www.pasisahlberg.com

Pasi Sahlberg, PhDDirector GeneralCIMO (Ministry of Education)Helsinki

World Class Education Birth to 20University of Illinois at ChicagoMonday 5th December 2011

What Can the U.S. Learn from Educational Change in Finland?

FINNISH LESSONS

Einar Fritjof SAHLBERG (1895-1977)

1790

2010

Between the West and the East

SURVIVAL

Finland Today

Education in Finland

Education system performance over time in Finland and developed nations

Learning, Participation, Equity, and Efficiency

1970 1980 1990 2000 2010

Education system in 2011

Preschool

Basic school

Age

67

16Com

pu

lsory sch

oo

ling

1

9

10

Generalupper secondary

school

Vocational schoolApprenticeship

training1

2

3

17

18

19

Universities

1

2345

20

212223+

Polytechnics

Work experience

Specialistvocational

qualifications

Furthervocational

qualifications

Work experience

55% 40%

60%

Grades

The Finnish Way 1:Excellence by

Equity

PISA 2006

Equity in educationvariation of student performance in science

Variation of performance between

schools

Variation of performance within

schools

Equity in educationvariation of student performance in science

PISA 2006

The Finnish Way 2:Less is More

Finnish teachers teach less…

OECD 2010

Un

ited

Sta

tes

Me

xico

Ne

w Z

ea

lan

d

Sco

tlan

d

Au

stra

lia

Ru

ssia

n F

ed

er.

..

Ge

rma

ny

Po

rtu

ga

l

Ne

the

rla

nd

s

Ire

lan

d

En

gla

nd

Sp

ain

Be

lgiu

m (

Fl.)

Slo

ven

ia

Ice

lan

d

Be

lgiu

m (

Fr.

)

No

rwa

y

De

nm

ark

Fra

nce

Cze

ch R

ep

ub

lic

Lu

xem

bo

urg

Est

on

ia

Ko

rea

Hu

ng

ary

Au

stri

a

Jap

an

Italy

Isra

el

Fin

lan

d

Po

lan

d

Gre

ece

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

800

900

1000

1100

1200Hours per year

Middle School Teachers

Net contact time in hours per year in public institutions

Finnish pupils study less …

Fin

land

Sw

eden

Kor

ea

Nor

way

Ger

man

y

Gre

ece

Japa

n

Aus

tria

Den

mar

k

OE

CD

ave

rage

Por

tuga

l

Bel

gium

Spa

in

Irel

and

Eng

land

Fra

nce

Mex

ico

Ital

y

Aus

tral

ia

Net

herla

nds0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

7000

8000

9000

Ages 12-14

Ages 9-11

Ages 7-8

Total compulsory instruction hours between 7 and 14 year-olds

OECD 2010

… in and out of school

50,000 55,000 60,000 65,000 70,000 75,000 80,000 85,000 90,000 95,000 100,000420

440

460

480

500

520

540

560

580

Norway

Finland

Korea

Portugal

United States

Austria Switzerland

Denmark

Germany

Canada

Greece

Italy

Spain

France

IrelandSweden

Belgium

United Kingdom

Australia Netherlands

Japan

Cumulative cost per student in USD (2006)

PIS

A s

cie

nce

sco

re in

20

06

More money, less learning

OECD 2010

Learning

Cost

The Finnish Way 3:Test Less, Learn

More

Finnish Students are Tested less

National averages of 15-year-old students learning outcomes in mathematics 2000-06

OECD 2001-2007

USA UK Canada Australia Japan New Zealand Ireland Finland460

480

500

520

540

560

2000

2003

2006

National averages of 15-year-old students learning outcomes in mathematics 2000-06

USA UK Canada Australia Japan New Zealand Ireland Finland460

480

500

520

540

560

2000

2003

2006

Finnish Students are Tested Less

OECD 2001-2007

The Finnish Way 4:Teaching as a Dream

Job

Applicants to primary school teacher education

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 20100

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

7000

MaleFemale

Accepted

Teacher salaries relative to workers with college degree

Admission: 1st Phase 2nd Phase 3rd Phase - high school merits - exam - interview

- other merits

Spain

New Z

ealan

d

Ger

man

y

Austra

lia

Finlan

d

Sweden

Scotla

nd

Denm

ark

Franc

e

Englan

d

Korea

The N

ethe

rland

s

Austri

a

Gre

ece

Portu

gal

Norway

Poland

United

Sta

tes

Italy

0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1

1.2

1.4

OECD 2010

(What) Can We Learn from Finland?

Foreword by Andy Hargreaves

Global Educational Reform Movement

FinnishWay

Academic HolisticX

Global Educational Reform Movement

FinnishWay

Foreword by Andy Hargreaves

Standardization PersonalizationX

Global Educational Reform Movement

FinnishWay

Foreword by Andy Hargreaves

Competition CommunityX

Global Educational Reform Movement

FinnishWay

Foreword by Andy Hargreaves

Choice EquityX

Global Educational Reform Movement

FinnishWay

Foreword by Andy Hargreaves

Accountability TrustX

Global Educational Reform Movement

FinnishWay

Three Questions for Illinois:

Do you need all that standardized testing?

Can you do more to improve well-being?

Could vocational options be enhanced?

1

2

3

”One thing I never want to see happen is schools that are just teaching to the test because then you’re not learning about

the world, you’re not learning about different cultures, you’re not learning

about science, you’re not learning about math.”

“All you’re learning about is how to fill out a little

bubble on an exam and little tricks that you need to do in order to take a test and that’s not going to

make education interesting.” 28 march 2011

 

"The story of Finland's extraordinary educational reforms is one that should inform policymakers and educators around the world.” —Linda Darling-Hammond, Stanford University 

“A terrific synthesis by a native Finn, a teacher, a researcher and a policy analyst all rolled up into one excellent writer.” —David Berliner, Arizona State University 

"This book is a wake-up call for the U.S.  It is the antidote to the NCLB paralysis." —Henry M. Levin, Teachers College, Columbia University 

Foreword by Andy Hargreaves

Kiitos!

www.pasisahlberg.com