Educa to address the international learning crisis and present the Finnish school system

Organised now for the 25th time, Educa, the leading event in the teaching and education sector in the Nordic region, is expanding to include an international programme. The event’s high-quality content will focus on the presentation of the Finnish education system and Finnish teacher education.

The English-language panel discussion in the opening session will focus on “Teachers’ Toolkit for Action, Development and Hope in Environmental Issues”. The discussion will explore the role of education and schools in the debate on climate change, and how to promote hope and faith in the future amidst climate change anxiety. The panellists are the Finnish Minister of Education, Li Andersson; the director general of the Finnish National Agency for Education, Olli-Pekka Heinonen; the president of the Trade Union of Education in Finland, Olli Luukkainen; the head of the education programme at WWF Finland, Hanna Seimola; the environmental researcher at the University of Helsinki, writer, Panu Pihkala, PhD; and as youth representatives, Adam Yousfi, Viivi Rimpiläinen and Hilla Nuolioja, who work on the Ilmastokoulu (‘Climate school’) project at the Opinkirjo Development Centre. The panel discussion will be led by the editor-in-chief of the Kirkko ja kaupunki (‘Church and the City’) magazine, Jaakko Heinimäki.

International discussions and presentations on global learning and teaching topics

The programme, which is particularly targeted at international participants but also at teachers in Finland who work in English, focuses on the Finnish school system, the global learning crisis, and sustainable development. The speakers and panellists exploring these themes include the senior adviser at OECD, Michael Stevenson; the governmental policy adviser, publisher, Simon Anholt; the deputy general secretary at Education International (EI), Haldis Holst; the Finnish Minister of Science and Culture, Hanna Kosonen; the creative director of HundrEd, Saku Tuominen; Professor Kirsti Lonka of the University of Helsinki; and the chair of the Finnish Teacher Education Development Programme, Jari Lavonen. The benefits of new technology will be discussed by the head of education strategic engagement, Peter Thompson (Apple Inc.).

The topics of the international programme include:

• Seeking solutions to the global learning crisis
• Education in Finland: building a strong skills and knowledge base for all
• Teacher education and its needs for development in Finland
• Education supporting sustainable development – thinking globally
• Schools supporting sustainable development – acting locally
• How we can repair the world in one generation

The event is free for visitors, but registration is required. Media representatives can access the event by applying for accreditation either in advance or on the day.

Educa, Finland’s largest educational event for professionals in the teaching and education sector, will be held at Messukeskus from 24 to 25 January 2020. Last year, 18,400 professionals in the teaching and education sector attended the event. Educa is co-organised by Messukeskus and the Trade Union of Education in Finland (OAJ), with OAJ being responsible for the programme.

Visit the website.

See the programme.

Apply for accreditation here.