Policy Document

Basic Education Decree 852/1998

Year

1999

Country

Finland

Topic

Education

Subtopic

Compulsory Schooling

Main implications

The Basic Education Decree supplemented Basic Education Act 21.8. 628/1998 and regulated, among other things, teaching and work time, pupil assessment, pupils' legal rights, and the authorisation to provide education. In particular, the major implications of the decree relate to:

1. Unified basic school (grades 1-9): The decree no longer calls for the separation of the comprehensive school into a lower and upper stage. Instead, it only states that basic education lasts nine years and that during the first six, instruction is usually given by the class teacher and, in the last three, by the subject teacher. Earlier, there were also separate school buildings for lower and upper grade schools. Aho, Pitkänen, and Sahlberg (2006, 93) predict: "Until now, this change has yet to have much impact, because school structure is set at the local level and bound to existing buildings and teachers. But in the long run, abandonment of a two-part comprehensive school system creates new prospects for providing instruction and wider solutions for the use of facilities."

2. The definition of the annual, weekly, and daily amount of teaching. In the two first year of classes in basic education, the pupil's working day may comprise of a maximum of five lesson hours and in other year classes and in voluntary additional basic education, a maximum of seven lesson hours. The duration of teaching per one hour shall be a minimum of 45 minutes. Part of the working time may be used for familiarisation with the world of work and for the closing ceremony and other school functions.

Benefits & Requirements

Dedication (number of hours per week stipulated by this document)

The number of weekly hours of basic education shall be 19 at a minimum in the first and second year-classes, 23 on average in the third and fourth year-classes, 24 on average in the fifth and sixth year-classes, and at least 30 on average in subsequent year-classes

Is educational tracking implemented or modified by this document?

No

Read the Law

Full text web source in English

http://www.finlex.fi/fi/laki/kaannokset/1998/en19980628.pdf

Original full text web source in native language

http://www.finlex.fi/fi/laki/alkup/1998/19980852

Secondary Literature & Sources

Secondary literature

Aho, E., Pitkänen, K., & Sahlberg, P. "Policy Development and Reform Principles of Basic and Secondary Education in Finland since 1968". Education Working Paper Series No. 2, World Bank, Washington DC. (2006). Available at: http://www.siteresources.worldbank.org/EDUCATION/Resources/278200-1099079877269/547664-1099079967208/Education_in_Finland_May06.pdf

Author

Janne Mikkonen
Population Research Unit, University of Helsinki

Data collected in the framework of the Population Europe Research Finder and Archive (PERFAR)

Cite as

SPLASH-db.eu (2014): Policy: "Basic Education Decree 852/1998" (Information provided by Janne Mikkonen). Available at: https://splash-db.eu [Date of access].