The policy perspective provides an overview of literature and country approaches in an area where there is presently limited comparative information on national and system-wide approaches. The insights presented will be of interest to many OECD countries and beyond, as they consider ways to monitor and assess the social emotional skills which are…

In recent decades, an essential global aim of the reforms of special education has been the promotion of inclusive education. This article discusses the implementation of reforms with a focus on tiered support systems in the context of Finnish comprehensive school education. Based on earlier literature, legislation, and administrative documents,…

The first two editions of "Finnish Lessons" described how a small Nordic nation built a school system that provided access to a world-class education for all of its young people. Now available in 30 languages, this Grawemeyer Award-winning book continues to influence education policies and school practices around the globe. In this…

This review aims to explore the effects of placing children with special needs in inclusive educational settings, compared with segregated placement on measures of academic achievement and psychosocial adjustment. A secondary aim is to explore how different child or setting characteristics (gender, age, type and severity of special need, part- or…

In 100 years as a nation-state, Finland has become the world's benchmark for quality in school education. Despite the fact that Finland is consistently top ranked by international performance measures, the country continues to rapidly change their curriculum and educational policies. This book documents these main curricula changes, telling the…

Finnish vocational education and training is competence-based and learner-oriented. A personal competence development plan is drawn up for each learner. It charts and recognises the skills previously acquired by the learner and outlines any further competences the learner needs and how they can be acquired in different learning environments.…

Aija Riniken, senior ministerial advisor, Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture, shares her perspective on the future of basic education. She writes that her perspective is mainly from Finland's point of view because she has worked on many different levels of education in Finland and has witnessed many changes throughout the years. Here…

Apprenticeships for adults are one of the policy solutions to the need for supporting adults willing to train, while broadening the skills base of the working population across Europe. According to Cedefop estimates, there are around 128 million adults with potential for upskilling or reskilling in the European Union (EU). EU Member States have…

The article starts with the serious question of why educational reforms do not lead to better learning. Although access to education has increased remarkably, the quality of education can be very low. The reality is that by 2030 there will be 800 million young people who do not have basic skills in reading and math. The answers will be sought from…

This report provides information on the structure of mainstream European education systems, from pre-primary to tertiary level for the 2020/21 school and academic year. It includes national schematic diagrams and a guide to reading the diagrams. It also contains a map visually showing the main organisational models of primary and lower secondary…

After reading about the successful Finnish education system, a group of American educators traveled to Finland on an 8-day study tour of three cities to observe several schools and talk with educators there. In this reflective paper, the author describes and analyzes certain aspects of Finnish education as compared with public education in the…

Finland continues to lead the world in the global Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) results (Ministry of Education and Culture, 2016). Much has been written about Finland's common basic curriculum for all (grades one to nine), however little has been shared regarding Finland's secondary vocational education programs. Finland has…

Concise, clear and comprehensive snapshots of vocational education and training systems in EU, Iceland and Norway: this is what the Cedefop Spotlight on VET series offers. Building on individual country Spotlights, this publication provides an overview of VET systems with their distinctive qualities, such as main accession and progression routes…

This report offers an initial overview of the available information regarding the circumstances, nature and outcomes of the education of schoolchildren during the first wave of COVID-19 lockdowns of March-April 2020. Its purpose is primarily descriptive: it presents information from high quality quantitative studies on the experience of learning…

This report provides information on the structure of mainstream European education systems, from pre-primary to tertiary level for the 2019/20 school and academic year. It includes national schematic diagrams and a guide to reading the diagrams. It also contains a map visually showing the main organisational models of primary and lower secondary…