The Government has established a social mission with the aim of including more children and young people in education, working life and society. We are following this up with a research initiative at OsloMet.
Why is the social mission of inclusion of children and young people important?
Because children and young people who fall outside important communities, are prevented from participating on an equal footing with others, or experience a lack of belonging, is one of the largest and most complex social tangles we face.
Norway has a political zero vision – no children and young people should be left out – but we are not there today. Many children fall outside important arenas for growing up such as kindergarten, school, leisure, education and work.
Children and young people live complex and meaningful lives across different arenas for growing up and in interaction with other peers, adults, local communities and institutions. In this way, the causes of so-called exclusion are also complex.
This is a so-called 'wicked problem' – a problem that has many intertwined causes and that cannot be solved within one sector, one discipline or with one type of measure. Therefore, a targeted social mission is needed that brings together knowledge, actors and efforts across the board.
If we are to succeed with inclusion, we must both understand why exclusion occurs and develop solutions that work in the complex reality in which children and young people live.
What do we mean when we talk about 'children and young people outside'?
When we talk about children and young people "outside", we are referring to those who are not allowed to take part in – or do not experience a real sense of belonging in – key communities in society. It can be about being excluded from education, work, organised leisure activities, health services or local communities, or about participating in ways that do not provide mastery, security or belonging.
Exclusion can have many expressions and causes: mental and physical health, disabilities, socioeconomic conditions, migration, discrimination, lack of coordination in services or weak transitions between different phases of life.
Common to much of the research in the field is that exclusion is rarely an individual problem – it arises in the interaction between individuals, institutions and societal structures.
What strengths does OsloMet have to draw on in such an initiative?
OsloMet is particularly well placed to contribute to this initiative because we combine strong academic breadth with close links to the field of practice.
We are a research university. We have research environments with solid expertise in education, working life, health, social work, child welfare, leisure, upbringing, diversity and urban issues – in other words, exactly the arenas where inclusion happens, or does not happen, in practice.
In addition, OsloMet has extensive experience with interdisciplinary collaboration, professional education programmes that educate those who actually work with children and young people, and we have access to key data sources such as Ungdata.
This gives us unique conditions for developing research that both maintains a high scientific quality and responds to real knowledge needs in society.
Why do you want to lead this initiative?
I want research on children and young people to mean something in society – not just as knowledge about children and young people, but as knowledge that actually contributes to better lives and better solutions.
I am motivated by working at the intersection between high academic quality and societal relevance, and by seeing research have consequences for practice, politics and professional practice. I am concerned that we take seriously the complex and meaningful lives children and young people live – across family, school, leisure, friends and digital arenas – and that this must be reflected in how we understand both exclusion and inclusion.
At the same time, I believe it is crucial to highlight children and young people's own perspectives and not just meet them with an administrative concern. We must also be open to knowledge about what actually works.
In Norway, we have a strong welfare state with a high level of trust, and this gives us a unique opportunity – and a responsibility – to use research actively to develop better and more accurate solutions.
What activities are you going to start with?
We start by laying a solid foundation for the initiative through concrete and targeted activities. First and foremost, funding has been announced for small projects that will:
- develop knowledge about the causes, processes and consequences of exclusion.
- explore inclusive practices and solutions across childhood arenas.
- strengthen collaboration across disciplines, professions and sectors.
These small projects will function both as knowledge development in themselves and as a springboard to larger, externally funded projects and, in the long term, perhaps research centres.
In parallel, we will establish meeting places, seminars and activities that connect researchers internally at OsloMet and with actors outside academia. I must also mention that the theme of this year's Ungdata Conference is precisely the inclusion of more children and young people.
