Teach Like Finland: 33 Simple Strategies for Joyful Classrooms

by Timothy D. Walker, Pasi Sahlberg (Foreword by)

Overview

The best-selling book of easy-to-implement classroom lessons from the world’s premier educational system—now available in paperback.

Finland shocked the world when its fifteen-year-olds scored highest on the first Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), a set of tests evaluating critical-thinking skills in math, science, and reading. That was in 2001; even today, this tiny Nordic nation continues to amaze. How does Finnish education—with short school days, light homework loads, and little standardized testing—produce students who match the PISA scores of other nations with more traditional “work ethic” standards?

When Timothy Walker started teaching fifth graders at a Helsinki public school, he began a search for the secrets behind the successes of Finland’s education system. Highlighting specific strategies that support joyful K–12 classrooms and can be integrated with U.S. educational standards, this book, available in paperback for the first time, gathers what he learned and shows how any teacher can implement many of Finland's best practices. A new foreword by the author addresses the urgent questions of teaching, and living, in these pandemic times.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781324001263
Publisher:	Norton, W. W. & Company, Inc.
Publication date:	04/18/2017
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	570,032
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

Timothy D. Walker is an American teacher who taught in Finland for six of the eight years he lived there. He lives in Milford, Connecticut, and is author (with Pasi Sahlberg) of In Teachers We Trust: The Finnish Way to World-Class Schools.
Pasi Sahlberg is a Finnish educator who has worked as a schoolteacher, teacher-educator and policymaker in Finland and advised national education reforms around the world. Pasi has published over 100 articles and books about education and school improvement. His bestseller, Finnish Lessons: What Can the World Learn from Educational Change in Finland? has contributed to better understanding Finland’s education system. He is a recipient of several education awards, including the 2013 Grawemeyer Award and the 2016 Lego Prize. Pasi is professor of education policy at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments ix

Foreword Pasi Sahlberg xi

Introduction xxi

1 Well-being 3

Schedule brain breaks 9

Learn on the move 15

Recharge after school 26

Simplify the space 32

Breathe fresh air 38

Get into the wild 42

Keep the peace 47

2 Belonging 57

Recruit a welfare team 57

Know each child 61

Play with your students 66

Celebrate their learning 72

Pursue a class dream 76

Banish the bullying 82

Buddy up 86

3 Autonomy 91

Start with freedom 94

Leave margin 98

Offer choices 104

Plan with your students 108

Make it real 114

Demand responsibility 121

4 Mastery 129

Teach the essentials 130

Mine the textbook 137

Leverage the tech 141

Bring in the music 145

Coach more 150

Prove the learning 157

Discuss the grades 163

5 Mind-set 167

Seek flow 170

Have a thicker skin 174

Collaborate over coffee 178

Welcome the experts 182

Vacate on vacation 185

Don't forget joy 188

References 191

Index 199

Editorial Reviews

"Clear, thoughtful, and thought-provoking, this book actually does present 33 strategies that would, in fact, make teaching and learning both more joyful and more productive. My response in reading was never, "Where did that come from?" or "We could never do that!" Rather, I thought over and over, "Of course!" "How is it that so many of us have moved so far afield from what we know to be true?"

Carol Ann Tomlinson

"A few years ago, I spent my spring break visiting classrooms in and near Helsinki, trying to identify what the secrets of Finnish education were. Although the experience was enlightening, it turns out that all I had to do was read Tim Walker's book Teach Like Finland! Thanks to his American perspective, Tim was able to isolate the key differences in pedagogy, routines, beliefs, and purposes that will help teachers in all countries consciously make their classrooms more "Finnish." I highly recommend this book for all who aspire to be better teachers!"

Paul Solarz

"Tim Walker is one of the most thoughtful educators I've ever encountered. His observations as an American teacher working in Finnish classrooms will surprise many readers: Some traditional ideas we've pushed aside actually work well in Finland, some of Finland's most effective strategies originated in American schools. With refreshing clarity, Tim gets specific with daily interactions, policies, curriculum, procedures, faculty relationships, and student expectations. Including the voices of many Finnish educators, he answers the skeptics who question whether or not any of the Finnish schooling elements can be incorporated in America and elsewhere. There is substance here that adds to our important conversations about what works in schools. A gift to our professional selves and one to share with respected colleagues and any parents you know."

Rick Wormeli

"Walker was nevertheless able to identify 33 strategies that could be easily introduced into American educational systems… [Walker’s ideas] are geared toward the relaxed, flexible, welcoming atmosphere that works so well for both teachers and students in Finland. Teachers and parents will be intrigued."

Booklist

"Walker offers realistic tips on creating joyful schools, arranged according to five 'ingredients' of happiness: well-being, belonging, autonomy, mastery and mindset. . . . [T]he tips are prefaced with lively anecdotes from the author's own classroom experiences and often reveal how he overcame American biases to embrace them. . . . [T]hey all highlight how we can learn to value happiness more than achievement."

BookPage

"More joy in classrooms and less work for teachers as the way to improving student learning? Sounds incredible, but the Finns have figured it out, and Tim Walker explains how American educators can do the same in this engaging and important book. Teach Like Finland deserves to be widely read and discussed."

Tony Wagner

03/15/2017
Walker, an American teacher working in Finland, outlines his personal experiences facing the philosophical and pedagogical differences between American and Finnish schools. These differences are often touted as evidence for American failures; however, the firsthand experience needed to implement change is not always available. Walker's text fills that gap by engaging in the conversation of differences and similarities in a practical way. Walker breaks down strategies he observes in Finnish schools into five major categories: well-being, belonging, autonomy, mastery, and mind-set. Within each category, he further develops the topic by looking at specific aspects such as learning on the move and pursuing a class dream. The overall tone is conversational, allowing the reader to join Walker on his journey of discovery. It is also very refreshing that Walker openly talks about his disagreements, revealing how he's come to his own application of certain techniques. He provides an engaging and eye-opening vision that does not pit America against Finland, but lets us see what we can learn from each other. VERDICT For teachers and education advocates who would like to understand one instructor's reflective quest toward educational improvement. [See Prepub Alert, 8/8/16.]—Rachel Wadham, Brigham Young Univ. Libs., Provo, UT

Library Journal