(by Frederick Isseks)

In the most recent Program for International Student Assessment report, sponsored by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, Finland’s public schools were ranked number one out of all the nations of the world.

The Finnish education system is vastly different from ours. There is no national standardized testing, and teachers have a great deal of academic freedom.

Standardized tests are the instructional technology of choice for administrators of the top-down school systems now favored in the United States, including here in Middletown.

Standardized tests give educational decision making power to the test makers and data analysts, while they rob power from teachers and students. In Finland, the 117,500 member teachers union did not allow this to happen.

As our district structures our curriculum with more and more testing, it is good for us to remember that progressive education has a long and proud history in our country, beginning with John Dewey, who was once a member of the American Federation of Teachers.

American schools were built on the idea that children learn by taking an active role in their own education. It is a model in which teachers are trusted, respected, and encouraged to take chances, rather than insulted by constant administrative surveillance.

The idea is still very much alive in Finland. We should be talking about bringing it back to life here.