Finland's Education Model Crushes Ours: Here's why.

 

  

This week I watched an ABC News report about the Education Model in Finland. I learned that the Finnish Education system is cultivating an academic performance that blows away the international competition. I quickly began to make comparisons to our education system in the United States. It’s no secret that our education system is far from perfect. Despite being the fifth biggest education spender in the world, the United States consistently ranks in the double digits in academic performance, according to the Program for International Student Assessment. In contrast, Finnish students have been placed at the top of the pack according to the program. In 2009, the Finnish placed sixth in math, second in science, and third in reading. By comparison, U.S. students placed 30th, 23rd, and 17th, respectively, of the 65 tested countries.

One of the biggest differences between the two countries’ education systems is funding. While the United States has an education system that largely relies on academic performance to allocate funds, Finland has laws in place that keep schools equally funded, regardless of the area or the performance of the students. This difference helps to keep the entire country as a whole equal. Every Finnish citizen is entitled to quality education for free.. Finnish schools are prohibited from charging extra fees, as schools receive all funding through taxation. While I watched the ABC News Crew tour the Finnish school, I couldn’t help but wonder how much the government must spend on education in their country. Well, as it turns out, the news reporter had the same question, he said “it seems like such a rich school, you must get more funding than other schools”, to which the principal replied, “no, no, it’s the same money for everyone”. It turns out that as of 2018, the Finnish government has spent around $11,000 US dollars per student per year. That’s significantly less than the United States, we spent around $14,000 per student per year as of 2018. Without diving into Finland’s tax plans, one could reasonably estimate that Finland’s citizens don’t have to pay much for the best education system in the world.

Finland takes excellent care of its teachers too. To start, all education in Finland is free for its citizens. On top of this, Finnish teachers are paid competitive salaries compared to other occupations and are highly respected. Teachers are viewed as experts in their field, much like a lawyer, engineer, or doctor. Education programs are highly sought after in Finland, and as a result, it is a challenge to be accepted into one. The “Teacher Training” programs in Finland show educators how to better empathize and engage with their students; which makes school much easier for all parties involved. According to the article by  KARIN HANNUKAINEN, teachers are trained to spot the warning signs of reading and writing disorders at a young age, and one teacher describes the profession to be “demanding and, at times, it can be very intense. You need to use a lot of personal empathy. You also have to be able to draw the line and know when to hand a pupil over to other professionals, such as speech therapists or psychologists”. The student-focused mindset that Finnish teachers are taught to help students and teachers fully engage and increase the quality of the instructional time. 

Finnish students receive many quality of life and education benefits over American Students. In Finland, breakfast and lunch are provided to each student for free. They are also given 15 minute free breaks after every 45 minutes spent in the classroom. This is something that many American schools have been trying to replicate. I know from experience that my school has tried to make this idea work. Before Covid, in an 80-minute class, we were given a ten-minute break. However the American ideology of a “strict disciplined pupil” has impeded this method. In my school, students were required to stay in the classroom and participate in an activity set by the teacher. The Finnish model, however, takes this a step further. In the ABC News report that I watched, students were allowed to chose where and how they spent their free time. They are given options outside, as well as inside. In the article written by Tim Walker, he states that “It’s free-play that allows students to develop social competence. During these times, they not only rest and recharge—but they also learn to cooperate, communicate, and compromise, all skills they need to succeed academically as well as in life.”. These lessons are hard to teach in a classroom setting, they can only be taught through experience, which the Finnish education system provides to its students.

By bringing the themes of student freedom and self-agency, and student-centric learning into the American education system, we can begin to bridge the 23 country gap in academic performance and catch up with Finland.