Finland is changing not just what children learn but how they learn (Picture: PA)

Finland has one of the best education systems in the world.

The prestigious PISA rankings place it among the world’s highest for maths, reading and science, and teachers flock to the country from all over the globe to learn from its success.

It may come as a surprise, therefore, that Finland is undergoing a radical overhaul in its education system, dropping ‘teaching by subject’ in favour of ‘teaching by phenomenon’.

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Cross-subject topics like the European Union will replace classes like English Literature (Picture: PA)

Traditional lessons such as English Literature will be replaced by more general topics like the European Union, which will include elements of economics and history, foreign languages and geography.



‘We really need a rethinking of education and a redesigning of our system, so it prepares our children for the future with the skills that are needed for today and tomorrow,’ Marjo Kyllonen, Helsinki’s education manager, told the Independent.

‘There are schools that are teaching in the old fashioned way which was of benefit in the beginnings of the 1900s – but the needs are not the same and we need something fit for the 21st century.’

But it’s not just what pupils will learn that’s changing. How they learn is also undergoing change. Teaching is becoming collaborative, with students solving problems together in small groups rather than sitting quietly in front of the teacher.

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Pupils will collaborate more, rather than sit passively in front of a teacher (Picture: Getty Images)

And Westminster will no doubt be watching Finland with interest. There has been growing criticism in the UK of our education system, with schools accused of being ‘exam factories’, rather than teaching communication skills or building character.

Despite some reservations among Finns, namely from teachers who have spent their lives dedicated to one specific subject, early data indicates the change is having benefits:

Pupil ‘outcomes’ (which have replaced pupil ‘standards’) have improved in the two years since the new teaching system was introduced in certain schools.

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