Continuation high school

A continuation high school is an alternative to a comprehensive high school. In some countries it is primarily for students who are considered at-risk of not graduating at the normal pace. The requirements to graduate are the same, but the scheduling is more flexible to allow students to earn their credits at a quicker pace.

The Danish continuation schools (Danish: Efterskole) cover 8th to 10th form and comprise a broad range of school types. The schools are specializing in different educational themes or specific youth-groups. Typical examples are sports, outdoor activities and various creative arts productions. Many continuation schools in Denmark are boarding schools and a stay is normally privately funded by school-fees.

The majority of attending pupils have chosen a continuation school after having finished their elementary school programs at the 9th form. The admission to continuation schools has increased in recent years and the association of Danish Industry has criticized this new development as too costly for society, and a waste of a full year in during a labor shortage.

A few continuation schools in Denmark deal specifically with young people with a troubled or criminal history. Disciplinary precautions are somewhat limited, with restraints and physical interactions not allowed. In some cases this has resulted in up to between 25 and 33 percent of the youth being expelled during a year at some schools. A single incident (January 2000) led one school to expel 23 percent of its students at once. Most of these continuation schools incorporates therapy and are similar to therapeutic boarding schools, but this term is not known in Denmark.

Lately, some families who have immigrated to Denmark and have little understanding for the highly developed Danish youth culture, are seeking strict orthodox Christian continuation schools for their children. The number of teenagers placed at these schools seemed to have been increasing since the Danish government took action against re-educational stays in the originally homeland. For a number of years Efterskoleforeningen (the association of Continuation Schools) have tried to target this parent-group with an offer to detain their children and keep them "safe" from the challenging parts of the regular youth culture. In 2010 the Danish government announced, that they would reduce the grants for students so the parents would have to pay a larger percentage of the cost for having a child attending the schools. A massive press campaign launched by Efterskoleforeningen inspired the government to adjust the grant-cuts slightly.

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Wikipedia