Four pillars of Finnish education part 1

My school visits have finally started. In fact, they are almost over. I only have one more to go for my class on Finnish Education. But the two that I have had have been very informative and four broad themes have emerged that seem to define Finnish education: equity, independence, trust and freedom.

Flow chart of the Finnish education system (taken from http://www.lamk.fi/english/about/finnish-education-system/Sivut/default.aspx)

Equity:

The Finnish education system has been evolving for many years but the foundation can be said to have been laid out in the 1970’s when the first major reform occurred. During this reform, it was decided that equity was the primary goal of education. Finns wanted everyone to have access to a good education, regardless of social class, family background or what school you went to. As a result, there are very few private schools in the entire country and everything the school provides is free, from the textbooks, to school meals to field trips. There are selective schools— for example, a school for students interested in music—but all students have an equal chance to get into them, making them equitable.

A lower secondary classroom at Katariinan, the special education school

This focus on equity was not always present. Prior to the 1970’s, higher education was not available to all and was heavily biased toward the upper class. People began calling for equal education for all, however and the Ministry of Education began the process of changing education to make it more egalitarian.  

You can see equity in society in general, Finns want everyone to have equal opportunity. All students receive life skills and career counseling throughout the compulsory basic education (grades 1-9) to ensure that all are able to pick a career that suitable for them. As a result, 94% of students go on to complete their general upper secondary or vocational upper secondary education (10-12 grades are not compulsory in Finland). And 93 % of students who go on to upper secondary graduate (Statistics from Finnish Lessons by Pasi Sahlberg).

Independence:

One of the first things that struck me during my first school visit was how independent students were. The student council had organized a short skit for us that the rest of the school also came to watch. They organized this on their own, without the aid of a teacher. And the skit, we were later told (it was in Finnish) was about how the student council could get more students involved in school activities. This is apparently the new goal for Finnish schools: getting students more involved.

An elementary classroom in Katariinan

Even within the classes though we could see how independent students were. Out of the 6 or 7 classes we peeked our heads into, only one was a lecture. In the rest students were working on their own while the teacher helped out when needed. In an art class it looked like the students were making mugs out of clay. One student decided to make a sword and proudly showed it to the teacher, who enthusiastically admired it. In the US, one of my classmates pointed out, he would likely have been suspended.

Stay tuned for trust and freedom. And for the wonders of Finnish special education!

Nähädään!