in the classroom
The overall focus is on what lies behind Finland ’ s great success as an education system .
The Finnish perspective
PD sessions on Finland ’ s approach to education underway .
By Wade Zaglas
He ’ s the author of Testing 1 , 2,3 : What Australian education can learn from Finland , and teacher and writer Michael Lawrence recently joined other educators in Orange , NSW , to take teachers through a one-day session on a Finnish perspective to education .
The personal development session , which is the first of its type in Australia , was developed in conjunction with the Tampere University of Applied Sciences in Finland . The single-day suite of lessons was designed by staff from Tampere ’ s Education Faculty and was pitched at Australian teachers .
Seven schools attended the PD sessions at Charles Sturt University ’ s Orange campus , and discussed , explored , and – at times – debated issues relating to the following :
• the failings of the Australian system and how the Finnish system looks at these issues
• video interviews put together specifically for Australian teachers with Finnish class teachers , subject teachers , education students and counsellors , with further discussion and suggestions about how the techniques and ideas described can make a difference in Australian schools immediately , and
• a video linkup with a panel from the Educational Sciences Faculty of Tampere University of Applied Sciences where participants could ask questions arising from the earlier sessions in the day , and others pertaining to their own teaching .
“ The overall focus is on what lies behind Finland ’ s great success as an education system and the application of elements of it in Australia ,” Lawrence says .
“ After two decades at or close to the top of the international tables , introducing Finnish methods is evidence-based learning . The PD program will explain the Finnish success and the neuroscience behind it .”
One of the teachers who spoke to Education Review about the experience was Debbie Guisard , a K1 Teacher at Borenore Public School . She describes the school as small with three classes and only two teachers . The sole principal is also expected to teach .
Debbie covered the main points of the session , highlighting some of the key differences between the two education systems as well as teacher education training . As has been reported widely , Finnish teachers must hold master ’ s qualifications to teach .
To some , this might suggest overreach or asking a little too much . However , “ the retention rates of teachers in Finland compared to Australia ” is high , and their students are outperforming ours on the latest international data .
The high level of mental health and anxiety cases here was another critical point brought up , and the existence of stressful , high-stakes tests in Australia . This contrasts with the Finnish perspective “ to just let the children play ” and is reflected in the fact that Finnish students are aged seven when they commence schooling , compared with five in Australia .
Another key feature of a Finnish educational perspective is tapping into students ’ “ internal motivation to want to learn ” – not offering great grades , rewards , and so on – to achieve great outcomes .
“ The autonomy of teachers to teach the curriculum and outcomes in the way that best suits their class ,” was another critical topic covered in the sessions , Debbie said , as well as ensuring every one-hour lesson included a ten-minute break for students to regroup . The different suite of pedagogical approaches available to teachers was well received .
The public-school teacher was impressed by the high level of “ support available to teachers at each school ( one school counsellor plus two psychologists , depending on the school size ) to catch and support students as soon as a concern is raised by a teacher ”.
She also found the “ focus on social and emotional wellbeing ” to be impressive , as well as “ individualised programs for each student ”. More than anything , “ having happy students who want to be at school ” is what every teacher ideally wants .
Debbie ’ s school has already made some inroads into the Finnish education system , with changes to class bell times implemented after all staff read , Let the Children Play : How More Play Will Save Our Schools and Help the Children Thrive by Pasi Sahlberg and William Doyle .
A Finnish perspective is also evident in the choices children can make to take responsibility for their own learning .
For instance , students in older grades determine “ which spelling words in the unit they need to learn ... each child makes their own list rather than having a set class list ,” Debbie says .
“ It is not about copying their system and making another Finnish Education system in Australia .
“ It is about adapting and adopting some of the strategies / ideas that are possible within the constraints of the Australian Education System .
“ When really looking at our programs we were pleased to find we already have some of the attributes of the Finnish perspective in place in our current programs .” ■
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