Dropout in a Small Society: Is the Icelandic Case Somehow Different?

Abstract

Early in the 20th century, the Icelandic education system was poorly developed, with no compulsory education and no legal framework for primary education. During the next 100 years, however, the system became mature, flexible and fairly advanced – largely on par with systems in the other Nordic countries (Guttormsson, 2008). While the total Icelandic population did not reach 300,000 until the 21st century, numerous studies have shown that Icelandic education developed in ways similar to much larger systems, both in qualitative and quantitative terms, and apparently dealt with many of the same problems (e.g., Jóhannsdóttir, 2006; Jónasson, 1999, 2003; Jónasson & Tuijnman, 2001). Such studies draw attention to important similarities between different systems and warn against over-emphasising their differences, though they of course exist. The conclusion is that much can be learned about various aspects of many major problems in Iceland simply by analysing studies from its neighbours. Moreover, these neighbours may also benefit from Iceland’s experience, as information about a number of issues is relatively easy to come by in the quite well-documented Icelandic setting.