Reader’s opinion|The decision to learn Swedish took Hanken, the son of a farmer from Hämeenkyrö, among the elite.
Sparse would have believed that the son of a farmer from Hämeenkyrö could end up in a Swedish-speaking business school.
However, the choice I made in high school was not by chance. I decided to challenge myself and learn Swedish fluently, which has opened doors for me to the Nordic countries and much more. Is this a privilege for Swedish speakers? No. It’s a chance I took.
In Helsingin Sanomat’s story (6.9.) wrote that it is easier to get into educational programs in Swedish, which is seen as educational inequality. Really? As a Finnish speaker, I have always seen the lower score limits as an opportunity for those who dare to take up the challenge.
In the story, it was admitted that Swedish-language education programs are also open to us ordinary Finnish speakers. So why don’t many others take this?
As a language ambassador, I have visited more than 200 Swedish classes around Finland and never once have I heard it said that educational opportunities in Swedish are unequal. On the contrary, the discussions have shown that more and more people see the Swedish language as opening doors, which can also be seen in Hanken, where already about a quarter of the students are Finnish speakers (HBL 9.9.). Should the doors be closed just so that someone doesn’t dare to grab the handle?
Juho Rasa
language ambassador, Helsinki
The reader’s opinions are speeches written by HS readers, selected and edited by the HS editorial team. You can leave an opinion piece or familiarize yourself with the principles of writing at the address www.hs.fi/kiryotamielipidekeisuis/.
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