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Continuing Professional Development of Teachers in Finland Yongjian Li
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To our family in China and Finland
Afterword:
Index
List of Figures
Fig. 1.1 Finland’s system of education, from the National Agency for Education 5
Fig. 1.2 Continua of Finnish education 8
Fig. 8.1 CPD organisation and funding 161
Table
List of Tables
1
Introduction: Contextualizing Teacher
Continuing Professional Development in the ‘Miracle’ of Finnish Education
Finland is known for its equal basic education. We are proud of it. Te centenary of the Finnish story is a narrative of a nation that, throughout its history, has expanded access to education and built equal opportunities.
(Finnish Minister of Education Sanni Grahn-Laasonen 28 February 2018)
– Now I want to live in Finland… – I should have gone to school in Finland.
– Te education system there is also brilliant, we have so much to learn from a society that places importance on equality and happiness.
– I am tired of hearing about the Finns.
(Comments on Finnish education found randomly online in 2017)
When the Greek hero Achilles, who was the bravest, handsomest and greatest warrior, was born, it was foretold that he would die young. His mother dipped him in a magic river that would ofer him invulnerability to counter the spell. However, she held Achilles by the heel, preventing it from being protected by the river. One day, he was killed by a poisonous arrow lodged in his heel. Today the expression “Achilles’ heel” refers to “an area of weakness, a vulnerable spot” (Oxford English Dictionary, 2016).
Y. Li and F. Dervin, Continuing Professional Development of Teachers in Finland, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-95795-1_1
Tis book examines the Achilles’ heel of one of the top performing countries in education, according to such world rankings as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) studies, the OECD Better Life Index Education, the Global Competitiveness Report 2016–2017 of the World Economic Reform, and the current doxa (commonsense ) on international and comparative education: Teacher Continuing Professional Development (CPD) in the small Nordic country of Finland (population: 5.4 million, 2017).
According to Olli Luukkainen, Director of the only Teachers’ Trade Union in Finland (Opetusalan Ammattijärjestö, OAJ), which represents over 120,000 teachers from early childhood teachers to university lecturers:
Our system of continuing education and professional development for teachers is not good enough. It difers too much from one part of the country to another and one group of teachers to another. Teachers in vocational schools, for example, have much better support for continuing education than do primary teachers. (OECD 2011: 126)
Te country has been revered worldwide for its ‘miraculous education’ (Niemi et al. 2012) and has become ‘mythical’ (Dervin 2013), being presented in somewhat simplistic ways. For example, this is how one company, attached to several Finnish universities and selling Finnish education to the world, talks about it:
All over the world, people are talking about “the Finnish phenomenon”. People wonder how Finland can consistently top international student performance rankings, while placing an unwavering focus on every child’s well-being.
Te Finnish education system is a diamond that has been carefully ground and polished for decades. It began with the zeal and determination of Finnish people to push themselves to succeed – a dream that generation after generation worked at until it came true.
One thing Finns realised is that success in education can only be achieved by working together and making the most of everyone’s resources. Tis is how an equal education system was created.
Te resounding success of Finnish education is evidenced by superb international results such as high PISA rankings.
Te wonders of this ‘diamond’ are often attributed to Finnish teachers, who are said to be the ‘best teachers in the world’—even if one cannot agree universally on what this actually means. In her answers to parliamentary questions to the Finnish government about education in early 2018, the Minister of Education put it this way:
We have the best, highly educated teachers in the world who are appreciated by society and who, compared to other countries, have an exceptionally broad pedagogic freedom. (…) Our teachers do an excellent job in schools.
As we shall see in this book, teachers’ CPD in the Nordic country is somewhat a victim of contradictory discourses amongst decision makers and practitioners. In many cases it appears to be a mystery and a problematic aspect of education, although it should be central to teacher preparation. While working on this study, we have had to do ‘detective work’ as information about CPD is scattered and often inconsistent in Finland.
Motivated by the mantra of ‘the best education system in the world’, hundreds of ‘pedagogical tourists’ have visited Finland in search of the ‘miracle of education’ (Niemi et al. 2012), especially in relation to Initial Teacher Education (ITT) at university, which lasts for 5 years, leading to a Master’s Degree. Overly positive discourses on ITT have led to the establishment of ‘Finnish education export’ to the world (Dervin 2013; Schatz 2016a).
Finland’s Miracle?
In international comparison, according to surveys by the World Health Organization, WHO, Finnish schoolchildren are not very enthusiastic about going to school (…). Salmela-Aro and her research team have found that many young people experience a lack of meaning concerning school and their own studies (Salmela-Aro 2017). According to their research, almost one half of schoolchildren do not see school as meaningful at the end of elementary school. (Huhtala and Vesalainen 2017: 60)
According to Egginger (2013) the current interest in Finnish education is not new if one looks back in history. As such, during the World Fairs of 1889/1900 Finland, which was then a Grand Duchy of Russia before its independence in 1917, was already presented as some sort of a ‘miracle’. A Finnish school had been set up in Paris with a teacher and Finnish pupils enacting reading activities for the audience (Egginger, ibid.). Finnish education was already said to be efcient, modern, and equalitarian at the time.
Tese ideas are still refected in Finland’s top position in many world rankings: Te Sustainable Society Index (2016), frst in human wellbeing; Te Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report (2015, World Economic Forum), safest country in the world; Te Global Gender Gap Index (2016, World Economic Forum), one of the most equal countries.
Te Fourth of December 2001 marked an important date for Finland. Tis is when the results of the frst Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) of the OECD were released. Finland came frst, which put the country on the world map for many years and earned the country the status of ‘educational utopia’. According to the ‘global ambassador’ and ‘guru’ of Finnish education, Pasi Sahlberg, who started working in Australia in 2018:
Tis [was] a very new situation for Finns. Ten years ago, before 2002, we were very rarely asked to go anywhere so now if somebody wants to hear stories from Finland we… you know I wanna go… because I also understand that this is not gonna last forever that at some point we will be taken over by somebody else then all these things will be nice memory. (Pasi Sahlberg, Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education, March 2012, our transcription)
Te triennial international survey, PISA, aims to evaluate education systems worldwide by testing the skills and knowledge of 15-year-old students in reading, mathematics and science at the end of basic education. Around 510,000 students from 65 countries participate in the assessment. PISA has managed to establish an increasingly strong and mediatised ‘comparative turn’ amongst educational systems around the world, where top systems attract attention and become models for others (Grek 2009).
According to the OECD (2013: 6) Finland is among the most equitable countries as far as PISA performance of 15-year-olds is concerned. System-level policies are said to assure equity for students. And the Nordic country has both a large percentage of top performers and a smaller-than-average proportion of low performers.
Finnish Basic education (see Fig. 1.1) includes nine years of compulsory schooling with a voluntary tenth year. Education is free, and textbooks and a daily meal are provided. Early intervention and individual
Fig. 1.1 Finland’s system of education, from the National Agency for Education
guidance and support are seen as keys to ensuring that no one is left behind. At upper secondary level, instruction and school lunches, as well as health care are provided free of charge, but students are required to obtain their own textbooks and they may also be charged for other learning materials. It is important to note that all families receive child beneft from public funds for each child aged under 16, which aims to cover specifc costs relating to raising children. Tis is provided regardless of parents’ income, which, in a sense, can lead to inequity (some families get even more capitals). In addition to such benefts, those receiving special needs education are also entitled to assistant services, other pupil welfare services and special aids (Sahlberg 2011).
Finland’s investment in education is similar to the OECD average, with 5.7% of Gross Domestic Product (OECD 2017). Basic and general upper secondary education institutions are funded by the state and local authorities. Municipalities receive funding according to the proportion of population (number of municipal residents aged between 6 and 15) and its socio-economic status. Municipalities decide how to distribute funding for education (OECD 2013: 16). In 2017 there were 311 municipalities in Finland. Sahlberg (2018: n.p.) insists on the diversity of municipalities and thus the multifacetedness of Finnish education:
Since each municipality has very diferent regulations, the autonomy of the corresponding schools varies greatly. For example, in some municipalities schools have the right to hire teachers, while in some teachers are recruited by the government. In some municipalities, principals can decide some minor bonuses they pay to teachers, and in some municipalities, the power to pay all wages comes from the government.
Terefore, there is a common misunderstanding when discussing Finnish education internationally. People think Finnish education system is unifed. However, in fact, education in Finland is very diverse, not the same everywhere. Tat is also why I often tell international colleagues that we should go out and see how diferent communities in diferent situations and with diferent needs in Finland.
Although Sahlberg ofers an interesting critique of discourses about Finnish education globally, it is important to note that, in a way, he might have contributed himself to presenting an image of Finnish
education, which is homogeneous—like many other experts of Finnish education. Te title of his most popular book, Finnish Lessons, and its contents add to the confusion (Itkonen et al. 2017).
Te most recent PISA results are from 2015. Finland’s performance was less impressive in the last study as the country ranked 13 for mathematical literacy amongst all the countries participating in PISA, 4th in reading literacy, 5th in scientifc literacy and 7th in collaborative problem-solving (total number of participating countries and economies: 73; OECD 2015). One of the reasons is that inequalities have increased. For example, boys and students with an immigrant background now have a higher risk of lower performance. Although the impact of socio-economic status on the risk of low performance is still lower than the OECD average, it has also increased (OECD 2015: 6).
What Finnish education fans and supranational organisations seem to miss is the fact that, like all other education systems, Finland witnesses contradictions and should be examined, according to Simola et al. (2017), through dynamics. In agreement with the scholars, one could say that the Finnish system of education is located on diferent continua, in terms of ideology, policy and pedagogy, that characterise it as politically shifting from one end to another:
– Brunila et al. (2017) note that Finnish education, like many other systems of education, has clearly shifted from a knowledge-based education to skills training, prefguring students’ role in the labour market.
– Simola et al. (2017) argue that Finnish education is witnessing a strong contradiction between “the social-democratic agrarian tradition of equality and the market-liberalist version of equity that emerged in Finland in the late 1980s”. While the former is based on the ideology of the similarity of students, regardless of their sociocultural background, the latter is clearly stating that students should be catered for according to their own capacities, needs and individuality (ibid.).
– Pedagogically, Simola et al. (2015) note that Finnish education represents a mix of traditional and progressive pedagogy (Fig. 1.2).
Regardless of these counter-narratives that have been presented in e.g. sociology of education and social justice and multicultural education,
the fow of ‘pedagogical tourists’ to Finland (especially from China and the USA) has not decreased, neither has the amount of requests from international media. Te promotion and export of Finnish education to certain parts of the world have been part of the current nation branding and commercial strategies (Schatz 2016b; Simpson and Dervin 2017). Tese derive directly from the PISA fame and have led to what we could refer to as ‘PISA hysteria’. Te reputation of Finland abroad has thus been very important over the last decade and conscious eforts have been made by decision-makers and some scholars to protect this reputation. However, as we shall see, very little, see nothing, is ever said about teachers’ CPD in Finland. We thus believe that it can represent an interesting and critical entry point into Finnish education.
The Broader Picture: Marketization, Branding and ‘PISA Hysteria’
For Cantwell and Kauppinen (2014: 3), it is important to understand the complex ways in which today’s education is integrated into local, national and global political economies, especially in higher
Fig. 1.2 Continua of Finnish education
education—a very important level of education when discussing Finnish (teacher) education and training. Tey write: “nearly all aspects of higher education (e.g., student recruitment and learning, governance, organizational administration and strategy, public policy, and the academic profession) are embedded in the political economy with links to the market, non-proft and non-governmental organisations, and the state” (ibid.). Te marketization of education is a reality in Finland and is imbricated, especially, in higher education despite claims that it is not (e.g. Sahlberg 2011). Over the last 10 years, since the semi-privatization of Finnish universities, there has been “a move from the public good knowledge/learning regime to the academic capitalist knowledge/learning regime” (Slaughter 2014: vii).
Teacher education being part of universities in Finland, has especially triggered many business-like ventures. Te economisation of Finnish higher education is evident today through e.g. an increase in activities related to education export (sale of made-to-order trainings, knowledge, services and consultancy to other countries, see Cai and Kivistö 2010); which represented about 100 million euros in 2013 (Team Finland, 2014), and 260 million euros in 2014 (cimo.f, 2017). A new Government Programme from 2017 has set a target to increase the turnover to 350 million euros by the end of 2018 (ibid.). According to the Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture (2010: 13), “Higher education institutions will be encouraged to be active and assume a major role as education export operators.” In 2018 Education Finland, a national education export program, was set up by the Finnish National Agency for Education (NAE) (educationfnland.f). It is described as follows (cimo.f, 2017):
Te Education Finland growth programme ofers companies, education and training providers and others involved in education export information about new business opportunities, develops know-how in education export, and promotes Finnish education and training abroad. Te programme also develops new support solutions together with other operators in education export. Te Finnish National Agency for Education is responsible for the implementation of the Education Finland growth programme. Te programme receives funding from the Ministry of Economic Afairs and Employment and the Ministry of Education and Culture.
Its main goal is to “ofer Finnish educational know-how and learning solutions globally” (from the website; motto: “Ready to learn? ”). An exhaustive list of Finnish companies and start-ups is included on the website. From a business perspective, and when we look at the companies represented on the website, one can wonder if a needs analysis has been made: what does the world need from Finland? As such one of the company is based on the famous Finnish cartoon characters Moomins (language education) and another one ofers 3D printing services. Can export of education rely on what appears to be scattered and somewhat random, basing its selling points on anecdotal white lies? Furthermore can one sell CPD abroad when the state of CPD in the country is said to be fragmented and inefective?
At an event in China in January 2018 where Finnish teachers were asked to ‘perform’ with Chinese children and present to Chinese specialists (event organised by an education export company), the following ‘selling’ ideas were shared about Finland:
All subject teachers have interdisciplinary teaching abilities (examples given: Te same teacher uses triangle irons, sand balls and sticks in music teaching; jigsaw puzzle and dice in math classes; and games with students in physical education).
Te key to Finnish education is according to one teacher: “Our education system is not built for the sake of winning in PISA. It is for Finland to win international competition in the future so that every child can have a high-quality education”.
Te following aspects are also mentioned about Finnish education:
(1) Education for all
(2) Development of a high level of teachers’ competence: Finland’s high social status of teachers, young people want to be teachers, there are strict pre-service training and teaching practice.
(3) Focus on students, students at the center
(4) Efective guidance and advice
(5) Encouraging Assessment and Evaluation: Tere is no standardized test and teachers have autonomy
(6) Flexibility and Trust: Trusted Principals, Trusted Teachers,1 Trusted Students and Parents.2
Finland is also the happiest country in the world.
Te rhetoric around trust will come back again and again in this book. For Sahlberg (2018: n.p.), one of the ‘gurus’ and promoters of Finnish education,
When it comes to trust, frst and foremost we need to understand that in a system, if parents or society themselves have high demands on their children’s well-being and behavior, this often means that you are not giving some freedom to the consequences that may arise. In Finland, trust is for us the full trust and freedom for our schools and teachers, believing that they can develop goals, teaching standards and content appropriate for their children. Te trust is instilled deeply in our culture; it is not a single behavior in a particular situation.
We shall see how this ‘rosy’ picture often hides many unspoken issues in relation to CPD, amongst others.
Institutions producing international league tables of school performance like the OECD—responsible for PISA studies—or the World Trade Organization, have played an important role in stimulating marketization and branding in Finland. Tey constitute what Spring (2015: 1) calls a ‘global education superstructure’ that “directly and indirectly infuences national school systems along with multinational education corporations and schools.” Tese also increase the infuence of
1One of our research participants, a teacher from primary school, shared the following anecdote. One of her colleagues asked her for exercises to be used to train the students for the past tense in French. When she asked her why she needed exercises about that when it was not even in the curriculum, the colleague explained that she wanted to teach it because teachers in the lower secondary school would blame her for being a bad teacher if the students did not know this tense.
2In her book School’s Fault, Korhonen (2018: 35) shows that parents’ trust is not always true (she is on schoolyard supervision duty): “I walk around the schoolyard, I remember the headmaster’s advice: remember to look like you’re doing something. Every year there are parents who have time to come and spy on you. If some students have a fght and you’re not there immediately, the headmaster will get a call from one of the parents complaining that the teachers are not doing their job.”
educational research conducted by economists and judging educational outcomes in economic terms (e.g. rankings).
Scott et al. (2015: 65) claim, for instance, that the OECD “simultaneously acts as a diagnostician, judge, and policy advisor” for member states and others. Tese superstructures tend to continue working from a methodological nationalistic approach which is nation-based and thus, (in-)directly contribute to some sort of neo-nationalism, especially when the best performers advertise or sell their education to others. However, Dale and Newman (2005) argues that we can no longer be apprehended as local entities separated from each other in our accelerated global world, especially in education where discourses and practices circulate.
Since the ‘PISA hysteria’ started in the 2000s, nicely marketable imaginaries about Finnish education have blossomed: Finland is one of the most equal countries in the world; Finnish people are hard-working and honest; Finnish children do not need to work hard at school even if they perform excellently in PISA studies; Finnish teachers are the best in the world, etc. (Dervin 2013; Sahlberg 2011). Decision makers’, country branders’, practitioners’ and even researchers’ voices from Finland have contributed to spreading this commonsense, supported by international media, politically engaged scholars and foreign politicians in need of inspiration. Te Finnish National Agency for Education (NAE) itself uses marketing language to describe what they are trying to achieve to foreign guests (e.g.: “Everyone can grow to his/her own potential. We have passion for learning!”). Tere is an interesting saying in Chinese that could explain well what consequences this has on how Finnish education is discussed around the world. It derives from a discussion between a minister and his ruler during the Warring States Period (475–221 BCE) about the presence of tigers on the streets. Te saying is 三 人成虎 (San Ren Cheng Hu ). Literally it means “three people become a tiger ”, in other words if three people say they have seen a tiger then it must be true (even if it may not be true). Figuratively the meaning is: If you repeat a lie often enough, it will be believed…
Critics of PISA have noted many methodological concerns about the conduct, analysis and interpretation of its results (Goldstein 2004). For instance, we have been personally very critical of interpretations such as the following, concerning Finnish pupils’ excellent results at reading:
Tis is due to both educational and socio-cultural reasons: teaching children to read in school is based on individual development and pace rather than standardised instruction and frequent testing; Finnish parents read a lot themselves and also to their children; books and newspapers are easily available through a dense library network; and children watch subtitled TV programmes from early on. (Sahlberg 2011: 25)
Although Sahlberg’s arguments include larger societal aspects such as TV and reading outside schools, it seems to us that too much emphasis is laid on the positive infuence of parents and teachers. We believe that looking into the specifcities of the Finnish language, which has regular spelling, compared to e.g. speakers of English, should retain our attention. While in Finnish every single letter is pronounced, English pronunciation is quite challenging as the way words are written rarely correspond to how they are read aloud. Take for example the words Leicestershire [‘lestəʃə(r) ] and Marimekko in Finnish. Ignoring this aspect can rhetorically serve the purpose of showing the ‘superiority’ of Finnish education and society (teachers are excellent, parents caring, etc.).
Another example for testing mathematical literacy is the use of calculators during PISA tests. While in e.g. Singapore the children are not allowed to use them, in Finland, they are very common—even for PISA tests.
So, do we compare ‘apples and pears’ through PISA? Should we use perspectives that look into broader ideological socio-economic-political contexts (hidden ‘truths’, ‘white lies’)? Should we also pay more attention to biased generalisations and consider alternative perspectives, especially from the ‘periphery’ (i.e. outside Europe and the US), to compare educational systems (see Li and Dervin 2018)? Isn’t there a need to be critical of ethnocentric, essentialist and exotic discourses about diferent systems of education? (Li and Dervin, ibid.).
For Biesta (2015: 350):
Te most visible way in which systems such as PISA are seductive is in that they seem to provide clear, unambiguous and easy to digest and to communicate information about the apparent quality of educational systems, particularly with regard to their ‘performance’.
Imaginaries about Finnish education, derived from ‘bad’ analyses based on PISA results, reports and books for general audiences (rather than ‘proper research’) published mostly in English or translated into local languages (e.g. Sahlberg’s book Finnish Lessons ), often construct Finland as a diferent place that has very little in common with other countries—especially in terms of education (Sahlberg 2011). Te insistence on dissimilarities makes the Nordic country both an ‘exotic’ and ‘better’ place. Trough our critical work, we have noticed an ‘allergy’ towards similarities between education systems of top performers and those who face many problems. It could be that, when the problems faced by Finland in education, which are similar to those experienced by other countries, are more transparently discussed, Finland ‘fans’ will try to fnd another place that can give them the illusion that ‘their’ problems can be solved.
In many descriptions of Finland, we are reminded of Psalmanazar’s (1704) imagined Taiwan in An Historical and Geographical Description of Formosa. Te mysterious author, who was actually French, had never been to Taiwan (Formosa as it used to be called), although he claimed to be the frst native of Taiwan to visit Europe. His descriptions of the place were made-up and surrealistic: people lived underground; aristocrats breakfasted on viper’s blood; students were fuent in ancient Greek; priests sacrifced thousands of infants to a horned god. Interestingly his stories impressed English audiences and he was even invited to give lectures at Oxford. Although the comparison will appear far-fetched, we often hear salaciously imagined ideas about Finland (especially from people who have never visited Finland—although those who went to the Nordic countries, are not immune to spreading these imaginaries): there are no social classes; pupils don’t get any homework; becoming a teacher is as prestigious as becoming a lawyer or a doctor. In a recent email to one of us, a teacher educator from another country asked us “how assessment is occurring in Finland now that you don’t have individual disciplines or subjects”. Tis puzzling message was most likely based on made-up stories from international media but also from some education exporters about the fact that the 2014–2016 Curriculum in Finland had banished school subjects and generalised interdisciplinarity in all schools. Tis is our reply:
Good question! However, we still have diferent disciplines and school subjects. Tere is this misconception around the world that we don’t… we do… we do…
Teachers should, in principle, do at least one interdisciplinary model per year (phenomenon-based learning) but it does not work… Teachers were not trained at all for this.
My advice about Finnish education is: Come see for yourself, go outside Helsinki and you will witness counter narratives… I can send you some of the articles we have written about Finnish education as “the emperor is naked”.
Te colleague replied briefy: “Tanks for taking the time to get back to me and also for the info.” Without any request for clarifcation or publications. We have faced many similar situations abroad: From a Dean of a Faculty of Education in Canada who did not want to hear about the ‘issues faced by Finnish educators’ because he wanted to ‘continue dreaming’, to a French educator, who did not speak a word of Finnish or Swedish, and got really upset when he heard counter-stories about the ‘wonders’ of Finnish education. Our assumptions are that myths about Finland are very handy to manipulate decision-makers (“the Finns do that, so it must be great”) or to remind e.g. teachers that they need to work harder or get further training (“because they are not as good as Finnish teachers”). We name this phenomenon “Finnish education as an alibi”.
But the Nordic country has also somewhat understood the value of advertising and selling its educational system. Adopting an ambiguous form of self-aggrandizement (see the recent use of the hashtag #BragForFinland used by many Finnish businessmen and public fgures), through which Finland is constructing itself as better than it is, those who sell implicitly or explicitly its education often lessen the value of other educational systems by othering them and representing them as ‘bad examples’ to follow (the case of China) or as being ruthless and even ‘primitive’ forms of education (Schatz et al. 2015). Falling into the traps of “apparent neutrality of description” (Holliday 2010) represents a danger for those who get compared to Finland. Chung’s (2015: 476) warning about comparing Finland’s education system with other systems argues for a diferent approach to comparison:
While I have argued thus far that Finland provides a good example of education policy, especially in terms of teacher education and political consensus, there is the underlying and tempting risk of viewing Finnish education uncritically, as a ‘silver bullet’ for all educational pitfalls and problems.
Tis leads us to the idea of nation branding, which, in the case of Finland, has clearly had an infuence on the phenomena described above, and has accompanied the ‘PISA hysteria’. Over the last 10 years this phenomenon has spread in certain felds of research in Finland— such as teacher education—and contributed to uncritical claims about Finnish education. Te concept of country branding was introduced by e.g. Aronczyk (2013) and Anholt (2009). Aronczyk defnes country branding as:
Using the tools, techniques and expertise of commercial branding is believed to help nations articulate a more coherent and cohesive identity, attract foreign capital, and maintain citizen loyalty. In short, the goal of nation branding is to make the nation matter in a world where borders and boundaries appear increasingly obsolete. (ibid.: 12)
In the document entitled Mission for Finland published in 2010, the Finnish authorities place education at the centre of the nation branding strategy. Te document also justifes the need for nation branding in the following terms:
1) Increasing the appreciation of the fruits of Finnish labor, that is, promoting the export of Finnish products and services, 2) Promoting international investments in Finland, 3) Promoting inbound tourism to Finland, 4) Promoting the international status of the Finnish State, 5) Promoting the appeal of Finland among international professionals, 6) Raising the national self-esteem of Finns. (2010: 23)
Interestingly nation branding represents, in a sense, a ‘renationalization’ of Finland, a new phase in defning Finnish people’s identity and appeal to the world through the forces of the market. Of course, Finland was not the frst nation to explicitly brand itself in 2010. As
a ‘smaller power’ in the world it needs to legitimize its very existence and nation branding represents a powerful way to do so (Lehti 2011), especially as Finland has had a good reputation in most international rankings.
Anholt’s Good Country Index placed Finland number 2 after Ireland (http://www.goodcountry.org/overall) in 2014. Te controversial idea of the Index is to measure what countries contribute to the common good of humanity and what it takes away. All these somewhat faulty international rankings are often used as a way to sell and promote Finnish (teacher) education to the rest of the world.
As asserted earlier, the Finnish government is actively committed to the marketing and export of its education brand and to reveal, use and maybe (?) misuse the ‘secrets of the world’s number one education in Finland’. As such, the marketization of education and nation building are not wrong (everybody is doing it!), but because the created images and discourses are somewhat unstable, they can be abused for political or economic purposes elsewhere, ignoring the changes of Finnish education itself and the problems met by Finnish educators as its position in PISA rankings declines.
For sure people will experience ‘aesthetic fatigue’ with Finnish education, which, in turn, will create resistance to the so-called ‘Finnish road’ and ‘Finnish secrets.’ As Finland will lose its PISA appeal, others will consider it worthless and turn to other countries (Estonia?), and fall into the same trap. Another saying from Chinese can help us summarize this issue: 色衰爱弛 (se shuai ai chi): afection loses with beauty withering away…
As researchers who want to learn about—or maybe from or with the experiences of top-performing countries, we also need to recognize a somewhat hidden, controversial and cruel fact: these ‘mysteries’ and ‘miracles’ generally come from regions that are said to be the ‘best’ (mostly Europe and the United States). News emerges everyday about how e.g. Egypt is reforming its educational system, inspired by the Finnish system of education; the same goes for Saudi Arabia. For these countries, Finland has quality education and they are looking for recipes and secrets—and their own secret is to open the ‘bag’ instantly to copy and apply Finland’s ‘good practices’. However, ‘the secret of someone else’s
home’ has its own context of development. Te process of replicating education success ‘at home’ is usually a process of collecting and removing practices and methods from their context.
In this book, and throughout our work we have argued that we must learn to think critically about our education and the other’s and, probably most importantly, we must learn with each other. By showing that the ‘Nirvana’ constructed around Finland is mythical in many cases, we hope that this book will stimulate more critical and refective discussions.
A Silenced Achilles’ Heel? CPD in Finland
Finnish teachers selected from top 10% of sec.(ondary) sch.(ool) Graduates / undertake 5 or 6 yrs of training (Masters level) / provided with continuous in-service training (…)
In a recent post online, an American educator listed the above as the most ‘amazing’ features of Finnish education, in comparison to American education. Only the second aspect is correct: All teachers are required to have a Master’s Degree—although there is a minority of teachers who are unqualifed and untenured, who often serve as substitute teachers. Te frst statement is based on a misunderstanding: only 10% of student candidates are selected from those who apply for teacher education at university, not of all the secondary school students from a given year. And as we shall see in this book, the third statement about continuous in-service training could be easily refuted.
For a period of six months in 2015 the Finnish Ministry of Education (MoE), and an organization, SITRA, that “promotes Finland’s competitiveness and the well-being of the Finnish people” (http://www.sitra.f/ en/well-being), set up a New Education Forum involving many specialists who came together to discuss the future of Finnish education. One of the participants, who was the Head of the Teacher Education Department at the University of Jyväskylä, said during one of the meetings:
We have long ridden the wave of Pisa hysteria, telling ourselves that our schools are good. And they are excellent – by yesterday’s standards. Our schools do not meet current or future needs. (Sitra 2015)
Te wave of PISA hysteria towards Finland, as asserted earlier, often relies on positive discourses about Finnish teachers, especially in relation to the 5-year initial teacher education they receive at Finnish universities.
In a decentralised approach, the Finnish Government defnes and sets educational priorities, while schools and day-care centres are principally maintained and supported by municipalities (local authorities), which have signifcant responsibility for organisation of education, funding, curriculum and hiring personnel (OECD 2013: 4). According to the Teachers’ Trade Union (2017), in average, Finnish basic education takes place with one teacher for 18 students in years 1–2, one for 20 in years 3 to 9—with a similar number for upper secondary education. Finnish teachers are known for having pedagogical autonomy to teach and assess students’ learning (OECD 2013: 4). Tis is often referred to as ‘teachers’ empowerment’ (Sahlberg 2017). One must bear in mind, however, that the vast majority of teachers use textbooks which can, in most cases, dictate the way and the things they teach. From a managerial point of view, we must remember that, if a given organization or a superior ‘empowers’ subordinates, it does not mean that the managers are completely separated from the management system. Te empowered people can take the initiative to carry out various activities, but someone needs to supervise the overall situation and the general direction things are taking in order to ensure that the overall goals of the organization are met. To our knowledge, there is no research on the perception of empowerment by teachers and decision-makers in Finland. In their 2015 article about the business context, Andrade et al. show that there are often diferences between employers’ and employees’ perceptions of such practices. Tere might be a need to look into similar issues in Finnish education.
In 2017, the Teachers’ Trade Union launched an Oath for Finnish teachers. Tis oath was inspired by the Hippocratic Oath taken by medical doctors, establishing principal medical ethics such as non-malefcence and confdentiality. Te Oath for Finnish teachers was named after John Amos Comenius, a Czech educational reformer, remembered for his innovations in methods of teaching. Te Comenius Oath reads as follows:
As a teacher I am engaged in educating the next generation, which is one of the most important human tasks. My aim in this will be to renew and pass on the existing reserve of human knowledge, culture and skills.
I undertake to act with justice and fairness in all that I do and to promote the development of my pupils and students, so that each individual may grow up as a complete human being in accordance with his or her aptitudes and talents.
I will also strive to assist parents, guardians and others responsible for working with children and young people in their educational functions.
I will not reveal information that is communicated to me confdentially, and I will respect the privacy of children and young people. I will also protect their physical and psychological inviolability.
I will endeavour to shield the children and young people in my care from political and economic exploitation and defend the rights of every individual to develop his or her own religious and political convictions.
I will make continuous eforts to maintain and develop my professional skills, committing myself to the common goals of my profession and to the support of my colleagues in their work.
I will act in the best interests of the community at large and strive to strengthen the esteem in which the teaching profession is held.
We should note at this stage that the oath is not contractual but serves as guidelines for teachers.
Te highlighted paragraph of the Oath is of central interest in this book as it concerns the “continuous eforts to maintain and develop my professional skills.” Tis has been contentious in the Finnish context and very few publications, documentaries or studies (international as well as local) enter into details about what we consider to be Achilles’ heel in the Finnish context. As such, while collecting the data for this volume, we have heard again and again that many Finnish teachers never receive CPD—except maybe half a day per year depending on the municipality they work in. We have also heard
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DESIGN XXVIII.
A HOUSE COSTING $3,000.
These plans were designed for a suburban cottage, having a cheerful outside appearance, and containing ample interior apartments conveniently arranged, with such modern improvements as are desirable for the use of an ordinary sized family.... E , (fig. 116.)—The general outlines are made up of simple parts, embracing features of pleasing variety and elegance. The foundation walls, showing four feet above ground, insure against moisture from the earth, and add to the superficial dimensions of the structure. Such high foundations for houses of this character afford a proper background for the grasses and shrubbery usually surrounding them. The irregularities of the principal building, the steep, dark-slated roofs, with their heavy projecting cornices, truncated or hooded gables, and enriched barge-boards, together with the stoops and bay-windows, are proportioned and arranged to assimilate with each other, and contribute to gracefulness and harmony C , (fig. 117.)—Hight, 7 feet. Seven good-sized windows admit an abundance of light, and afford thorough ventilation.... F S , (fig. 118.)—Hight of ceiling, 10½ feet. The rooms are unusually large, and arranged to be pleasant, comfortable, and convenient. The front entrance has large double doors. This hall contains the principal stairs, which are of “platform” construction. We prefer this form whenever the general plan allows it, as such stairs are much easier, less dangerous, and appear better than the usual long, straight flights. The hall connects with each principal room, obviating the too frequent necessity of passing through one room to reach another. The Parlor has a fire-place, adapted to either a grate or fire-place heater (we should prefer the latter in this case, supplied with heatingpipes for warming the chamber above,) and is provided with a marble mantle. A large bay-window admits sufficient light, and affords a pleasant outlook. The remaining sides of this room are
unbroken, leaving ample space for furniture, pictures, etc. The Dining, or living-room, is intended as the most agreeable and pleasant room in the house; it has a fire-place with hearth openings, adapted to a “low-down” grate, which is a good substitute for the old home-like fire-place, and affords an opportunity for a generous and cheerful fire, and insures the most perfect ventilation. The ashes from these hearth fires fall into the ash-pit below them, thus obviating the necessity and dust of their daily removal. A marble mantle with a large hearth, one bay and three plain windows, and a closet, are provided for this room. The windows afford plentiful light, and views from front, side, and rear, thus assuring a home-like, cheerful apartment. The Kitchen is pleasantly situated, has four windows for light and ventilation, and is planned with especial regard for convenience. It is in proximity with the principal hall, rear entry, and cellar stairway, has a large pantry, and two closets, and contains a large fire-place, with a range, boiler, sink, and wash-tubs having pipe attachments for hot and cold water. The dimensions of the fire-place are 2 feet 10 inches wide, 5 feet 6½ inches high, and 1 foot 9 inches deep, with a hearth-stone 2 feet wide, and 4 feet long. The range is fitted into the fire-place, and has a water-back, elevated oven, and warm-closet, and is connected by pipes with the boiler. The dumbwaiter, shown on the plan at the right of the fire-place, is intended as a “coal-lift,” which will save many steps and much hard labor running for coal. This is simply a box, holding three bushels (twelve scuttles), constructed of 1¼-inch floor planks, with wood runners 3 feet long, on two opposite sides, conforming to grooves made in stationary planking in the cellar, and is suspended by weights, with strong ropes, passing over pulleys fastened to the underside of the floorbeams. The upper portions of this closet may be fitted with shelving and hooks, as desired. The large Kitchen Pantry, thoroughly shelved, is in the “addition” that adjoins the kitchen, and is built in combination with the rear stoop. The entry, conveniently situated, communicates between the kitchen and dining-room, and with the back stoop through the rear door.... S S , (fig. 119.)—Hight of ceiling, 9 feet. This story is divided in the simplest manner, has a hall, three large chambers, with closets for each, and a bath-room, all with sufficient windows for light and ventilation. Each principal chamber
has an open fire-place, adapted to grates. Chimneys, centrally situated, radiate most of their heat into the rooms, thus saving fuel. The Bath-room has a French bath-tub, with cold and hot water, and a seat-closet. The stairway to the attic story is ceiled in over the principal stairs, with a door at the foot. The Attic has three apartments, two intended to be plastered and finished as chambers; the third, or larger one, is unfinished for an open garret.... G C .—The excavations are 2½ feet deep, and the loose earth is graded around the building at completion, leaving 4 feet of the foundation exposed to sight. The foundation-walls are built as described for Design XXXII. The sub-sills of the windows, and the steps and coping of the area, are of blue-stone. The chimneys being near the center, are not connected with the foundation walls. The rear one is constructed in box form, below the first floor, as a receptacle for ashes, and has a small iron door near the bottom for removing the ashes. The principal frame-work is of sound pine or spruce timber, of the sizes mentioned in the estimate below. When practicable, we would use pine timber for all sills and posts, as the least liable to decay, and spruce for the girts and beams, on account of its quality for stiffness. The siding is of two thicknesses of boarding, as described for Design XXXII. The principal roof is constructed at the angles of 45°, securing valuable space for attic rooms, and is covered with dark slate laid on hemlock, with tarred paper between. The roofs of the stoops and bay-windows, and all gutters and valleys, are of IC. charcoal tin, laid on hemlock boards. The method of constructing the cornice, gutters, and barge boards of the principal roof, is shown in detail in fig. 120. A, rafter of 3 × 4; B, plate of 4 × 6, placed 14 inches above the attic floor; C, post of 4 × 7 timber; D, gutter, having no abrupt angles to bother the tinsmith, or impair his work, but is of circular form, and stayed with 2-inch furring lath, on which the tin is smoothly and easily laid. E, bracket constructed of 2 × 4, with simple scroll, sawed from 4 × 6 timber. F, crown moulding of 1¼ × 3¼, worked solid; G, barge-board with the crown-moulding attached; this closes the ends of the gutters to the hight of the dotted line at D. The stairs, interior trimmings, and the general painting, are intended to be similar to those described for Design XVII. In the estimate appended will be found a full schedule
of the materials required to construct, and fully develope a house by these plans. The quantities given may be relied on as correct, and their cost is compiled from the prices now ruling in this vicinity.— E :
69 yards excavation, at 20c. per yard. $13.80
18,500 brick, furnished and laid, at $12 per M. 222.00
53 ft. stone steps, and coping, at 30c. per ft. 15.90
841 yards plastering, complete, at 28c. per yard. 235.48
250 yards stucco cornices, at 25c. per yard.
4,903 ft. timber, at $15 per M.
2 sills, 4 × 8 in. 30 ft. long.
2 sills, 4 × 8 in. 22 ft. long.
3 sills, 4 × 8 in. 18 ft. long.
8 posts, 4 × 7 in. 22 ft. long. Ties, 4 × 6 in. 302 ft. long. Plate, 4 × 6 in. 151 ft. long.
75 beams, 3 × 8 in. 18 ft. long.
54 rafters, 3 × 4 in. 13 ft. long.
500 wall-strips, 2 × 4 in. 13 ft. at 11c. each. 55.00
320 sheathing, 9½ in., at 25c. each. 80.00
170 lbs. tarred paper, at 3c. per lb. 5.10
320 siding-boards, 9½-inch, at 28c. each. 89.60
Materials in outside dressing and cornices. 80.00
161 hemlock boards, principal roof, 10 in., at 16c. each. 25.76
22 doors, with base and trimming, complete, at $10 each. 220.00
2 marble mantles and 3 shelves, complete. 68.00 1 range, with elevated oven and warm closet, complete. 80.00 Plumbing and gas pipes, complete. 175.00 Coal-lift and shelving, complete. 25.00
2 rooms in attic, finished, complete. 60.00 Nails, $20; bells and speaking-tubes, complete, $15. 35.00 Painting, $240; cartage, $40.
Carpenter’s labor, not included above.
Should it be desirable to reduce the cost of building by this plan, it may be done without changing the principal outlines or arrangements, by the following deductions and omissions, viz.:
Foundations reduced in hight from 7 ft. to 6½ ft. $20.00
5 cellar windows, instead of 7. 12.00
Inclosing with single thickness siding. 80.00 Roof of shingles, instead of slate.
4 plain windows, instead of the 2 bays.
and gas-pipes. 175.00 Omit coal-lift, bells, and tubes. 30.00 Total reductions. 649.50 Making the cost $2,350.50
116. .
Fig.
117
Fig
Fig
119. .
Fig.
Fig. 120. , , - .
DESIGN XXIX.
A HOUSE COSTING $3,100.
These plans were designed for a summer residence near Toms River, N. J. They are especially adapted to situations where the more pleasant views are to the rear, making it desirable to have the principal rooms on that side of the house.... E , (fig. 121.)— The Swiss-like style is due to its bold roofs, wide projections, and rustic details of finish, there being no attempt at architectural display.... F S , (fig. 122.)—The Hall, which is unusually large, is entered from the front porch through double doors, contains the main stairs, and communicates with the library, parlor, diningroom, and a passage leading to the kitchen. A Closet is finished under the stairs opening from the passage. The Library is nearly square, with openings in the center of each of its four sides, and is divided from the parlor by large folding-doors. The Parlor is of good dimensions, has large windows opening to the floor, and leading to the piazza. The Piazza is 12 feet wide, affording shade and ample protection from storms, and may be used in pleasant weather to enlarge the capacity of the parlor. The Dining-room is entered from the main hall, and communicates through the pantry with the kitchen. The Kitchen has windows front and rear, giving a good circulation of air, and is furnished with a range, boiler, sink, and pump, connected with the necessary piping, with supply from the cistern. Private stairways lead to the second story, and to the cellar; the necessary pantries are provided. The one-story Addition is divided into three parts, making a work-room or shed, inclosing the well, a servant’s bed-room, and a store-pantry.... S S , (fig. 123.)—This story contains a hall, five good-sized chambers, seven closets, and a bath-room. The hall has nine doors leading to the several apartments, two stair landings, and a window, while it occupies but little space. The Bath-room has a bath-tub, seat-closet, and pipes for cold and hot water.... A , (fig. 124.)—A hall and two chambers are
finished in this story The stairs leading to it are inclosed, and have a door at the foot. The hall is lighted by a dormer window in one end. At the opposite end a door leads to the space under the wing-roof, where the tank is placed, immediately above the bath-room.... C .—The hight of the cellar is 6½ feet, of the first story 10½ feet, of the second story 8 feet, of the attic 7 feet. The foundations are of brick-work, and show two feet above the final grades. The chimneys are of brick-work, and have six open fireplaces, with hearths to each, adapted to the use of either wood or coal fuel. The plastering is “hard-finish” on two coats of brown mortar. Stucco cornices and centers, of simple design, are put in the first story of the main house. Marble shelves with stucco trusssupports are put above each fire-place. A well and cistern are included in the estimate. The depth of the former is put at 30 feet, as the average. To avoid the danger of the caving in of the sides while digging, it is best to make the excavation 4½ ft. square (not circular, as is usually really done.) Rough planks, 4½ feet long, with their ends notched half way across, are slid in to lock with each other closely against the banks, as the excavation proceeds, making this part of the work perfectly safe in any kind of earth. The depth of the well should be sufficient to secure at least four feet of spring water. Of course it would be impracticable to lay the brick-work under water that depth, and therefore a circular curb 3 feet 3 inches in diameter, and 6 feet long (inside measure) must be made of ordinary boards, with an interior 4-inch timber rim at the bottom, and let down into the well as soon as water is reached. The rim forms the foundation of the brick-work. After laying a few courses around, say to the hight of one or two feet, their added weight will force them (curb and all) downwards under the water as fast as the depth is increased. The clear inside diameter, when finished, is 2 feet 10 inches; the top courses of brick, to the depth of 3 feet, should be laid in cement mortar; all others laid “dry.” The Cistern is constructed entirely of brick and cement mortar, in the earth; 7 feet across, and 8 feet deep in the clear. The frame of the house is of spruce timber, siding of clear pine, beveled clapboards, laid on sheathing-felt. Roofing of cedar shingles, laid “three thick” on spruce lath. The cornices have projections of two inches for each foot of their hight from the ground,
which is appropriate for buildings of this character, and is double that of the usual styles. These projections are ceiled underneath with tongued and grooved boards, and bracketed with chamfered timber trusses. Openings are made through the gable cornices to allow for the escape of heated air from under the roof. The flooring is of 9-inch tongued and grooved spruce plank. All windows above the cellar have 1½-inch sash, and outside blinds. Doors are panelled and moulded. The inside trimmings are quite plain, single moulded, with bold members. The upper frame-work of the piazza is left exposed on the underside, and is neatly dressed and chamfered. The firststory stairs are strongly constructed of pine, with newel, rail, and balusters of black walnut.
E of materials and labor:
93 yards excavation, at 20c. per yard. $18.60
30 ft. digging well, at $1 per ft. 30.00
19,000 bricks (cellar foundation, chimneys, cistern, and well,) furnished and laid, at $12 per M.
4 barrels cement, at $2.50 per barrel.
1,200 yards plastering, at 28c. per yard.
5,974 ft. of timber, at $15 per M. 89.61
1 girt, 4 × 8 in. 32 ft. long.
8 posts, 4 × 7 in. 20 ft. long.
45 beams, 2 × 8 in. 12 ft. long.
30 beams, 2 × 8 in. 17 ft. long.
35 beams, 2 × 8 in. 11 ft. long.
1 sill, 4 × 8 in. 313 ft. long.
1 plate, 4 × 6 in. 313 ft. long.
61 beams, 2 × 8 in. 20 ft. long.
20 beams, 2 × 8 in. 13 ft. long.
2 girts, 4 × 6 in. 30 ft. long.
700 wall-strips, at 11c. each. 77.00
500 clapboards, at 14c. each. 70.00
350 shingling-lath, at 6c., $21; 9,650 shingles, at 2c., $193. 214.00
150 ft. gutters, valleys, and leaders, at 10c. per ft. 15.00
1,500 ft. dressed lumber in cornices, at 4c. 60.00
513 flooring, at 27c., $138.51; 30 windows, at $12, $360. 498.51
250 lbs. felt, at 5c., $12.50; 35 doors, at $10, $350. 362.50
5 marble shelves, at $6, $30; stairs, $100. 130.00
These designs represent a farm-house having an air of substantial comfort and refinement, and affording ample space and convenience for a large family.... E , (fig. 125.)—This style admits of the simplest and most economical finish, is susceptible of almost any degree of irregularity, and is therefore suitable for the greater number of rural buildings. The indestructible covering of the sidewalls and roofs has the merit and appearance of permanency.... C , (fig. 126.)—The central division is 7 feet high, has five windows, and outside door, and a stairway leading up to the kitchen. The girders under the first floor beams are supported on large posts, standing on firmly-imbedded flat stones.... F S , (fig. 127.)— Hight of the ceilings, 11 feet in main house, and 9 feet in the onestory wings at the side and rear. The parlor, sitting-rooms, kitchen, and front hall, are in the main house. The rear wing contains a summer kitchen, bath-room, and a large kitchen pantry. The side wing is divided into a bed-room, clothes-press, and pantry. The Parlor, Sitting-room, and Bed-room face the front. The Kitchen is the largest apartment, and is arranged to be used as the Living-room. It has windows in each end, an outside door leading to a pleasant veranda, is in direct communication with the front hall, sitting-room, summer kitchen, two pantries, and the cellar stairs. The Summer Kitchen, intended to relieve the larger room of the heavier work, is furnished with a range, boiler, sink, pump, and wash-tubs, and has an outside door. The Bath-room is situated at the side of the summer kitchen, and contains a bath-tub and a seat-closet. A tank 3 × 3 × 6 feet, is placed between the ceiling and roof of this wing, and arranged to receive rain-water from the main roof. A force-pump is set near the iron sink, and arranged to supply water from the cistern
to the tank, when the rain supply is exhausted. It will be observed that all the plumbing apparatus is placed in close proximity, thus insuring economy in the cost of their introduction, and also that their location prevents any serious injury that might arise from a chance bursting, or through carelessness. No windows are shown at the rear of the summer kitchen, or bath-room, this space being reserved for any additions that may be desired for fuel, etc.... S S , (fig. 128.)—Hight of ceilings, 9 feet. There are five chambers, a hall, and two closets in this story. Each chamber is of good dimensions, well lighted (twelve windows in this story,) and may be warmed if required, either by stoves placed in them or through pipes inserted in the flues for the introduction of hot air from heaters in the first story, as described for Design XXXII.... A .—A flight of stairs, located above those of the first story, and inclosed with narrow ceiling, with a door at the foot, leads to the garret or attic. This story is thoroughly timbered and floored, but otherwise unfinished.... C . The foundation walls are of broken stone, laid in good mortar, 18 inches thick, and show 2 feet above the final grade of the surrounding earth. The materials of the frame are indicated in the estimate below, and are framed together, and raised in the usual manner, except that the sills are placed 4 inches back from the face of the foundation, to provide a footing for the water-table and brick inclosing. The inside of the exterior frame is roughly ceiled around with hemlock boards, which are thoroughly nailed to the studding, bringing them “into line,” and making them firm. The method of inclosing the sides of the building is shown in fig. 129. A is the foundation; B the water-table; C the brick wall; D, inside boarding; E, E, E, timber of the frame. The water-table, of dressed stone, is laid on the foundation in cement mortar. The brick are laid in “stretchers,” in good lime and sand-mortar, with close joints. Anchor nails (fig. 130) are driven in each stud in contact with the upper surfaces of every fifth course of brick, as shown in the sketch. The window sills are of smoothly dressed stone, set in the regular manner The window and door frames are made as for 8-inch brick-work. The heads are arched over with brick projecting half an inch beyond the face of the walls, forming a coping to the windows. The anchor nails are made of ordinary galvanized ⅛-inch fence-wire; 6 inches long is
required for each nail, 1 inch of both ends being bent at a right angle, and one end is flattened to be easily driven into the studding, and the opposite end is imbedded in the joints of the brick-work. These nails are best applied by a carpenter employed to accompany the masons in their work. This mode of building exterior walls may be new to many persons, but it has been demonstrated and proved to be thoroughly practical, and for many reasons preferable to the usual “solid brick” wall; it is less expensive, does not retain moisture, requires no “furring off,” or “filling in,” and attachments of cornices, stoops, or balconies, are easily made to connect with the inside frame work.... The main and wing roofs are covered with dark 8 × 16-inch slate, laid 7 inches to the weather. Mason’s lath are put on the inside boarding in a vertical manner, 16 inches apart, and the interior of the two full stories is lathed, plastered, and otherwise fully completed.
E C :
31,000 brick furnished and laid, at $12 per M. 372.00 925 yards
6,707 ft. timber, at $15 per M. 100.60 Sills 4 × 8 in. 252 ft. long. Plates, 4 × 6 in. 252 ft. long. Ties, 4 × 6 in. 324 ft. long. Girders, 4 × 8 in. 46 ft. long. 10 posts, 4 × 7 in. 23 ft. long. 70 beams, 3 × 8 in. 22 ft. long. 21 beams, 3 × 8 in. 15 ft. long. 8 beams, 3 × 8 in. 13 ft. long.
1 piazza, 3 × 7 in. 122 ft. long. 1 piazza, 3 × 5 in. 70 ft. long.
100 joist, 3 × 4 in. 13 ft. long, at 16c. each. 16.00
400 wall-strips, at 11c. each. 44.00
600 hemlock boards, for sheathing and roofing, at 16c. each. 96.00
Cornice materials, $70; 21 squares slate, at $9, $189. 259.00
436 ft. tinning, gutters, and leaders, at 8c. per ft. 34.88
500 flooring, 9-inch spruce, at 26c. each. 130.00
Stairs, complete, $90; piazzas, $130. 220.00
5 cellar windows, complete, at $6 each. 30.00
33 windows, above cellar, complete, at $10. 330.00
25 doors, at $10, $250; range and plumbing, $250. 500.00
