What you have to do to have an education system like Finnish

Every time Do my assignment that the results of the last PISA report are made public - proof that it is carried out every three years and that it evaluates the level of knowledge of 15-year-old students on an international scale - it is possible to observe that in places of privilege, those that occupy the countries with the best results, is always Finland, a country of just five and a half million inhabitants. In fact, its educational system has become a benchmark in the world. And the question is obvious: what is so special about it that makes it so effective?  One of the fundamental pillars of its educational model is its stability. Since 1978, the Scandinavian country has not completely reformed its system. "And here we have seven since the 70s," laments Albert Sangrà, professor at the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC) and director of the UNESCO chair.

"The educational model is not used politically there, but there is a great deal of agreement on where the education of the country should go. And that gives a certain stability, "he says. In Finland they have not modified their education system since 1978 In Finland they have not modified their education system since 1978 (LV / Xavier Gómez)  Another of the notable aspects of the model is the autonomy enjoyed by the centers. The curriculum, established by the Government, does not go into the detail of how to manage the contents in the school, "but it is the teachers themselves, who enjoy a very high prestige within society, those who apply in each center the criteria according to the typology of the school, its social context and its economic environment ", recalls Sangrà.  In this sense, it is necessary to highlight the special status enjoyed by teachers in the Nordic country. It is the profession best valued after that of firefighter, doctor and police. And the Finns give so much importance to the work that should be done by the education professional, who train future teachers accordingly. "They considered that the training of a teacher had to be at the level of that of a doctor or a lawyer, which means that they have to study for a career of about six years", remarks Lourdes Guàrdia, director of the University Master of Education and ICT of the UOC eLearn Center.

In Finland it was suggested that the training of a teacher had to be at the level of that of a doctor or a lawyer

A methodological revolution  The methodology applied in Finland is another of the pillars on which its successful education system is based. In his day, it was decided to overcome the stage of presenting the contents through the classical structure of conventional subjects, to make way for the projects. In them, different teachers can work with different groups of students at the same time.  In addition, students participate in the design and development of the activity as well as in the evaluation. "Through the projects you do not work a specific subject, but several at the same time. This method aims that students can solve problems that will surely be found in their daily lives. And that makes them study with another predisposition, also the theoretical concepts they must learn, 

The Finnish educational system places a special emphasis on group work, to the point of avoiding fostering competition among students, promoting, in their absence, the collaboration between them. And this philosophy is reflected in the evaluation system. "They do not try to put quantitative notes so that students can compare with each other, but what they do is develop reports so that the student knows where he is and how he has advanced", says Albert Sangrà, who underlines that in the end what what is intended is for the student to compete with himself.  In this sense, the evaluation of knowledge is not based on the performance of exams. "It's not your usual method," recalls Lourdes Guàrdia. "They value the process much more. Until the children finish high school they do not do exams, and they do it to have another measurement system to know at what level they are

The Finnish educational model aims for the student to compete with himself

Nor are they in favor of homework. Affordable college papers They understand that work must be done in school and that, after school hours, children have to, among other things, play. "If all the hours that the students are in class have not had enough, that means that maybe the system is not well designed," Guàrdia said.  Teachers also spend less time in the classroom. "But that does not mean that they work less," clarifies Guàrdia, "but they spend many hours designing the curriculum and individual follow-up of the student." In this aspect is where you see the bet of the Finnish State for education. "The professors make a very adapted and personalized curriculum, an aspect that has a high cost. But thanks to it they have very little abandonment. More than 90% of the students finish their studies, "recalls this UOC professor.