Opportunities for Cooperation between Estonia and ... - Valitsus

Nordic universities operate joint centres in China and India. One or more
universities from Estonia and Finland and any companies or organizations
interested in the scheme could set up a foundation to operate an institute
of education e.g. in some Asian country. The institute could provide primary
education and offer opportunities for further training in Estonia and Finland.
Basic education is one of the corner stones of integration both in Estonia
and Finland, and in the European Union for that matter. Estonia and Finland
need to increase cooperation between education authorities and training and
research institutes in order to generate the best practices and new ideas for
basic education. Such cooperation could give pointers for the whole EU in the
joints efforts to develop basic education.
An important aspect of mutual integration is that basic education in Estonian
is available in Finland and basic education in Finnish available in Estonia. A
Finnish-speaking school, funded by Finland, has been operating in Tallinn for
years now. Instruction in Finnish is also available in Tartu. The Roihuvuori School
in Helsinki offers bilingual education up to the 6th grade and currently has 59
Estonian children enrolled there. Other primary schools in the Helsinki area
have nearly 1,000 Estonians. Demand for bilingual classes and special classes
with an Estonian language programme exists in Helsinki and the neighbouring
regions. Helsinki City seeks to develop bilingual education in Finnish and
Estonian both in terms of quality and quantity. The plan is to extend education
at the Latokartano Primary School to provide bilingual education throughout
the basic education period.
The availability of qualified labour with adequate schooling is vital for the
development of the Estonian and Finnish economies and societies. Close
monitoring is required to identify the new requirements arising from societal
and economic development. Estonia and Finland could join their forces to raise
the appreciation of vocational training in both countries.
Estonia and Finland should develop the education policies in a coordinated
manner in accordance with the global trends and the educational cooperation
in Europe.
Recommendations:
• Procedures should be put in place for Estonian and Finnish ministries of
education to harmonize the training objectives and the use of resources of
the two countries as well as to coordinate teaching programmes and the
investments made in education.
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