“You’ve come at the worst time of year” we were often told by our hosts in Helsinki, Stockholm, and Copenhagen. Yes, it was dark and cold and a bit gloomy, but against this backdrop our delegation was illuminated with first hand knowledge about the educational experiences and policies in these countries. At meetings with Ministries of Education in each country, exchanges with leaders in the corporate community and visits to schools, we learned how these countries are approaching education, reaching students, involving teachers and implementing policy.
The delegation shared individually and collectively an involvement in, and commitment to, educational technology. We were seeking answers to questions about the unique factors that existed in the Scandinavian educational system, the implementation of policy at the classroom level, and the role that technology played in innovation. We came to Scandinavia to witness, to learn, to share experiences and to establish linkages for further collaboration once the trip was over.
Much of our interest was motivated by the high education achievement levels of students in Finland, Sweden and Denmark. For several years now students in these countries have been outperforming their counterparts in the US.
Could it be that ICT was being used in new and innovative ways and contributing to the high performance and achievement levels? Could we apply these lessons to the US? Or as one delegate asked, “How can we take what we hear and see and create a sense of interest and urgency in the US?”
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