Finland has been named as the happiest country in the world by the World Happiness Report for eight years in a row, and also has one of the best education systems on the planet. Finnish students consistently top the OECD Programme for International Student Assessment, but what makes the system so good might surprise you. Education is compulsory in Finland from age 6 to 18. However, around 80% of children aged 3 to 5 are enrolled in the country's early childhood education and care program. These first few years aren't about academic skills, but rather socialization and learning through play. Classroom activities are goal-oriented and interesting, inspiring children to explore and learn in their own way. This focus on independent learning is maintained throughout compulsory education too. Students get a lot of autonomy, though they are still guided by highly trained teachers, most of whom have a master's degree and take part in regular professional development training. The Finnish classroom is a low-stress space. School starts between 9:00 and 9:45 a.m. and ends between 2:00 and 2:45 p.m., and students usually only have a small number of classes a day. They get time to eat, play and decompress rather than being exhausted by hours of study. Teachers in Finland assign a lot less homework than those in other countries too. Education happens primarily in the classroom, while outside of school, children have time to gain life experience and spend time with family. Finally, Finland doesn't use standardized testing to monitor academic performance. Systems based on standardized testing can often result in students simply rote learning to perform well on an exam rather than being properly engaged with understanding a subject. Instead, Finnish students are graded individually using systems created by the teachers who know them. The only national exam comes at the high school level. Students can choose between a more general education and vocational school. Those who take the general education route can do the National Matriculation Exam, which is used for university entrance.