Finnish Education System: How the Best Schools in the World Are Organized

When the Finnish school education system was recognized as the best according to the PISA test results, educators from around the world began to study the experience of their Finnish colleagues, trying to understand what their secret is. American teacher Timothy Walker, who worked as a teacher in a Helsinki school for two years, claims that the foundation of all Finnish students' achievements lies in a simple principle: the learning process must bring joy. A short school day, minimal homework and testing are only the external components of successful education. In his book, Walker explains how the Finnish education system is organized, why it is important to discuss grades with students, how providing students with choices and co-planning will help them become more independent, why an abundance of visual materials on the walls leads to lower academic performance, and why a teacher needs to play with children during breaks. He offers 33 strategies that can also be applied in our Russian schools.