The Greenlandic government (Naalakkersuisut) has proposed a significant educational reform that would eliminate Danish language lessons for students in the first years of primary school. The initiative aims to prioritize the Greenlandic language (Kalaallisut) and reduce the academic pressure on the youngest pupils, though it has raised concerns regarding the long-term educational opportunities of students within the Kingdom of Denmark.
A shift toward linguistic autonomy
Under the current proposal, Danish would be removed from the curriculum for students in grades 0 through 3. Currently, Danish is a mandatory subject from the first year of school. The government argues that by delaying the introduction of a second language, children can build a stronger linguistic and cultural foundation in their mother tongue, Kalaallisut, during their most formative years.
The reform also includes a reduction in total annual school hours for the youngest children, from 700 to 560 hours. This measure is intended to improve student well-being and create a less “scattered” learning experience. By focusing on fewer subjects, the administration believes students will achieve a deeper understanding of core skills like mathematics and Greenlandic literacy.
Concerns over educational standards
The proposal has met with criticism from the Greenlandic business community and educational experts. Christian Keldsen, director of Greenland Business (Grønlands Erhverv), warned that the territory’s education system remains heavily dependent on Danish. Most higher education programs at the University of Greenland (Ilisimatusarfik) and vocational schools require proficiency in Danish, as many teaching materials and instructors originate from Denmark.
Critics argue that without a comprehensive plan to provide tertiary education entirely in Greenlandic, removing Danish from early grades could trap students in limited educational pathways. Approximately 30 percent of Greenlandic youth travel to Denmark for higher education, where fluency in Danish is a prerequisite for success.
The legacy of colonization
The debate over language is deeply rooted in the history of Greenland as a former Danish colony. For decades, the “Danish-first” policy was used as a tool for cultural assimilation. One of the most controversial examples was the 1951 experiment where 22 Greenlandic children were taken to Denmark to be turned into “little Danes,” often losing their ability to speak their native language in the process.
In recent years, the Danish government offered a formal apology and compensation of 250,000 Danish kroner (approximately 33,460 Euro) to the survivors of that experiment. This historical context fuels the current government’s drive for “decolonizing” the school system, even as political leaders in Copenhagen express worry that the move could erode the cultural and administrative bonds that hold the Kingdom together.
Next steps for the proposal
The draft law must be debated and approved by the Greenlandic Parliament (Inatsisartut). If passed, the reform would mark one of the most significant shifts in Greenland’s educational policy since it gained Self-Rule in 2009. While the government maintains that English should eventually become the primary second language to foster internationalization, the immediate focus remains on strengthening the domestic identity through the school system.
