Discovering the secrets of Finnish wellbeing and achievement.

Upon emerging from Helsinki airport, there was no ice, no snow. The temperature was a perfectly tolerable 10 degrees. And yet there was an undeniable sense that I was now on the other side of the planet. The fact is that the Nordic nations are about as geographically remote as possible from Sydney. If it were conceivable to drill a hole from Helsinki through the centre of the earth, it would emerge somewhere off the coast of New Zealand. That awareness did not reveal itself through architecture or street scenes, more so the moment I saw the city’s trees: pine, spruce and silver birch offer such a pronounced contrast to the eucalypts and fig trees of North Sydney. One of my first conversations served to reorient my compass further: I was assured that, yes, in Finland, it is not uncommon for diners to eat reindeer meat. Poor Rudolph.

But what brought me to Finland was not the quest for enlightenment about botany and dietary habits; rather, it was to observe the nation’s long-held reputation for having one of the most successful education systems in the world. I also wanted to explore “phenomenonbased learning”, an approach that breaks down subject-based compartmentalisation of knowledge and promotes a holistic approach through the lens of inquiry – in particular, to compare this approach to the transdisciplinary learning experiences we are designing at Wenona in alignment with our International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme (IBPYP). And the latter part of my travels would be devoted to flying visits to Scotland and Austria to gain insights into PYP courses and Mathematics teaching.

It’s Easier to Become a Doctor Than a Teacher in Finland

Finland has created one of the world’s most respected education systems for two simple reasons: its focus on teachers and its focus on students. The children start school at age seven (after preschool from ages three to six), and every child is included, regardless of ability. Education is public and free for all. There is a ”less is more” approach to schooling, emphasising stress-free environments, and the system continues to produce students who flourish and value education.

As for teachers, it was immediately evident that they are highly valued in Finnish society. University and vocational training is free for all in Finland, and the government pays for accommodation and living costs while Finns earn their degree. Only about 15% of those who apply are approved to study education - it is often easier to be accepted into studying medicine - and all teachers must have a Master’s degree.

Education in Finland is based on equality and trust: since the 1990s, there have been no school or teacher inspections. There are no standardised tests. Teachers use their autonomy to focus on the learning their students need and decide on how to achieve objectives, what resources to use and how they will assess. Initiatives include a tendency for teachers to progress through year levels with their classes: staying with the same grade for three years is customary. The Years 5 and 6 teachers I spoke to said they preferred this, as they had more time to really get to know their students and plan the best learning for them. Furthermore, teachers walk out the school gate at different times of the day, depending on when their class finishes.

When I met with Johanna Järvinen-Taubert, the Pedagogical Director of Learning Scoop and a teacher trainer and researcher with the University of Tampere, she explained that schools in Finland are “low hierarchy”, meaning that there is no need for large leadership teams to tell teachers what to do. Johanna outlined Finland’s philosophy simply, saying that the nation has two key resources: trees and people. “We choose to invest in our people.”

The Classroom is Everywhere

The cooperative learning environment extends beyond the school campus. There is a shared understanding that the city is part of the classroom. During my initial cultural tour of Helsinki, Leena, an educational advisor, pointed out various locations around town to demonstrate how highly the community valued education. We explored Oodi Central Library, which offers free public services, such as studios to record music, 3D printers, sewing machines, video gaming and virtual reality spaces. Many families were spending their Sundays utilising rooms of all sizes that could be reserved for meetings and classes. Children’s museums and other educational spaces around the city are also free and accessible throughout the week.

Part of my fellowship involved shadowing teachers at various Finnish schools to understand what happens in the classroom. It was interesting to discover that students start their day at different times, depending on the timetable, and often leave school between 12pm and 3pm. At any given time, only half the class might be present, allowing for more personalised learning. For every 45 minutes of learning, there is a mandated 15 minutes of playtime, following the understanding that exercise and social interaction promote a healthier classroom learning approach.

I began in Helsinki at the Ressun Comprehensive School, which runs an IB program and has its classes divided into native Finnish speakers and Finnish as a second language. Learner profile attributes were often slipped into instructions and conversations. For example, the students were encouraged to make “balanced choices” when in the cafeteria for lunch and “principled choices” when moving in the hallways. One child offered to speak to me in English about his work, and the teacher thanked him for being a “risk-taker”.

Other schools outside Helsinki that granted me access to their classrooms included Harjuniityn, Kauraslammen, and Friisilän. Each school I visited had an enjoyably relaxed environment: shoes came off at the entrance in favour of socks, scuffs, or leg warmers. The students are outside in any weather. Apparently, it is only deemed too cold when it gets to -20 degrees. Leaving the physical space of the classroom is the norm, with teachers planning experiences that take place throughout the town. The forest is also considered an educational space that is used all year round for a range of learning. A regular week includes a teacher letting the principal know that the class will spend a day in the forest later in the week. No excursion notes are required, just a reminder to bring wet-weather gear.

Exploring Phenomenon-based Learning

A key aspiration of my visit to Finland was to discover more about “phenomenon-based learning”, in which children face real-life problems and are asked to actively learn the knowledge and skills required to solve them. The forest excursions, which involved collecting mushrooms and blueberries to be used back in the classroom, provided plenty of problem-solving opportunities for the children.

However, one of the more interesting sessions came with the Year 4 class at the small Friisilän primary school in Espoo, a neighbouring city to Helsinki. The students start handicraft and woodcraft lessons in Year 1, and it is not long before they are handed control of sewing machines, irons, handsaws, and drills. I watched a group of students making magazine stands and enjoyed seeing the real-world mathematical skills being applied. Precise measurements and angles were important, all done independently, with the teacher only intervening when students sought help.

At the Kauraslammen school, about 200 kilometres north of Helsinki, I had an illuminating discussion with a teacher who had implemented a Little Entrepreneurs Program in his Year 4 class. The students were asked to propose an idea for a company and see it through from beginning to end over nine weeks. The program provided excellent scope to develop Approaches to Learning skills and made me reflect further on what our own students can achieve, given the opportunity.

An Inquiry Lens

With Wenona having recently embedded the IB PYP learning framework into its curriculum, it was important to immerse myself in that headspace during the final leg of my trip. One of the highlights of my fellowship was heading to Edinburgh to meet experienced IB educator Susan Powers, an avid fan of inquiry-based PYP teaching and learning. She has had stints in classrooms across six countries and regularly shares her endless knowledge and ideas online. In a productive discussion, we covered all things mathematics, including how to use the Key Concepts to create quality-differentiated standalone units, ensuring the teaching of fundamental numeracy skills. I came away from the meeting even more invigorated. I was keen to delve into her thoughts about Approaches to Learning, especially how to teach Research Skills in the early years. We also discussed a range of Thinking Routines for all ages, how to grow self-management skills to address accountability and the importance of self-reflection and peer feedback.

My next stop was the Vienna International School (VIS), an IB school with about 1,400 students aged three to 19 years. The VIS is affiliated with the United Nations (UN), with most students from UN or embassy families. In one class, I counted 20 nations represented in a cohort of 24. The school’s PYP coordinator Kate, is Australian and was an enthusiast of the IB model, which the VIS incorporated in the late 1990s. There was scope for me to observe several Maths classes, from Kindergarten, where they were learning about patterns, to a fabulous Year 3 lesson on perimeter being run by Mathematics Coordinator Carolyn. So much discussion, sharing of ideas, and debating of “what if”.

The following day, I completed the school’s Role of Mathematics course, working alongside teachers from IB schools in countries such as Germany, Sweden, Poland, and Cameroon. This allowed me to engage in professional dialogue with educators from established

PYP schools, discussing best practices for teaching mathematics through an inquiry lens. The course focused on how mathematics is addressed within and outside the context of the programme of inquiry, reflecting upon how learners construct and transfer meaning and then apply it with understanding. We explored how quickly students move from a conceptual to a procedural understanding, impacting the practical application of skills to different contexts. Students often demonstrate perceived competence in procedural mathematics, where they solve problems following a series of steps. We explored learning experiences that allowed a more significant focus on the comprehension of mathematical concepts, operations, relations, and language. It highlighted the importance of understanding why operations work as they do, not simply following steps to achieve an answer.

Bringing it Back

The focus of the Wenona Teaching Fellowship is very much on experiential learning. The premise is that teachers can then share what they have gleaned from their fellowship with our School community. My own experience was that I returned to Sydney with new knowledge, ideas, and reflections that will improve me as an educator and bring an extra dimension to what I can contribute to Wenona’s programs. The journey left me energised and open to fresh thinking about teaching, the opportunities for tweaking and modifying methods and the curriculum.

In Finland, I witnessed innovations that influenced successful student outcomes and explored what aspects of that system might lend themselves to enriching and extending known teaching and learning pedagogies at Wenona. And my European sojourn has given me greater confidence that the scope, sequences, and learning experiences we are designing as we implement a new Kindergarten to Year 2 Mathematics curriculum, will effectively promote the consolidation of conceptual learning and the practical application of skills.

Working closely with our Curriculum Coordinator, the Kindergarten to Year 2 team has scrutinised the new syllabus, keen to implement it in a way that is less about ticking boxes in an overcrowded curriculum and more about ensuring that our students have sufficient time to practise and apply skills. We evaluated our resources for their capacity to promote conceptual understanding and prompt the “big questions” required for students to problem-solve from multiple angles. We are also considering the role of oral language, as the comprehension of mathematical language plays a key role in its application. As Kindergarten to Year 2 teachers spend the year designing these experiences and reflecting upon them, we hope to share our learning with teachers of Years 3 to 6, who will implement the Mathematics curriculum for those year groups next year. There will be opportunities to draw upon the knowledge gained during my fellowship.

As I tell my students year after year, I love learning. I love the excitement of having a new goal to conquer and the feeling that the next learning adventure is at our fingertips. This is something that continues to impact my teaching, as I am always asking questions about what best practice looks like and experimenting with different strategies to achieve outcomes. Albert Einstein once said, “The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing.” My curiosity and endless questions took me to the other side of the planet and one answer did ring true: travel is one of the greatest investments you can make in yourself, especially as an educator. As our Principal Dr Briony Scott, has noted: “An adult who is always learning will raise young women who are always learning.” When that is the prevailing attitude and level of support, we have an environment where staff can strive to achieve Wenona’s goal of empowering young women to serve and shape their world.