Milli mála - 2023, Page 110

MILLI MÁLA
110 Milli mála 15/2/2023
complete 150 hours of formal Icelandic training before applying
(Island.is). In contrast, those applying for citizenship are not required
to attend language classes; however, they must take a language test to
prove their competency. The level of proficiency required to pass the
test is equivalent to an estimated 240 hours of language training
(Innes and Skaptadóttir 2016). A study of “residents of Iceland whose
families had lived in the country for several generations (‘natives’)”
(Innes 2020, 179) showed that first language Icelandic speakers per-
ceived the language test as a recognition of “language as an important
component of Icelandic identity and citizenship” (Innes 2020, 183).
Compared to some of the other Nordic countries, there is little
government influence on language education for adult immigrants in
Iceland in terms of access to funding and standardization of the
courses as well as requirements for teachers. This is in line with the
results that “Iceland’s approach to social welfare […] has never been as
universal or state driven as in other Scandinavian countries” (Innes
2020). For example, students in Iceland must pay language course
tuition in full up front and may receive full or partial refunds from
their unions, while such courses are completely free of charge for
everyone in Sweden and Denmark (Fabricius and Westerberg 2023, 5).
Findings of a previous study based on our data indicate that immi-
grants are rather dissatisfied with the quality of Icelandic language
courses (Sölvason and Meckl 2019). The Icelandic Ministry of
Education, Science, and Culture has developed curricular guidelines
for courses in Icelandic as a second language for adult learners
(Icelandic Ministry of Education, Science, and Culture 2008; Icelandic
Ministry of Education, Science, and Culture 2012). Research has indi-
cated that teachers and schools use the guidelines as a rough frame-
work, but that these guidelines do not affect the course design as
significantly as in other countries, while some teachers are unaware of
the guidelines altogether (Innes and Skaptadóttir 2016; Innes 2020).
In Iceland, language schools are funded by a combination of pri-
vate funding and government grants. The sole criterion for a langu-
age course to receive government support is that it has a minimum
number of participants; the curriculum does not have to meet any
requirements for quality or efficacy, as is the case in many other
countries.
PREDICTORS OF SATISFACTION / DISSATISFACTION WITH ICELANDIC LANGUAGE
COURSE AND ICELANDIC PROFICIENCY AMONG ADULT IMMIGRANTS IN ICELAND
10.33112/millimala.15.2.5