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Education

Coping with Copenhagen? International House has all the answers

Anna Clarke
February 26th, 2016


This article is more than 8 years old.

Don’t miss the special Welcome Event next Wednesday!

It’s a great opportunity to see what the city has to offer

It can be difficult coming to grips with a new city, starting out with little to no knowledge of your new abode, yet harbouring the niggling feeling that you’re missing out on everything the place has to offer.

International House Copenhagen (IHC) wants to smooth the transition for newbies and encourage them to make Copenhagen their home by hosting a welcome reception (Wednesday March 2, 16:30-18:30) where newcomers can discover the ins and outs of their new host city.

“We want to introduce them to the city that is now their new home and make sure they explore all options: libraries, culture houses and institutions,” explained Alev Vural from IHC.

“We hope they will use the city, meet people, establish a network, make friends and then in the long term, stay here.”

An active city life
The primary aim of the event is to demonstrate to internationals that Copenhagen is a bustling city with lots to offer. Representatives from varying municipality departments will be in attendance, including the Culture & Leisure, Children & Youth, and Technical & Environmental departments.

The city’s main culture houses, libraries and other recreational spaces will also be present – all keen to indicate how newcomers can enrich their experiences in the capital.

Broaden your network
Last year’s Welcome Event had over 350 individuals in attendance and much the same is expected for 2016. It’s an ideal way to meet new people, forge friendships and extend your network in a new country.

Jonas Kongstad Østergård, the project manager at IHC, agrees.
“It’s a great opportunity and it’s free,” he enthused. “You can meet other fellow internationals and see how they are dealing with arriving in a new city.”

The Copenhagen Host Program will also be in attendance, through which internationals can be matched with a knowledgeable Danish host who offers local guidance to an alien city.


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A survey carried out by Megafon for TV2 has found that 71 percent of parents have handed over children to daycare in spite of them being sick.

Moreover, 21 percent of those surveyed admitted to medicating their kids with paracetamol, such as Panodil, before sending them to school.

The FOLA parents’ organisation is shocked by the findings.

“I think it is absolutely crazy. It simply cannot be that a child goes to school sick and plays with lots of other children. Then we are faced with the fact that they will infect the whole institution,” said FOLA chair Signe Nielsen.

Pill pushers
At the Børnehuset daycare institution in Silkeborg a meeting was called where parents were implored not to bring their sick children to school.

At Børnehuset there are fears that parents prefer to pack their kids off with a pill without informing teachers.

“We occasionally have children who that they have had a pill for breakfast,” said headteacher Susanne Bødker. “You might think that it is a Panodil more than a vitamin pill, if it is a child who has just been sick, for example.”

Parents sick and tired
Parents, when confronted, often cite pressure at work as a reason for not being able to stay at home with their children.

Many declare that they simply cannot take another day off, as they are afraid of being fired.

Allan Randrup Thomsen, a professor of virology at KU, has heavily criticised the parents’ actions, describing the current situation as a “vicious circle”.

“It promotes the spread of viruses, and it adds momentum to a cycle where parents are pressured by high levels of sick-leave. If they then choose to send the children to daycare while they are still recovering, they keep the epidemic going in daycares, and this in turn puts a greater burden on the parents.”