OPPI in Southeast Asia

Finnish Education in Indonesia

Indonesia is rebuilding its national curriculum around student centred, project based learning at the same time as its private and international school sector expands rapidly. OPPI helps Indonesian primary schools affiliate with Finland's K-5 pedagogy to support that shift.

In brief

Indonesia is implementing Kurikulum Merdeka, a national reform toward student centred, project based learning and reduced content load.
In PISA 2022, Indonesia's international ranking rose by five to six places even as its average reading, maths and science scores fell compared with 2018.
Indonesia's private and international K-12 school sector is one of the fastest growing in Asia, now driven mainly by local middle class demand rather than expatriate families alone.
Finnish organisations already active in Indonesia include HEI Schools, which runs early years campuses in Jakarta.
OPPI's affiliation model focuses on the K-5 primary years, where Finland's approach to literacy, numeracy and wellbeing is most established.

Kurikulum Merdeka is moving Indonesian schools toward Finnish territory

Since 2022, Indonesia has been rolling out Kurikulum Merdeka, a national reform that reduces content coverage in favour of student centred, project based learning built around literacy, numeracy and character. Refinements through 2025 have pushed this further, shifting emphasis from covering material to mastering fundamental concepts, with new coding and artificial intelligence electives beginning in the 2025/2026 academic year.

That direction, less content, more depth, more teacher autonomy over how a topic is taught, sits close to the thinking behind Finland's own national curriculum and its use of phenomenon based learning. Indonesian primary schools implementing Merdeka are, in effect, already being asked to teach in a more Finnish way. What many lack is the teacher training and classroom methodology to do it well.

What PISA 2022 does and does not tell an Indonesian school

Indonesia's PISA 2022 results were mixed. Its international ranking improved by five to six places in reading, maths and science compared with 2018, but its average scores in all three subjects fell, part of a wider global decline. For school leaders, the lesson is less about a single ranking and more about the teaching approaches that consistently produce strong outcomes elsewhere, including Finland's long standing PISA performance.

Finland's results are commonly linked to a later formal start to school, play based early learning, and an absence of high stakes standardised testing in the primary years. These are specific, transferable classroom practices, not just a reputation.

A fast growing, increasingly local school market

Indonesia's private and international school sector has expanded quickly since a 2014 regulatory change created the SPK (Satuan Pendidikan Kerjasama) category for schools of international standard, with licences growing from 238 to more than 500 within a few years. Indonesia is now regarded as one of the highest growth markets for international schooling in Asia, alongside countries such as the UAE, with demand increasingly coming from Indonesia's own expanding middle class rather than expatriate families alone.

Finnish education is already part of that story. HEI Schools has opened early years campuses in Jakarta, including its Lillipods concept developed jointly by teams in Finland and Indonesia, and Finnish organisations such as Eduten and CCE Finland have built a wider footprint teaching Finnish methods and digital learning across Asia. OPPI's contribution is a whole school affiliation for the K-5 primary years, covering teacher training, curriculum mapping and ongoing mentoring, rather than a single product or one age group.

How OPPI affiliation works for an Indonesian K-5 school

Affiliating with OPPI means training a school's own primary teachers in Finnish classroom methods and mapping them against the school's existing curriculum, whether that is Kurikulum Merdeka, an international curriculum, or a combination the school already runs. The relationship continues with mentoring and review, since Finnish teacher development is treated as an ongoing practice, not a one off certificate.

Teacher training in Finnish pedagogy and phenomenon based learning
Curriculum mapping against Kurikulum Merdeka or an existing international curriculum
Ongoing mentoring for the school's K-5 primary team
A recognised affiliation for parent facing communication

Kurikulum Merdeka is asking Indonesian teachers to teach differently. Finnish pedagogy is one clear, well tested way to do it.

Frequently asked questions

Is OPPI's model compatible with Kurikulum Merdeka?

Yes. Kurikulum Merdeka's emphasis on student centred, project based learning and teacher autonomy overlaps closely with Finnish pedagogy. OPPI's affiliation model maps Finnish teaching methods against a school's existing curriculum, including Merdeka, rather than replacing it.

Does Finnish education mean higher PISA scores automatically?

No single reform guarantees a PISA outcome, and Indonesia's own 2022 results show rankings and average scores can move in different directions. What OPPI offers is the specific classroom practices, including how Finland teaches reading and maths in the primary years, that underpin Finland's long standing results.

How is OPPI different from HEI Schools or Eduten in Indonesia?

HEI Schools focuses on early years centres and Eduten on digital maths learning. OPPI's affiliation model is a whole primary school approach, covering teacher training, curriculum mapping and ongoing mentoring across the K-5 years, alongside a school's own curriculum and board.

Why does OPPI focus on K-5 rather than secondary school?

The primary years are where Finland's pedagogy, including a later formal start, play based learning and low stakes assessment, has the clearest evidence base. Schools affiliate at K-5 first and can extend the approach as their students progress.

Bring Finnish pedagogy to your school

OPPI affiliates a selective cohort of schools each year for its K-5 Finnish-pedagogy programme, backed by Education Finland. Tell us about your school and our team will reach out.

Backed by Education Finland. Over 20 schools have already affiliated, including DPS, Radcliffe and Sanctus. Places in each cohort are limited.

Apply to the affiliation cohort →