I went to the Nordic Ball in Korea last week. I had a great time there, got to dress up in my full length gown and see my sister and her family. Most importantly I got to see my little nephews…..
They lived in Korea for almost 2 years now, the term is for 4 years. They were in Paris before moving to Korea, so it is a big change for them. Originally her husband is from Finland, so my nephews began their education in Helsinki.
Recently there was an article comparing the school system in England and in Finland.
Finnish children start comprehensive school at the age of seven- only for half days, while the English children start at around five years old – full day. In Finland, all basic education materials are free of charge for the children, they also have longer holidays than in the UK, including a 10-week break in the summer.
In the last international education league tables, produced by the OECD, Finland’s 15 year olds were judged to have the highest standards of literacy in the world.
Perhaps it’s time to stop pushing the chilren too young too hard and starts encourage the children to ‘enjoy’ learning and be ‘happy’ to go to school, to participate in a group learning system rather than competing among each other.
My nephews are naturally slower than other kids in the international school in Korea, but their parents are not pushing them hard to compete with their friends at school. They are bright kids, but most importantly kind and loving.
They play sports, they sing, they dance, they laugh. They know they will not be there more than 4 years and eventually they will go back to Finland. So what is the point of making their lives a nightmare??
