The Finland Phenomenon

[Elen]

EDUCATION

The Finish way…and this is the way to do it IMO.

The teachers are looked upon as "elders" and are given respect, there is no stress or pressure. From experiencing no competition comes a competitive nation in areas of inventions a entrepreneurship.

In Finland they leave no child behind.

Imagine a country where children do nothing but play until they start compulsory schooling at age seven. Then, without exception, they attend comprehensives until the age of 16. Charging school fees is illegal, and so is sorting pupils into ability groups by streaming or setting. There are no inspectors, no exams until the age of 18, no school league tables, no private tuition industry, no school uniforms. Children address teachers by their first names. Even 15-year-olds do no more than 30 minutes' homework a night. Less is more…think about it.

The national curriculum is confined to broad outlines. All teachers take five-year degree courses (there are no fast tracks) and, if they intend to work in primary schools, are thoroughly immersed in educational theory. They teach only four lessons daily, and their professional autonomy is sacrosanct. So attractive (some might say cushy) is a teacher's life that there are 10 applicants for every place on a primary education course, only 10-15% drop out of a teaching career, but only top students can become teachers.

The students are actually inspecting the teachers as they are free to visit any classroom and if they are to become teachers, they are able to learn the routines and abilities of other teachers for when they start teaching themselves. All is based on trust, where the municipality trust the teachers and the teachers in turn, trust the students. They said it took 50 years to learn to trust.

It's more important to be able to think than to be able to repeat subject matters…

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGfeU9s46p8

[Wind]

The system isn't perfect, but at least education is free (mostly, you will have to pay for the books in high school and afterwards). Education should always be free... There's no doubt in my mind about that. Also they should teach in schools people to think critically and not just automatically accept what the authorities are telling them or presenting them as facts or as the truth. Critical thinking is one of the most important skills in life.

[Paloma]

The system isn't perfect, but at least education is free (mostly, you will have to pay for the books in high school and afterwards). Education should always be free... There's no doubt in my mind about that. Also they should teach in schools people to think critically and not just automatically accept what the authorities are telling them or presenting them as facts or as the truth. Critical thinking is one of the most important skills in life.

Yes, education should be free, but more important is that the given authorities need to be vetted to not be forcing false dogmas onto the younger generation.
Quite often the freeby is nothing but the hook that deceivers use to suck kids into traps.

[sandy]

Wow, Elen this eduaction system is very impressive for sure>>>thanks for posting

[Aianawa]

Looks like they be setting a nice template.

[heyokah]

What a great system, with so much respect for the teachers as well as the pupils. It almost made me jealous.

I wish I had lived in Finland as a teacher instead of in The Netherlands, where my classes were filled with 28 to 30 children and sometimes teaching 8 lessons a day.
I had to stop when I was 53 because of a total burn-out.

[Elen]

Gio has really inspired this thread, and he has posted another video on education...this time with Joseph Farrel's conversation with Forum Borealis, a Norwegian Forum which is much respected. I don't want to show this to prove that the American schooling system a bad system in comparison with the Finish system, but there are interesting things to be considered here. Have a look at it.