University of Helsinki
Name of chapter: Is the Emperor naked? Experiencing the ‘PISA hysteria’, branding and education export in Finnish academia (Fred Dervin)
Abstract: Finland has been at the centre of world attention for many years, especially in relation to her excellent results in PISA studies. This has led to thousands of pedagogical tourists visiting the country but also, and more importantly, the development of Finnish education export. Departments of teacher education, like the one I work in, have been active in partaking in such activities, often masking certain realities about Finnish (teacher) education to sell. In this chapter I am interested in how selling a so-called ‘miraculous’ system of education is embedded in the work of scholars. I describe the main actors of this phenomenon and discuss how they contribute to selling Finnish education. I show that this is a complex phenomenon which occurs at the intersection of global educational competition, academic ‘stardom’, nation branding strategies and the increasing use of social media. Using an auto-ethnographic approach I also share my discomfort with this and propose to peek behind the curtains to look at Finland as a ‘naked Emperor’.