In Finland, all children go to school. Comprehensive school is a compulsory
education that lasts for nine years and it will start the year the child turns
seven. The child has the right to take part in preschool education for one
year before the comprehensive school. 
The preschool is free of charge and voluntary
education that takes place either at the nursery or the school. After finishing
the comprehensive school, the students can apply to further education either
in the upper secondary school (high school) or the basic vocational training.
These provide general qualifications for higher education in a university or
polytechnics. Vocational degree gives the student a professional qualification.
The higher education is divided into vocational and science polytechnics and
a university. The vocational polytechnics are oriented to the needs of practical
working life. By adult education, the adults are offered education possibilities
in basic studies and education that leads to a degree as well as additional
and further education.
Additional information: www.minedu.fi
In Finland, the comprehensive school lasts for nine years. The children will start school at the beginning of autumn term in the year the child is going to be seven years old. The average school day is 3-6 hours and there is no school on Saturdays or Sundays. The comprehensive school is free to all students, similarly schoolbooks and equipment as well as the school meals are all provided free of charge. Children in the first and second grades are provided a free bus pass from schools in Jyväskylä when the school journey is more than 3.5 kilometres. The older children will be provided a free bus pass when the school journey is more than 5 kilometres. The bus pass is given only if the child is attending the school that is closest to his/her home. The children in the first, second and third grades have also a possibility to attend guided afternoon activities at school or near by, but the afternoon activities must be paid for by parents.
Preparatory education for comprehensive school
All immigrants aged 7-16 will start school as soon as possible after arriving to Finland. In Jyväskylä, like in many other counties, the preparatory education for comprehensive school is first organised for the immigrant children in their own teaching groups. The children learn Finnish language and get to know the Finnish culture in the preparatory education. The children usually have preparatory education for about one school year and each year it is offered at different schools that provide learning support. After the preparatory education, the immigrant children will move into a Finnish class at the school closest to their home that provides learning support for the immigrants.
Schools that provide learning support for the immigrants
A school that provides learning support for the immigrants is a normal Finnish school where the immigrants’ learning is assisted by special support measures. The school has teachers that are familiarized with teaching immigrants. A linguistic classroom assistant helps the teachers. During the academic year 2003-2004, the schools had classroom assistants that spoke Russian, Kurdish, Dari or Persian. The schools providing learning support for the immigrants also have teaching material especially for the immigrants, like dictionaries, computer programmes and audio recordings.
Schools that provide learning support for the immigrants are Cygnaeuksen Koulu, Huhtasuon Koulu, Keltinmäen Koulu, Pupuhuhdan Koulu, Pohjanlammen Koulu (grades 1-6), as well as Huhtaharjun Koulu and Kuokkalan Koulu (grades 7-9).
Teaching of one’s own mother tongue
The immigrant children learn Finnish language at school in Finnish lessons as well as in other lessons and by living in the Finnish surroundings. It is important, however, for the children to learn their own mother tongue too. Their mother tongue is important from one’s own identity’s point of view. It also works as a link between the child and his/her relatives and culture. A good command of one’s own mother tongue is also a foundation for learning Finnish and other languages.
The teaching of one’s own language is arranged as an optional subject
to immigrant children when there is a group of four or more students at the
beginning of the term. The group could be made up of students from different
counties, schools or age groups. The children are taught their mother tongue
for two hours per week. Each year, the teaching of one’s own language
is arranged in several different languages. During the academic year of 2003-2004,
the teaching of one’s own language was provided in Dari, English, Spanish,
Flemish, Chinese, Kurdish, Persian, French, German, Thai, Russian and Estonian.
Additional information: http://www.jyvaskyla.fi/opetus
Usually, the comprehensive school alone is not enough to be able to get work, so most of the young people continue their education either at upper secondary school or at vocational training.
The vocational training has two points of intake per year, usually in February and in September. More information about the times to apply to the vocational training is given, for example, at the Employment Office that also provides the application forms and guidelines for it.
The upper secondary school provides all-round education and about 60% of students that have finished the comprehensive school will continue their studies at the upper secondary school. The syllabus for the upper secondary school takes usually three years to complete although it is possible to study at one’s own pace over 2-4 years. At the end of the upper secondary school, there is a nationwide matriculation examination. The subjects that are studied at the upper secondary school are mother tongue (usually Finnish), foreign languages, mathematics and other humanities and sciences, like history, biology, psychology, etc. The upper secondary school does not have tuition fees, but the students must pay for the books and other equipment that they need. The upper secondary school graduate is able to apply to university or polytechnics. Some adults study the upper secondary syllabus at the evening classes.
Occupational examinations for different lines of work can be obtained from the vocational training. There are about 75 different examinations on various lines of work, for example, traffic and transport, hotel and catering, mechanical and metal, wood, electrical and fashion industries. Studies take about three years and also include periods of work experience. The examination can be completed different ways; by studying at school, by a demonstration of one’s skills-examination or by an apprenticeship contract training.
In the demonstration of one’s skills-examination, the student aims to show that he/she has the required skills for that particular occupation. The apprenticeship contract training is a way of studying for the specific occupation while working in that field. The apprenticeship contract is an employment contract for a fixed period where the learning is supplemented with studies either at the vocational training school or at the adult education centre. The examination that completes the studies is either a basic or a specialist’s examination or an additional vocational training. More information on the apprenticeship contract training can be found at www.edu.fi/info/oppisopimus/opframe.html, www.oppisomimus.net or from the Employment Offices.
The period of application for the academic education is usually in the spring and they often organise entry exams for the applicants. The period of application for the foreign students is usually during January. Information on the applications, entry exams and prospects for studying can be obtained directly from, for example, the education establishments’ own internet pages or the Employment Office education-information services at www.mol.fi/tiepa/index.html .
The tuition is usually free, but the living expenses must be self-financed. Students can apply for a student grant from Kela – Finnish National Insurance Institution (www.kela.fi). Immigrants could also receive a student grant if they have lived in Finland for a minimum of two years or they arrived to Finland as a refugee or a returning immigrant. They must also have a permanent residence permit in Finland.
It is possible to study many different areas of science in the University
of Jyväskylä. They have, for example, the only faculty of physical
education in the country and long traditions in teacher training. In the vocational
polytechnics, there are also a wide variety of studies in different fields.
The aim of the vocational polytechnics is specifically to provide teaching
that meets the requirements and needs of a working life even though people
also do postgraduate studies and scientific research there.
People in Finland study a lot as adults and alongside their work. The working life is constantly changing and requires new skills; for example, the new computer programmes may require studying. Many study for a new occupation as an adult, because they either want to or they are out of work.
Another way of getting additional training is to enrol on the courses at the open college or night school. Some of the courses can be linked to work, but for many it is a hobby. Most of the courses at the open college or the night school are during the evenings and they hold classes for, for example, languages, arts subjects and information technology. The university arranges also Open University courses that are a good way for everyone to study at a university level. When the person moves on to full time studies at the university, any courses previously completed in the Open University will be taken into consideration.
The employment training is aimed at the unemployed, redundant, those under the threat of being unemployed and others wanting to change their occupation for what ever reason. The objective of the employment training is to improve the person’s chances of getting work. The employment training is free (it is paid by the labour administration) and the trainee will receive a training allowance during the period of training. The Employment Office will select the candidates to different courses.
The training that is a part of the integration is especially aimed at the immigrants where they can study Finnish or Swedish language as well as get information on Finnish society. Training as part of the integration is offered by different education establishments in different counties. The employment training in Jyväskylä is organised by the Employment Office. Particularly, the teaching of Finnish language and social studies are organised for the immigrants. The application forms to these courses are available at the Employment Office.
The employment training is always free and people taking part in this type of training will receive an allowance on top of their unemployment benefit to cover their travelling and meal expenses. During 2004, the allowance was eight euros per training day.
In addition to the courses offered by the Employment Office, Finnish language can also be studied elsewhere. Different immigrant-projects could be able to offer possibilities for studying and in Jyväskylä, there are also some education establishments that have also courses especially meant for the immigrants. If an integration plan has been made for the immigrant and he/she has lived in Finland for less than three years, the Employment Office can make an agreement that the study elsewhere is considered equal to that offered by the Employment Office. This means that the immigrant can get the same financial benefits as when in the employment training. Additional information on different possibilities of education is available from the Employment Office.
When an immigrant can speak Finnish well enough, he/she is able to apply to different vocational courses. One’s own occupational knowledge can be updates with short courses or people can acquire different qualifications needed at work. The teaching is in Finnish at the vocational courses, so sufficient knowledge of Finnish language is required to get a place at the course.
Information on the employment training can be found on Employment Office’s
internet page at www.mol.fi/tyovoimapalvelut/kurssit/ and information on the
courses especially aimed at the immigrants at www.mol.fi/tyovoimapalvelut/kurssit/X/6/1/ . Additional information can also be obtained directly from the Employment
Office.
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