My New Educational Hero - Finland

Congratulations Finland - you are leading the world in educational attainment and efficiency. 

Finland, with a population of 5.4 million (a million less that the state of Tennessee), spends about $10 billion annually on education.  That puts them among a group of 12 countries compared in an Infographic created by the Rossier School of Education at the University of Southern California.   The United States lays out $809.6 billion per year.  On a per student basis, The US spending tops the dozen countries with $7,743 compared to Finland’s fifth place $5,653 per student.  Yet, Finland has a 100% literacy rate and the highest rank for both math and science scores. The US is 10^th ranked in Math scores and 8^th in Science.

Take a look at the Infographic HERE.  The first thing that jumps out is the huge difference there is in spending by the United States compared to the other 11.  On a total spending basis, our annual output of $809.6 billion dwarfs the next country – Japan with $160.5 billion.  This reminds me so much of healthcare where the US spends much more than anyone else, yet our health outcomes, like those of education, are not so hot.

It is a complex issue to unravel the multiple failings of the United States in education.  One thing I do know, however -  I want to learn more about Finland’s education system.  They must be doing some things very well.

Thanks to Edudemic for leading me to the Rossier Infographic - How 12 Countries Spend Education Money (And If It Makes A Difference)

Rob Jenkins Weighs in On MOOCs - And He is Right

One of the best writers for the Chronicle of Higher Education is Rob Jenkins.  He really makes sense most all of the time.  Perhaps this is due in part to the fact that he is a an actual faculty member at a community college (Georgia Perimeter College).

In a recent article in the Chronicle titled Who Is Driving the Online Locomotive? Rob voices a healthy skepticism about the Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) phenomena.  I encourage you to read his entire column, but his summation is telling.  He warns that "the only way to slow it down is for enough of us to refuse to get on board and instead line the tracks, signaling 'proceed with caution' with all our might."

I know there are some good things that will develop from MOOCs, not the least of which is that it has spawned discussion about broader issues with learning and learning online.  However, I am personally concerned about

Used under Flickr Creative Commons

fundamental issues concerning educational quality, expectations, and outcome.  In addition, there is an element of control by mega-universities (or their consortia) and by corporate entities that rubs me the wrong way.  Finally, for the students at community, technical and junior colleges, we know that they typically do better with traditional classroom courses than online.  So why would we want to put them in a MOOC with 70,000 other students?

I am trying to keep an open mind on MOOCs.  In fact, I will be enrolling in a MOOC offered by Harvard next month.  I want to have that student perspective.

I am with Rob Jenkins - we need to proceed with caution.  Time will tell who is driving this train.