The Overlooked Factor Behind Finland’s Falling PISA Scores

The PISA results published yesterday, which measure schoolchildren’s academic performance, showed that the performance level of Finnish, and many other European, schoolchildren had declined since the previous assessment. The reasons for this have been discussed in the pages of one Finnish media outlet after another, and at least the obvious impact of social media on children’s ability to concentrate has not been downplayed.

However, one factor that has quite evidently contributed to the decline in our schoolchildren’s performance has received remarkably little attention. Namely, the indirect effect of poorly performing immigrant children and young people on other pupils.

Of course, it is impossible to say anything with certainty about this without proper research, but even common sense suggests that the disruption these pupils are known to cause, and the special attention they require from teachers—which comes at the expense of the time available for teaching other schoolchildren—would seem to be plausible candidates for explaining, for example, the [surprising decline] in the learning outcomes of children from socioeconomically advantaged families.

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I was particularly surprised when Professor Mari-Pauliina Vainikainen, who commented on the issue on  television —and was wearing a rather striking floral decoration on her head—explicitly denied that immigration has an impact on learning outcomes (at around the 15-minute mark in this recording). She justified this by saying that the gap in academic performance between immigrant young people and native Finnish young people had narrowed since the previous assessment.

Her reasoning is, of course, factually correct in itself, but her conclusion seemed odd given that the impact of immigration is known to have significantly worsened the conditions for maintaining order and concentration in school classrooms. Even more peculiar was the realization that I could not easily find a Finnish source to link to documenting this phenomenon, which is familiar to the parents of children in all kinds of ethnically diverse classrooms.

In any case, it is clear that if pupils from the majority population have to study in a more disruptive environment than in previous years, this will affect their learning. The same applies if, because of the additional attention required by immigrant children, they receive less time and instruction from their teachers than they did in the past.

It would therefore be good if researchers and funding could also be found for studying these factors. Above all, we should develop a pedagogical solution that would eliminate these problems from Finnish school classrooms.

Previous thoughts on the same topic:
Finnish Families Flee Immigrant-Dominated Areas Over School Safety Concerns
Finnish Immigration Policy Limits Freedom of Expression
Attitudes Toward Immigrants Are a Problem in Schools

Activism Without Truth

Politically left-wing Palestine activists seem to have an exceptionally poor grasp of facts. The latest example of this came yesterday, when Palestine Action Finland defaced the office of the Norwegian-Finnish ammunition and weapons manufacturer Nammo with red paint, claiming that the company had participated in Israel’s actions in Gaza by supplying weapons and ammunition to its army.

In reality, Nammo has not supplied weapons or ammunition to the Israeli army since it began its operations in Gaza to root out Hamas terrorists. The Nammo products currently in Israel originated from the United States, to which they were sold in 2008. About 15 years later, they made their way from the U.S. to Israel.

This raises the question: what should we think of people who resort to acts of terror without even bothering to check whether their so-called justifications are true? Not to mention that through their actions, these activists effectively showed support for the very terrorist act that started the war.

Likewise, this group of people seems unaware—or fails to grasp the significance—of the fact that Western countries have supported the Palestinians with massive sums of money over the years, much of which has been used to support terrorist activities, such as the construction of an extensive tunnel network in Gaza. For that reason, they cannot be considered blameless in the current suffering of the region’s inhabitants.

Previous thoughts on the same topic:
UN Security Council Resolution Draft Risks Encouraging Terrorism
Why Hamas Is Unwilling to Give Up Its Weapons
Palestinians: acknowledging facts is the beginning of wisdom!

Expert Statement Highlights Russian Hybrid Threat Over Migration Across the Mediterranean

The European Centre of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats (Hybrid CoE) has issued a warning about the threat of instrumentalised migration. According to the Centre, "large-scale instrumentalised migration could cause significant problems for Finland's societal peace, as well as public order and security, potentially impairing crisis decision-making and operational capabilities."

The Centre also noted that "it is possible that by exploiting disinformation arising from such a situation, solidarity towards Finland within Europe could be significantly diminished. Should such a hybrid campaign become highly effective, it may pave the way for some unexpected political and military arrangements."

The Centre drew attention to the fact that “unauthorised crossing of Finland’s eastern land border is considerably easier and safer than the hundreds of kilometres of sea travel across the Mediterranean. Therefore, Finland may face even greater pressure than what has traditionally been seen at the Mediterranean. This vulnerability is of a permanent nature, and Russia can exploit this mechanism with minimal effort.”

A representative of the Hybrid CoE also pointed out the EU Commission's stance, which states that "to safeguard the security of the Union and the territorial integrity of its member states, it is essential that member states bordering Russia and Belarus can act decisively and firmly to effectively control the Union’s external borders. Consequently, member states may need to make exceptions to EU regulations if instrumentalised migration threatens the public order, internal security, or national security of the Union and its member states."

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This expert statement was issued in connection with the plans to extend Finland's border security law concerning the eastern frontier. Originally passed as a one-year measure in the summer of 2024, the law sparked intense debate, particularly among the political green-left. As a result, six Social Democrats, one Swedish People's Party representative, and the entire parliamentary groups of the Greens and the Left Alliance voted against it. Despite the objections from MPs who, in effect, aligned themselves with Russia’s position, the law passed in Parliament with the necessary majority: 167 votes to 31.

This spring, the political left has once again voiced pro-Moscow criticism regarding the extension of the border law (one, two, three examples). That is why it is important that the expert statement referenced above not only addressed the actual threats but also clearly highlighted the European Commission’s position, which justifies deviation from EU regulations in cases of instrumentalised migration.

Indeed, it would be an utterly untenable situation if the EU or any of its member states were unable to defend themselves against hostile threats from the East simply because they clung to regulatory frameworks, regardless of the consequences. One would hope this point would be heard—and more importantly, understood—even by the political green-left, though that may be a vain hope.

In the coming weeks, we shall see what kind of spectacle unfolds in the Finnish Parliament and the media as the border security law is revisited. However, it already seems clear that this is nothing more than political theatre, as there are ultimately too few MPs willing to act as Putin’s advocates by opposing Finland’s security interests and reopening the country’s borders to hybrid operations. Still, it is helpful that they reveal themselves so openly.

Previous thoughts on the same topic:
Be Ready: Russia May Launch Another "Special Operation"
Human Rights Judge Pauliine Koskelo Questions Asylum Interpretation That Ignores the Threat of Hybrid Warfare
Defending National Security: Finland's Response to Hybrid Warfare