We should all follow Finland

Finland has one of if not the best education systems in the world. Better yet there’s less of it, its free and promotes social equality. Meanwhile in Australia, we’re not doing to bad but our efforts to improve the quality of our children’s education have added pressures to our kids. Not boosted them and our anxiety around our education system proves my point.

To be eligible to begin compulsory education in Australia you have to be four years old in the June prior to the start of the school year each January. If you started school in 2026 you will have to been born by the 30th of June 2022. In Finland you have to be seven years old to start formal education. That’s another three years of social, emotional and physical development on what Australian children are allowed. Three whole years to better prepare them for formal education though outdoor play. Its common in Finland as well as many other Scandinavian countries to see preschool aged children engaged in risky play outdoors whilst at Kindy on the daily. That is the program and it works better than any Australian concept of preschool.

All Finnish schools are government funded, and better yet all schools receive the same amount of funding. There is no consideration of which of the five local schools are better because all receive the same funding and have identical resources at their disposal. Compared to Australian schools where theirs an annual debate between which school to send your child to. Do you go though the public and receive tax payer funded schooling with minimal funding or the private system that gets more governmental support than public schools get and pay extra fees on top of it. Finnish schools aren’t allowed to collect fees form parents or self fundraise, all educational materials and facilities are funded by taxpayers allowing all components to be fully unified. A unified education system is an education system where all students are afforded the same opportunities to learn without a student’s families resources getting in the way of their potential.

Teachers in Finland are required to have a masters in education and some other degree relevant to what their teaching. A Finnish masters of education focuses on how to teach and alternative approaches to best site the group of children who make up their class that year. Most Australian teachers have a Batchelor in the topic that their teaching or education. Then Australian teaches complete a undergraduate course in education or what ever they teach. Finland’s teachers also have more control over what exists in their classroom and what doesn’t. If your teacher in Finland what’s everything done with pen and paper then they can do that and the state won’t stop them, equally if you want everything typed out you can do that to. A Finnish teacher can opt to follow the interests of the children that their actually teaching, Australian teaches must stick to a set curriculum at all times with very little deviation.

I think the most important difference is that teaching is a highly respected profession that is a very competitive career. To educate in Finland you need to be highly qualified and very good at your job. That high standard curated respect and trust in the education system, something Australia doesn’t have. In Australia you need to be studying a Certificate III in early childhood education and care or children’s services. There is no respect, trust or support offered to teaching staff, most schools and Early Childhood Education and Care centre’s will always side with parents over staff in cases of complaint. Educators don’t make a good living out of what they earn and we have so few people entering the sector that we can’t replace everyone that leaves it. We need a remodel, we need to follow Finland.

Activity of the week,

Cookie cutter stamping, stamping is great for gross motor skills and grip development.

You will need,

Cookie cutters (one for each colure of paint)

Paints/ paint pads/ ink pads

Paper

Place paints/ paint pads/ ink pads on a flat tray and cote the sharp side of your cookie cutters. Allow your child to stamp your paper with the stamps.