EDUCATION: Finland and the U.S.

http://news.stanford.edu/news/2012/january/finnish-schools-reform-012012.html

Stephen Tung writes about the idealized Finnish school system that is so culturally different from
America's. For one, Finland is ranked approximately 20 levels higher than America in math, science, and reading out of 65 countries tested. Their system obviously works, due to its different emphasis on education than in America. Funding is not dependent on merit (like in America), but rather, it's based on the number of students. Standardized tests are not used, and teaching jobs hold a heavier weight there. They are considered to be at the same level, if not higher, as that of doctors, lawyers, etc. While adopting a foreign system blindly is not wise, it still raises questions as to how America should operate to reflect more successful countries: whether we should emulate a rigid educational structure like that of Southeast Asia, or use Finland's more liberal method.