The Teaching of English in Finnish High Schools

Unlike the other countries of northern Europe, Finland has two official languages, Finnish and Swedish, a fact which is reflected in the emphasis placed on languages in the high-school curriculum. In the coastal communities from Lovisa to Turku (Åbo) on the southern shore, as well as in the towns from Pori (Björneborg) to Pietarsaari (Jakobstad), Swedish influence is stronger than anywhere else in Finland, and in many of these towns and villages only Swedish is spoken. In these communities and in the national capital itself, therefore, government workers and employees of business and industry are required to be fluent in both official languages. As in other bilingual countries, the use of two languages can be observed not only in official government documents, currency, postagestamps, and the like, but also in such things as signposts, advertisements, menus in restaurants, and time-tables. There are radio and television programs in both languages, and foreign films appear with two sets of subtitles on the same film, one in Finnish and one in Swedish. Thus whatever one's first language is, there is always ample opportunity to hear and see the other official language written. It should be mentioned, however, that ninety per cent of the population speaks Finnish as the first language and that very little Swedish can be heard in northern and in eastern Finland (except, of course, on the radio), but even in those Finnish-language areas, people are exposed to written Swedish on the label of virtually every product they buy, if nowhere else.