Day 6 - Estonia

4/19/19

Hyvää huomenta!

Today is our last full day in Finland and we are spending it in the neighboring country of Estonia - a mere 2.5-hour ferry ride from the dock in Helsinki. Our Viking Express ferry was packed full of travelers headed to different locations for the Easter holiday. We enjoyed a private conference room on the boat where our group had the opportunity to reflect and debrief some of our takeaways from the week.

Below is a compilation of noticings with regard to Finnish education from the 22 Connecticut educators who joined us on our journey:

• An overall sense of belonging
• A sense of trust among adults as well as among adults & children
• Integration of content and application of skills in context
• Independence at all levels
• Student-developed questions (the Finnish view teacher-directed questions as stifling student inquiry)
• Autonomy (confident, autonomous learners & educators)
• Focus on process versus outcomes
• Atmosphere of respect
• Commitment from the federal government to education
• Equity in educational opportunities
• Comfort (lighting, greenery, multi-use furniture)
• Play-unstructured & deliberate (a playful environment that encourages curiosity)
• Emphasis on the joy of learning
• A sense of community
• Systems and stakeholders supporting education
• Civil discourse - Finnish focus on the possible. 
• "Challenge" vs. "crisis"
• Asset approach (assume the best of students and teachers and provide support only as needed)

Here are some images from our excursion into the medieval Old Town of Estonia.

The view from the deck of the Viking Express ferry.

Restored medieval tombstones.

The view from the top of the old town's protective wall. 

Town Square

Farm to table dining. Yummy!

Thank you to Dr. Betty Sternberg at Central Connecticut State University for organizing this trip! A great big thanks to our CT colleagues who joined us on this journey and to those of you who have followed us along the way. We hope to hear more of your thoughts and wonderings with regard to our experiences (you can still comment on any of our posts!). 

Additionally, we are grateful to all the educators and representatives of the Finnish education system who gave their time to help us develop a greater understanding of their underlying philosophy of education as well as a taste of Finnish culture. 

Thanks for reading!! :)

kunnes jälleen tapaamme! 

J & A

Day Five

4/18/19

Hei Hei!!

Today we were fortunate to be able to take a ferry to the World Heritage Site Suomenlinna Sea Fortress which now functions as a kindergarten (our nursery/pre-k) for children ages 3-6. Below are some pictures from our visit.

Observations/New Learning:

• There is an intentional focus on cooperation and collaboration.  For example, approximately 7 students were in a gymnastics session in which the teacher intentionally provided only one scooter board.  It was up to the students to manage the sharing process themselves for the board and all other equipment in use. 
• We did not see any crying or screaming children (and we were there for about 1.5 hours).  We saw one student who looked sad and teary-eyed, however, the teacher said it was because someone in our group was trying to talk to her and she was scared. 
• Even at the age of three, students are self-managing their activities. The teacher has name cards and posts different activity pictures and the students move their names to the activity in which they wish to participate. They can also check-in with their emotions by "dialing a clock" with different emotions shown on it. 
• We watched 5/6-year-olds doing crafts with balloons.  Students blew up all the balloons themselves without any teacher help. 
• Teachers create an environment that nurtures student inquiry. Teachers at this age level do not do any direct instruction. They set up the environment and respond to what the students indicate they are interested in learning. 
• There is no focus on teaching students to read and write in this kindergarten school, but most students learn to do both before entering basic school at age seven.

Views from the ferry

The island of Suomenlinna

Teeny Tiny Sink!

Colorful Outerwear

Activity Board Self-Monitored By Students

Adorable!

Students Cooperating on a Lego Project

Nap Time!

The next stop today of the day was to the Soumenlinna Library.  Libraries cooperate very closely with schools to promote literacy.  In Finland, there is a legal right to library access.  Every municipality, therefore, must provide a library. Ninety-seven percent of children ages 10-14 access their libraries. There is no minimum age to get a library card. Children can get one at birth. Finnish children are considered adults at age 15. There is a new app (about 2 years old) that allows students to keep their library cards on their phones.

It is also a legal right in Finland to have access to computers and the internet. Libraries provide these resources. Growing more popular are maker's spaces where individuals can sign out of the libraries items such as sewing machines.  Recently, Helsinki made public transportation for schools and daycares free thereby supporting a deeper connection between schools and libraries.

It was explained to us that the Nordic culture has a long tradition of supporting struggling readers. They might use high-interest texts with simplified structure and language, however, there are very strict rules about how simplified text can be written (passage of time, language, etc.).

While on the island, we also had the opportunity to visit a camp school. There are many camp schools throughout Finland with a variety of themes. They support environmental learning and social education. A typical stay is 2-5 days. (These schools are similar to Connecticut's Nature's Classroom.) Teachers decide if and when their students go to camp school.  Parents are required to pay a portion of the camp school fee, although there is hope that at some point, all camp school trips will be subsidized. Finnish people believe that being with nature is very important and an integral part of the overall learning experience.

Camp school ethos.

 Camp school on the island is also a hostel.

Later on, once we were back from our island visit, we had the opportunity to visit a vocational school, The Perho Culinary Tourism & Business School. This school is an international school that provides training in all aspects of the restaurant business. Students fully explore the industry before specializing in food service or chef specialty areas. This school is one of the best in the world! Students have opportunities to learn in classrooms, engage in practical classroom application, and train within the school's public restaurant. Earning a degree from this school means higher pay and potential employment at higher-end restaurants. This school also has its own brewery, bees, and produces its own honey!  The school aims to foster the growth of entrepreneurship. We were lucky to be able to sit down in the restaurant at the end of our tour and enjoy a beer from the school's brewery!

The Brewery

The Training Kitchen

Our guide, Leena, shared an interesting perspective today as she was discussing Finland's history: Sometimes you have to go far away to see up close.

Tomorrow is our last full day of the trip, and we are sad! :(

hyvästit nyt!

A & J

Day Four!

Hei, hei!!

No shoes in school

Students collaborating in "craftwork" 

All students engage in purposeful design work.

Newer modular furniture is designed to create multi-functional spaces.

We are on day four of our Helsinki, Finland adventure! Today we had the opportunity to visit a teacher preparation upper school- Helsinki Normal Lyceum, University of Helsinki. This school works in collaboration with the university to prepare students to become professional educators. It is located in a 152-year-old building which houses 500 students in lower secondary (US grades 7-9) and upper secondary (US grades 10-12) schools.

Maker's Space takes up multiple rooms with varied equipment and computers

A teacher in training engages with an English class as her mentor teacher participates in the lesson.

Although this is not a traditional public school as it is part of the University of Helsinki, the school does follow the national core curriculum. It is also one of the only schools in Finland that offers classes in Latin (an entrance exam must be passed in order to be eligible to take this course). In order to gain entrance to the grades 9-12 programming, students must apply and are admitted by GPA. The lowest GPA of this year's entering class was 9.38 out of 10. This school is one of 11 "training" schools for educators in Finland. Teachers who are mentors have additional training above the required master's degree. Upper secondary level teachers-in-training prepare 8 75-minute practice lessons. Basic (elementary) level educators prepare 24 lessons over a one year period. Student teachers receive direct feedback and support planning lessons with their mentor teachers. Upon completion of teacher training, teachers can receive temporary single year contracts before obtaining permanent positions.

A few things that surprised us:

• Principals never observe lessons.
• Peer observation would be considered rude.
• "Teach the student, not just the curriculum" (we heard this repeated several times). Always be "in contact" with your students and teach them what they need. 
• Older students are truly responsible for their own learning. Parents are not apprised of upper secondary students' progress. Teachers do not call parents if students are failing (however they will respond if a parent calls them which they said happens rarely, if at all). 
• Teachers are the ones who choose which textbooks to use for their own courses.
• The school has no bells to signify class changes. 
• Finnish teachers are very humble and self-deprecating about the success of their school system.  (Finnish people overall are not attention-seekers and tend to be more reserved.) 

A beautiful auditorium in this 152-year-old building which is one of the oldest in Helsinki.

Students work in the Makerspace on 3-D printing.

                           Lower secondary students work in the handicraft room

                   An upper secondary English class - the last of 6 compulsory English courses

                                     This was our dessert from today's school lunch.

Our last stop of the day: The Design Museum across the street from the school, which collaborates with the Finnish National Agency for Education to foster engagement in art and design.

nähdään pian! 

J&A

Day Three

Tuesday, April 16, 2019

The English School in Helsinki

There is a sense of community throughout 

Day three had us visiting our first school! We had the opportunity to explore the English School, a bilingual private school in Helsinki. Although the school is technically private, it receives government funding as does any school that follows the national curriculum.  Here are some things we learned today:

• Although there is a national curriculum, teachers have autonomy in how they deliver lessons and assess learning. Assessment supports learning and development of the individual. 
• Teachers cooperate with all stakeholders (including students) in decision making and planning. This includes developing a school ethos which drives the work and beliefs of the individual school. 
• Phenomenon-based learning is now part of the national curriculum. This means that schools are required to spend a minimum of one week per year on an interdisciplinary inquiry project that explores a phenomenon-related research question.
• Older students' parents meet with the teacher twice a year.  Younger students' parents only meet with the teacher once a year in January. 
• Finnish education is characterized by trust.
• Finnish schools are true learning communities. 
• Finnish educators believe that assessing students should be like a true action research project.  How much can I learn about my student?
• Teachers have a great deal of autonomy.  There is no standardized way of teaching.  Teachers do not need to share or file lesson plans but must follow the national core curriculum. Each school writes its own school-based curriculum (The English School's school-based curriculum is over 620 pages long). 
• 20% of students in this school receive some form of special education. 

Students of all ages ride their bikes to school

Mindful practices are evident throughout the building.

An engaging lesson.

Even Finnish students love Fortnite!

Cafeteria tables have floral centerpieces. 

Family style dining is the norm in Finland schools.

• Students work independently without supervision on tasks in the hallway in partnerships/small groups.
• Groups of students move appropriately through the hallway without any adult supervision.
• There is a sense of home/community with students' belongings often strewn in hallways. Shoes are left outside the rooms - a separate pair of "inside" shoes are worn in the classroom. 
• All teachers and administrators are addressed by first names. 
• 40 native languages are spoken in this particular school. 
• This school has very light administration.  All staff members work together to complete tasks - everyone helps each other. 
• Teachers do not worry about covering topics.  They are concerned with the "how" not with the "what". 
• Teachers are not given a pedagogical approach.  Students are given open-ended research questions. 
• IEPs are called Student Support Plans in Finland.
• If a student wants to become a teacher, he/she often has to apply multiple times to get into a teacher education program (the school director's daughter graduated from university in the top 10% of her class and was not accepted into a teacher ed program the first time around). 

A few things that stand out:

1. Hallways are quite noisy but not chaotic. 
2. Religion classes are part of the school day, however, parents choose the denomination of the religion for their child.  (Most Finnish students are Lutheran. Teachers of less popular religions may travel between up to 9 different schools.) Non-religious students take Secular Ethics.
3. Students self-manage all transitions (from class to class, class to recess, class to lunch, etc.).
4. Students have a xylitol mint after meals/snacks. 
5. Students are very friendly and inquisitive (A colleague and I were trying to figure out if we could go out to see recess and get back into the school without getting locked out. So she was outside jiggling the door handle while I stayed inside.  A passing student saw us and asked, "What are you testing?" We wondered if our students would have asked that question in quite the same way.)
6. Being off task is not considered by teachers to be an infraction.  Students are expected to be responsible for their own learning. 

Part of the maker's workshop

The primary section of the maker's workshop

Today's meal rating!

Students give feedback on their meals daily

A large open area with many students playing chess

School Lunch 

Hear Kaarina Winter of the English School speak about autonomy.

A snippet of an environmental science lesson in a grade 5 classroom

vasta huomenna! 

A & J