After attending teacher courses on 22 July and Democratic Citizenship, middle school teacher Elisabeth Halle Steinum noticed a significant change in how she led classroom discussions.
Halle Steinum first attended a mini-course in Stavanger. This inspired her to attend the full course in Oslo and Utøya. She was initially anxious about visiting the site of the 2011 terror attack but found the experience profoundly moving, especially hearing stories from survivors and relatives.
“The most powerful moment was reading messages on the wall at Hegnhuset on Utøya,” she recalls.
The course taught her how to lead discussions on difficult topics like extremism and radicalization. Later, she shared what she learned with her colleagues at Kristianlyst Middle School. She noticed a significant improvement in how she and her students engaged with these topics.
“I felt incredibly lucky to be able to participate in these courses. Teaching in the classroom is completely different afterwards,” says Halle Steinum.
Teachers aren’t spoiled with courses, so the opportunity for professional development is much appreciated. And when the content maintains such a high standard – professionally from start to finish – it’s truly impressive.
Elisabeth Halle Steinum
Norwegian school curricula require students to learn about the terror attack in the context of enhancing democratic competences while preventing extremism and radicalization.
The European Wergeland Centre offers the national learning programme ‘22 July and Democratic Citizenship,’ which aims to strengthen young people’s democratic resilience. It consists of democracy workshops for teachers and their students, teacher training for teachers and teacher students, and the development of free learning resources.
In 2024, EWC joined the 22 July Center to offer local mini-courses for teachers and students. This year, courses were held in Stavanger and Tromsø, with more planned for 2025. As a consequence, a record high of 186 teachers were trained.
This article was published in the 2024 EWC Annual Report. Read the full report here
Facts:
The national learning programme ‘22 July and Democratic Citizenship’ is financed by the Ministry of Education and Research in Norway.
EWC Role: Project leader
Partners: The 22 July Center and Utøya AS Intervju med lærer som har deltatt på regionalt lærerkurs og har brukt og testet ut læringsmateriale – oversikt lærerkurs Norge og antall