I planned for my next blog post to be about what country in the world scores highest on science achievement tests. I have the answer, but I am going to save it for another day. A week 7 discussion post response from a classmate, Amanda, provided me with a video that I wanted to share. Amanda watched the following video in an EDU 201 class taught by Dr. Tammy Ladwig, Coordinator for Alternative Careers in Teaching, University Wisconsin Fox Valley
The video provides insight into why students in Finland Finland
Ø The students are taught by the same teacher for many years. Accordingly, the teacher can follow progress of a student’s academic level for years, and can learn what works and doesn’t work for a particular child. The teacher really gets to know the child. In the video the teacher refers to herself as the child’s “school mother.”
Ø The students learn multiple languages at an early age (often 3 to 4 languages).
Ø The students learn via “team games.” The students to not compete against one another. The teaching methods include whole class activities where the students and teachers are standing and participating. They are encouraged to interact with the teacher in a group setting.
Ø Finnish students start their school day by taking off their shoes. They wear their socks throughout the day. They also call their teachers by their first name. This promotes a relaxed environment for learning.
Ø The classes consist of 3 teachers. There is always a teacher to help the students who need extra help.
Ø The teachers must all have a Masters degree.
Ø The teaching philosophy is based on trust. The teachers trust the students and the students trust the teachers. An example of trust in Finnish schools is provided in the video. A physical education exercise includes having students go out on a cross country ski excursion, entirely without adult supervision. They are “trusted” to come back at the proper time.
Ø The country’s culture for excellence in education begins at home. Parents have a large impact on their student’s academic achievement. In Finland
Two interesting facts included in the video are (1) children in Finland do not start school until the age of 7, and (2) Finnish children spend the least amount of hours in the classroom than any of their counterparts in the developed world. Less is more in Finland
In my writing of what I have learned in the past weeks I seem to keep coming back to the same idea. That the key to academic success in engagement. When a student is involved in the learning process, and truly interested and focused, he or she will succeed. By teaching via a “team game” method in a relaxed environment, the students stay focused and engaged, and achieve academic success.
Wow, how great those teachers get the support of two other teachers within their classroom. I am sure this is extremely beneficial to students. I also am impressed with the countries thought that education should begin at home. I wish parents in the United States were more supportive and involved in their children's education. Too many times it seems like parents expect the school to take care of everything. I like what you said about keeping students involved in the learning process. This seems like such a basic idea, but it is so important.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was a senior in high school, we had an exchange student from Finland. She was our age but wasn't going to be going on to college until some of us were graduating from college! She often remarked how different school is in the US and not always in a good way.
ReplyDeleteWith all of the team teaching we've been doing in the classroom, I think it would be great for every student from K-12 to have more than one teacher to go to for help. Plus, then the teachers have more time for instruction because there will be 3 pairs of eyes keeping peace in the classroom and less time will have to be spent on heavy discipline.
After reading that list, two different points stuck out to me the most as being very important and effective. One was that each class had three teachers, all with masters degrees. This means that each student will get the help they need. They will not have to wait so long for the teacher to get to them, and will not be brushed under the rug or left behind. Here we keep trying to get smaller class sizes, but there are still classrooms that have 30 kids for 1 teacher. There is no way that one person can accomodate for that number of students every day all year long.
ReplyDeleteThe other point that really stuck out to me was the extensive parent involvement in academics. It seems as though a lot of teachers here struggle to get parents to do homework with their children and really become involved in their learning. I wonder if parents in Finland have different working habits that allow them to be available for their children more than those in the U.S.? Either way, parent involvement is definately a key to student success!
Bernadette,
ReplyDeleteNice job summarizing the uniqe approach the Finns take toward education. I agree several of the points are directly related to their high level of success. But one thing that can't be ignored is they live in a country with a homogenous population. They have little if any diversity in their population. While they do require students to learn multiple languages, they also require EVERY student be fluent in the native language. Imagine how much we could achieve in our schools if every student could read, write, and speak fluent english. We spend billions of dollars and untold hours just trying to get students ready to learn. Some students never fully realize their full potential simply because they don't know our language.
The Finnish "culture of learning" that take place at home is invaluable!! I wish all parents could understand that they hold the key to their children's education.