Who are the children who struggle with involuntary absence from school? The ones that want to be there but are too afraid to go.
In Norway, school refusal is often referred to as “involuntary absence from school”. Professor Marie-Lisbet Amundsen, at the University of south-Eastern Norway’s Department of Pedagoghy explains:
‘This is because the children in question want to be at school – and their parents or guardians also want them to go. However, they are so afraid of going that they simply can`t. In other words, both parents and children are in despair, and the children’s self-esteem is low. They experience defeat because they are unable to live up to the school’s demands and expectations.’
The approach to these children varies from the approach governmental and municipal institutions take when children are ill for a long time or skip school a lot because they would rather do something else.
Painful findings
Professor Amundsen also leads the USN research group Professional Knowledge of Violence, Abuse and Social and Emotional Difficulties (usn.no), which set out to gain greater insight into what characterises pupils who struggle with involuntary school absence/school refusal. Amundsen and her fellow researchers have carried out several studies, both qualitative and quantitative in this regard (please find a list of research articles informing these findings below).
Here’s some of what they found:
- Eight of ten experience school as an unsafe place.
- Eight of ten have low confidende in their ability to cope
- Seven of ten struggle with performance anxiety
- More than half are exposed to bullying.
- Half do not have good relationships with any teachers at school
- Six out of ten struggle academically.
- Four out of ten have no friends at school.
- Four out of ten are under ten years.
Thriving in kindergarten – struggling in school
Their studies further show that 29 percent of children develop school refusal already in the first grade, and that four out of ten of all those struggling with involuntary school absence are under ten years old. For boys, this applies to half of all who are refused school. For girls, the challenges often appear somewhat later, and often when they start secondary school.
‘In Norway, most children go to kindergarten before they start school (93 percent). In light of this, it is worth noting that the same children who develop school refusal thrived and had friends in kindergarten. In other words, it is at school that the problems seem to arise,’ Professor Amundsen explains.
Vulnerable groups
Professor Amundsen, having specialist expertise in relation to children, young people, and adults with complex learning difficulties and social and emotional problems – also twenty years of experience from the practice field as head of a rehabilitation department and as an educational psychologist advisor – wanted to find out if there are school-related differences between different groups of children who struggle with school refusal.
‘We found school-related differences between students with ADHD, autism, and psychological challenges and pupils without diagnoses who also struggle with school refusal. Compared to pupils without a diagnosis, autistic pupils strived socially more and had higher risk of being without friends at school, and students with ADHD were more exposed to bullying, strived socially more, and fewer of them had good relations to the teachers, and almost four of ten develop school refusal already in the first grade,’ Professor Amundsen says.
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References:
Amundsen & Grøgaard (2023). Bekymringsmeldinger til barnevernet. https://psykisk-kommune.no/fagartikkel/skolevegring-og-bekymringsmeldinger-til-barnevernet/19.269
Amundsen, M-L. & Grøgaard, J.B. (2023). Elever med skolevegring: Hvilke faktorer kan ha betydning for at de kommer tilbake til skolen? Nordisk Tidsskrift for Pedagogikk & Kritikk. Vol.9, side 76-87. https://pedagogikkogkritikk.no/index.php/ntpk/article/view/5480/8709
Amundsen, M-L. & Møller, G. (2022). Faglig mestring og prestasjonsangst hos elever som strever med skolevegring (2022). Tidsskrift for Velferdsforskning. https://www.idunn.no/eprint/5JHY3AMUVUS7IDAHMWVA/full
Amundsen, M-L., Kielland, A. & Møller, G. (2022). School Refusal and School Related Differences Among Students With and Without Diagnosis (2022) Nordisk Tidsskrift for Pedagogikk og Kritikk. https://pedagogikkogkritikk.no/index.php/ntpk/article/view/3514
Amundsen, M-L. & Møller, G. (2021). Kjønnsforskjeller i undervisningstilbud hos elever som strever med skolevegring. Psykologi i kommunen.5:2021. https://psykisk-kommune.no/fagartikkel/kjonnsforskjeller-i-undervisningstilbud-til-elever-med-behov-for-spesialundervisning/19.217
Amundsen, M-L. & Lerstang, C. (2021). Fritak for opplæringsplikt blir fritak for ansvar. https://www.utdanningsnytt.no/fagartikkel-juss-skolevegring/fritak-for-opplaeringsplikt-blir-fritak-for-ansvar/287698
Amundsen, M-L. & Garmannslund, P. (2021). Elever som mobber. https://utdanningsforskning.no/artikler/2020/elever-som-mobber/
Amundsen, M-L., Bjerklund, M. & Garmannslund, P. (2021)Kjønnsforskjeller i ungdoms opplevde tilfredshet med utseende, selvoppfatning og selvhevdelse. https://utdanningsforskning.no/artikler/2021/kjonnsforskjeller-i-ungdoms-opplevde-tilfredshet-med-utseende-selvoppfatning-og-selvhevdelse
Amundsen, M-L. & Møller, G. (2020). Hvordan opplever foresatte til elever som strever med skolevegring møtet med skole og hjelpeapparat? https://psykisk-kommune.no/fagartikkel/hvordan-opplever-foresatte-til-elever-som-strever-med-skolevegring-motet-med-skole-og-hjelpeapparat/19.164
Amundsen, M-L. & Møller, G. (2020). Betydningen av skolerelaterte faktorer og mobbing for elever som strever med skolevegring. https://psykisk-kommune.no/fagartikkel/betydning-av-skolerelaterte-faktorer-og-mobbing-for-elever-som-strever-med-skolevegring/19.161
Amundsen, M-L., Herrebrøden, M., Mjøberg, A-G. & Rosenlund, C. (2020 c). Skolens møte med elever som strever med skolevegring. Psykologi i kommunen. Nr.2:1-9. https://utdanningsforskning.no/artikler/2021/skolens-mote-med-elever-som-strever-med-skolevegring/
Amundsen, M-L. & Garmannslund, P. (2018). Stress og uro i ungdomstrinnet http://www.fpkf.no/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Psykisk-helse-i-ungdomstrinnet-Psykologi-i-kommunen.pdf
Amundsen, M-L. (2017). Med skolen som motstander. https://utdanningsforskning.no/kilderpersoner/personerforfattere/marie-lisbet-amundsen/
Amundsen, M-L. (2017). Når nederlaget begynner med begynneropplæringen. 2: 40-55. https://docplayer.me/47669909-Nar-nederlaget-starter-med-begynneropplaeringen.html
Amundsen, M-L. & Garmannslund, P. (2015). Lesestrategier og motivasjon for lesing på ungdomstrinnet. https://utdanningsforskning.no/artikler/2015/leseferdigheter-og-motivasjon-for-lesing-pa-ungdomstrinnet
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In the picture: Prof. Marie-Lisbeth Amundsen.
Photocredit: © University of South-Eastern Norway.
