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Pirjo Honkavaara Union for Child Welfare Armentintie 1 Helsinki, Finland.
There are 450,000 children under school age (0-6 years) in Finland. Families get support in the upbringing of their children from the social welfare services, one of which is daycare. Families are guaranteed a day care place for their children, by law: by 1996 all children under school age will have a statutory right to a place in municipal daycare. Alternatively, families may receive a home care allowance for children under three. Most of the day-care places are provided by the local authorities. There are nearly 180,000 day-care places in all, 63% in daycare centres and 37% in families. Most of the day-care places are for the whole day. The early childhood education system is supplemented by part-time play groups run by the Lutheran Church.
The educational methods employed in day care are based on the teachings of Friedrich Frobel, the German pedagogue. Play, work and teaching are the cornerstones of Finnish early childhood education. The educational aims are laid down in the Act on children's day care.
There is no separate preschool system; preschool education is a natural part of the day-care system Special care is provided for handicapped children with other children the only difference is that the groups are somewhat smaller.
The day-care staff are trained workers. University level training for kindergarten teachers was introduced in 1995. Other persons employed in educational and care work at day-care centres have at least 2V2 years vocational training, and child-minders have completed a shorter day-care course.
There must be at least one trained staff member for each group of 7 children (aged 3-6 years) and one for each group of 4 children under the age of 3. One trained member in three must be a qualified kindergarten teacher.
First kindergarten in Finland 110 years ago.
Finland has a long tradition of kindergartens: as early as 1888 Hanna Rothman, a woman who had received her training in Berlin, founded a kindergarten in Helsinki. So this year is the 110th anniversary for the kindergartens in Finland.
The social in,justices at the time in the Finnish capital, with its growing population and industry, were fast becoming aggravated: the only place for many small children to spend the...