Within the Finnish Government, the Ministry of Education and Culture is responsible for developing educational, science, cultural, sport and youth policies and international cooperation in these fields. The Minister of Education and Science, Mr. Jukka Gustafsson is responsible for education and science policies and the Minister of Culture and Sport, Mr. Paavo Arhinmäki for cultural, sport and youth policies.
Finland joined the Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage
(16.5.) UNESCO’s Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage will enter into force in Finland on 21 May 2013.
The Convention has been ratified by 152 nations to date.
Press release 26.4.Council of Europe Ministers of Education: High quality education for all
(26.4.) At the 24th Standing Conference in Helsinki, Ministers of Education are
outlining Council of Europe efforts in the educational sector in the near future. The conference
theme is Governance and Quality Education.
The ministers are expected to endorse a declaration, in which they will undertake to develop education and the national education system so that every person is guaranteed the opportunity to receive a quality education.
The participants visited Helsinki schools and had an opportunity to meet Finnish teachers and students as well as learn about the education system in person.
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Cross-European survey to measure users’ perceptions of the benefits of ICT in public libraries
(16.4.) In Finland, around two thirds of adults (67%), had used a public library in
the last 12 months, compared with just under a quarter (23%) of all adults across Europe.
TNS, an independent research company with a global presence, was commissioned by the Bill &
Melinda Gates foundation to conduct research across 17 EU countries to identify perceptions and
types of use of public libraries. The purpose of the research was to understand the impact that
public libraries in the EU have on users’ lives.
Finnish-Russian cultural center to open in Helsinki
(4.4.) A new
center opens in Helsinki aimed at helping Russian speakers integrate into Finnish society through
culture. The meeting place will offer exhibitions, discussion events, films, music, poetry readings
and other literary evenings.
Read more Internationalisation is a central strategic goal for Finnish higher education institutions
(26.3.) An
international evaluation team set by the Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council has published
its report on international degree programmes (IDP) in Finland.
The evaluation team finds that internationalisation has been taken as a serious objective in all
strategies of the Finnish HEIs. The IDPs are seen as an important instrument for reaching the
objectives of institutional internationalisation.
Art competition for the Winter War Memorial
The international survey of adult competencies PIAAC
Finland take part in the OECD's international survey of adult competencies. The
survey will assess the various basic skills needed by the adult population in different walks of
life, as well as their application to work and everyday living. Twenty-five countries will take
part in the survey.
The PIAAC survey studies literacy, numeracy and various problem-solving skills among the
adult population. Data will be collected from persons aged 16 to 65.
Finnish students high performers in PISA
Young Finns
were again among the best performers in the assessment of reading, mathematical and scientific
literacy in PISA 2009.
In the main focus area, reading literacy, the mean performance of Finnish students was ranked third, after Korea and the non-OECD participant Shanghai. In mathematical literacy, the performance of young Finns was second best among the OECD countries and sixth among all participating countries and economies. In scientific literacy, Finland came second after Shanghai.
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