ENGAGE investigates the impact and meaning of Norwegian Folk High Schools (FHS) on youth engagement and participation in society. It is the largest study on this subject to date, exploring a largely overlooked aspect in education research.
The projects’ background concerns youth disengagement from education and working life (NEET), but also the growing recognition of the social dimension of NEET status, including young people’s loss of trust in the institutions surrounding them, and their lack of political engagement and social participation.
Norwegian FHS are an addition to the formal education system, and are arenas for developing social skills including communication, conflict resolution and cooperation. Students live in dorms at the school with staff present on the premises 24h a day. There are no grades and exams, as schools aim to create a different learning space and different learning motivation, in addition to conduct general education and develop life skills.
ENGAGE is a 5-year project. The project group consists of researchers from NORCE in collaboration with researchers from University of South-Eastern Norway and NOVA at Oslo Metropolitan University. We have a close collaboration with the Norwegian Folk High School Council, and a reference group consisting of Swedish and Danish expertise as well as representatives from all 5 FHS organizations for the 83 FHS in Norway.
The project consists of three work packages.
Participants
Partners
- NORCE
- University of South-Eastern Norway
