Sino-Finnish Education Dialogue: Leading Finnish Scholars Visit for In-Depth Exchange on Educational Practices

From November to December 2025, a series of educational exchanges between China and Finland have been unfolded across multiple cities in China.Jointly invited by the Faculty of Psychology at Beijing Normal University and the Sino-Finnish Joint Learning Innovation Institute, three Finnish education scholars—Professor Inkeri Ruokonen from the University of Turku,Associate Professor Lotta Uusitalo and Professor Kirsti Lonka, both from the University of Helsinki—have conducted a series of specialized training sessions and academic dialogues. The series of events have attracted wide attention and active engagement from hundreds of local teachers, policymakers, and parents, generating impactful discussions on adapting Finnish educational practices to the Chinese context.

Professor Inkeri Ruokonen’s academic exchanges in Beijing and Zhuhai were warmly received. By focusing on early childhood education in Finland, she delivered insightful speech at the Beijing Preschool Education Quality Month event and Beijing Normal University at Zhuhai, sharing ideas and practices on quality evaluation, interdisciplinary skill development, and teacher leadership. The sessions provided valuable perspectives and practical references for local educators, fostering in-depth reflections on teaching practices.

Associate Professor Lotta Uusitalo conducted the "See the Good" training series with great success. The sessions have engaged over 700 teachers and parents across Beijing, Nanjing, and Hangzhou, focusing on integrating Finnish positive psychology and strength-based approaches into classroom teaching and family education. Through practical workshops in schools and educational institutes, she provided feasible strategies and digital tools to help identify and nurture students' character strengths. The initiative underscores the shared commitment of Chinese and Finnish educators to fostering holistic development and marks a solid step in cross-cultural educational collaboration.

Shortly after, Professor Kirsti Lonka conducted a series of workshops in Shenzhen. Concentrating on integrating interdisciplinary learning into curriculum reform, she introduced the core concepts and practical approaches of Finland’s educational model — Phenomenon based learning. Through interactive sessions in schools in Shenzhen, she demonstrated how to design learning around real-world phenomena, foster student curiosity, and support teacher development in cross-disciplinary instruction. The training provided valuable insights and effective strategies for advancing pedagogical innovation.

Together, the Finnish experts helped Chinese educators build new approaches in their own workshops—These exchanges transcends the mere sharing of educational practices; it fosters a reflective, reciprocal dialogue through which Finnish and Chinese educators gain fresh perspectives on their own pedagogical experiences—drawing inspiration not from prescriptive models, but from mutual insight and critical self-reflection.