Norwegian high school students report a significant divide in teacher attitudes toward AI, with some educators reverting to pen and paper over fears of cheating. At Glemmen High School in Fredrikstad, however, a different strategy is unfolding, led by teachers Ine Jørvum and Jan Eirik 'JP' Paulsen. Their message is direct: 'We must not have contact anxiety, but rather think about what we want to use AI for. It's no use turning our backs on the development.' Their initiative represents a growing Norwegian tech trend focused on practical, ethical application over prohibition, embedding Oslo's innovation ethos directly into the classroom.
From Fear to Customized Teaching Tools
Teachers Jørvum and Paulsen have become drivers for developing educational chatbots for use in both teaching and assessment situations. They argue that AI tools hold significant potential for personalized learning, a challenge in crowded classrooms. 'As a teacher, with 30 students, you don't always stretch far enough,' Jørvum explained. 'But AI can adapt language, help those who have dyslexia, support unmotivated students, and even take hobbies and interests into account.' She shared an example of a student who used AI to compare assignments with situations from the game Fortnite, creating a relevant bridge to learning.
Their 'Botlab' is based on ChatGPT technology but uses an approved version with considerations for data privacy. At Glemmen, which hosts both vocational and academic study programs, the teacher-prompted chatbots assist students across various subjects and tasks. They are used for everything from vocational cases and concept comprehension to research projects and assignment guidance. This hands-on approach contrasts sharply with the hesitation noted by students like Hannah Lo Edvardsen (20) and Noah Norenberg (17), who observe that some teachers are 'scared' to use AI and see it as a threat.
Bridging Language Gaps and Unlocking Potential
A key success has been AI's utility for minority language students, such as Basila Nemr (27). Originally from Palestine and arriving in Norway from Syria in 2016, she uses the chatbots to better understand her subjects. 'I use the chatbots to understand the subjects better,' Nemr said. 'Especially long texts I can make simpler, and I can get help correcting texts and preparing for tests.' The AI tools she uses can explain linguistic errors by comparing Norwegian with the students' native language, a function Jørvum, a language lecturer, finds critical. 'In classes with Norwegian as a second language, there are large individual differences between the students, and often they sit with a lot of knowledge in their own mother tongue that they struggle to get out,' Jørvum noted.
This application aligns with broader Norwegian digital transformation goals, where technology solves specific societal needs. The school's model treats AI not as a shortcut but as a scaffold, helping students articulate existing knowledge and master new material. It shifts the focus from detecting cheating to enabling comprehension, a fundamental change in pedagogical approach that mirrors how Norwegian tech startups often identify and solve niche problems.
The Road Ahead for Norway's Classrooms
The Glemmen High School experiment offers a tangible blueprint for Norway's educational future. It demonstrates that AI can be a tool for inclusion, helping bridge gaps for dyslexic students, second-language learners, and those requiring more personalized engagement. The model also presents a sustainable path forward, where teachers are upskilled as learning designers and students are trained as critical users of technology, not just passive recipients or covert operators. This aligns with the broader Scandinavian tech hub philosophy that emphasizes human-centric design and ethical implementation.
The challenge now is scaling this mindset. Will Norwegian education systems invest in the professional development and technological infrastructure to make this integrated approach the norm, or will they remain fragmented between fear and innovation? The answer will significantly influence Norway's digital transformation, determining whether its next generation enters the workforce as savvy, ethical tech users or behind a curve their global peers are already navigating. The teachers at Glemmen have lit one path, the rest of the system must decide whether to follow.