Ressun ala-aste experience

[djcsuomi]

Hello all. My wife (finnish) and I (american) will be moving back to Helsinki next summer after living in the US for the past 8 years. Our plan is to send our kids (ages 7 and 9) to Ressu. They perfectly fit the profile since they are already in an IB school in the US and speak fluent English and Finnish (and have spent every summer in Finland since they were born).

We would like to hear about peoples' experiences with Ressu for similar aged children. Specifically, have you experienced significant student turnover from year to year (e.g., lots of expats on temporary assignments)? How big are the class sizes? Are the teachers native speakers? Does the curriculum differ significantly from the finnish language schools? Or anything else you found noteworthy.

The other option we are considering is the program at SYK for children returning to Finland at the start of 3rd grade. We place this second on the list because the primary language of instruction is Finnish. Experiences with this program would also be appreciated.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Best,
Dave

[Rosamunda]

I don't have first hand experience of Ressu but my youngest son is in an IB school (MYP programme) and I can confirm that the curriculum is the same as for any other Finnish school. All state-funded schools in Finland have to follow the National Core Curriculum (Min Edu requirement). The main differences (at PYP and MYP level) are in the teaching methods and the qualifications and training of the teachers.

I don't think there are many native English speaking teachers at Ressu (or SYK) at least that was the case a couple of years ago, but it might have changed recently.

Ressu has a really good reputation (so does SYK) and the places are much sought after. If your children are currently in IB schools then I think Ressu would be a good choice.

(The only negative reports I have heard were at High School level, some students complaining that it was a bit "cliquey" and not particularly warm and friendly... but the High School gets its students via the Joint Application System (ie students get direct access from many other schools based on their grade point average from 9th grade) so many of them have not come through Ressu.)

But like I said, I don't have first hand experience of the place.

When we first arrived in Finland (10 years ago) mine went to the International School in Ruoholahti for one year. Most of the teachers were native English speakers but the turnover was quite high (teachers and pupils) and IMO the curriculum did not have enough Finnish content (culture, language etc) but, that was a long time ago.

If I got to choose again, I would put my children into regular Finnish state schools with Finnish as the main language of instruction.

[djcsuomi]

Thanks, Penelope. I really appreciate the time you took to share your experience. We are going to tour Ressu tomorrow and I will relate my experience back to the forum.

[eliisamesa]

Hi Dave,
Would you be able to share an update on your decision and any insight that might be useful for families in similar situation? My American husband and I (I"m Finnish) are considering moving to Finland (after 15 years in Texas) and our kindergartener is now in an IB School here. I was hoping to enroll my older son to Ressu english-speaking track for 1st grade but I am curious about your experience. The other option would be Helsinki International School in Jatkasaari and I am not sure going the private route in Finland would be worth it, though their curriculum and facilities seem to match exactly what he is used to in his current private IB school. Also open to Finnish public schools but I can empathize with my husband's perspective and wanting to be able to be a part of the school-life, homework, events etc better if our children go to English-speaking program. Any insight would be helpful!

Eliisa