Hva kan norsk skole lære av PISA-vinneren Finland?

• Main Author: Svein Østerud
• Format: Article
• Language: Danish
• Published: Cappelen Damm Akademisk NOASP 2016-05-01
• Series: Nordisk Tidsskrift for Pedagogikk og Kritikk
• Subjects: Test culture; competition; the Finnish paradox; glocalization; welfare state
• Online Access: https://pedagogikkogkritikk.no/index.php/ntpk/article/view/119/820

During the last two decades, we have seen an increasing globalization of the education sector, in particular expressed through the implementation of international tests organized by OECD. The use of international tests as a policy tool has been legitimized within international educational development for the purpose of measuring education quality. The normative power of high-stakes standardized testing can be understood as a global testing culture, particularly associated with the three-yearly Student Assessment (PISA) in reading, mathematics and science. The testing culture permeates all aspects of school life, creating an atmosphere of competition not only between schools, but also between countries. At the top of the ranking lists of the participating countries we find Finland; their students do slightly better than the students in Singapore and Canada. Paradoxically enough, the Finnish people busy themselves less with the PISA Assessments than people in many other countries, and have kept OECD's New Public Management-oriented reform proposals at a distance. The Finns have always stuck to their locally based school: the authorities have given the highly educated teachers confidence and professional autonomy. There is no doubt that we can learn from the Finnish school system, but not by imitating it. The success of the Finnish school is due to a complex interaction of several factors. Only to the extent that we acknowledge this, can we draw inspiration and guidance from Finnish education for our own school development.