only in the individual programs but also otherwise.
The principal at Sofiaängen says that the attitude is the most important thing for the staff. All staff shall get to know the students and meet the students' specific needs.
Does the Minister for Education consider it acceptable that the support for students with extensive support needs in upper secondary school varies so much across the country? If not, what does the government intend to do about the situation?
Utbildningsministern Johan Pehrson (L)
Madam Speaker! Let me start at the end. I referred to the inquiry on a national school funding norm, which will partially touch upon this. I share Mats Wiking's analysis and commitment regarding the fact that it looks all too different in our country. But neither Mats Wiking nor anyone else in the chamber should have to take responsibility for the decision to municipalize the school that was made 35 years ago. The Liberals argued then that the school is too important to be a municipal matter because it can lead to very different outcomes since the municipalities have such different conditions. No municipality wants anything bad, but some have lacking conditions and must make difficult prioritizations. It is easy that specialized expertise within the school and management functions and structures that are central do not come to their full potential in a relatively small school administration in a smaller municipality. It is easier in larger municipalities, and there is also a lot of fine activity there.
The answer is that we are looking at the issue and that certain measures for a more equitable operation across the country have been taken.
When talking about fine activities, one should not miss the Specialpedagogiska skolmyndighetens efforts. On behalf of the state, they operate ten special schools for children with clear disabilities and great challenges in order to maximize their lives and give them as much autonomy as possible. The authority also provides advice and support in various ways, and they help many municipalities with managing these issues.
It is important to remember that resource school is not a separate school form, but it is a possible way to organize special support. The municipalities have a very great freedom to decide for themselves how the municipal school activities shall be organized, and there is no obstacle for a municipality to establish resource schools even within upper secondary school or adapted upper secondary school, which could be relevant.
I am not encountering the question for the first time in this very good interpellation debate. The investigations I raised in my answer and the measures to give these young people a new and better path into upper secondary school, added to the added value of special support, must be weighed together with what we are doing to reform the grading system.
The previous government successfully carried out the mandate that now exists in law, that the upper secondary school must adapt its programs better to the existing labor market. It is easy to be for, and I think that is good.
There is more to be done, and when it comes to upper secondary school specifically, the challenges are great. For example, the right student must read the right material in the theoretical upper secondary preparatory programs so that deficiencies in ability are not transported up to higher education at colleges and universities.
Mats Wiking (S)
Madam Speaker! I will repeat part of what I have said earlier.
From the legal text, I understand that there are resource schools in primary school as an established school form where students with extensive support needs can receive adapted teaching in small groups. Municipalities have an obligation to offer adaptations and special support in primary school, and resource schools can be part of the solution.
At the upper secondary level, corresponding regulations are missing. This means that there is no statutory obligation for municipalities or independent schools to offer resource schools or special teaching groups. Instead, as the Minister for Education said, it is up to each individual head of school to organize the teaching and decide on any adaptations.
Madam Speaker! The Minister for Education refers to the fact that there is nothing preventing municipalities or individual school owners from establishing resource schools or special teaching groups. But unfortunately, they rarely do. When support is lacking, there is a high risk that students will drop out of upper secondary school and experience failure. It does not matter that municipalities can do this of their own free will; instead, there must be pressure on municipalities to offer students in need of special support sufficient support even in upper secondary school. Or shall we accept that more students are knocked out?
Does the Minister for Education really believe that no regulation is needed regarding municipalities' and private schools' obligation to offer resource schools or special teaching groups in upper secondary school?
Utbildningsministern Johan Pehrson (L)
Madam Speaker! Much more support is needed and a reformed and more adapted upper secondary school. There is a basis that we are now looking at broadly, which concerns a different and better way in. Those who come in will need a different pace of instruction and help with their progression. This is also where student health comes in, which I referred to. It is up to the head of the school to organize this, and as mentioned, there are no obstacles.
I have great respect for Mats Wikings' commitment and problem statement. Previously, the school was state-run, but then the responsibility was moved to the municipalities. Now, the government is fully committed to re-regulating, plus we are making significant adjustments to the conditions for independent school actors. There is not just one challenge in Swedish primary and secondary school.
Source: The Swedish Parliament. The speeches come from the open data of the Riksdag, translated into English by AI, which may contain errors.