Sameskolstyrelsen (SamS)

SCHOOL PLAN AND DOCUMENTS

THE FUTURE–ACCORDING TO THE S�MI EDUCATION BOARD
Sámi children and youth live with
are surrounded by and carry on
their language and cultural heritage.
They do this through the caring and learning
which they have received
within pedagogical surroundings of the very best kind.
In addition the schools should make sure:

• that Sámi language and culture are maintained and develop

• that the development as well as the teaching of Sámi children is stimulated at the same time that childcare in Sámi pre-schools and Sámi schools makes it possible for Sámi parents to combine work and studies with caring and taking responsibility for their children

• that the number of pupils who reach the goals set for the education increase

• that pupils can speak, read and write in the Sámi language

The national goals of the education are made real in the daily work at the Sámi schools, the Sámi pre-schools and within the integrated Sámi teaching given at the municipal schools.

EDUCATIONAL GOALS OF THE BOARD FROM A S�MI PERSPECTIVE The goal of the national curriculum is that every student who has completed education at a Sámi school be familiar with their Sámi cultural heritage. To attain this, all teaching must be approached from a Sámi perspective as the national goals of the curriculum and syllabus are translated into concrete activities.

Definition of Sámi Culture

The definition of Sámi culture is very extensive, everything from jojk (traditional Sámi way of ’singing’), drama and handicrafts to a broader meaning of the word, a people’s way of life and all that implies. One way of describing a culture is to divide it into several different dimensions according to a model suggested by Henning Johansson and Elisabet Jernström which they refer to in their book Kulturen som sprÃ¥ngbräda (1990). The material dimension of a culture includes things that you can see, hear and touch (handicrafts, books, the flag, traditional clothing or computer games). The social dimension describes the ways in which people interact with each other, how they are related and their traditions (neighbours, Sámi festivities, respect for elder people and affinity between Sámi people from different areas). The mental dimension concerns values, feelings, thoughts and behaviour (for example how people behave in a specific situation where non-visible rules apply for how to act, rules which those who live within the culture master but which can be difficult to understand or decode for someone who does not belong to that specific culture).
In a broader definition of the word culture, children and their surroundings are a prerequisite for a culture’s survival and development. The language belongs to the culture and is a natural part of all dimensions of a culture. The starting point for teaching from a Sámi perspective also includes that which every pupil should be aware of, namely:

• that Sámi people are one people and that our ties cross national borders

• that we as Sámi people have our own history, our own traditions and our own values

• that Sámi people and other indigenous peoples have the right to own and use the land which they traditionally have lived on

• that we as Sámi people strive to control our own institutions, lifestyle and economic development

• that we should be able to keep and develop our Sámi culture and protect the most essential parts of our identity.

THE GOALS OF THE S�MI EDUCATION BOARD ALSO INCLUDE: • That activities should be carried out in the Sámi language at the Sámi pre-schools, in pre-school classes and during the first three years at the Sámi schools and at the youth recreation centres. Pupils who have a different first language than Sámi should be supported in their own mother tongue. After finishing the third school year every student should be able to speak, read and write in Sámi. Pupils with Sámi as their first language should in addition to this develop their skills to express themselves in speech and writing.

• That common experiential activities connected to the Sámi culture and the Swedish design year of 2005 should be prioritized. The purpose is to strengthen the feeling of belonging and kinship among the Sámi people.

To make Sámi education possible, Sámi teaching material must be produced and developed.