Article 2 of the Act on Compulsory Schools emphasizes the primary role of compulsory schools in promoting the all-round development of all students. This includes the requirement that learning be based on the individual needs of each student and take place in a stimulating learning environment where they feel safe and can use their talents.

Learning in primary school takes into account the development, personality, talents, abilities and interests of each individual. All planning of school work and teaching should be based on these factors. This requires that teachers make an effort to get to know each student they teach, assess their academic progress and involve both the student and their parents in discussions about the goals to be achieved at each time. Emphasis should be placed on parents monitoring their children’s academic progress.

In compulsory school, all students have the right to pursue their studies to their own satisfaction. Opportunities should be equal regardless of each individual’s abilities and circumstances. It is therefore ensured that opportunities do not depend on whether a student is of Icelandic or foreign origin. They are independent of whether they are boys or girls, where a student lives, what class they belong to, what religion they adhere to, what their sexual orientation is, what their health is like or whether they have a disability or what their circumstances are.

At the primary school level, all students have the right to pursue compulsory education in inclusive general primary schools that all children have the right to attend. Inclusive schools refer to primary schools in the home community or local area of ​​students where the educational and social needs of each individual are met with human values, democracy and social justice as guiding principles. Inclusive schools assume that everyone has equal or equivalent opportunities to learn and that learning is based on the needs of each individual. Inclusive schools are characterised by a certain attitude characterised by respect for the right of all students to active participation in the learning community of their home school, regardless of their ability and status. This fundamental ideology in school work in this country involves the comprehensive participation, accessibility and participation of all students in school work. Inclusive education is a continuous process that aims to offer a good education for all. Respect is shown for the diversity and different needs, abilities and characteristics of students, and emphasis should be placed on eliminating all forms of discrimination and segregation in schools.

The student population in compulsory school is diverse and their needs vary. Municipalities shall ensure that school-age children who are legally resident in the municipality or are placed with foster parents who are legally resident in the municipality receive special support in school activities in accordance with their assessed special needs. Students with special needs are considered to be those who have difficulty learning due to specific learning difficulties, emotional or social difficulties and/or disabilities, students with learning disabilities, chronically ill students, students with developmental disorders, mental disorders and other students with health-related special needs. Premature students and students who have special abilities in certain areas have the right to receive learning opportunities that suit them. They should be given the opportunity to develop their special abilities and make the most of their time by tackling more and more complex goals and challenging learning on their own terms that are meaningful to them.

If parents and school experts assess the student’s circumstances to be in their best interests to study in a special school, parents may request that the student be placed in a special school temporarily or permanently. In this regard, the child’s best interests prevail.

School should be a haven for children where they feel safe, have the opportunity to develop and use their talents and enjoy their childhood. Childhood and adolescence are an important period in every individual’s life. Every school day and every lesson carries with it developmental opportunities that must be fully utilized. It is important to maintain the child’s natural curiosity, which is one of the most important prerequisites for all learning. Play is a way for young children to learn about and about the world. It is very important that play as a learning method is given high priority in primary school, and that this emphasis is not limited to the youngest students. This right also implies that childhood and adolescence have a purpose in themselves and are not merely preparation for further study and work. Students have the right to express their views regarding the learning environment, learning arrangements, school work arrangements and other decisions that affect them. Their views should be taken into account as much as possible. Students should be able to express their views in all general school activities, for example through regular discussions in class under the supervision of a supervising teacher when appropriate. Students should also be able to express their views through their representatives on the student union board and school council.

The main role of the teacher is teaching and pedagogical work with students, to arouse and maintain their interest in learning, to provide them with guidance in the most diverse ways possible, and to promote good morale and work peace among students. This role can also be described as a leadership role; to be a leader in the student’s learning. This includes an emphasis on creating fertile and diverse learning environments for students. High-quality teaching, which adapts to the needs and status of individual students in an inclusive school, increases the likelihood of success. It is important that teachers work together on the education of students as much as possible and that teaching and upbringing are not separated from the beginning to the end of primary school.

Each student shall have a supervising teacher. The supervising teacher takes responsibility for the learning, development, well-being and welfare of his/her students, rather than other staff members. The supervising teacher makes an effort to get to know his/her students, their parents and their circumstances as well as possible. He/she works closely with the teachers who teach the students under his/her care, gathers information and passes it on within the school and to the parents in order to enable the parents to participate in decisions concerning their child and the school work. The supervising teacher plays a key role in successful cooperation between homes and schools and is the main contact point between schools and homes.

Students need to acquire various aspects in their daily lives in order to be active participants in a democratic society, including communication skills, respect, tolerance and understanding of the development of a democratic society. Students need to learn to interact with each other and all school staff in harmony and take responsibility for their own conduct and behaviour and respect school rules. Emphasis must be placed on student discipline and self-discipline. In order for this to happen, school staff must in every way promote a good working spirit and mutual respect for everyone in the school in collaboration with students, parents and staff. Students’ social skills should be strengthened by creating opportunities for them to actively participate in school activities. A positive school atmosphere is inherently preventive and can reduce negative interactions, such as bullying and other violence. Among the fundamental rights of students is to have peace at school so that they can best master their studies and benefit from the teaching as much as possible. Therefore, emphasis must be placed on creating a positive school atmosphere in each school and a good working spirit in individual classrooms and study groups.

The well-being of children and successful academic progress depend not least on parents supporting their children’s schooling and looking after their interests in every respect, having good cooperation with the school, providing the school with relevant information and participating in their children’s education and parental work from the beginning to the end of compulsory school. Information sharing between homes and schools and consultation between teachers and parents about learning and teaching is an important prerequisite for successful school work. Schools are responsible for ensuring that such cooperation is established and maintained throughout the child’s schooling. Active participation and involvement of parents in their children’s education and work is a prerequisite for parents to be able to shoulder the responsibility they bear for the successful upbringing and education of their children.

The primary school shall work systematically on prevention and health promotion, with attention to the mental, physical and social well-being of the school’s students. Emphasis shall be placed on general prevention, such as against tobacco, alcohol, other drugs and other forms of addiction, e.g. internet and gambling addiction. It is important that all primary schools draw up a prevention plan that is published in the school curriculum. The prevention plan shall include, among other things, the school’s plan for drug prevention and alcohol and tobacco prevention, a plan against bullying and other violence, a plan for safety and accident prevention and a policy for discipline management. It shall also state how the school community intends to respond if issues arise. The school’s prevention plan shall be presented to all members of the school community, school staff, parents and students and published in the school curriculum.

It is important that schools build active connections with their local community and thus promote positive communication and collaboration with individuals, non-governmental organizations, companies and institutions. This is important to increase diversity in learning, for example in elective subjects at the junior high school level, and to connect students’ learning to the reality of their local environment so that it becomes more meaningful. This connection relates, for example, to the environment, culture, arts, sports, social and leisure activities and business life. The school is often the heart of a community where generations meet and can be compared to the civic square of cities, and it is important that schools take advantage of the opportunities that are offered to connect different generations in society. It is therefore important that there are active and good connections between the community and the school where there is mutual respect for the needs and responsibilities of all parties. The school curriculum should explain how the school’s relationship with the local community is structured.

Municipal expert services for compulsory schools focus on strengthening compulsory schools as professional institutions that can resolve most of the issues that arise in school operations and provide school staff with guidance and appropriate assistance in their work.

Specialist services support the activities of schools and their staff, guided by the interests of students, and support students in primary schools and their parents. The aim of local authority specialist services is to ensure that pedagogical, psychological, developmental and sociological knowledge is used as effectively as possible in school work. When implementing specialist services, local authorities shall emphasise preventive work to systematically promote the general well-being of students and to prevent problems. Early assessment of the student’s situation and subsequent counselling are important in order to respond to academic, social and psychological problems as soon as possible and to organise teaching and support, with school staff, so that it is suitable for every student in an inclusive school. Specialist services should be shaped by a comprehensive view of the circumstances and interests of students, regardless of the professions of the specialists and who provides the service. In this way, the student’s well-being should always be the guiding principle.

The specialist service shall support the activities and practices of schools, their staff and parents in a variety of ways with advice and education. Appropriate interpretation services are necessary to ensure that information and advice is useful to parents and students, so it is important that such services are easily accessible.

The Act on Preschools, Primary Schools and Upper Secondary Schools emphasizes continuity in students’ schooling. It is therefore important that when implementing specialist services, emphasis is placed on good continuity and a comprehensive view, which is reflected in the targeted dissemination of information about students’ situation when they move between school levels. It is essential that there is no interruption in their education during the transfer and that the provisions of the Act on such dissemination of information between school levels be taken into account.

Educational and career guidance is a statutory part of the specialist services of schools. Educational and career guidance in compulsory schools involves working with students, parents, teachers, school administrators and other school employees on various types of welfare work related to students’ studies, well-being and future plans. Educational and career guidance involves helping students find a way to channel their talents, interests and strengths. It is important that students receive assistance in seeking solutions if they encounter problems in their studies or work at school. Educational and career guidance can help students process information about their studies and guide them in continuing their studies and work. Equality should be the guiding principle in educational and career education by introducing boys and girls to a diverse range of study options after completing compulsory school and various types of jobs. Efforts should be made to introduce both sexes to jobs that have so far been seen as traditionally male or female jobs. It is necessary to introduce students to new jobs and job developments that accompany changes in modern society.

Iceland is a democratic society where the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child has been enacted. According to the Convention, all children shall enjoy the same rights without regard to their race, colour, sex, language, religion, political opinion, descent, disability, social status or other circumstances or the status or activities of their parents. These provisions shall be reflected in the school community where the rights of each individual are respected.

The school community should be characterized by cooperation, equality and democracy, where everyone feels comfortable, diverse cultures can flourish, active participation is encouraged and everyone’s voices are heard. Emphasis should be placed on reflecting multicultural values ​​in the choice of projects, learning materials, learning and teaching methods and working methods in all school activities. One of the main roles of compulsory school, according to the objective article of the Act on Compulsory Schools, is to promote the comprehensive development of students and participation in a democratic society.

A good reception of new students with Icelandic as a second language is crucial at the beginning of schooling. According to Article 16 of the Act on Compulsory Schools, schools must follow a reception plan, their own or the municipality’s, which is based on the students’ background, language skills and previous schooling. In addition to taking into account the students’ abilities in various fields of study and their strengths. A status assessment of these factors shall be presented in the student’s strongest language. The reception interview shall emphasize the holistic reception of students and parents. It shall give the student and parents the opportunity to inform the school about the student’s needs, culture and status. The curriculum shall be based on the results of that information and the status assessment. Responsibility for the student’s Icelandic learning lies with school administrators, supervising teachers, Icelandic teachers, all other teachers and parents, and these parties need to work together to ensure that the learning is purposeful. It is also essential that other staff involved in the student’s studies or extracurricular activities are informed about their Icelandic language skills and participate in supporting the student’s Icelandic learning and their activity in the school and extracurricular community. Informal education and participation in organized extracurricular activities contribute to strengthening students’ Icelandic language skills, strengthening social ties and increasing their activity and skills.

Teachers, school administrators and other school staff should make an effort to get to know the home culture of students with diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds. The school system in the country of origin may differ to some extent from the Icelandic one and the student may have been absent from school for a number of years. The school’s communication with parents must be regular and clear, characterised by trust and mutual respect, and aimed at achieving a shared vision for the education of children in the Icelandic school system.

It is important that parents with diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds receive a good introduction to the school and the Icelandic school system, e.g. expectations of cooperation between home and school. Parents should receive clear information about their children’s academic status, progress and the support they are given. The school should also educate parents about the benefits of maintaining and cultivating their children’s mother tongue. They should be informed about ways they can support their children’s learning, in accordance with the law. They should also receive information about the right to interpretation services as a way to ensure that all information is communicated between school and home.

The diverse cultural backgrounds of students and their parents create various learning opportunities for the entire school community. Ways should be sought to introduce different cultures and languages ​​to the school community and thus promote mutual adaptation, openness and development, for example by involving parents of children with diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds in school activities.

Languages ​​are a resource and maintaining active multilingualism is in the interest of multilingual children and society as a whole. Multilingualism is a living and complex social and personal process that involves the cultural, social, cognitive and educational aspects of languages. An individual’s linguistic resources are an integrated whole and include all skills in all of an individual’s languages. Parents play an important role in supporting their children’s linguistic resources, including supporting their learning of Icelandic. Parents need to be informed that their attitude towards Icelandic and learning is important for their children’s academic progress.

It is desirable that schools and after-school centers formulate a language policy as a guiding light for staff and students in their daily work and communication. Current laws, policies, national curricula and international obligations should be taken into account. When formulating a language policy, it is important that staff reflect together on how to work with a variety of languages ​​and agree on the emphases that should prevail. A language policy must state how language is worked with in communication and daily work and what methods are used to make the best use of students’ language resources, as well as to activate and maintain all students’ interest in multilingualism.

It is important that students learn about various religions and philosophies in primary schools in accordance with the competence criteria of the National Curriculum Guide, as this is an important part of democratic education and respect for multiculturalism. School work should be based on understanding and respect for different points of view. Religious and philosophies education in a multicultural society should always be part of primary school education for all students. Quality religious education is important in a multicultural society. Elements of such education can include field visits to religious communities and inviting their representatives to class to teach about their religion and religious community. If parents want their children to learn specifically about certain religions, it is their responsibility during the child’s free time to attend such education and services in accordance with their religious and life beliefs. The same can be said about other aspects of the organization of school work and education in connection with life and work in a democratic multicultural society. Primary schools shall organize their work in such a way that students do not need to be exempted from certain aspects of school work due to their religious and life beliefs and therefore such an exemption is not expected. In this regard, reference is made to the criteria of the Toledo Convention on School Work and the Teaching of Different Religions and Life Beliefs from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). Reference is also made to the criteria from the education authorities from 2013 on relations between schools and religious communities.