Report n°4 : by Stella, Emilien, Roxana

DON’T WORRY BE HAPPY

We have been enjoying the Finnish education system for a month now and we are able to say that the students have very good working conditions.

First of all, let's take the example of classrooms. Each one has high quality equipment. The music room contains 3 pianos, a drum set, many guitars, Ipads, microphones and many other instruments that would make any musician happy. The sports equipment is also very impressive, every week we do different sports, thanks to all the sports facilities available; there is a wide variety of sports on offer, from baseball to air yoga. The school also has rest rooms, very different from ours,  where there are sofas, armchairs, a microwave, a piano, a library and a pool table. Finally, the rooms in general are all equipped with video projectors and heating.In term of class used equipments, it was also observed that students regularly use their computers. This reduces the weight of their backpack and significantly reduces paper consumption.

The schedules are also reduced: classes start at 8:15 a.m. and end at 4:00 p.m., Monday to Friday. But every one makes his own. As for all this free time, they certainly do not use it to do their homework, simply because there are not many of them and they are never mandatory or verified. This allows students to do what they consider important to them, without being panicked when they are unable to do so. Indeed, what we were able to envy the Finnish students the most was the absence of stress and daily pressure.

What also surprised us was the fact that here, the students call their teachers by their first names, which creates a certain proximity between them and brings a more relaxed atmosphere in the classroom.

Also, the canteen is free for everyone. There never is any queue, perhaps because the school has only 300 students. In addition, the students all take the food by themselves : there is almost no waste, and everyone is free to eat as they want.

To conclude this report on the differences in work between the French and Finnish systems, let us talk about what seems to be the most important thing in France: the grades! Here, the grades don't seem to put much pressure on the students. Indeed, the final exam (equivalent to the baccalaureate) is the only concern they have. Students must choose the subjects they wish to study, their year being divided into 5 periods they have the possibility to change 5 times their timetable and subjects, but still with common subjects.

But even if the Finnish education system seems much easier and more relaxed than the French system, according to the performance rankings of school systems around the world, Finland is in the best place by reaching 5th place while France only gets a small 26th place. So why not take a closer look at these working methods? Students have the pleasure of learning, and can flourish in complete serenity and succeed very well.

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