VIEWPOINT: The heart of education

What could shape the future more than education? Virtually nothing. This is largely recognized in Finnish society. Education plays a prominent role in all national strategies not only related to the development of our school system, but to science and innovation policies, too.

Central Finland is well known for its educational merits. We cherish the oldest traditions in Finnish-language instruction. Thanks to these historical roots, we are able to combine Finnishness with high aspirations for internationalization.

Even today, Central Finland is the most important centre of educational research and services in the country. The city of Jyväskylä is famous for its youthful image because every third passer-by in the street is a student, whether in vocational or higher education. We cover the whole chain of teacher training from kindergarten to educational gerontology with additional unique offerings in assessment of school achievements, educational leadership, as well as in guidance and counselling. The University of Jyväskylä has the honourable responsibility of conducting the Finnish section of the PISA study.

All the major educational actors and enterprises have seized the opportunity by establishing EduCluster Finland in order to strengthen the competitiveness of the region as FinlandÂ’s leading developer and implementer of educational services. By combining the rich diversity of competence, educational innovations and new export products can be generated.

Education is a profitable export sector in many countries. This holds true particularly for English-speaking parts of the world. In Finland, the number of courses and complete degrees taught through the medium of English has increased rapidly during the last few years. In addition to education, Finland is acknowledged as a leading country also in other areas such as information technology, music, and design. Students from abroad are highly welcome to join the diverse international community in Central Finland which represents around one hundred nationalities.

One characteristic of EduCluster Finland is that educational institutions are operating in close collaboration with working life. Lifelong learning is a pivotal challenge for the success and competitiveness of companies in a global economy as well. In cooperation with enterprises we are seeking to develop new modes that will help our international students integrate themselves into the local labour market.

Help us shape the future by taking education in modern visionary directions.

Aino Sallinen, Rector, University of Jyväskylä