Music lessons during school hours are threatened - affecting students outside the center

Ten-year-old Elsa Robertsson attends her music lessons at the Kulturcentrum in central Ronneby. She lives in Listerby a little outside of town and unless her parents can push her, it can be difficult to attend the lessons.

- It would be boring. It wouldn't be fun, says Elsa Robertsson.

To make the cultural school more accessible, 46 out of 295 music students have their instrument lessons out at their school. In some cases, they may have to attend lessons to play their instrument.

- We have five outer schools where we have some music lessons during school hours, before school hours and on breaks. It means a lot to the kids who go there to be able to attend their school hours, ”says Suzanne Koken Knutsson.

But in the municipality of Gislaved in Småland, the School Inspectorate has criticized the fact that students have been allowed to go from lessons in school to play their instrument and believe that it contravenes the school law.

- It can seriously hamper the ability for all students to achieve the goals and that is one of the reasons why we have submitted a fine, says Mats Lindqvist, Head of Unit at the School Inspectorate.

The school inspectorate's decision has now created a concern at several cultural schools in the country - including in Ronneby.

- I think a good number of those who have their lesson at school time should now stop. Some can only participate if the cultural school comes to their school because the parents are not able to access the cultural school's premises, says Suzanne Koken Knutsson.

This is something that has also caused the nonprofit Association of Cultural Schools to respond.

- It is a basic shot against Swedish cultural school. Sweden is a sparsely populated country and we must be able to reach the students during school hours, because at three-four-hour in sparsely populated municipalities the school bus goes, says Jalle Lorensson, chairman of the School of Culture.