Finse - en ook mijn - boodschap voor de dag van de leraar : Keep it simple, focus on the sssentials.

Minder plan- en werklast, meer ontspannen leerkrachten en veel minder burn-outs!

Leerkracht Timmy Walker over lager onderwijs in Finland & vergelijking met onderwijs in VS- Haaks ook  op ZILL-visie  

Tim Walker over zijn jarenlange ervaring als onderwijzer in Finland in zijn boek: Finland’s Education System Isn’t Perfect — But We Can Still Learn from It

*vooral klassikaal onderwijs in Finland aan de hand van degelijke leerboeken/methodes en beperkt tot essentie. Zo kunnen leerkrachten ook op een meer ontspannen wijze les geven. Geen echt gedifferentieerd onderwijs.

Commentaar: haaks dus op ZILL-leerplanvisie. ZILL is tegenstander van het gebruik van klassieke leerplannen en methodes per leerjaar en wil dat de leerkrachten elke dag veel tijd investeren in 'schoolwerkplannen', uitwerken van eigen lesmateriaal en sterk geïndividualiseerd onderwijs.

Motto van Walker : keep it simple en verminder zo de werk- en planlast!
We maken het jammer genoeg in Vlaanderen steeds ingewikkelder voor de leerkracht en dit wordt straks nog erger met de ZILL-hervorming.

*veel meer rustpauzes tussen lessen & leerkrachten hebben nog een leven naast de school

*leraarskamer belangrijk voor uitwisseling ervaring/overleg. Zo zijn er dan ook veel minder overlegvergaderingen nodig.

*veel verantwoordelijkheid voor leerkrachten. (Er zijn wel nationale niveautoetsen – ook al in 3de leerjaar, maar niet bedoeld om te sanctioneren of om scholen te rangschikken)

Zijn slogan 'keep it simple': focus on the essentials! En daardoor dus ook lagere werk- en taakbelasting. Dit verklaart volgens Tim Walker mede waarom er minder burnouts zijn bij Finse leerkrachten dan in de VS .

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Finland’s Education System Isn’t Perfect — But We Can Still Learn from It

Journalist Holly Korbey in Bright -Innovation in Education
A few years ago, teacher Timothy Walker was an elementary-school teacher in Boston, stressed out and on the verge of burnout. Looking for more balance, Walker moved to Helsinki, where his wife’s family lived. He took a fifth-grade position in an English-speaking school

Bright: On the curriculum side, you wrote that Finnish teachers “focus on the essentials” and avoid adding too many moving parts into lessons that might become distractions. In Finland there’s a lot of textbook instruction, which is kind of counterintuitive, because when we think of Finland, we think of them as this global innovator.

in Finland all kids learning a similar thing at similar times, and teachers who are using similar materials they feel are high-quality, designed by fellow educators. They’re intentionally keeping the classroom interaction rigid, in a way. Now, that doesn’t work for all students, and there’s a real need for more differentiation in Finland as well. But I think that for a lot of students, it’s worked.

Bright: And your perspective on textbooks has changed.TW: In the U.S., teachers looked down on textbooks, and I felt the same way.I didn’t want to be this robot just following the teacher’s guide.But I found that in Finland, they were showing me that textbooks can be valuable resources to help teachers stay balanced if we use them skillfully

Bright: On the curriculum side, you wrote that Finnish teachers “focus on the essentials” and avoid adding too many moving parts into lessons that might become distractions. Did focusing on the essentials make you less stressed and more joyful? TW:Yes!

Meer ontspannen leerkrachten: veel pauzes, minder lessen
Teacher Timothy Walker talks about 15-minute breaks, the power of the teachers’ lounge and the difference between responsibility and accountability.A few years ago, teacher Timothy Walker was an elementary-school teacher in Boston, stressed out and on the verge of burnout. Looking for more balance, Walker moved to Helsinki, where his wife’s family lived. He took a fifth-grade position in an English-speaking school and immediately noticed that his Finnish colleagues, were in general more relaxed and happy than their American peers.

Bright: In America, you and a lot of the teachers you knew were burning yourselves out with overwork. But in Finland, teachers seemed to take a more relaxed approach. What are Finnish teachers doing to avoid burnout?

Timothy D. Walker: The first thing they are doing is pacing themselves, which has to do with scheduling. There are frequent breaks for teachers and students throughout the school day in Finland, about 15 minutes for every hour of instruction. Teachers take breaks throughout the day, as well as sit down and eat lunch with each other.

What I saw in Finland was that my colleagues prioritized well-being so much more than I had ever done. They use their after-school hours for themselves and seemed to have a life outside of teaching. They just seemed much more balanced and happy and relaxed. And less stressed.

Bright: Finnish teachers and schools don’t use the word “accountability,” instead they use “responsibility.” In the book, you describe what a difference that makes to teachers. What’s the difference?
TW: I think responsibility respects the professionalism of an individual. So when you emphasize responsibility, you’re recognizing that someone has the agency to make the informed professional decisions. It empowers teachers. This is what we want to do with students, right? We want to say, we trust you, we believe in your abilities.