EDUCATION FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN FINLAND

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1 EDUCATION FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN FINLAND MARJA-LEENA LOUKOLA SIMO ISOAHO KAISA LINDSTRÖM 1

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3 PREFACE The UN "Earth Summit" meeting in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 adopted the Rio Declaration on the principles of sustainable development and Agenda 21, a global program for the implementation of these principles. Within the Rio process, the foreign ministers of the Baltic Sea Region adopted "Baltic 21", an Agenda 21 for the Baltic Sea Region in This provides for action programmes in the sectors of agriculture, energy management, fishery, manufacturing, tourism and transportation. The programme also provides for cross-sectoral actions, one of which is designed to promote awareness through education. At their meeting in Stockholm on 23 and 24 March 2000, the education ministers of the Baltic Sea countries discussed the role of education in the Baltic 21 Programme. Considering that education had not been given sufficient attention in the programme, they issued the Haga Declaration, proposing that education should be included as a sector of its own. The prime ministers of the Council of the Baltic Sea States endorsed this initiative at their meeting in Kolding, Denmark on 12 and 13 April The education ministers will meet in Stockholm on 24 and 25 January 2002 to adopt the education sector action programme called "An Agenda 21 for Education for Sustainable Development in the Baltic Sea Region - Baltic 21E". An organisation composed of representatives of each Baltic Sea State was set up to prepare the programme under Sweden and Lithuania. Most work was done in three working groups dealing with preschool to upper secondary education, tertiary education, and non-formal education. The Finnish representatives were Ms Marja-Leena Loukola, Counsellor of Education at the National Board of Education, in WG 1; Mr Simo Isoaho, Lecturer at the Tampere University of Technology, in WG 2; and Ms Kaisa Lindström, Principal of Otava Folk High School, in WG 3. Simo Isoaho chaired his Working Group. The Working Groups based their work on reviews of education for sustainable development in each of the Baltic Sea countries. The three reports included in this publication give a good overall picture of the extent and contents of education for sustainable development in Finland and of 3

4 major development needs, which the projected Baltic 21E Programme is designed to address. Since the working language in Baltic 21E is English, the reports are published only in English. The reports have been compiled by the Finnish representatives on the three Working Groups, who are also responsible for the views presented in them. Helsinki, 19 December 2001 Arvo Jäppinen Director General 4

5 CONTENTS Marja-Leena Loukola: EDUCATION FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN SCHOOLS 7 Simo Isoaho: EDUCATION FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN UNIVERSITIES AND POLYTECHNICS 29 Kaisa Lindström: EDUCATION FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN NON-FORMAL ADULT EDUCATION 61 5

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7 EDUCATION FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN SCHOOLS MARJA-LEENA LOUKOLA COUNSELLOR OF EDUCATION NATIONAL BOARD OF EDUCATION 7

8 CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 9 1 NATIONAL LEVEL National policy concerning sustainable development National goals for EE/ESD in education Plans on a national level to improve EE/ESD Responsibility of the school Co-operation between the ministries 17 2 LOCAL LEVEL 18 3 SCHOOL LEVEL EE/ESD during regular school hours EE/ESD after-school activities Contents of EE/ESD Methods and organisation in EE/ESD Steps taken to make the school more environmentally friendly Competence of staff Support Partnership Obstacles 26 4 CONCLUSION 28 8

9 INTRODUCTION This report describes environmental education and the promotion of sustainable development in Finnish schools. The description covers preschools, comprehensive schools, upper secondary schools and vocational institutes. The source material consists of development schemes, projects, framework curricula and reports of governing bodies in the field of education. The implementation of sustainable development in Finnish schools is mainly described on the basis of the evaluation carried out in 1999 and reported in 2001 by the National Board of Education. The evaluation of sustainable development consisted of a sample of 500 educational establishments. 9

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11 1 NATIONAL LEVEL 1.1 NATIONAL POLICY CONCERNING SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN LEGISLATION According to the Finnish constitution, every individual is responsible for nature and its biodiversity, environment and cultural heritage. It is the task of public authorities to seek to secure everybody the right to a healthy environment, and an opportunity to participate in decision-making concerning the environment in which one lives. Sector legislation defines the areas of responsibility for different lines of business in respect to implementing sustainable development. THE PROGRAMME OF THE FINNISH GOVERNMENT FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT The Finnish Council of State made a Decision-in-Principle on promotion of ecological sustainability in The Government Programme on Sustainable Development is Finland s third comprehensive document outlining national measures to be taken to promote sustainable development. In 1990, the Council of State presented a report entitled Sustainable Development and Finland to the Finnish Parliament. A second report was prepared by the Finnish National Commission on Sustainable Development in 1995, Finnish Action for Sustainable Development. The Government s programme for sustainable development is designed to promote ecological sustainability and the economic, social and cultural preconditions for achieving this end. The Council of State Decisionin-Principle defines the strategic objectives and lines of action for key sectors of sustainable development. These sectors were selected with an emphasis on ecological sustainability. In terms of ecological sustainability, the primary goals of the programme are to reduce the use of nonrenewable resources, to preserve nature s generative capacity and ecological values and to generally improve the condition of the environment. The programme also proposes lines of action for solving far-reaching environmental problems through international cooperation. Improving the condition of the natural environment and the 11

12 environments in which people live also has beneficial consequences for human health. In striving to achieve social and cultural sustainability, the programme is designed to equip society with the skills and knowledge required for meeting the challenges of sustainable development, thereby also generally improving social wellbeing. In respect to the target of economic sustainability, the programme is designed to improve Finland s economic competitiveness and employment, and to reduce the environmental burden of production and consumption. The programme guides planning, decision-making and other activities within the state government. In addition, the programme provides a basis for dialogue with other involved parties, and a framework for planning activities and actions with them. SIGNS OF SUSTAINABILITY The first national collection of indicators for sustainable development were developed as a joint venture between different spheres of government and scientific research in The indicators are directed at both decisionmakers and citizens. Their purpose is to give information on the state of and trends in factors affecting sustainable development in Finland. The indicators will be used in, for example, monitoring the Finnish Government s Programme for Sustainable Development. Development work on indicators will continue; a further publication on the subject is due in two years time. 1.2 NATIONAL GOALS FOR EE/ESD IN EDUCATION DEVELOPMENT SCHEME OF MINISTRY OF EDUCATION Every four years, the Finnish Council of State approves the development scheme of the Ministry of Education for educational provision, and for university research. The most recent development scheme, Education and research , begins by defining the principles of national educational provision. One of the important principles is sustainable development: The principles of sustainable development will be taken into account in the educational provision, and other activities of different school forms. 12

13 FRAMEWORK CURRICULA In Finland, the Council of State decides on the common nationwide objectives of education. The Council of State also decides on dividing the available instruction time between individual subjects, subject groups and study guidance in comprehensive and upper secondary schools, and on obligatory subjects and their extent in vocational institutes. The National Board of Education prepares the framework curricula for different types of schools. These curricula contain the definition of the objectives and core contents of educational work, and advice both on assessment and on how schools can make their own curricula. In the 1990s, the norms of framework curricula were made less detailed. More emphasis was put on the objectives being of current interest, and on developing learning to learn skills. There was a general wish to shift decision-making power from a national level to the level of individual educational establishments. PRESCHOOL EDUCATION Finland has revised preschool education, which will be provided in full extent in August The new curriculum also includes skills relating to sustainable development. The objectives of these skills are to encourage children to take an interest in nature, to learn to observe natural phenomena, and to become aware of the consequences of their own actions. The main contents of these objectives are also outlined in the curriculum. BASIC AND UPPER SECONDARY EDUCATION The curricula for basic and upper secondary education will be gradually revised by The current core curricula (adopted in 1994) raise the question of sustainable development as a rationale for curricular reform, and as one of the themes in discussion about values in schools. The largest amount of material relating to sustainable development is included in natural sciences, but it is also treated in connection with home economics, art and crafts, humanities and languages. In Finland, there are two upper secondary schools specializing in environmental sciences, and seven upper secondary schools specializing in natural sciences. Also, other upper secondary schools offer advanced 13

14 level and applied courses in topics relating to sustainable development. VOCATIONAL INSTITUTES Vocational curricula are also being revised at the moment. The objective of sustainable development is stressed in the new curricula, which also include environmental know-how in vocational competence. In addition, there are new vocational qualifications in the environmental field: in vocational institutes, and as an option for adults, who can take a competence-based examination in environmental care. PROGRAMME FOR FURTHERING SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN In 1997, the National Board of Education drew up a programme ( ) for promoting sustainable development. The programme proposed 17 measures to be implemented by schools and other educational establishments over a four-year period. According to the programme, the aims of environmental education are an awareness of the necessity of sustainable development, positive attitudes towards working for and sufficient knowledge and expertise to act in keeping with sustainable development, and skills needed to pursue a sustainable way of life. EVALUATION OF THE TEACHING OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT In 1999, the National Board of Education conducted an evaluation of the theme of sustainable development. First, the educational institutions were given instructions for self-evaluation. Second, the National Board of Education carried out an interview based on sampling. The aim was to produce information both about teaching of sustainable development and about its day-to-day practice in schools. The results have been used when describing the situation in schools. 1.3 PLANS ON NATIONAL LEVEL TO IMPROVE EE/ESD 14 The ongoing revision of curricula presents a great challenge for including sustainable development in instruction, everyday life and vocational competence.

15 Even more emphasis will be placed on teachers guides, various learning materials and in-service training for teachers. Teachers are encouraged to work in co-operation with various experts. Information about nature schools, and other interesting places for visits, projects and programmes will be disseminated more effectively than is done presently. CREATING NETWORKS At the beginning of the 1990s, the National Board of Education launched the Aquarium project, in which schools commit themselves to developing certain topic areas. The project was carried out as 16 networks, one of which was the network for environmental education. The exchange of experiences and the dissemination of ideas took place in training sessions, meetings, through magazines and other publications, and through personal contacts. During recent years, networks have taken new forms. There are now many regional networks, through which schools develop their common environmental programme or participation in cooperation according to a local agenda. In an ever increasing amount, contacts are created and maintained via and the Internet. The National Board of Education will continue to support these networks in the future. SETTING CRITERIA In order to be able to be in the front line of sustainable development schools need a commonly recognized environmental programme. The National Board of Education, the Trade Union for teachers, and OKKA Foundation are developing criteria, with the help of which schools can evaluate and develop management of environmental matters. The aim of the criteria and the environmental programme for schools is to ensure that the principles of sustainable development are included in all school activities, such as instruction, building maintenance, deliveries and transport, material usage, functions of the school kitchen, and administration of safety matters. When schools commit themselves to maintaining the principles of sustainable development in their activities this will gradually start reflecting itself in all sectors of society. As an encouragement for schools to pay more and more attention to sustainable development an environmental certificate is being prepared. 15

16 This certificate will be granted to a school as a sign of serious and purposeful environmental work. The preliminary criteria for the certificate consist of three parts: managing environmental matters, instruction and participation, and maintaining environmentally friendly activities. Educational establishments of all levels can apply for the certificate. THE INTERNET SERVICE ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT The virtual school is a part of the Ministry of Education s information strategy for education and research. In connection with that the National Board of Education developed the internet service on sustainable development jointly with the Ministry of Environment. The internet service disseminates material relating to sustainable lifestyle to schools, interest groups and the general public. The aim is to stimulate investigative learning. The virtual sustainable development school opened on the net site of the National Board of Education in May FINNISH OAK Finnish Oak was launched by the National Board of Antiquities and the National Board of Education in It is a project involving 150 schools and gearing to develop education relating to cultural heritage. The main theme in the project is to raise awareness among schoolchildren and young people of historic environments and the conservation of cultural heritage. One part of the project is disseminating information on UNESCO s World Heritage Sites. The International ASP (Associated Schools Project) Network and World Heritage Centre have launched a special development project on the methods of teaching in order to better promote understanding of and respect for heritage. In 2001, the Ministry for the Environment joined the Finnish Oak project, which will continue until RESPONSIBILITY OF THE SCHOOL 16 Municipalities are required to offer preschool instruction to preschool-aged children living in their area, and basic education to children and young people of mandatory school-attendance age. Preschool instruction lasts for a year, and compulsory education for nine years. A municipality, federation of

17 municipalities, government-registered organization or foundation can obtain a permission for providing upper secondary or vocational education. The provider of education approves of a curriculum for the instruction to be given. The provider is also required to evaluate the given instruction and its effectiveness. An upper secondary education is provided for adults as well. The upper secondary school syllabus can be completed, and matriculation examination taken by participating in day or evening tuition, or by doing distance learning. In upper secondary school, adults can also complete parts of the basic education syllabus. Education relating to vocational qualifications is provided for adults as well. They can acquire basic vocational degrees, vocational qualifications, and specialized vocational qualifications through competence-based examinations regardless of the way they have acquired their professional competence. 1.5 COOPERATION BETWEEN MINISTRIES The systematic policy for preparing laws relating to the environment and producing and circulating information about the environment belongs to the Ministry for the Environment, the Finnish Environment Institute, and the regional environment centres. Each sector has the responsibility of supervising environmental issues in their own field and putting them into practice. In Finland, there are many boards and committees for cooperation between various ministries. Joint projects are a natural way of working on environmental issues. The Finnish National Commission is the main joint organization at the national level. The chairman of the group is the Prime Minister. Many ministers and civil servants of various sectors are members in this organization. 17

18 2 LOCAL LEVEL CURRICULA A municipality draws up for its school system a framework curriculum, in which are defined among other things the business idea and key results of the municipality and its school service, the need for regional training, the organisation of education, the limitation of liability, an economic framework, the language programme of primary, secondary and upper secondary schools, the schedule for the revision of curricula, the cooperation between different school forms, and the decision concerning an evaluation of the effectiveness of the school service. The National Board of Education produced a report Curriculum work in municipalities and comprehensive schools in The report is based on a sampling-based questionnaire. The sample consisted of 238 municipalities, 294 primary schools and 104 secondary schools. The report was completed in According to the report, municipalities give schools quite a lot of power to decide but municipalities make centralized decisions concerning language programmes, distribution of lessons, and organisation of special education. In the majority of schools, curricula have been made in cooperation with the teachers of a school and one or more cooperative partners. In most cases, cooperation has also taken place with pupils parents. Another common way is to cooperate with other schools and teachers in the municipality. Municipality authorities need to approve of the individual school curricula. LOCAL AGENDA 21 Local agendas cover approximately 83 % of the Finnish population. 15 % of schools have their own action programme for sustainable development. Only 6 % of schools have formulated their environmental programme as part of formulating a local agenda for a municipality. REGIONAL AND LOCAL NETWORKS 18 There are many educational networks for sustainable development in Finland. Some of them work under municipalities developing curricula, action programmes or quality systems, or organizing projects. Networks can cover large geographical areas. More and more interaction is done via and the Internet.

19 3 SCHOOL LEVEL The description of the situation in schools is based on the evaluation made by the National Board of Education in The theme evaluation of the state of sustainable development was carried out with a stratified random sample in 500 educational institutions. The sample consisted of schools of the general (74,2 %), vocational (14,4 %) and liberal adult education (11,4 %). There were representative samples of educational institutions from all of the provinces, EU support areas, and municipality groups. The percentage of Finnish speaking schools was 91, and of Swedish speaking schools 9. The data for the evaluation was gathered through pre-tested questionnaire forms, which were given to headmasters, teaching staff, student unions and non-teaching staff of educational institutions. Answers were obtained from 85,8 % of the respondents. Additionally, information for this report has been obtained from other reports, network reports and projects of the National Board of Education. 3.1 EE/ESD DURING REGULAR SCHOOL HOURS The process of drawing up curricula in a school has started by defining the value basis and business idea of the school. The aim of promoting sustainable development is often recorded in them. According to the evaluation report of the National Board of Education, 72 % of the vocational institutions, and 66 % of the institutions of general education participating in the survey answered that promoting sustainable development has been included in their curricula. In teaching, sustainable development is mostly integrated into other instruction. This was the answer of 87 % of general educational institutions and 90 % of vocational institutions. Environmental education is often part of subject entities or special theme days. According to the report Making curricula in municipalities and schools in environmental education is the most popular subject entity in primary and secondary school. In primary schools, environmental and natural studies is the subject in which to best put sustainable development into practice. In secondary school, however, biology, geography and home economics are the subjects with most material for dealing with the topic of sustainable development. 19

20 Upper secondary schools mention biology, geography and chemistry as subjects putting sustainable development well into practice. According to headmasters, basic education in vocational institutions pays attention to sustainable development well. In the opinion of teachers, the same is true to a limited extent. When fields of education were compared with each other the fields putting sustainable development into practice most were considered to be the field of natural resources, tourism and travel industry, food and catering industry, economics, social care, and health care. Teachers of vocational institutions named vocational subjects, the energy economy, environmental education and environmental knowledge, social awareness and knowledge of working life, vocational work, and technology as subjects putting sustainable development into practice most. Periods of practical work are the subject entities which implement sustainable development best. 38 % of the student unions in vocational institutions, and 33 % of those in adult education centres claimed the instruction of their institutions includes too few courses on environmental issues and sustainable development. 30 % of upper secondary school student unions agreed on that. None of the student unions thought there were too many courses on sustainable development. Student unions were asked to name important topics in relation to sustainable development, which should be dealt with in teaching. The most often mentioned topic was recycling. Other topics included foreign cultures, population growth, toxic waste, influence of an individual, provisions control and sorting, greenhouse effect, social matters and equality, the energy economy, the ozone depletion, rain forests, acid rain, extinction and protection of animal species, pollution, an increase in the amount of chemical waste, consumerism, the state of the oceans, environmental legislation, and regional planning. To compare the carrying out of sustainable development issues between school types, the principals answers from each school were given a score, and the mean of these was termed the parameter of sustainable development. This parameter for the vocational schools is statistically almost significantly better than of the general education schools. The parameter for the urban institutions was statistically almost significantly higher than that of rural institutions. 20

21 3.2 EE/ESD AFTER SCHOOL ACTIVITIES Various organisations cooperate with schools in the area of environmental education. Organisations can participate in planning short courses, projects, special theme days, competitions, work parties, and camps on sustainable development. These can be conducted during a school day or after regular school hours. For example, The Nature League is responsible for afterschool nature clubs in many schools, and The Finnish Association for Recreational Sports and Outdoor Activities organises nature path series for preschool-aged and primary and secondary school-aged children and young people. In Finland, there are various organisations concentrating on environmental issues and nature activities. Many of these organisations have departments for children and young people. Additionally, there are youth councils in many municipalities. In a youth council, young people learn about social participation and decision-making, since the initiatives of youth councils go to municipality councils. In an evaluation on sustainable development, the National Board of Education acquired information about the nature of interests of primary school sixth grade pupils by asking them: Do you spend any of your freetime in nature? Where and how? 21 % of the pupils answered that they go fishing, 20 % said they pick berries or fungi, and 27 % said they walk in nature. 4 % of the pupils participate in scouting trips, and 5 % in other trips in nature. 3.3 CONTENTS OF EE/ESD In most cases, teaching about the principles of sustainable development is integrated into other instruction. The topic of ecological sustainability is mainly associated with the syllabi of the natural sciences. Elements of economic, cultural and social sustainability are to be found in almost all subjects. These types of sustainable development are central, for example, when dealing with the topics of population growth, urbanisation, internationalisation, and family education, graphic arts, and personal and social education. Short- and long-term study units relating to environmental education are organised in all types of educational institutions. Themes for these 21

22 22 study units include among other things sorting, recycling and refuse disposal, immediate surroundings, traffic, and endangered species of animals. Themes of special theme days vary. Organisation of theme days often depends on responsible teachers and cooperative partners. Local, regional, national, or international projects and programmes are an increasingly popular way of carrying out projects relating to environmental education and sustainable development. Many of these projects focus on doing research on the state of environment, and on comparing the results with the ones of cooperational partners. In some projects, schools draw up their own environmental programme, and plan ways of making the transition to an ecological lifestyle. In cooperation with museums and schools research is done on the cultural heritage of an area. The objective of many projects is to familiarise students with their surroundings, and to take a stand on plans of its development. Some projects include course planning, or revision of an entire curriculum. The aim of leading a life according to the principles of sustainable development manifests itself most clearly in practising sorting and rubbish collection. Conservation of resources and recycling are also important forms of putting sustainable development into practice. Ecological reforms in school kitchens and meals, keeping a watch on the use of water and energy, ecological and economic solutions in school purchases, environmentally friendly detergents, maintaining safety and pleasantness of surroundings, and traffic arrangements are also some of the commonly taken practical measures for sustainable development. In an evaluation, the National Board of Education did research on the attitudes of primary school sixth graders towards the promotion of sustainable development. The level of awareness concerning the importance of protecting the environment was high. Pupils had understood the concept of recycling well, and put the concept into practice. Recycling, and saving energy and water were practiced more at home than in school. 3.4 METHODS AND ORGANISATION OF EE/ESD According to the evaluation report of the National Board of Education on sustainable development, 66 % of educational institutions have included sustainable development in their values and business idea. Social and cultural sustainability appear in curricula as often as ecological and economic

23 sustainability. However, schools have not defined in clear terms how the instruction on sustainable development is realised. Study methods naturally depend on the topics which are being dealt with. Study projects have increased the use of various kinds of researchbased working methods. Problem-solving processes, cooperative learning, and participation in decision-making have become more common in environmental projects. Maintaining a compost and recycling units, sorting, or gardening have introduced practical activities and the sense of responsibility for one s everyday actions into schools. 13 % of schools of general education have their own action programme for sustainable development. It is part of the local agenda 21 in only 6 % of schools. 26 % of vocational institutes have their own action programme and it is very often part of a quality standard. A team takes responsibility for the organisation of sustainable development in 20 % of schools and an appointed person in 18 %. In most cases a team consists of two teachers, a student and a representative of the non-teaching staff. Very often headmaster belongs to this team. Teams or appointed persons take care of contacts outside school, events and many practical matters. They have an important role in developing the curriculum, courses and learning. 28 % of teachers and 34 % of students think that teachers participate rather a lot in implementing sustainable development in schools. Headmasters lead, plan, delegate and take care of contacts to other organisations. Teachers plan, teach and guide. Students plan, study and participate in many practical tasks alongside staff. Cooperation between staff-members in school manifests itself in discussing, planning and integrating subjects. Personnel cooperate in this way mostly in schools of general education (30 %). 3.5 STEPS TAKEN TO MAKE SCHOOLS MORE ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY Dealing with an increasing number of environmental questions during lessons of different subjects is the first step taken to make a school more environmentally friendly. Schools plan new interdisciplinary courses and extra optional courses concerning EE/ESD. The second step is to participate in projects and to join environmental 23