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| The school is in temporary buildings (complete with a circus tent) during a renovation. |
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Anne, our Finnish mama, invited us to attend the
Telakkakadun Koulu
comprehensive school (equivalent to a U.S. middle school) where she
teaches English, Swedish, and German. (Yes, our Finnish mama is good at
languages!) The night before the early morning pick-up, we put together a
short power-point presentation with some photos and maps highlighting
our life in the U.S.
--holidays (Christmas and Halloween), our houses,
hobbies, family, and life in Colorado and Ohio and Georgia, and food! Of
course you can never completely cover American life in a short 45
minute presentation,
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| Sweet Anne! |
especially considering the many regional and ethnic
cultures in the U.S., but we did our best to show them what life was
like for us with photos of American football and downhill skiing. At 7
a.m. Anne picked us up just as the sun began to rise and we drove about
45 minutes up north to a small little town called
Suolahti.
When we arrived we were warmly welcomed by the other teachers and our
day quickly began with both of us presenting to one class. The demeanor
of the first class was a glimpse into life in a Finnish classroom.
Through our American eyes, we would describe the students as shy and reserved...most of the students did not make eye contact (yet they
were intently listening) and when we asked for questions only a few
brave students took the challenge. (It was very different from your stereotypical American classroom.) Our first question of the day was
from a young man who was well spoken in the English language (and a
smart cookie), he asked a question about the U.S. debt. After Charlie
answered the question, I asked him, "Are you worried about the U.S.
debt?"
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| They even have an arts & crafts class. |
He said, very matter-of-fact, "No, that is your problem." We laughed. Yes, it
is but, Charlie explained that in this global society Finnish teenagers may even feel the impact (video games and movies will increase in
price.)
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| Everyone takes off their shoes before eating lunch. |
After our second classroom presentation, we split up and each of us presented in four other classes, separately. We even ate lunch in the
cafeteria with the students (after taking off our shoes...yes, everyone takes off their shoes before entering the cafeteria.) Imagine a freshly cooked lunch (no
processed foods) for all students, free of charge. Yep, this is life in a
social welfare country. When we got home we both fell asleep...being a
teacher is hard work (we owe hardy props to both of our parents and
Anne!) Reflecting on this experience, both of us agree that this was one of the best cultural experiences yet. We really got to see, feel, and experience what happens in the classroom where students score the highest on the international
OECD PISA exam.
--holidays (Christmas and Halloween), our houses,
hobbies, family, and life in Colorado and Ohio and Georgia, and food! Of
course you can never completely cover American life in a short 45
minute presentation, 
Through our American eyes, we would describe the students as shy and reserved...most of the students did not make eye contact (yet they
were intently listening) and when we asked for questions only a few
brave students took the challenge. (It was very different from your stereotypical American classroom.) Our first question of the day was
from a young man who was well spoken in the English language (and a
smart cookie), he asked a question about the U.S. debt. After Charlie
answered the question, I asked him, "Are you worried about the U.S.
debt?"
2 comments:
This would have been a great experience. It gave you a view of their education system with participating in it. Yes, teaching is not and easy job, no matter where a teacher teaches.
True that, mom, and that is exactly why I am not following in your footsteps. I was tired after "teaching" for 6 hours, I cannot imagine teaching for over 25 years. You are my hero!
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