The Explanation Behind The Cause of The American Education System Lagging Behind Finnish Schools

Ethnocentrism: noun, the belief in the inherent superiority of one's own ethnic group or culture (Ethnocentrism). Americans tend to be just this, ethnocentric. Most Americans believe that America is superior to all other countries and that no country can surpass America in any category. Recently, this belief has been proven to not stand true when it comes to education. Finland’s education has outshined America’s for years, and still continues to show improvement. Many experts have been curious as to why Finnish schools are so ahead of the game. The answer lies in not one, but many things. Finnish public schools are more successful than American public schools because teachers are highly trained and respected, they are more focused on providing students with equal educational opportunities rather than producing a few exceptional students, and they give students a lighter homework and standardized test load. All these things combined have helped the Finnish school system to gradually improve and rise to the top. Despite America’s confident attitude, there are some things they could learn from Finnish schools.

What American Educators Can Learn From Finnish Schools

In Finland, teachers are treated with the utmost respect. They are so highly respected that they are often compared to how doctors are idolised in America (D’Orio). This comparison is often made reflecting on not only the respect teachers in Finland receive, but also the amount of schooling they go through to become an educator. In Finland, only one out of eight applicants are accepted into education programs. Once accepted, they must obtain their masters degree in education, compared to the US , where educators are only required to obtain a bachelor’s degree (D’Orio) (How Much Education…) . Does the higher education mean higher pay for Finnish teachers? Surprisingly, no. The salaries are very competitive in comparison; Finnish teachers on average earn, while the average salary of an American teacher is (D’Orio). Although the teachers are not paid more, schools in Finland receive more funding than schools in America. There are no private schools in Finland, which also means no school gets more funding than another. The funding comes straight from government officials, who are educators themselves (Hancock). In America, funding decisions are made by government officials who often do not have backgrounds in education. This sometimes can lead to the limited funds not being spent wisely (Weerda). American school administrators are paid a higher wage than the typical teacher, while on the other hand, Finnish teachers and administrators are paid equally, with the extra money going straight to the classroom (Westerberg). Along with classroom funding, Finnish schools heavily allocate funds for free, in-school, health care. Students are generally healthy because no student goes without health care if they come to school sick, even if it’s just a common cold (D’Orio). Finnish schools also do not have team sports, which means children are less prone to come to school injured (Ravitch). Compare this to American schools, where high school sports take a huge chunk of the funds given to every school. With more students involved in sports, more students come to school injured. These injuries are distracting for American students, and lead to them performing worse in academics because they are more worried about their injury than their classwork. Regarding the amount of students who visit the training room for treatment monthly, Penn High School athletic trainer Tricia Irvin said that they treat an average of a thousand athletes per month. She also mentioned that the number of athletes depends on the season, noting that they treat a much greater amount in the fall than they do in the winter and spring seasons. All of these injured American students have a disadvantage that Finnish students don’t have to face (Ravitch). American schools spend most of their funds on sports and don’t require as much education for their teachers, while Finnish teachers go through higher levels of education and schools fund free healthcare and more classroom oriented activities.

A survey was taken by the OECD, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development in Finland, and one statement was agreed on by the majority of the responses. Equality is the key. This statement refers to the motto of every Finnish school, that every student should be treated equally (Hancock). High schools in America rank their students by how well they perform in school. Their ranking is printed on their report cards for the student and their family to see, but this is not the case in Finnish schools. Students in Finland are not ranked, because they don't believe in the competition that ranking students brings (Hancock). As well as students not being ranked, schools are also not graded in Finland. US schools are given a grade by the Department of Education in their state, and these rankings can drive parents towards or away from certain schools (Who We Are). Finnish physical education classes are more focused on staying healthy, while American physical education classes are largely competitive and commonly participate in team sports (Ravitch) (“National PE Standards”). Finnish schools do not offer honors classes, because educators believe it doesn’t offer equal educational opportunities for all students. Instead, individual accommodations are made for students who are falling behind or performing above and beyond (Westerberg). This is not the case in American schools. Honors classes are often offered beginning in elementary school at most American public schools. This creates competition that continues on into the middle and high school years (Weinkrantz). The lack of competition in Finnish schools creates a calm learning environment, and when combined with other factors creates a laid back but successful classroom setting. The typical American elementary school lets children out to play for 30 minutes during the middle of the day. Finnish elementary schools don't do this, instead they let students outside for 15 minutes after every lesson to provide them with fresh air and a time to release their energy before learning something new (Hancock). Along with extra recess time, Finnish classes are commonly held outside with interactive lessons. This is not as common in American schools, as it is typical for American high school students to not receive any fresh air for over 8 hours. This can cause mental and physical health problems that Finnish students do not experience (Intelligence for Your…). During trips to Finland, American researchers found one thing in particular surprising about the Finnish learning environment: there is a very limited amount of technology available in Finnish schools. In this day and age, most administrators of American school corporations are pushing the use of technology. Most American students are supplied with a laptop or tablet in all grades (Cavanagh). Finnish students do not receive these royalties. Although there are computers available for use in Finnish schools, they are not a required or frequently used tool (D’Orio). This is a very surprising discovery, but it is just another factor adding to the calm environment. The Finnish educational system is much different than the American educational system, with the absence of competition being a large factor contributing to in the calmer school setting in Finland.

Finnish schools are well known for their amazing academic scores, but getting there was no simple task. A lighter homework load and less standardized testing, higher respect for teachers, better use of funds, and a focus of providing equal opportunities for students all works together to make Finnish schools more successful than American public schools. If one of these did not occur, Finnish schools may have never prospered. American schools are not awful, but they could learn a thing or two from Finnish schools. Finnish schools are often criticised as being too easy on their students, but maybe that is just the problem with American schools. In America, students are given a heavy and exhausting academic load. American educators think this is the only way to create high performing students, but statistics show this is not the case (US Education Spending…). Although most Americans are afraid of big changes, it may be time for them to take a step back from their ethnocentric ways, and look at Finland and other countries education systems, to help revise their own.