Universities criticise government’s timeline for introducing citizenship tests
Stockholm and Gothenburg University have been tasked by the government with assisting UHR, the University Council, with putting together language and civics tests by next summer.
In an official response to the government’s proposal, the vice-chancellors of both universities question whether this is a task that the universities should be responsible for, as well as warning that the proposed deadline ‒ August 2026 ‒ is too soon.
“The timeline we’ve been given for the first part of this task is around a year,” Vendela Blomström, the person responsible for test construction at Stockholm University told the Universitetsläraren newspaper. “If you know what is required to produce a test like this you understand that that’s nowhere near enough time.”
The tests are difficult to construct partly to do with the fact that they are so-called “high-stakes tests”, Blomström said, where there is a lot at stake for the person doing the test.
The first phase of the tests, due next year, is reading and listening comprehension. These are also tests that take a long time to construct, she said, as they require collecting a large amount of texts and other information which need to be tested and assessed by teachers, assessors and various reference groups, before testing by a control group.
On top of that, the universities don’t have the extra staff to put together tests, and it will take time to hire new people with the right skills.
“We don’t have anyone with any extra time. Especially in these economic times, all our colleagues are completely busy. There are no margins at all,” she said.
Swedish vocabulary: prov ‒ test
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Police shoot wolf in residential area of Malmö
A wolf which was first spotted on the Skanör-Falsterbo peninsula around Midsummer weekend had made its way up to Malmö on Wednesday, where it was spotted close to residential areas, as well as playgrounds and schools.
“People were trying to chase it at Lindeborg sports ground,” on-duty officer for the southern police region Thomas Paulsson told newspaper Sydsvenskan. “When we arrived at the scene it was stressed and tried to attack a dog.”
Police set up barriers to try and stop it from entering a residential area, but were ordered to shoot it dead.
“It was shot by a policeman who has a hunting license, who used one shot,” he said, adding that they “investigated other possibilities,” like using a tranquilliser.
“According to the vets those aren’t used anymore.”
Swedish vocabulary: varg ‒ wolf
Swedish government want the coastguard to carry heavier weapons
The Swedish government is expected to tell the coastguard today to start looking into the process of allowing staff to carry heavier weapons, TV4 Nyheter reports, with the goal of better protecting staff and allowing them to better collaborate with the military in crisis situations.
This could include fixed weapon platforms and heavier reinforcement weapons for staff, civil defence minister Carl-Oskar Bohlin said. Staff currently carry pistols.
“The security situation is the reason for this,” Bohlin told TV4. “We believe heavier reinforcements are necessary in order to be able to handle threats from drones, for example, but also other types of threats.”
The process should be completed by the beginning of next year.
Swedish vocabulary: beväpnad ‒ armed
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One person sent to hospital after gas leak at Northvolt
Sulphuric acid reportedly leaked out from a building at Northvolt’s Skellefteå campus on Wednesday, with one person sent to hospital. The state of their injuries is unknown.
“We’ve had some kind of gas leak,” emergency alarm operator Ulf Gille told SVT. “Someone has inhaled the gas and they have been removed from the scene.”
“Around 300 litres have leaked out,” Jonas Edberg, from the emergency services, told SVT. “Such large amounts can irritate your respiratory tract, and it can also produce gas through a chemical reaction.”
Around 9.30pm, Gille said that the leak had been secured.
“The gas has been diluted with water and it’s safe to be in the building again,” he said.
Police are investigating the events as a workplace accident.
Swedish vocabulary: svavelsyra ‒ sulphuric acid
