Lessons from Estonia

"“What [we] saw in Estonia was not a new education system, it was an old one. By every account they did not change the system after the wall came down…. It’s hardly surprising they continued to get great re­­sults.”, Marc Tucker, president of National Center on Education and the Economy in Washington, D.C, was quoted in an article on the Hechinger Report. Estonia has a nine-year compulsory basic education program. And Estonia now ranks 11th in math and reading and 6th in science out of the 65 countries that participated in an international test that compares educational systems from around the world, called the Programme for International Student Assessment.

Above copied from Estonia.eu
Factors responsible for Estonia's success are identified in the report. These are:

  • Focus on equity
  • Teacher autonomy
  • Free early childcare
  • Socio-economically integrated schools
  • No academic tracking
The takeway message:

“We really follow the straight line that everyone is equal. It doesn’t matter what kind of family you come from, you can still achieve a lot.”

Karin Lukk, principal of Tartu Kivilinna Kool




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