With the hammer in one’s hand

At Ballerup Ny Skole, the pupils and teachers work in a project oriented manner in learning solidarity. This also means that the pupils are allowed to use the hammer when redecorating or embellishing.

Af Ulla Kjærvang

The pupils’ school
Four pupils from Ballerup New School show me over the school. They know big and small stories about how the school came into being and who made what. They talk eagerly about the school and show it with pride. This is their school! It holds memories from their past. Full of nostalgia, they talk about how the room for the youngest pupils was decorated when they were there, and they remember small funny episodes from their time at the school; experiences which have taken hold. The pupils have left their stamp on the school, both indoors and outdoors.

- I helped make the stairs over there by the hill during one of our “crossover projects”, says Benedikte.

She points toward the hill, where they ride sleighs in the winter.
- And the hole over there was made by an excavator, so that we could have a lake, but now it has been covered up again, because someone could not leave the frogs alone.

Music and chilling
We make it down into the music room, which is basement-like with wood planking on the walls. The lamps in the ceiling are old drums that have been transformed into lamps. The music room appears as a cozy, but also a little rough room. The pupils just think that it is a very cozy room; but what is making it so cozy?

- It seems as if you are closer to one another down here, says Benedikte.
- Yes, it has a kind of lair mood over it and it is really quite cozy, says Nichlas.
- Benjamin from our group is really good at playing the drums. He has a license to play the drums, so he can come down here by himself and practice. Sometimes we can hear him all the way up at the top floor, says Rasmus.

New initiatives create development
As with many other rooms at the school, the music room has multiple functions. Apart from being the music room, it has also been fitted out as a movie room with a large screen, and it is also used to education on music theory. The room has been redecorated by the pupils themselves with aid from the teachers. The philosophy at Ballerup Ny Skole is that pupils and teachers should not complain, but instead find other solutions, asking questions such as: How can we make this better and what needs to be done?

The music room was redecorated because some of the pupils asked the teachers if they could do something about the music room, as it was not very cozy down there. The teachers were positive towards the idea, as they usually are when the pupils propose ideas for decoration, teaching or projects they want to start. A janitor group was formed, and the pupils were given 10,000 DKK and then used their own spare time to redecorate the room.

The best part about Ballerup Ny Skole
The pupils find that the freedom to choose and having a say are some of the substantial and good parts of Ballerup Ny Skole:

- At the old school I went to the teachers never listened to us. Here they really listen to what we say, says one of the pupils.

- Our traditions are good! We have some very fine traditions for Christmas and Shrovetide. It’s not just some “so-so” that is arranged; no, we get real roast pork and rice à l’impératrice for Christmas, says Benedikte.

The pupils will be included in redecoration projects
- The pupils must be allowed to leave their stamp. It is important that what the pupils do makes sense to them. At our school, the pupils are allowed to contribute to the community, because we listen to their ideas, help to realize them and support the execution of what they are doing, says head of the school Sanne Lensbæk. 

The school has, for example, focused on the physical improvements in a theme workshop. The pupils gave their ideas for improvements at the school. They also talked about why it was important to include the pupils in the improvement process. The pupils’ own conclusion was that you look better after the physical surroundings if they are not old and worn down, and even more so if you helped shape them. The teachers use the same arguments, when they choose to include the pupils in the improvements.

- It is important that the pupils are given a degree of importance. Generally it is about giving, because when you give, you are important and when everyone gives, it creates a feeling of fellowship. The topic for the way we work, is learning fellowships. In this is also a fellowship for expectations and a fellowship for value, says Sanne.

Ballerup New School is project organized in its entire structure and they strife for a combination of theory and practice in all their projects. This gives the pupils the opportunity to give ideas and be included in the daily life and the teaching.