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| Primary classroom in Finland |
From March 24, 2017, through April 2, 2017, I toured the educational system of Finland with a group of teachers and administrators. The purpose of our trip was to learn how Finland is able to consistently perform among the top countries in the world on the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) (OECD, 2013a). I personally also wanted to figure out how a country of 5.5 million people, which has only a few hours of sunlight a day all winter, consistently outperforms the U.S. by a wide margin in international rankings.
Our tour group visited three Finnish cities: Helsinki, Jyväskylä, and Turku. In Helsinki, we met with representatives of the Finnish Agency for Education and a representative from the teachers’ trade union of Finland (OAJ). We then toured a lower-secondary school (for ages 13-15). In Jyväskylä we met with teachers at the University of Jyväskylä Teacher Training School, and visited both a primary school (ages 7-15) and an upper-secondary school (ages 16-18). Finally, in Turku our group toured a Kindergarten school (for ages 1-5) and then a vocational institute (also for ages 16-18).
From my research and observations, I believe that the main differences in the educational outcomes of our countries are in large part due to the fact that Finland, a social democracy, offers its citizens a much richer array of social and educational services. Also, Finland’s educational system is structured in a more equitable way for both students and teachers.
Finland’s Welfare State
Healthcare. Unlike the United States, Finland’s healthcare is not secured through employment. Finland provides free healthcare for all of its citizens, regardless of their employment status. As a result, Finnish families do not worry whether or not they can afford necessary medical treatment or if they will lose their home or life savings due to serious or chronic illness. They also do not wonder if they will be forced to take low-paying jobs or stay in jobs they do not like in order to maintain health care benefits.A Finn who is recovering from breast cancer told me that she had no worries about receiving appropriate medical treatment, and that she realized how fortunate she was not to have to worry about paying for medical care in addition to recovering from the illness itself. This stark contrast is even more apparent when compared to the Trumpcare plan which was just passed in the House; under this plan, those with pre-existing conditions may have to contend with skyrocketing premiums, and even those with employer-sponsored health care plans could be subject to lifetime caps on insurance benefits. Finns needn’t grapple with these concerns.
Maternity/Paternity Benefits. In Finland, pregnant women are provided with 5-8 weeks of paid leave prior to their due date. After the birth of their children, women are then given 4 months of paid leave. Fathers can receive 9 weeks of paid leave, some of which can be concurrent with the mother’s leave. A couple may then split an additional 26 weeks of paid leave. This means that a baby’s parents can be paid for time spent with the baby during its entire first year. These benefits are also available to adoptive and same-sex parents.
In the United States, the government does not guarantee or require paid parental leave, so it is up to individual companies to offer benefits. The only requirement is that under the Family Medical Leave Act, companies must allow parents to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for the birth or adoption of a child.
The maternity benefit differences between the two countries is significant and impacts the mental health of parents and babies. Several parents in Finland told me that new parents there do not feel stress over taking time off when their children are born, and there is an expectation that both parents will share some of the responsibility. In the U.S., many people cannot afford to take unpaid leave after having children, so they are forced to return to work shortly after childbirth. This undoubtedly causes a great deal of stress for parents and newborns. Paid maternity leave also enables mothers to recover more fully from pregnancy and childbirth, while paid parental leave allows both parents to care for and bond with their children. It is beneficial for newborns to spend extended time with primary caregivers so they are able to form attachments, which aids in their future development. Also, “paid leave can reduce maternal stress and improves mothers’ life satisfaction during their children’s early infancy. (Adema, Clarke, and Frey, V., 2016, p. 31).
Childcare is also subsidized in Finland on a sliding scale, with Finns paying no more than $4,000 per year for childcare (and those in the lowest income bracket pay nothing). In contrast, in the United States families can pay more than $20,000 per year (Khazan, 2017).
Finland’s Educational System: Less is More
General School Structure. The school day is shorter in Finland than in the United States. On average, Finns are in school for 18-26 hours per week in the lower grades, while students in the U.S. are in school for 30 hours per week. In high school, Finns are in school for approximately 29 hours each week as opposed to Americans who attend high school for 35 hours or more (OECD, 2014). In addition, all students have recess for 15 minutes after each 45 minutes of instruction. According to Schaffhauser, in addition to having shorter school days in Finland, the average school year lasts only 640 hours, compared to 900-1,000 hours in the United States (2017). |
| Typical school lunch in Finland |
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| Huhkola Kindergarten in Turku, Finland |
From the earliest years in the educational system, the goal of schools in Finland is vastly different than it is in the United States. For example, at Huhkola Kindergarten (which serves children from ages 1 through 5) in Turku, Finland, Director Klaus Rytöhonka shared the four components of their school’s program. The first is “playing,” during which children play for its own sake to develop their social-emotional learning. A second component is “moving,” through which students learn through physical movement. For example, we observed them adapting to the harsh Finnish weather which includes a very long, dark winter as well as a very rainy spring. Students go outside in all types of weather unless there is severe wind. I observed that it took a very long time for the students to get all of their winter gear on, and one teacher confirmed that it takes about 45 minutes to get them ready to venture outside in the winter. So in the winter, students play outside for 45 minutes at a time. The recess area included a large hill for children to climb up and run or roll down. There was typical playground equipment as well. The yard was fenced and supervised. Each classroom had its own door to the yard so individual children were released as soon as they were ready. The third component of Finnish Kindergarten is “experiencing.” Through the arts, children experience their own imaginary world. We observed children dancing and singing as well as the displays of their artwork throughout the classes. The final component was “exploring,” which means that young children in Finland are not specifically taught what they need to learn in school (what we call “school readiness” in the U.S.), but instead learn how to figure things out for themselves (Rytöhonka, 2017).
Accountability. There are no evaluations of teachers in Finland. This bears repeating. In Finland, teachers are never evaluated. They are not subjected to Danielson rubrics, nor do Finnish teachers ever experience anguish over summative ratings, Plus, once they are employed in a school, teachers are assured of their position each year (unless they commit a criminal offense), even though there is no such concept as “tenure.”
Finnish teachers are not concerned about student growth scores because there are no standardized tests in Finland (except for a final matriculation exam at the end of high school). This means schools and districts are not pitted against one another. Yet, according to PISA, students across Finland score similarly. Administrators we spoke with said that teachers and administrators work collaboratively to improve the outcomes of their students. Since teachers are not concerned about job security or evaluations, they are able to instead focus on the best way to teach their students.
There seems to be great respect of administrators by teachers in Finland as well. It is required that all administrators first gain experience as teachers; in fact, most continue teaching at least one class after they become administrators. Because administrators are not in the position of having to rate their teachers, they are able to be true servant leaders. I believe this contributes to the mutual respect between them.
High School and Beyond. School in Finland is compulsory only until age 16, which is when students finish the lower secondary level of education. At that age, students who continue with their education have two choices: they may attend the upper secondary level of school or enter the vocational education system, both of which last three years. The upper secondary level of education in Finland is similar to high school in the U.S. The vocational track is not comparable to school in the U.S. It offers core subjects, such as communication, math, physics, and chemistry, but these are on a practical level and taught as needed for the particular vocation. Some of the vocations that students may choose from include: Culture, Humanities and Education; Natural Resources and the Environment; Social Services, Health and Sports; Social Sciences, Business and Administration; Natural Sciences; Technology and Transport; and Tourism, Catering and Domestic Services. Industries in Finland expect students to be trained in the vocational schools instead of on the job. Adult education is available for free in Finland as well, including master’s and doctorate levels.
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| Catering Students in a vocational school in Turku, Finland |
Job Security and the Teachers’ Union. Being accepted in teacher training programs in Finland is quite competitive. Only about 10% of the applicants are accepted. All teachers in Finland receive Master’s degrees before they are employed, and teachers in general are treated as professionals; those in the profession are as respected as doctors and lawyers in Finland, and they are paid competitively.
There is only one teachers’ union in Finland, the Opetusalan Ammattijärjestö (OAJ). Although joining the OAJ is voluntary, 95% of educators are members. Teachers and administrators spoke highly to us about the union. Union representatives are consulted in all governmental educational policy decisions, and there seems to be great mutual respect between the union and governmental educational leaders. As in the U.S., the Finnish union bargains with the government regarding working conditions and salaries.
Summary
The most striking comment I heard during my tour was that Finland values its people. Students are encouraged to explore their own interests and talents. In exchange for this opportunity, the country expects the students to contribute these skills back into society after completing their education. These high expectations were felt in every institution we visited.We know that stress levels in the U.S. system are high. Schools are not factories and students are not widgets, although some try to view education in that way. Teachers are trained to know how to best educate their students, but in this age of “accountability,” it seems that their professionalism is always in question. Teachers feel that their evaluators are looking for what they do wrong instead of celebrating what they do well. We would never tell a doctor that he or she must treat all patients using a predetermined set of criteria because we know each patient’s health concerns and each doctor’s approach is unique. Yet we require this of teachers. Standardized tests and rigid teacher evaluations add only stress to administrators, teachers, and students. They don’t improve outcomes.
I believe that the U.S. could improve outcomes for all students if we patterned some aspect of our system after Finland’s. We should continue on our path of providing universal healthcare to all; we should provide free, healthy lunches for all students; we should eliminate standardized testing, except for college entrance exams; and we should recognize that teachers are professionals who do not need constant monitoring to do their jobs well. I'd bet that we would be among the top PISA performing countries if we implement these initiatives.
Debbie Sternecky is an EL teacher at Naperville North High School in Naperville, Illinois.
References
Adamson, F., & Darling-Hammond, L. (2012). Funding Disparities and the Inequitable Distribution of Teachers: Evaluating Sources and Solutions. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 20(37).
Adema, W., Clarke, C., & Frey, V. (2016). Paid parental leave and other supports for parents with young children: The United States in international comparison. International Social Security Review, 69(2), 29-51. doi:10.1111/issr.12100
Finland vs United States: People - Marriage, divorce and children Facts and Stats. (2017). Nationmaster.com. Retrieved 6 April 2017, from http://www.nationmaster.com/country-info/compare/Finland/United-States/People/Marriage%2C-divorce-and-children
Finnish Education in a Nutshell. (2017) (1st ed., p. 6). Espoo. Retrieved from http://www.oph.fi/download/171176_finnish_education_in_a_nutshell.pdf
Ma, X., Nelson, R. F., Shen, J., & Krenn, H. Y. (2015). Effects of preschool intervention strategies on school readiness in kindergarten. Educational Research for Policy and Practice, 14(1), 1-17. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10671-014-9163-y
OECD. (2013a). PISA 2012 results: Excellence through equity. Resources, policies and practices (Volume 2). Paris, France: Author.
OECD. (2013b), Lessons from PISA 2012 for the United States, Strong Performers and Successful Reformers in Education, OECD Publishing. http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264207585-en
Race to the Top Fund. (2017). U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved 6 April 2017, from https://www2.ed.gov/programs/racetothetop/index.html
Rytöhonka, K. (2017). Finnish Kindergarten. Presentation, Turku, Finland.
Schaffhauser, D. (2017). Finland's Phenomenon-Based Learning Subject of Motivis Learning Award Recipient -- THE Journal. THE Journal. Retrieved 6 April 2017, from https://thejournal.com/articles/2017/04/04/finlands-phenomenon-based-learning-subject-of-motivis-learning-award-recipient.aspx
Seitsalo, S. (2017). The Future of the Finnish Education System and Its Development. Presentation, Helsinki, Finland.
The Long-Term Care System for the Elderly in Finland. (2017) (1st ed., pp. 2-4). Brussels. Retrieved from http://www.ancien-longtermcare.eu/sites/default/files/ANCIEN%20RR%2076%20Finland_0.pdf
Walker, T. (2017). Kindergarten: While American Kids Read, Their Finnish Peers Play. The Atlantic. Retrieved 9 April 2017, from https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2015/10/the-joyful-illiterate-kindergartners-of-finland/408325/
Young Adults and the Affordable Care Act: Protecting Young Adults and Eliminating Burdens on Families and Businesses - Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. (2017). CMS.gov. Retrieved 9 April 2017, from https://www.cms.gov/CCIIO/Resources/Files/adult_child_fact_sheet.html
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