Why Finland has one of best school system in the world?

 

You've probably heard that Finland has the school system is supposed of the best in the world. This is A Kind of Adventurous Life. The Finnish school system is, according to international studies, one of the best, if not the best, in the world. What do I think of it? I have just completed my 9 years’ basic my 9-year compel...my nine-year compulsory basic comprehensive school, but I have also personal experience from other school systems as well. Is the Finnish school really so good?

How does it compare to a Tanzanian public school or a British International School in Italy? When I was six I started my school career in a Swahili speaking public school in rural Tanzania. It was really far away from pretty much anything, and as the only white kid there I became a local attraction in school. There were always a dozen kids following me everywhere, including the toilet, but never daring to talk to me. So that was an interesting experience, that luckily lasted only a year.

Then I also briefly went to a private Tanzanian school before moving to Rome, Italy. So, when I was seven I went to the third grade in the British International School in Italy, where I had classmates from various nationalities: American, South African, Belgian, and also of course many Italians. And there I was not an attraction! I was just like everybody else! So by that time I had had classmates from both economical extremes: the poorest Africans and the wealthiest Europeans.

And that's quite an interesting perspective or a seven-year-old boy. Then I was ten we moved to Finland! That's Finland! We moved to the middle of Finland in the middle of nowhere. And I started my sixth grade here, four years ago. And this June I finished my school! Finland has the extremely best school system in the world. Um, yes and no. I can't really tell but I can compare it to my own experiences.

 

I think it's like really good and covers all the necessary things but I think I liked the British school in Italy much more. There I learned much more as in here I think the school isn't that demanding. Finland's schools are easy yes. Well at least compared to the British school. When four years ago I came to Finland some days I only had four hours of school: I went to ask my dad: "what do I do now?" The overwhelming free time was a really strange concept for me.

 

In the previous year in Italy, I'd had school days that's lasted 11 hours, including the required homework and school buses. Finland's schools have very little homework yes. When I was 7 years old, in the British school in Italy, I had a school assignment. I had to make a PowerPoint presentation of an Egyptian pharaoh of my choice. I don't remember anymore which pharaoh I chose but that I remember that the assignment was interesting to me. I didn't think if I was strange to require that's kind of assignment from seven-year-old.

 

Meanwhile, in Finnish schools, seven-year-olds go through their ABCs. They don't make PowerPoint presentations about anything. Finland's schools have the best teachers in the world. Well, I can't really tell. Yes, in Finland, to be a teacher you have to have your master's degree but that doesn't necessarily make you a good teacher. Of course, it's better than the Tanzanian system which is just that you have to go through one year of teacher training college and then you're qualified as a primary school teacher. My personal favourite teacher ever has been our third-grade teacher in Italy. But also most of my teachers here in Finland have been really good. Most! Students in Finland are motivated.

 

Umm, not really. Of course, I only have experience from one school here in Finland and in my class, there were some motivated people and some less motivated ones. But I think I was a lot more motivated in my British the school in Italy than I was ever herein Finland. Finland's schools are equal. Everybody learns the basics: how to read and write and do simple math. And the schools in Finland are completely free, including lunch.

My British school in Italy was a private school with really high tuition and even the Tanzanian school had mandatory school uniforms that the parents had to pay. But with equality comes homogeneity. The basic Finnish school system was originally copied from East Germany, where homogeneity was mandatory. In theory, the Finnish school tries to take into account individual differences but in practice, the focus is to have everybody to keep up. So what do I think of the Finnish school? There are many good things but there's also a lot of room for improvement. So now I finished my "peruskoulu" (Primary school) my compulsory basics comprehensive school.