The best education in the world
No, not a story about CELTA-qualified 23 year olds spreading good teaching around the world. According to the BBC, the best education is to be had in Finland:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/documentary_archive/6991288.stm
As ever, it is very difficult if not impossible to take something like this from one country and transplant it to another. In fact, my theory on this one is that the thing that sets successful education systems apart is simply a belief in that system. The Finns have an education system that most people there believe matches the country and is something to be proud of. Therefore the best people want to be teachers and the parents, students and education authorities trust those teachers. That was the case in Japan when it also used to come near the top of educational surveys, and then the doubt set in and it all began to fall apart…