The Global Search for Education: What Will Finland Do Next?
Jan14

The Global Search for Education: What Will Finland Do Next?

 “Finnish schools are fear-free places where children don’t need to worry about competition, failure or performance that in many countries are fueled by standardized testing.” — Pasi Sahlberg Photo courtesy of Elvi Rista.  Systematic pursuit of children’s wellbeing and happiness in secure environments takes precedence over measured academic achievements in Finnish schools, according to Pasi Sahlberg,...

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The Global Search for Education: Dreams
Dec08

The Global Search for Education: Dreams

    “I see schools as being a place for finding your talent, enriching yourself through being socially attached to one another, and building a healthy personality.” — Pasi Sahlberg  Finnish educator Pasi Sahlberg and Chancellor Stephen Spahn of the Dwight School in Manhattan have big dreams for education.  Sahlberg, the celebrated global reformer and author of newly released (and already in reprint) Finnish...

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The Global Search for Education: A Look at a Finnish School
Nov01

The Global Search for Education: A Look at a Finnish School

 Aurora School Principal Martti Hellström in the classroom with his pupils  If you thought you knew everything about the remarkable transformation of Finland’s schools from mediocre to one of the top performing school systems in the world, think again.  Native Finn Pasi Sahlberg (educator, researcher, advisor on global education reform,  and Director General of CIMO in Helsinki, Finland),  who has lived and closely studied...

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The Global Search for Education: More Focus on Finland
Jun01

The Global Search for Education: More Focus on Finland

 Finnish teachers talk with Harvard professor Tony Wagner in The Finland Phenomenon “The Finns had a crisis,” life-long educator, best-selling author, and Harvard professor Tony Wagner explains as we discuss his new film, The Finland Phenomenon, made with acclaimed documentary filmmaker, Bob Compton. “Their economy was failing. Their education system was poor. They knew that to grow their economy, they had to...

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The Global Search for Education: The Way Out of Poverty
May10

The Global Search for Education: The Way Out of Poverty

“We have to learn from our past because we must not forget and because we must be better.” So speaks the powerful voice of 84-year-old Kenyan, Kimani N’gan’ga Maruge, describing his unrelenting determination to get an education in a deeply moving new film by director Justin Chadwick (The Other Boleyn Girl) called The First Grader (U.S. release date: May 13, 2011). The film, a triumph of education, is based on...

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