One of the things I love most about international teaching is being able to compare schools in the US to schools abroad. Finland would be a fascinating place to visit and I am not surprised at the reactions of the teachers who visited there. Great read, as usual!
Finland flag credit
Dr. Hunter O’Hara and Dr. Merrie Tinkersley visited Finland, and this is what they learned:
“American Educators Find Surprises in Helsinki and at Home in the United States”
On the basis of Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) scores, Finnish public schools have ranked at the top, or very near the top in the world in the areas of mathematics, reading and science. Seven teacher education seniors and three teacher education faculty at The University of Tampa traveled to Finland to determine the nature of Finnish success with public education. We visited three public schools; 1) grades K-8, 2) grades 1-6, and 3) grades 9-12. We also visited Metropolia University and the University of Helsinki. At U.H. we had an extended conversation with a teacher education professor.
Prior to our visit, we understood that Finland prides itself for creating school equality across the nation. During our visit, we felt we…
View original post 1,518 more words
Teaching Wanderlust 