CHENNAI: After returning from an official visit to Finland, School Education Minister KA Sengottaiyan, on Thursday, said he will implement the teaching methods in pedagogical learning in Finland in government schools in Tamil  Nadu.

“We have also requested the education department of Finland to visit Tamil Nadu and train our teachers. The State will contribute Tamil literary books to public libraries in Finland.”

He was speaking to newspersons on the sidelines of a function got up for presenting Dr. Radhakrishnan Awards, on the occasion of Teachers’ Day. Totally, 377 government school teachers were honoured by the government for service excellence.

He said as opposed to syllabus and textbook-based learning, Finnish schools encourage elementary school students to be physically active and facilitate them to do activities they show interest in.  Steps will be taken to impart vocational training and practicals-based training for students from Standard IX onwards.

“Further, the government is aiming at enrolling five lakh students in government schools in the next academic year. Currently, there are around 1.85 lakh students.”

“Restrictions will increase on private schools in Tamil Nadu and stringent rules will be laid to improve quality,” he said adding that the government will toughen scrutiny before approving any new school in the State. Sengottaiyan said the government will set-up 90,000 smart classrooms in government schools this year.