Many ninth graders ineligible for high school

Soon it will be the start of school for the country’s high school students.

But nearly every fifth student who left the municipal primary school this spring does not meet the requirements to be allowed to study a national program at upper secondary school.

– It is clear that the resources are not enough to bring everyone up to an approved level, says school researcher Christian Lundahl.

Preliminary figures from the four largest municipalities show that only 82 percent of students who recently completed grade 9 met the knowledge requirements to apply to upper secondary school. For independent schools, the figures are slightly higher.

Ineligible students are instead offered places on introductory programmes, which aim to give them access to national programs or help them get closer to the labor market.

Christian Lundahl, professor of pedagogy at Örebro University, believes that the ambition for everyone to go to upper secondary school requires significantly more resources.

– In general, it can be said that the level of ambition for Swedish schools has been raised. The level of the curriculum is where a fairly large proportion of students will have problems at school, above all those who come from homes unaccustomed to studying.

– It would certainly be possible to get better numbers if the school had greater resources to invest in support for the student groups that drop out.

Gothenburg lowest

In Stockholm, 87 percent of students at municipal primary schools reached the level that gives them the right to continue their studies. Corresponding figures for Gothenburg and Malmö are 77 and 81 percent, respectively.

– There are probably more students with weak study traditions in Gothenburg than in Stockholm, but you would have to look more closely at the differences between different schools and student groups to find an explanation for why it looks different, says Lundahl.

He warns that there may be even more who do not have sufficient knowledge in the core subjects to pass high school.

– We know from studies that there are more people who get the grade E in mathematics than deserve it.

The same level

The Swedish National Agency’s statistics indicate that the knowledge level of primary school students has been at a similar level for several years, with many not being eligible for upper secondary school.

– In the long run, it can have quite costly consequences, both personally and financially, says Lundahl.

Emilia Bjuggren (S), student councilor in Stockholm, agrees that greater political efforts are required for more people to pass the eligibility requirements directly from primary school.

– The statistics show that grades in grade 6 have been falling for a long time. With that background, we are relieved that we remain at a stable level in terms of upper secondary school qualifications, she says.

– We are of course not satisfied until even more students are eligible. We will continue to invest, not least in earlier ages.

FACT Highest high school qualification in Stockholm

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