Illiterate immigrants learn Finnish in order to train for further education

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By Päivi Punkka-Hänninen
     
      In 2006 alone, more than 900 illiterate adult immigrants, representing 30 different native languages, attended language classes organised by employment offices, various organisations, or Finnish municipalities, while the precise number of illiterate immigrants in Finland is not known.
     
In addition to those who attend classes, there are more than 200 illiterate adults in Finland who do not participate in any form of education for some reason or other.
      For example, the City of Espoo has included immigrant education permanently in the city’s education services. Some 70 per cent of students are female.
      When Helsingin Sanomat visited a class in Espoo’s district of Matinkylä, four young immigrants of Somalian origin aged 15 to 20 were learning Finnish. The three girls and one boy have all recently arrived in Finland and are eligible for preparatory instruction.
     
While Finnish words sound strange, also the Scandinavian letters confuse the young students, of whom most are more or less illiterate.
      In addition to the class for illiterate pupils, there are also groups 2 and 3. The pupils in group 2 already know how to read and write, and they could start directly from Elementary Finnish. Those in group 3 can cope with everyday communication situations while having the ability to understand both written and spoken Finnish.
     
The aim of many Matinkylä pupils is to continue their studies at Eira High School for Adults or to apply for some preparatory training for further vocational education.
      Instructor Marketta Karjalainen regards it as important that all three groups study together from time to time. While observing more advanced students, those studying in the illiterate class have an opportunity to see what kind of knowledge level they are trying to reach themselves.
      Teacher Lenka Itkonen who moved to Finland from the Czech Republic 12 years ago also sets her pupils a good example.
     
”It is difficult to adapt to Finnish society if one does not know how to read or write”, notes Karjalainen.
      Illiterate persons face a number of various everyday problems. All the same, many immigrant mothers may have lived in Finland for a number of years without being integrated into Finnish society, as they have not been able to speak or read Finnish.
      ”Who will help schoolchildren with their homework, if their mothers cannot read?” asked Kajalainen.
     
Illiterate immigrants can be divided into two categories. Primary illiterate people are unable to read or write in any language, while secondary illiterate can read or write in a language other than the language spoken in his or her residential environment.
      The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) estimates that the number of illiterate adults worldwide amounts to some 771 million. Moreover, it is estimated that the majority of these illiterate people are women.
      Simultaneously, some six per cent of adult Finns suffer from dyslexia, a general term for disorders that involve difficulty in learning to read or spell words. However, dyslexia is not an intellectual disability, for all that it may hamper school progress. Neither does it mean the same as illiteracy.
     
Helsingin Sanomat / Edited from an article first published in print 24.11.2007


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Immigrants in Helsinki learning Finnish and finding work more easily 26.5.2006)

Links:
  Eira High School for Adults

PÄIVI PUNKKA-HÄNNINEN / Helsingin Sanomat
paivi.punkka-hanninen@hs.fi