Reflection

It's been two weeks since we've returned from Finland. As I've reflected on our journey, the word that keeps coming to mind is "trust." 

In the United States, we don't trust our neighbors. We're suspicious. As a culture, we feel that we need weapons in our homes to protect ourselves, we believe that people are being lazy and mooching off of our tax dollars, we think that public servants aren't really earning their paychecks. These feelings are deeply embedded in our culture and have become part of our national psyche. 

As a politically involved person, I was aware of this distrustful nature and its corrosive effects on our country, however, I don't think I could truly understand this culture until I left it. 

In Finland, people generally trust each other. They trust that strangers have the best intentions. They enjoy, or at least don't seem to mind, interacting with people who do not speak Finnish or know their way around. They trust that people are doing their jobs or doing their best. People seem to strive to live up to this expectation of trustworthiness. Maybe we live down to an expectation of untrustworthiness? 

This trust manifested in many ways in our Finnish school visits. Students were trusted to do their best, to complete their assignments, and to behave appropriately. Teachers weren't always watching or even always in the same room. In my own teaching experience, it causes a mild panic when I need to use the restroom and can't find someone to watch my class for 3 minutes, but we saw Finnish elementary students left alone to complete assignments with no direct supervision while their teacher attended a meeting. Unsupervised students in the hallways and cafe were working and seemed to be on task. It is the learner's responsibility to learn, and most students seemed to take that responsibility seriously.

Teachers are trusted to do their jobs. When discussing the U.S. teacher evaluation system, Finnish education professionals seemed offended by the very idea of classroom observations. They say, "Doesn't your principal trust you?" Teachers in Finland are not observed or judged by their students' test scores. In fact, their students take very few standardized tests until late in Secondary school. Teachers have master's degrees and have graduated from highly competitive teacher education programs- they are trusted as professionals. 

Principals are trusted to lead the school and to establish school wide policies and priorities. The schools are trusted to work on behalf of the students and to help prepare good Finnish citizens. 

Parents are trusted to do their best for their children. 

Is this trust earned? I suppose not, but it is expected. When people have high expectations for you, you tend to want to live up to those expectations. 

This trust was shown outside of the school system when our group boarded a ferry to visit the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Suomenlinna. We purchased tickets at a computer kiosk and waited in the crowd to board. We held our tickets out, but no one checked. As we found our seats, we kept the tickets out, but still no one checked. Getting off the ferry, reboarding, and even disembarking later and still, no one checked. When I asked a Finnish person why they didn't check tickets on the ferry, they replied, "Well, why would you get on the ferry if you didn't have a ticket?" 

I feel that this journey has helped me take a step out of my comfort zone, and also out of a mental rut. So many of the things I find frustrating, both in life, in politics, in schools, were different in Finland. I felt safe walking down the street. I didn't feel that people were annoyed by my inability to speak the language. No one told me to go back where I came from or to learn Finnish. Things do not have to be this way. I don't want to forget how it felt to be welcomed with open arms, despite not knowing the language, not knowing the city, and being a picky eater. I don't want to forget that we can offer strangers kindness instead of suspicion. 

In less profound observations...

It is funny that some of the small details were the first things that I noticed were different in Finland. Stoplights go from red, to yellow, to green. I believe this was to help manual drivers get their cars in gear. "Americano" pizzas come with ham, pineapple, and blue cheese, a combination I have never seen at home. Also, pizzas are served uncut. Finnish restaurants like to put reindeer in just about everything. Finnish establishments do not have the same building codes and government rules that we have. The many spiral staircases, uneven steps, and street construction going on with pedestrians in close proximity made me appreciate that some things are slightly more predictable here. Finnish modern art is much more modern than our modern art. Finnish students are much like our students. Some were paying attention, some were there to socialize. Schools and teachers have the same mission and purpose that we have, although I think that our's has been clouded by high stakes testing, and that is to grow functional and responsible citizens.

My time in Finland, our welcoming guides, and our lovely travel companions all helped to make a once in a lifetime adventure. I will think back fondly on this trip and will be working to use the lessons I've learned about Finnish culture and education in my own life and classroom.