Management, Leadership, and Governance in Primary Education (Finland)

The significance of principals and school administrators as developers and leaders of educational institutions has been explored in many studies during the past decades. The Institute of Educational Leadership has been a part of several national and international research projects concerning educational administration and leadership. During the last years the research into educational administration and leadership has developed and expanded considerably. The research into educational administration and leadership includes many sciences, being truly multidisciplinary. All the fields in education – general education, vocational education, adult education, and early childhood education – are involved in the research programmes. The core discipline is of course education, but there is a strong emphasis on public administration, sociology, psychology, and management. (Institute of Educational Leadership)Peer reviewe

Management, Leadership, and Governance in Secondary Education (Finland)

The Finnish nine year basic education system consists six years of primary (ISCED 1) and three years of lower secondary education (ISCED 2). One of the key principles is that after renowned basic education, provided along comprehensive and universalist principles, all young people should have equal opportunity to undertake high-quality upper secondary education and training. The same educational opportunities should be available to everybody irrespective of their ethnicity, migration background, age, gender, wealth, disability or place of residence. After the nine years of comprehensive education, the Finnish system diversifies into two non-compulsory branches and tracks students into general upper secondary schools and vocational upper secondary institutions (ISCED 3). This transition is a high stakes situation in the Finnish education system.Peer reviewe

Revisiting universalism in the Finnish education system

The aim of the article is to revisit the principle of universalism and analyze how it has changed in the legislation on compulsory education by asking: how are different characteristics of universalism emphasized in the basic education legislation and parliamentary discussion (in 1968, 1982 and 1997)? The analysis portrays the varieties of universalism within the comprehensive school, produced by the four instruments used to govern education (legislation, economy, ideology and evaluatory). According to the analysis, the foundation of the comprehensive school system in the 1960s was laid on uniform content and aims at the ideological level, emphasizing equality of education. The 1980s was a transition phase between 'old' and 'new' universalism, when instruments of legal and economic governance enabled the expansion of universalism and increased costs. Simultaneously, the aims of the comprehensive system and its contents were increasingly set at the local level. We conclude that the 'new' comprehension of universalism in the 1990s entailed issues such as the rise of the evaluation of education, local economy of education and individualism.Peer reviewe

Vauhtia ohjaukseen : työväline mielenterveys- ja päihdekuntoutujien asumisyksikköön

Kehittämistyömme tehtävänä oli tuottaa työväline laadukkaaseen palveluohjaukseen Turussa Ykköskoti Artukaisten ohjaajille. Työvälineeksi muodostui palveluohjauskansio. Tavoitteena oli lisätä ohjaajien tietämystä kolmannen sektorin mielenterveys- ja päihdeasiakkaille suunnatuista palveluista Turun alueelle ja palveluohjauskansion avulla helpottaa sekä selkeyttää ohjaustyötä. Lähtökohtana palveluohjauskansiolle oli palveluiden pirstaleisuus sekä asiakkaiden palveluntarpeiden kasvu. Kehittämistyö toteutettiin yhdessä työelämäkumppanin kanssa. Ykköskoti Artukainen tarjoaa asumista mielenterveys- ja päihdekuntoutujille nuoresta vanhempaan asiakkaaseen. Kehittämistyömme teoria rakentuu mielenterveys- ja päihdepalvelujen tuottajista, palveluohjauksesta ja mielenterveys- ja päihdepalveluiden palveluohjauksen erityispiirteistä. Mielenterveys- ja päihdepalveluiden tuottajissa keskitymme enemmän kolmannen sektorin palveluiden tuottajiin. Kehittämisen menetelminä käytettiin kirjallisuuteen tutustumista, kehittämishankepäiväkirjoja, kehittämishankesuunnitelman tekemistä, dialogista yhteistyötä työyhteisön kanssa sekä osallistuvaa havainnointia. Kehittämistyön prosessi eteni spiraalimallin mukaan. Spiraalimallissa tehtävä, organisointi, toteutus ja arviointi muodostavat kehän. Toiminta jatkuu aina uusilla kehillä, joissa edellisen vaiheen tuotos arvioidaan joka kerta uudelleen. Kehittämistyön etenemisen kannalta reflektiivisyys, arviointi ja vuorovaikutus työyhteisön kanssa olivat tärkeitä. Tuotoksena syntyi palveluohjauskansio kolmannen sektorin mielenterveys- ja päihdepalveluiden tarjoajista Turun alueella. Palveluohjauskansion pilotointivaiheessa kansion pohjalta syntyi vielä palveluohjauslomake asiakkaita varten. Palveluohjauskansio on suunnattu ohjaajille. He voivat käyttää sitä esimerkiksi päivitettäessä asiakkaan kuntoutumissuunnitelmaa ja kartoitettaessa asiakkaalle sopivia talon ulkopuolisia kuntoutusta tukevia palveluita. Valmis tuotos otettiin innolla vastaan. Kehittämistyömme vastasi asetettuja tavoitteita ja olemme itse siihen tyytyväisiä. Kehittämistyön prosessi oli antoisa ja opettavainen. Palveluohjauskansiota on tarkoitus päivittää työntekijöiden toimesta tietojen muuttuessa.The aim of this development work was to produce a tool for good case management done in the Ykköskoti Artukainen in Turku. The tool became to be a case management binder. The aim was to add the knowledge of the counsellors concerning third party driven services for the clients suffering from mental health and substance abuse problems. The case management binder aims to ease and speed the work of the counsellors working in Ykköskoti Artukainen. The starting point of this development work was the understanding, that the services in this field are so to say scattered and and the need of services by these clients is growing. This development work was done together with the working life partner. Ykköskoti Artukainen offers accomodation for people suffering and recovering from mental health and substance abuse problems, the inhabitants vary from old to young. The theory behind this developmet work consists of the services provided to mentalhealth and subtance abuse problem sufferers, case management and the specialities concerning case management in the field of mental health and substance abuse. In the part of the mental health and substance abuse service providers we have taken a closer look at the third party service providers. The methods of developing used in this work are a literature overlook, development work diaries, a development work plan, co-working in a dialogue with the work community and participant observation. The process of this development work followed the structure of the spiral method. In the spiral method the task, the organising, the implementation and the evaluation form a cycle. The development work continues doing new cycles in which the produce of the last cycle gets evaluated a second time. This may continue for more than just a few cycles. In order for the development work to go on it is important to be reflecting, evaluating and beeing in a dialogue with the work community. The product of this development work came out to be a case management binder consisting of the third party service providers working in the field of mental health and subtance abuse problems in the area of Turku. In the phase of piloting the case management binder we developed a form for case management. The case management binder is meant for the counsellors to be used for example when updating the clients’ rehabilitation plan annually. The case management binder can be used when trying to find some services for the clients outside of the Ykköskoti Artukainen. The case management binder was warmly welcomed by the work community. Our development work met the goals set for it and we ourselves are content with it. The process of the develpment work gave us a lot and we learned new things by doing this. It is meant that the case management binder will be kept up to date by the work community

Roudan muodostumisesta ja esiintymisestä Suomessa vuosina 1955-1975

Engl. summary: On the formation and occurrence of soil frost in Finland 1956 to 197

From zero to ‘you’ and back: A mixed methods study comparing the use of two open personal constructions in Finnish

This article focuses on two Finnish personal constructions which can be used to create indexically open reference, i.e. they can be used to refer to generalized or shared human experiences. These two constructions are the zero-person construction and the open 2nd person singular construction. Using Finnish everyday conversational data, we (i) statistically analyze the distributional semantico-grammatical differences in the use of the zero-person and open 2nd person singular constructions, and (ii) examine these differences on a clausal and sequential level in interactional contexts. In our analysis, we integrate quantitative and qualitative methods. Our aim is to show that by mixing methods it is possible to both reveal the recurring semantico-grammatical patterns of the constructions across a large corpus and analyze how these patterns are shaped by the ongoing interaction.</p

On the Pathway to an Unforeseeable Future : An Actantial Analysis of Career Designs of Young People

The process of life design in contemporary adolescence is of increasing interest in times of lifelong learning and the knowledge society. The aim of this article was to increase the comprehension of career designs by analysing the two-phase interviews of 31 young people at the ages of 15 and 18. Drawing on actantial analysis, we modelled the plurality of the career designs, analysed who the main actors are in those career designs, and how young people express, exercise, and adjust their designs. We conclude that both the subjects and the objects of the young people’s career designs included multiple actors. People, issues, and circumstances are integral components of the narratives on the career designs of young people. These components bound their agency and are integrated with their orientations to education and work.The process of life design in contemporary adolescence is of increasing interest in times of lifelong learning and the knowledge society. The aim of this article was to increase the comprehension of career designs by analysing the two-phase interviews of 31 young people at the ages of 15 and 18. Drawing on actantial analysis, we modelled the plurality of the career designs, analysed who the main actors are in those career designs, and how young people express, exercise, and adjust their designs. We conclude that both the subjects and the objects of the young people’s career designs included multiple actors. People, issues, and circumstances are integral components of the narratives on the career designs of young people. These components bound their agency and are integrated with their orientations to education and work.Peer reviewe

Overview of Primary Education (Finland)

Basic education encompasses nine years of universalist basic education and caters for all those between 7 and 16 years. Every student is allocated a place in a nearby school, but they can also choose another school with some restrictions. All school follow a national core curriculum, which includes the objectives and core contents of different subjects. The education providers, usually the local education authorities and the schools themselves draw up their own curricula within the framework of the national core curriculum. (Kalalahti, Silvennoinen, Varjo & Rinne 2015.) A key feature of the national education culture is to ensure equal opportunities for all. Individual support measures are in place to guarantee that every pupil and student can reach their full potential. Differences between schools are small and the quality of teaching is high all around the country. The education system does not have any dead-ends which would affect an individual’s learning career.Peer reviewe

Why Fix something that is not Broken? : The Implementation of School Choice Policy and Parental Attitudes towards Equality and Uniformity of Comprehensive School System in Finland

In Finland, the pupil bodies of schools consisting of children living in the nearby area (school district) has been a central principle ever since the founding of the ‘folk school’ network in the 1890s. Children were allocated to schools on the basis of residence. This policy was changed in the mid 1990’s and the free school choice was introduced in Finland. Although a major change in the school policy the opening of the school choice was not much discussed in the public or in the parliament. It was introduced by a promise to give parents more freedom, to better respond to the needs of the talented pupils, and to bring forth more high quality schools. The evaluation of possible unintended consequences on equality was neglected. In this article we ask: How the socio-economic position of the family is related to the school choice of the child? What is the role of socio-economic status and educational level of parents in explaining the differences in attitudes towards the uniformity of comprehensive school system, and what, in turn, is the role of parental attitudes in explaining the school choice? To answer these questions we analyse large survey data collected in five biggest cities in Finland in spring 2012 (n=2 617). We conclude that school choice in Finland is particularly exercised by highly educated families whose children do well in school. Of the single factors the most predictive indicator of exercising the choice is the child’s average of latest report card, but also variables indicating socio-economic background strongly predict the parental choice.Peer reviewe

Immigrant-origin youth and the indecisiveness of choice for upper secondary education in Finland

The educational transitions of Finnish youth of immigrant background are challenging. They confront more difficulties in a twofold manner: they have more difficulties in transitioning to upper secondary education and they seem to drop out of education more often than their Finnish-origin counterparts. This study aimed to accomplish a view of the complex intertwinement of attitudes and experiences with upper secondary education choices, gender and origin. We compared immigrant- origin students (n = 161) with Finnish-origin students (n = 156) in a survey conducted during the final year of comprehensive school. Our objectives were to analyse the variation in attitudes, experiences and aspirations concerning post-comprehensive transition in gender and origin of the youth, and to analyse the factors behind the indecisiveness of the transitions. We concluded that youth with immigrant origin in general, and boys in particular, share a contradiction we termed the ‘paradox of immigrant schooling’, which refers to the combination of a positivity toward education and difficulties in learning and studying. We also found an immigrant-related contradiction between determinant and quite high occupational aspirations, and uncertainty of upper secondary choices. Our outcomes indicate that the immigrant-origin youth confront the upper-secondary choices in a much more complex and multidimensional situation than their Finnish-origin counterparts.Peer reviewe