Diversity is very important to us, and we are thrilled to welcome students from more than 85 countries and many different backgrounds to the ISS. We deliberately work to ensure that students are included from all continents and from a variety of academic fields. Furthermore, our students are diverse with respect to gender, culture and economic status. Our intention springs from a belief in cultural exchange and international goodwill as a way to develop insight, understanding and empathy, which we believe are core elements of any solution to shared challenges in our global world.
Attaining such diversity would not have been possible without offering scholarships to those students of the International Summer School who might otherwise not have been able to travel to, live and study in Oslo for six weeks. We do so in order to enhance the learning process, which takes place both inside and outside the classroom. We find that the students’ own experiences are an essential part of this learning process. Studying together across differences cultivates a shared sense of citizenship. It strengthens a common responsibility for creating a better and more peaceful world. Therefore, the International Summer School remains committed toward maintaining its scholarship program.
The international classroom is a staple of the summer school. Our teaching philosophy is democratic, in that students meet on an equal footing irrespective of social, geographic or cultural background, within a safe environment for dialogue and discourse. It also means that students are not expected to sit quietly and be lectured. Rather, we believe that comparative reflection, discussion and debate expand our comprehension. Diversity increases the likelihood that intrinsic assumptions are challenged. And that’s what we aim to do – challenge our students from all over the world in democratic deliberation and critical thinking, and equally – to learn from them.
As a more recent development, the ISS has opened for Norwegian students to apply for scholarships. Usually, many Norwegian students spend their summers working, and the scholarship program will make it possible for some to partake in the international classroom at ISS. This possibility will bring multicultural perspectives to Norwegian students, who will be able to share these experiences with their university departments. Additionally, Norwegian students add their own perspectives to the international classroom at the ISS.
Norwegian language
Norwegian language training is an area of expertise at UiO and ISS. We wish to support the various institutes and educational communities providing Scandinavian studies around the world, and to strengthen a global network within this area. We make a particular effort to welcome students from around the world who study Norwegian language, and provide them an opportunity to be in Norway and thus get a holistic as well as local learning experience of country, society and people as well as language.
This year, we are also welcoming Norwegian teachers from 25 countries to participate in a teachers’ seminar during the first two weeks of the ISS. I wish to extend a special welcome to these participants as well. This seminar is for those who teach Norwegian language and literature abroad. We aim to strengthen ties and build relationships between Scandinavian programs around the world and UiO. Together, Norwegian language teachers working outside Scandinavia will share their best teaching practices, and further develop their competency in the field.
Scholarships for Norwegian language students and the teachers’ seminar would not have been possible without the generous support from The Norwegian Agency for International Cooperation and Quality Enhancement in Higher Education (Diku). Our partnership with Diku is much appreciated.
I wish to extend the warmest of welcomes to all the ISS students, teachers, faculty members and administrative staff of 2019. Thank you for your collective contribution toward what we expect will be another vibrant – and magical – summer session on Blindern campus!