Adventures in Finland (Sans Skinny Jeans)

A few things come to mind when I think of Finland. Northern Lights. Cold. Saunas (pronounced sow-na for the professionals). Nokia. (Although I will admit I used to think that was a Japanese company.) And, of course, education. It’s no wonder, really, why we can hear folks singing Finland’s praises from around the globe. Just check out the infographic (left). 

Love or hate the comparison between Finland and the U.S. educational system (one blogger equated it to the sibling rivalry between Jan and Marcia Brady, stating that she’s “tired of playing Jan to Finland’s Marcia”), it’s hard to ignore that there are lessons to be learned from Finland, especially for educators like me. 
So, after a week studying Finland's top preforming schools with my travel partner, Kelly (fellow teacher and my sister) as well as a whole other group of educators, I learned a thing or two. 
Pack it Up
Spring in the Rockies means rain, sun, snow, and the occasional colossal dump. Snowmageddon had Kelly and me stuck in Colorado when we should have been on our way to Helsinki, giving us just enough time to pack and re-pack our bags. As any mom knows, packing for just one is a rare treat. To fill an entire suitcase with only my very own belongings was one of the most self-indulgent things I'd ever done. And I'm no stranger to a 90-minute massage or custom facial. But give me an empty suitcase and an hour, and I'm singing De La Soul's "Me, Myself, and I" for days. So what did I stuff inside that bag? Here's my top 10.

10. Eye mask. Our flight left on Sunday at 5:30 p.m. from Denver and, with the time change, we arrived in Kefavik, Iceland at 6:30 a.m. on Monday morning. We then hopped on another plane and arrived in Helsinki, Finland at 1:50 p.m. But this mama was determined to get some shut-eye. 

9. Comfortable boots. It was predicted to rain practically every day we were in Finland and we were going to visit seven schools in five days. That’s a lot of walking through puddles!

8. Layers. Helsinki has a maritime continental climate which I think just means it's humid and cold, but I didn't want that to stop me from touring the Turku Castle or visiting Helsinki’s Design District.

7. Pepto-Bismol. Finns eat reindeer burgers, rich cheeses for breakfast, and lots of smoked fish. I’ll try anything, but that tends to get me in trouble.

6. Swimsuit. There are more saunas in Finland than there are cars. While the Finns go au naturale, I would be the American in a swimsuit beating myself with a birch branch. (Yes, it’s a thing.)

5. Notebook. The school district I work for asked Kelly and me to take note of over 50 look-fors on our tour. These look-fors spanned from what was in school lunch to how students are identified for special services to parent involvement to the structure of a school day. I planned to take a lot of notes. 

4. iPhone. I needed this not only to take photos and videos and to stay in touch with others on the tour, but also to check in with Skinny Jeans and Peter to make sure a steady diet of chicken nuggets and Oreos wasn't doing too much damage.

3. Computer. I attempted to synthesize my learning at the end of each day and blog about what we are up to. The effectiveness of that communication depended on items number #10 and #7.

2. Adaptor. To charge items #4 and #3, and hopefully, prevent my hair straightening iron (see item #8) from setting on fire.

1. Flexibility. OK, so this isn't tangible, and technically, couldn't be packed in my bag, but the thing I needed most on my trip was flexibility. As a boarderline control-freak (OK, maybe full-on control-freak), I'd never been on an organized tour before. I'd never left the details up to someone else. I'm a mom, after all. I live for details. But as the snow dumped down and our flights were canceled and reinstated and then canceled again and there was a team of teachers I'd never met and a very straightforward tour guide waiting to share every waking hour with me for the next seven days, flexibility was as important to pack as my favorite pair of jeans. 

Finally, We Make It!
Kelly and I caught up with the rest of the Edu Tour group a day late and got in a quick walking tour of Helsinki where the Russian and French influences on the architecture were a highlight. The parks are adorned with bronze statues of Finland’s most influential and famous people. The statues offer insights to Finnish history and the struggles that have been overcome.
During the tour, we got to experience the Kamppi Chapel also known as “Chapel of Silence."   It is a wooden structure in one of the busiest shopping areas in Helsinki which is intended to be a place to relax and enjoy a moment of silence. 
Since neither of us could remember what silence was since having children, we took in every ounce of it. 

Kirkkonummi 10 Times Fast
We said goodbye to Helsinki after a short 18 hours and visited the Education Department at Kirkkonummi City Hall. The Head of Early Childhood and General Education (aka Superintendent) spoke with us about curricula, Boards, and what he considers challenges and successes of the Finnish educational system. Topics included the three layers of education (national, municipal, school) and the National Core Curriculum. 
In addition to curriculum, we learned how much Kirkkonummi supports the “mother tongue," Swedish. Since the community is more than 5% Swedish speaking, they are required, by law, to offer education in both Swedish and Finnish. They embrace the native language of their students and support the development of both languages in the early grades before adding on another language (or two!) in fourth grade and higher. 
After the presentation, we took a bus to Winellska School to visit both the comprehensive level (ages 7-15) and upper secondary school (ages 16-18). Class sizes were large (25-30) in the lower grades (grades1-4) and small in the upper grades (grades 5-12). Kids were on their iPhones (brought from home) in every class but the technology used by teachers or available in the classroom was pretty minimal in this wealthy school. I was happy to see that kids are kids (one even sang Adele’s “Hello” to me as I approached him and his friends in the hallway) wherever you go. 

Turku and a Restaurant Run by Kids
The next day, we met with the Education Department for the city of Turku. She explained that students are given choices, voices, and support at every step of their educational career. Every student is given "special education," meaning that each student has a specialized plan to help them reach their goals. When gaps are identified, they are tackled with laser-like focus until they cease to exist.  The head of Basic Education in Turku explained that Finnish students do well on the PISA not because their top students are the smartest but because their weakest students get the support they need, and as a result, the country as a whole does better than other countries.
​Imagine that.
The following day, we had lunch at the Turku Vocational Restaurant called Taito. This restaurant is run by students and gives kids experience and skills as managers, waitresses, hostesses, bussers and chefs.  They also get to practice their English and social skills. This restaurant is beautiful, the food was great, and it is open to the public.

Next, we visited a school where students speak more than 20 different languages and in a community where refugees and transient cultures seek stability. This is not the norm in Finland, so this particular school is learning as they go. While the staff admits that they are challenged by the diversity in their school, they are proud of the work they do with kids and embrace the differences. One way they do this is by putting all their resources into providing support in the “mother tongue” as well as building up the second language (Finnish). In the classrooms I observed, it was common to see at teacher “assistant” that worked with a small number of students in their native language (Arabic, Roma, Russian, Prussian, Swedish, etc.) as they worked towards completing tasks in the second language (Finnish). 

You Know What They Say About Assumptions
As our trip came to an end, Kelly and I were left to reflect on the assumptions we held prior to our visit to Finland. It’s not an exhaustive list, but here’s what we now know for sure:

1. We used to think that everyone in Finland was blonde with blue eyes, but then we saw Somali refugees walking to English, Kurds in Math, Arabs at lunch, and Romas hanging in the halls. While it’s not the norm in Finland, it was clear that the face of Finland is changing.
2. We used to think that Finns didn’t test their students, but then we saw kids obsessing over the matriculation exams, cramming for national math assessments, and studying for unit exams that are typically given twice a semester with formative assessments sprinkled throughout. While they aren’t the high-stakes tests in the US, the students certainly felt something was at stake and looked forward to how they were measuring up.
3. We used to think that Santa was from the North Pole, but then we heard he actually lives in Finland. Crap! We’ve been sending letters to the wrong address all this time.
4. We used to think that Finland’s class sizes must be small, but then we saw classes in a variety of sizes. One class we visited had 40 students!
5. We used to think that the Finns were rolling in technology (Nokia, right?!), but then we saw that most schools had 3:1 technology, the chalkboard is alive and well, and most projectors didn’t have screens let alone a Smartboard.
6. We used to think that children played outside in a lush, Nordic fairyland for recess and rode reindeers to school, but then we saw this less than lovely playground (see right). 
7. We used to think (thanks to the media) that Finland was getting rid of “subjects” and teaching by topic instead, but then we saw that they are just becoming more integrated and collaborative with planning so that learning is not done in the isolation of one content area. Finland revises their curriculum every four years and this “new curriculum” is just another iteration.
8. We used to think that Finnish teachers might be arrogant (after all, they have a lot to brag about and a touchdown celebration wouldn’t be totally out of line), but what we saw were educators who were just as eager to learn from us as we were to learn from them.
   
9. ​We used to think that Finns pumped more money into education than we did, but what we saw was just a different allocation of funding. We saw buildings that were in need of some serious repairs, no school busses, and one choice for school lunch (city-wide). These cost savings resulted in more educators in the classroom to offer students support.

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This Place Fits: Anyone interested in learning about the top performing students in the world (or with an affinity for reindeer meat). 

Where to Stay: 
​Original Sokos Hotel Helsinki
Sokos Hotel Hamburger Börs

Where to Eat:
Herrankukkaro- a 30 minute drive from Turku with the world's largest smoke sauna and traditional Finnish fare.
​Wärdshus- delicious restaurant in Fiskars Village
​Oscar Pub and Grill- for the very best gin and tonic made with Finland's own award-winning gin, Napue, lingonberries and rosemary. 
What to Do:
​Turku Castle- over 700 year old monument. 
Helsinki Design District- see Marimekko textiles and beautiful Iittala tableware.
The WaterLoo- a British pub that used to be a public lavatory for the Turku Bus Station. 
Fiskars Village- of the orange-handled scissors fame. 
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For a more in-depth look at the Finnish school system from an educator's perspective, please visit the original post at http://www.eagleschools.net/finland-blog