Recipes for Systemic Change - Helsinki Design Lab

Opportunity SpaceFinland must transform its education system for the twenty-first century.Doing so is not only necessary, but it would place Finland in the leadamong nations in its ability to train and prepare its entire population to beeven more competitive in the global marketplace and within a changingworld.Education in Finland already has a proven record of success. Decadesof continuous reforms have resulted in universal literacy, top rankingsin international student achievement test scores, and a population withincreasingly higher levels of educational attainment. By law, education inFinland is free and accessible to everyone. Teachers are highly trained, fairlycompensated, and highly respected within society at large. And yet, not allstudents in Finland thrive in the existing system. A significant number ofstudents drop out of school year after year. Some never continue onto secondaryschool and others leave school before completing their degree orqualifications. Collectively, dropouts become symbols of failure, perceivedas social outcasts and a drain on the economy.Finland’s dropouts may actually be the catalyst for reform in education.Dropouts are a leading indicator that reveals the ultimate challengeand opportunity for education—how to become more relevant in the everchanging,diversifying world. For all the effort and money spent on earlyintervention, special education, and counselling, not all students’ learningneeds are sufficiently met. Simply put, the main concern is to expand thelearning environment to reach everyone, including those individuals wholearn best in different ways, in different environments, and with differentskills, interests or intelligences.Although current dropout rates are modest by international standards,Finland cannot afford to wait to see if this is an early indicator of a growingtrend. There is need for a genuine and fundamental shift because thelarger consequences for society are real. The current education system wasdeveloped for a young nation with a small and homogenous population. Itwas designed for the last structural transformation from an agricultural toindustrial economy in which traditional skills and conventional methodswere valued.144