“It is now time to break down the ideology of exceptionalism in the United States
and other Anglo-American nations, if we are to develop reforms that will truly ...
Finnish Lessons What can the world learn from educational change in Finland? “It is now time to break down the ideology of exceptionalism in the United States and other Anglo-American nations, if we are to develop reforms that will truly inspire our teachers to improve learning for all our students -- especially those who struggle the most. In that essential quest, Pasi Sahlberg is undoubtedly one of the very best teachers of all.” --From the Foreword by Andy Hargreaves, Lynch School of Education, Boston College “The story of Finland's extraordinary educational reforms is one that should inform policymakers and educators around the world. No one tells this story more clearly and engagingly than Pasi Sahlberg. This book is a must read.” --Linda Darling-Hammond, Stanford University
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asi Sahlberg’s book is a must-read for all concerned parents, educators, administrators, government officials, union leaders, policy-makers, scholars and philanthropists who are alarmed that our current market-driven/competitive/punitive model isn’t working in the U.S. and that a radical change of course is required. It’s amazing that Sahlberg shares the Finnish roadmap with the world in what can only be described as an act of altruism. As a concerned mother of two whose children are now enrolled in public schools after five years of unaffordable private schooling, this book is a godsend. It is a relief to learn about the existence of a more effective, humane, equitable and cost-effective approach to public school education. Sahlberg’s book offers hope to those of us who yearn for a better and more thoughtful system for our children both in the U.S. and elsewhere. Finland is consistently ranked as one of the top performing countries in the international test known as PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) that measures the knowledge and skills of 15-year olds in the subject areas of reading, maths and science. (In 2009, 65
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CODE TCP3221
TITLE Finnish Lessons: What Can the World Learn from Educational Change in Finland?
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developed countries participated in PISA.) According to Sahlberg, Finland has achieved this distinction since 2000 almost by accident and without intent. The driving force behind the redesign of the Finnish educational system in the 1980’s and ‘90’s was not to achieve high international test scores, but to provide an equitable education for all students. Salhberg recounts how Finland decided to go its own way in educational reform by not following either the “Asian Model” (wherein test scores & university-graduation rates may be high, but students are reportedly overworked and as stressed-out as their U.S. counterparts) or the market-driven model of the U.S., Britain, and a host of other Western countries. You’ll learn about the irony of while having rejected these alternatives (in what Sahlberg playfully describes as the “GERM” countries - Global Education Reform Movement), at the micro level, Finland has adopted many of the best pedagogical practices that are research-based from these same countries (e.g., U.S., Britain, Australia, Germany, etc.). Finally, it is noteworthy that Finland’s progress has been achieved with a union that includes over 95% of its teachers.
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