What Makes Finnish Kids So Smart?

[songeuse]

What Makes Finnish Kids So Smart?

Finland's teens score extraordinarily high on an international test. American educators are trying to figure out why.
By ELLEN GAMERMAN
February 29, 2008; Page W1

Helsinki, Finland

High-school students here rarely get more than a half-hour of homework a night. They have no school uniforms, no honor societies, no

Comments

[akuratnik]

Amen. I still remember studying in Russia where we had to stand up every time a teacher walked in or out of the room and not doing homework even once amounted to a call to the parents, talk with the director of the school, and a low grade for the semester. But in general we were given more freedom and it definitely worked. US public school education is way too crazy.

[songeuse]

OHH that reminds me of the horror stories my parents would tell me about their education in Syria when I complained that a teacher was mean, evil, etc. The teachers there had the right to hit you with a ruler or make you stand on one leg for an hour for not doing your hw :/ there was more, but i haven't heard them in years so they've faded out of my memory.

What part of Russia did you live in and for how long?

Mind if i add you?

[akuratnik]

Russia wasn't that bad, but it did demand a respect for your teachers and your work. The reason not doing homework was punished so severely was because everyone did theirs, it just never came to mind to NOT do it. Even our worst students would always do theirs. We didn't have any rulers or anything.

I was born in Moscow and lived there for the first 11 years of my life.

Add ahead, mind if I do likewise? :-P

[songeuse]

aaah that is so cool ! because i live in an area full of immigrants and diplomats' kids and my university reflects that, i feel so sheltered for not getting to travel as much as they did. consequently anyone who has lived abroad for any number of years is ten different levels of cool to me. i have been to syria a couple times but that was ages ago. anyhow, enough of my rants, glad to have you as an LJ friend :)

and i'm guessing akuratnik is russian then, eh ?

[songeuse]

Walaykum Alsalaam wa Rahmatullah wa Barakatuh (Hey, you've already got the greeting down ;)

Sure, no problem. I'm more active on the community board than I am here in my own LJ, but nice to meet you! As for the moderating, I am friends with happyhijabi who is one of the mods for the muslims community and she is pretty fast with approving posts, so it shouldn't take too long :)

Alright, take care!

[songeuse]

Salaam