Mullsjö Folkhögskola – Knowledge and Education for all

We work as volunteers at a Folkhögskola in Sweden where our job is to make people feel welcome and included. We do that by organising regular afternoon activities, trying to always be available for people to talk to and we join some of the courses to get a better insight of the students daily life.

The general idea of a Swedish folkhögskola is to give everyone the same chance at achieving a high educational level. Because no degree or diploma is needed to apply to the school, the teaching is much more approachable for the students than at other educational institutions. That means that everybody is welcome at the school. A folkhögskola is meant to be an open minded and social space, where everyone is valued and welcome.

Most folkhögskolas have an area of expertise (art, music, sports). In those courses you take your time with your studies, because examinations are not used that much for the purpose of measuring progress.

We as volunteers noticed how this way of learning helps a lot with motivation, as the students have the chance to do everything at their own tempo. The communication between the students and teachers is usually very good as a folkhögskola does not entertain the usual student-teacher relationship. This type of school is more about learning together and from each other. It is a very holistic way of learning and of looking at education.

A big problem we came across while working here at the school is the budget being lessened. In general, the folkhögskolas are granted funding from the government which is based on the total number of weeks of their courses. That is how they afford all the art courses, materials and teachers. Sadly, the funding has lessened a lot over the past few years, which is why Mullsjö Folkhögskola had to take away their photography course for example. 

When we asked around among the people going to this school, most of them were really saddened by the fact that folkhögskolas have to cut down their courses and activities. We as volunteers see a folkhögskola as a chance to experience yourself in many different aspects and ways, for example helping the school a lot with giving the students a possibility to come across new types of learning and thinking. It is such a valuable opportunity for accessible education and we think it is really not fair that this concept of a school is being taken away and dying out. 

Silvia and Lea-Marie, 2025.