Your right to learn your mother tongue in upper secondary school
If you have a mother tongue other than Swedish, you may be entitled to mother tongue tuition in upper secondary school or upper secondary school for pupils with intellectual disabilities. If you belong to a national minority, you have a special right to study your mother tongue.
Your mother tongue is often the language(s) that you learn first, when you are a young child. You may have more than one mother tongue, but in most cases you are only entitled to be taught one mother tongue in school.
There are several advantages to studying a mother tongue. You learn a language and the culture associated with it. Knowing your mother tongue can also help you become better at Swedish, other languages and other subjects. Language skills are also in demand in working life.
Who is entitled to mother tongue tuition?
You can receive mother tongue tuition in upper secondary school or upper secondary school for pupils with intellectual disabilities even if you did not study your mother tongue in compulsory school or compulsory school for pupils with intellectual disabilities. The right to mother tongue tuition differs depending on whether the language in question is a national minority language or some other mother tongue.
Mother tongue that is not a national minority language
If you are attending upper secondary school or upper secondary school for pupils with intellectual disabilities, the school must offer tuition in a mother tongue that is not a national minority language if
- one or both of your guardians have a language other than Swedish as their mother tongue
- you usually speak that language at home
- you have good knowledge of that language.
The school organiser must also offer mother tongue tuition if you are adopted and Swedish is not your mother tongue. This applies even if you do not usually speak that language at home, but you must have good knowledge of the language. The school organiser is the municipality for municipal schools and the school board for independent schools.
The organiser only needs to provide mother tongue tuition if
- there are at least five pupils entitled to be taught the language
- these pupils want to be taught the language
- a suitable teacher is available.
If the headteacher is unable to find a teacher who can teach on site, the school may offer distance learning.
If you are receiving mother tongue tuition, you may continue receiving tuition even if you stop speaking the language at home.
Distance learning, skolverket.se
Mother tongue that is a national minority language
If you belong to one of the national minorities, you have a special right to mother tongue tuition. The language does not have to be the language you speak at home. However, unlike in compulsory education, you must have a good knowledge of the minority language. The national minority languages are Finnish, Yiddish, Meänkieli, Romani Chib and Sami.
The organiser must organise teaching of these languages if
- one pupil wants to be taught (there is no requirement for five pupils)
- the pupil has good knowledge of the language
- a suitable teacher is available.
If the headteacher is unable to find a teacher who can teach on site, the school may offer distance learning.
If you belong to the Roma national minority and come from another country, you can receive mother tongue tuition in two languages if there are special grounds for this.
Distance learning, skolverket.se
When can I start studying my mother tongue, and for how long?
You can start studying your mother tongue throughout your time in upper secondary school or upper secondary school for pupils with intellectual disabilities. Contact a teacher or the headteacher of the school to find out more about how to apply to study your mother tongue. The headteacher will decide whether you can study your mother tongue.
The accountable authority/organiser is obliged to provide mother tongue tuition for at least seven academic years during your schooling. You have the right to study your mother tongue for more than seven academic years if
- your mother tongue is a Nordic language or a national minority language
- you have a special need for mother tongue tuition
- the mother tongue tuition is organised as an individual option
- the mother tongue tuition replaces modern language studies in upper secondary school or upper secondary school for pupils with intellectual disabilities.