"The real role of policy, I believe, is to create a climate in which innovation is possible and self-determination is encouraged"- Sir Ken Robinson
Educational policy is seldom defined with a singular definition. According to the Education Policy Wikipedia page, education policy is "the principles and government policy-making in educational sphere, as well as the collection of laws and rules that govern the operation of education systems." The laws and practices that go into a given education system are what make up its educational policies. These policies can range from broad to specific and have a direct impact on the lives of those effected. Our group chose to look at policies and systems of education form the US, Sweden and Finland. We looked into these countries and their policies regarding education and used our own judgement to determine whether or not we thought these policies would be transferrable anywhere. As we came to discover most policies cannot simply be transferred to another country but rather require a great deal of modification in order to be most effective. Policies can work if they are transferred but not without some modifications. Every country is different as is every system of education.
Early Childhood Education in the US.
In the United States, several states have government funded preschool education programs. These programs are designed to help better develop children’s minds before they reach elementary school level. Studies have shown that preschool helps children in the long term. Having a solid foundation in education is proven to extend the time that children stay in school which leads to lower dropout rates overall. Preschool can often be an extra expense for many families which is why New York City chose to fund its early childhood education through government grants. In an interview with NPR, Mayor Bill de Blasio has promised to make sure that these preschools are high quality saying, “We have certified teachers who are specialists in early childhood.” De Blasio continues on to discuss the importance of breaking socioeconomic boundaries and says that preschool could be one of the ways to do that. He sees this program as a way to provide all students across NYC with equal access to quality education from a young age. Providing these student with a strong foundational education will only help them in the long run. Mayor de Blasio also acknowledges that there has been some pushback from the program but says that it stems from parents who “hadn't thought about having their children in a classroom setting so early in their life.”
Overall we find the program in New York City to be expensive but worthwhile in the long run for these children. An early, positive experience in education helps keep students invested in their education for longer. Students who have better experience in schools from a younger age are more likely to have a positive outlook on education as a whole. “Some research suggests that positive impacts on cognitive development may be larger or more long lasting for low-income or at-risk children,” according to this Brookings Institute research brief.
Sweden has a population close to ten million people, 550,00 of which are children. Early childhood education in Sweden is considered schooling for those that fall between the ages of one and five years, and ninety seven percent of those children in Sweden are enrolled in some form of an early childhood education program. This, in large part, has to do with the fact that Sweden offers three free hours per day of free early childhood education services. This allows parents to have that time of 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. for their children to begin their educational endeavors free of charge. This not only saves them money but ensures that their children are being taken care of and getting ahead in their educations. Preschool, in Sweden, is financed by a combination of governmental and municipality subsidy and some family payment. The municipality is responsible for providing a place for each child at the latest four months after parents have asked for it. More information can be found here. Also, children in Sweden have the right to preschool even if their parents do not work. This means children are not discriminated against because it’s free of charge and the amount of money your parents make does not determine the quality of early childhood education that they receive. Additionally, Sweden offers various night preschool for those children that have parents that work nights.
Sweden’s policies for early childhood education, in our opinion, are extremely beneficial not only for the children being educated, but also for their parents. Nobody is discriminated against for how much money they make as a determinant for if their child can attend preschool. Also, the very best teachers are hired to care for and educate Sweden’s youngest generation ensuring the beginning of their education is a success. The successes in Sweden show that almost ninety nine percent of those that participate in their early childhood education programs go onto university and other forms of higher education.
In our discussion of the policy we felt that while this policy is ideal and extremely beneficial in countries like Sweden and the U.S. there are some places where this policy might not be as effective. For example in places that don’t have developed school systems, developing a government funded preschool program wouldn’t be beneficial to them. These children tend to grow up to work for the benefit of the family and community as a whole through farm work, domestic work, etc. Their children would benefit more from a general education system than one that works to develop a preschooling program. Additionally, these children are more beneficial to their families and participating in their family structure than their time in education. It is probably not necessary to spend money on early childhood education development in areas where children are just going to grow up to help the country exist and run smoothly, which tend to be underdeveloped countries.
Finland’s Education System.
The transformation of the Finland’s education system began about 40 years ago as the key propellent of the country’s economic recovery plan. Educators didn’t realize their successful until they first get the results from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), a standardized test given to 15-year-olds in more than 40 global venues, revealed Finnish youth to be the best young readers in the world. Three years later, they led in math. By 2006, Finland was first out of 57 countries (and a few cities) in science. However, a lot of the educators in Finland were still feel surprised about the results, they didn’t know that it would become this good.
Finland has vastly improved in reading, math and science literacy over the past decade in large part because its teachers are trusted to do whatever it takes to turn young lives around. Educators there always say, “This is what we do everyday, prepare kids for life” (Stuart Conway). Nowadays, in Finland, there are no mandated standardized tests except the one at the end of senior year in high school. Therefore, there’s no ranking, comparisons or competition between students, schools or regions. So that, learning pressure is not available in Finland. Since Finland’s schools are publicly funded, every Finnish child has the same chance to get same quality education no matter whether the child lives in a rural village or an urban city. According to the most recent survey by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the differences between weakest and strongest students in Finland are the smallest in the world. As Olli Luukkainen, president of Finland’s powerful teachers union said, “Equality is the most important word in Finnish education. All political parties on the right and left agree on this.” Equality is one of the most essential aspects that makes Finland’s education system so successful. This article from Smithsonian Magazine discusses the potential for the American Education system to utilize Finnish techniques. Teachers in Finland spend fewer hours at school each day and spend less time in classrooms than American teachers. Teachers use the extra time to build curriculums and assess their students. Children spend far more time playing outside, even in the depths of winter. Homework is minimal. Compulsory schooling does not begin until age 7. “Children learn better when they are ready. Why stress them out?”
Health Education in Finland.
Finland is also making great strides in other areas of education, such as health and physical education. About seven years ago, almost 1 in 5 five-year-olds in the Finnish city of Seinäjoki was overweight or obese. Not all schools and daycare centers were providing nutritious food and sufficient physical activity, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The country decided it was time to act. Since then, the country has implemented a nationwide health education curriculum that begins in the early stages of the children’s education. Incorporating some aspect of health in each daily lesson, starting in the Finnish equivalent of our American kindergarten, has children learning about relationships, healthy eating habits, and the importance of regular physical activity from an early age. These subjects are taught in the classroom, not just during P.E. class, which opens up a wider range of subject matter to be taught. These different topics have been carefully created to ensure each grade level is receiving wellness education that is age appropriate. Younger students are learning about friendships and the love of family. Middle-primary-aged students learn about dietary needs that are easy to understand, and are implemented in the schools’ cafeterias to help drive the concepts in a way the students can actually practice. Older students are learning about intimate relationships, decision-making skills, and the effects of drugs and alcohol. These Finnish schools are not shying away from uncomfortable topics, but rather are presenting them in a way that gives students the knowledge they need to make informed decisions in the real world.
Incongruently, the U.S., though steadily keeping national physical education standards, is continuing to cut these programs in order to focus on the “common core” as the importance of standardized testing soars in the eyes of our educational policy makers. Why should it matter? Even worse is the United States’ health education standardization. There still remains no constant health education standards within the state or nation, which is easily seen by simply talking to the students. After interviewing several peers from within New York State and from states such as California, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Ohio, and Vermont, I found not a single continuous curriculum. Each school district seemed to have taken it upon themselves to create their idea of a health education system—though still following the minimal standards that mirror each state’s viewpoint of the subject. Some students had gone through one year of health class in both middle and high school. Others had to endure an outdated, ludicrous video in gym class once a year. Still others only had one class for half a semester in high school. In all these situations, the curriculum is still insufficient. If anyone disagrees with this statement, let’s look at our nation’s statistics. Currently, 34% of men and 48% of women in adulthood in the United States don’t meet recommended amounts of activity, according to The Guardian. This could include simple activities such as walking briskly for 30 minutes or more five times a week, or exercising more vigorously for 20 minutes three times a week. Those percentages average out to close to half of our country’s population. It seems logical to assume that if the adults aren’t being active or eating what they should, they also aren’t teaching their children good physical habits, even if only by example (or lack thereof).
Why should we care about this lack of wellness? Inactivity accounted for over 2 million deaths in 2002 as stated by WHO. It is among the 10 leading causes of death and disability in the world. “Sedentary lifestyles and [poor diet] increase all causes of mortality; double the risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and obesity; and increase the risks of colon cancer, high blood pressure, osteoporosis, lipid disorders, depression and anxiety.” (WHO 2002) A baffling 60-85% of people globally lead sedentary lifestyles. If health and physical education programs were given more support and resources, it would help to increase the overall health and well-being of our country.
Going back to Finland’s attack on this global issue, after the country implemented their new health education reform, the proportion of five-year-olds who are overweight or obese has been halved. Though results did not appear overnight, the municipality’s health department has worked with the childcare, education, nutrition, recreation and urban planning departments to ensure all day care centers and schools provide the same quality of services—again showing the Finnish desire to create equality among its nation’s children. However, it took time for all the different departments to understand how each influences health and the role each must play to promote it. That’s how the U.S. will be able to have the same success rate. Though we believe that because each country is vastly different and therefore must use its own policies, by using a similar equation to that of Finland’s relatively new health education programs, we too can make our country a healthier one. But as Finland has shown us, it will take the work of many organizations, municipalities, and policy makers on the same page to bring about the desired result. And that will be the main struggle of bringing this particular policy to the U.S., for with our great size and distribution of power comes great debate and varying sentiments.
http://schools.nyc.gov/Academics/EarlyChildhood/support/PKAPQS.htm
http://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/18-states-awarded-new-preschool-development-grants-increase-access-high-quality-preschool-programs
http://www.centerforpubliceducation.org/Main-Menu/Pre-kindergarten/Pre-Kindergarten
http://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2015/09/08/438584249/new-york-city-mayor-goes-all-in-on-free-preschool
http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/Research/Files/Papers/2008/9/early-programs-isaacs/09_early_programs_brief1.PDF
http://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780199756810/obo-9780199756810-0081.xml
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/why-are-finlands-schools-successful-49859555/?no-ist=&no-cache=_page%3D1_page%3D5_page%3D4&page=1
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