Religious Education in Finland
Religious education (RE) is a compulsory subject both in comprehensive schools (7–16 years) and in senior/upper secondary schools (16–18/19 years). Pupils who do not belong to any religious denomination can choose between religious education or secular Ethics.
Religious education in schools is non-confessional, informative education offered by the society, the objectives and contents of which differ clearly from the RE offered by religious communities. The objective of religious education in schools is to obtain a broad and diverse general education regarding religions and world views. The objective is accomplished through getting familiar with ones own cultural heritage and other world views and by developing an ethically responsible attitude in life.
Religious education helps to understand the meaning of religion to an individual, and to understand impact of religion in local, national and global communities. Living and working in a multicultural society requires knowledge of one’s own context and of the diverse cultures and religions that coexist in the society. RE provides the information and skills necessary for interreligious dialogue and understanding. According to studies, Finnish people appreciate Finnish unbiased religious education.
Religious education in Finland is non-confessional, although pupils and students receive RE according to their own religion. That is so, if the denomination is registered in Finland. A 15-year-old child can decide their own religion/denomination with the permission of parents. It means that the contents of RE in each religion are based on that particular religion, but other religions and world views are studied as well. Teachers do not have to belong to any denomination and teacher education takes place in universities.
A child’s right to religious education is stated in many international declarations. In Finland 65% of the population are members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. Evangelical Lutheran students study Evangelical Lutheran RE. The Evangelical Lutheran RE, as the majority education, is open to all students and many non-Lutheran students participate in Evangelical Lutheran RE. Education in other religions is organized when there is a minimum of three pupils who belong to that specific denomination in the area of education provider, i.e. a municipality or city. In 2023, 83 % of pupils in comprehensive school took part in Evangelical Lutheran RE, 1,9 % in Orthodox, 3.1 % in Islam and 11 % in Secular Ethics.
In Finland the curricula are made by the National Agency for Education (Opetushallitus). In current curriculum of basic education (2014, 2020) there are 14 different curricula of RE. Because RE is related to one’s own religion, every RE version has its own name: Lutheran, Orthodox, Islam, Catholic, Jewish, Adventist, Pentecostal, Bahá’í, Christian Community, Free Church, Buddhist, Pentecostal, Latter Day Saints, and Krishna religion.
In general upper secondary education there are 11 different national curricula of RE: Lutheran, Orthodox, Adventist, Islam, Catholic, Jewish, Buddhist, Baha’i, Christian Community, Latter Day Saints, and Krishna religion. The curriculum (2019) contains two obligatory courses in RE. The first compulsory course deals with religion as a phenomenon and focuses on the three monotheistic religions: Christianity, Judaism and Islam. The second compulsory course concentrates on the details of each religion, such as history, traditions, sacred life and dogmas and a national and global position.