Creative North: Understanding Finnish Education / Course 1: Inclusion, Special Education and Learning Support

– A Job Shadowing Journey invites educators to explore the foundations, values, and everyday realities of Finnish schooling.

This course connects to the theme of Sustainable Environment and Climate Challenges through student wellbeing: many young people experience climate anxiety alongside everyday learning challenges. The course looks at how educators can increase students' knowledge of these issues, create safe ways to process and discuss them, and build the resilience needed to engage constructively with environmental and climate concerns.

The course begins with a combined lecture and forest hike, offering a structured introduction to the Finnish education system followed by reflective discussions in nature — a setting that mirrors Finland’s emphasis on wellbeing. Next three days participants spend job shadowing in a Finnish educational institution: primary school, lower secondary school and upper secondary school. These visits offer authentic insight into teaching practices, school culture, student support, and the role of trust and autonomy in learning.

A dedicated Helsinki day highlights how Finnish society supports learning beyond the classroom. Through urban exploration, guided visits, and thematic tasks, participants examine libraries, cultural institutions, and public spaces as extensions of the learning environment.

Throughout the week, participants engage in guided reflection to connect their observations to their own contexts and identify practical ideas to take home. This Erasmus+ experience is ideal for teachers and school staff seeking a deeper understanding of Finnish education, inclusive practices, and the societal structures that enable equitable learning for all.

Subjects Observed:

Special education lessons and small-group teaching

Regular classroom teaching with a focus on inclusive practices

Arts and crafts subjects — with a focus on how inclusion and differentiation are applied within them

Themes:

Inclusion and equitable learning environments

Special education practices in Finland

Concentration and attention support

Strengthening literacy across age groups

Sustainable Environment and Climate Challenges

Course Focus:

Participants will follow special education and regular lessons at three school levels, and take part in discussions with teachers and special education teachers about how inclusion, concentration support and learning support are approached in Finnish schools.

Below is the preliminary programme for the week. The daily schedules and the schools we'll be visiting will be confirmed closer to the start of the course. However, the basic structure of the course remains the same: there are 30 hours of instruction over the week, we visit three different schools (primary school, lower secondary school, and upper secondary school/lukio), one lecture day, and one day in Helsinki.