Danish pop singer Andreas Odbjerg publicly criticized Children’s Minister Jacob Mark on Instagram after the minister discussed Denmark’s weak PISA results on DR’s program Deadline.
Mark, of the Socialist People’s Party (SF), appeared on Deadline on Thursday evening to discuss the historically poor results of Danish school pupils, published earlier the same week. DR reports that the appearance prompted Odbjerg to react on Instagram.
In a story, Odbjerg wrote that according to Mark it was neither the teachers, the parents nor the government who were to blame, but primarily the screens, because screens cannot vote. He added that he was getting very tired of that argument.
Mark’s plan for raising academic standards centers on a fight against screens, both private devices and digital learning methods. The minister argues those methods were wrongly introduced on a large scale after the 2014 folkeskole reform. He also said teachers are fighting with everything they have amid continuous cuts, less time and more untrained substitutes.
In a post on Facebook, Mark said the weak PISA results are not the responsibility of parents, who should instead be listened to more. He called for more time, proper funding, fewer screens and more presence in schools.
Odbjerg points to responsibility
Odbjerg responded that it is the school’s responsibility to teach children, and the parents’ responsibility to raise them to sit still and behave properly. He wrote that Mark knows this but does not dare say it, because too many votes are at stake.
Music magazine GAFFA noted that his criticism focused on blame being shifted to screens, and that he linked the problem to declining respect for teachers. TV 2 covered the comment as part of its wider reporting on the school results.
According to both parties, Mark reached out to the singer privately after the story. Odbjerg then wrote a new story saying he had Mark in his inbox, arguing that he, the Social Democrats and SF had taken responsibility.
Mark later replied publicly in a Facebook post, calling Odbjerg talented and declaring himself a fan. He wrote that politicians carry a large part of the blame for the state of the folkeskole.
Odbjerg wrote that he comes from a family of school teachers. His grandfather was a school inspector, and his father, sister and wife have all worked as teachers. He said respect for teachers has disappeared, with more focus on wellbeing than academic development.
It is not the first time the singer has entered the school debate. Last year he defended 10th grade on P1 Orientering after the government closed it.
Mark told DR that the main responsibility lies with politicians, but that parents also have a responsibility. He said the two ended up having a good written conversation, and Odbjerg told DR that communication on social media quickly becomes unnuanced.
