Commentary: Special support for students enables, not hinders, education

A recent commentary in Berlingske, authored by Ole P. Kristensen, expressed dissatisfaction and surprise over the increasing number of students receiving Special Pedagogical Support (SPS). Kristensen suggested this trend warrants not just reflection but action. However, this perspective is challenged by the argument that SPS is a vital component of the welfare state, enabling students with disabilities to pursue education on equal footing.

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SPS is not intended to improve the student's academic level or prerequisites, but to compensate for the barriers that the functional impairment creates in the educational situation.

The core purpose of SPS is to compensate for the barriers that a student's functional impairment creates within the educational setting. This support is not designed to enhance a student's academic level but to provide necessary accommodations, such as assistance with structuring curriculum and reading. Examples of functional impairments that may qualify for SPS include ADHD or autism. The article notes a rise in psychiatric diagnoses among young people over the past decade, coinciding with a decrease in the overall number of students in higher education, suggesting that students with diagnoses now represent a larger proportion of the student body.

The commentary asserts that society's commitment to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities necessitates providing reasonable compensation and equal access to education for all individuals with disabilities. It argues that limiting SPS would be inconsistent with these principles, questioning which students with disabilities should be denied necessary support. The piece contends that the welfare state, through SPS, empowers individuals with disabilities, allowing them to obtain an education and contribute as taxpayers to the community that funds the welfare system.

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When we as a society have recognized that people with disabilities have a right to reasonable compensation and equal access to education, among other things by joining the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, it is difficult in principle to argue that these rights should only apply to certain types of disabilities or persons with disabilities.

Furthermore, the article addresses a separate point raised by Bente Sarroe regarding a politician's perceived naive or foolish actions in associating with a pro-Russian, anti-NATO figure, drawing parallels to past political missteps. Another brief mention is made of an article discussing fibromyalgia as a physical pain disease originating in the central nervous system, signaling potential progress in understanding the condition.

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By assigning SPS, the welfare state does not turn students into clients. On the contrary, the scheme gives people with disabilities the opportunity to educate themselves on an equal footing with others and contribute as taxpayers to the community that finances the welfare state.