Browsing by Subject "opettajankoulutus"

The aim of this study was to research class teacher students’ conceptions of emotional skills and the education of emotional skills and its significance in the context of primary education. Another ambition was to investigate how the contents of emotional education were considered in the university studies, based on the experiences of class teacher students. Based on earlier studies, emotional education has a holistic effect on the development of children, but regardless of it, the teachers receive only little education to help developing pupils’ emotional skills. The training of teachers is one of the most significant factors in emotional education of the pupils, according to other studies, hence the aim of this paper is also to research how the teacher education could be improved to prepare the class teacher students to feel more secure about emotional education in primary education. The material of the research consisted of the interviews of eight master’s degree class teacher students, who were in their fourth or fifth year of studies in the University of Helsinki. The material was collected and analysed with a qualitative method. The interviews were semi-structured, and the material was analysed with a phenomenographic approach. The results of the study are based on categories of description formed by phenomenographic analysis. According to the results, class teacher students had a structured understanding of the holis-tic significance of primary education’s emotional education for children’s development. Emo-tional skills were considered as skills that improve children’s ability to identify and control feelings, empathy, social skills, and interaction with others. Emotional education was consid-ered an important part of primary education, whose aim is to create a base for the develop-ment of emotional skills and to improve the most significant emotional skills, as viewed by the primary school teacher students. The class teacher students felt as though they had not re-ceived enough education related to primary education’s emotional education and its imple-mentation. The class teacher students think the university should provide the basis and more information about practical methods that work in implementation of emotional education. The class teacher students would improve the teacher training’s methods of teaching and contents, in order to make processing emotional education more relevant and consistent.

Climate change is a global crisis that affects the whole world. Education plays a significant role in climate change mitigation and adapting to the changes of climate change. It is necessary that people question their habits and change their behavior more climate friendly. Class teachers’ task is to provide students with appropriate information about climate change and different means to react to it. The aim of this thesis was to research student teachers’ conceptions of climate change, climate change education and its significance in elementary school education. In addition, the goal was to investigate how, according to the experiences of class teacher students, climate education has been dealt with in university studies. According to previous international and Finnish studies, teachers do not get enough knowledge or skills to implement climate education in elementary school. The skills and knowledge acquired in teacher training have a significant impact on what kind of climate education class teachers implement or whether it is implemented at all. For this reason, I also examined how to student classroom teachers would develop teacher training based on their experiences in university. The material of this thesis was collected and analyzed using a qualitative method. The material of the research consisted of interviews with five class teacher students from the University of Helsinki and five from the University of Oulu. The interviewees were ei-ther third-, fourth- or fifth year student teachers who had completed teacher’s pedagogical studies. The interviews were conducted as semi-structured thematic interview and the analyzed using a phenomenographic research approach. The results are based on the description categories made in the analysis of the phenomenographic research sample. The results of this thesis state that class teacher students understand the social importance of climate education and the seriousness of climate change. The aim of cli-mate education in elementary school was seen as understanding climate change as a phenomenon and climate change mitigation in everyday life, changing one’s own behavior and world of values more climate friendly. The interviewees also defined what skills, knowledge, and character traits a good climate educator should own. The student teachers felt that they were unsure about implementing climate education because according to them, climate education in university studies has been little, bad or has not been done at all. The interviewees would develop university studies in a way its content and teaching methods would prepare class teachers better and more thoroughly for the subjects taught in elementary school.

This study examines the perceptions of pre-service teachers’ emotional skills and education related to those skills, as well as their self-efficacy as future emotional skills educators. Additionally, pre-service teachers’ conceptions of a teacher's role as an emotional skills educator were examined. In previous studies, it is well-established that recognizing, regulating, and expressing emotions are essential for maintaining social relations and promoting well-being, with emotional skills being learned from adults in early childhood. The quality of emotional skills education is known to be influenced by the teacher's own emotional competence and educational background. The present study was conducted using a qualitative, phenomenographic approach. Data was gathered from semi-structured interviews with six pre-service teachers in their final year of studies. The transcribed data was analyzed to form outcome spaces. The results indicate that the pre-service teachers had a comprehensive understanding of emotional skills and their importance to a child's development and life. They also demonstrated knowledge of methods to develop children's emotional skills and integrate them into elementary school education. Despite these results, the students also expressed feelings of uncertainty about their skills as future emotional skills educators due to their lack of education and work experience, as well as the challenges of well-being at work and the limitations of a teacher's influence on children's lives. However, they also showed partial self-efficacy as emotional skills educators based on their own perceived strong emotional skills. The teacher's role as an emotional skills educator was seen as part of their responsibilities, with the development of their own professional skills and shared responsibility for upbringing being especially important. This study highlights the need for further research and development to improve teacher training in emotional skills education. Examining the perceptions and conceptions of future teachers’ self-efficacy provided valuable insights into emotional skills teaching.

The term lifelong learning is often associated with class teacher work. Lifelong learning continues after class teacher training, during which one's professional competence is developed and maintained. The development of one's professional skills can be sup-ported through continuing education. However, there are various opinions on the sub-ject of continuing education for class teachers. Criticisms have been raised, for exam-ple, regarding the poor organization of continuing education, fragmented content, and the lack of support for the development of knowledge and skills acquired in basic edu-cation. The work of class teachers is very diverse, and continuing education should meet teachers' wishes and needs for the development of their work. The purpose of this master's thesis is to explore the desires and needs of class teach-ers regarding continuing education. The focus is on any potential changes that may have occurred in continuing education for class teachers. The obtained research re-sults are compared with a study conducted in 1997, which examined class teachers' thoughts on the need for continuing education at that time. The research is qualitative, and the collected data is analyzed using content analysis. The research data was col-lected through an electronic questionnaire containing both closed and open-ended questions. 69 class teachers from different parts of the Uusimaa region participated in the study. Based on the research results, it can be concluded that class teachers' desires regard-ing continuing education have partly remained the same and have partly transformed over the past twenty-five years. Teachers feel that they need continuing education the most in digital skills, differentiation and special education, as well as in work well-being and stress management. Both digital skills and special education have maintained their positions in class teachers' desires for the past twenty-five years. On the other hand, work well-being and stress management as a topic have emerged more prominently in teachers' desires compared to the study conducted in 1997.

Vuoden 2014 opetussuunnitelmauudistuksessa ohjelmointi tuotiin osaksi peruskoulun oppimäärää kaikilla luokka-asteilla. Uudistuksen yhteydessä ei luotu uutta tietotekniikan oppiainetta, vaan ohjelmointi sijoitettiin osaksi matematiikan sisältöjä, matematiikan aineenopettajien opetusvastuulle. Tässä pro gradu -tutkielmassa kartoitetaan matematiikan aineenopettajaopiskelijoiden ohjelmointitaitoja TPACK-teorian viitekehyksessä teettämällä opiskelijoille lomakekysely, jossa aineenopettajan pedagogisia perusopintoja suorittavia matematiikan aineenopettajaopiskelijoita pyydettiin määrittelemään ohjelmointiin liittyviä keskeisiä käsitteitä, tulkitsemaan ohjelmakoodia ja tuottamaan ohjelmakoodia. Vastauksia saatiin 36 kpl, eli melkein yksi täysi vuosikurssillinen. Vastaajista noin joka neljäs oli suorittanut vähintään perusopinnot tietojenkäsittelytieteessä, mikä oli suoraan kytköksissä hyvään ohjelmointiosaamiseen. Käsitteistä erityisesti algoritmi osoittautui hyvin vaikeaksi määriteltäväksi. Vaikeimpiin koodinlukutehtäviin harvempi kuin joka viides vastaaja osasi vastata hyväksyttävästi. Koodintuottotehtävissä hyväksyttävän vastauksen osasi tuottaa noin neljännes vastaajista. Vastauksissa oli nähtävissä hierarkkinen rakenne: koodintuotto edellytti koodinlukutaitoa. Kyselyn validiteettia arvioitiin teettämällä sama kysely myös pienelle joukolle ammattiohjelmoijia. Ammattiohjelmoijat suoriutuivat tehtävistä odotetusti erittäin hyvin. Kaiken kaikkiaan ohjelmointitaito osoittautui puutteelliseksi. Aikaisempi tutkimus on osoittanut, että puutteellinen sisältötietojen hallinta on kytköksissä heikkoon opetuksen ja esimerkiksi virheellisten mallien välittämiseen. Tämän takia olisi syytä tarkastella sitä, onko nykyinen opetussuunnitelman ratkaisu sijoittaa ohjelmointiopetus matematiikan oppiaineeseen hyvä, pitäisikö ohjelmoinnilla ja tietojenkäsittelytieteellä olla laajempi rooli matematiikan yliopisto-opinnoissa ja millaisia täydennyskoulutusmahdollisuuksia matematiikan aineenopettajakunnalle tulisi tarjota.

Objectives. In 2010, an amendment to the Basic Education Act introduced a three-step support model and its introduction has had a significant impact on the operational culture of schools. At the same time, it has also significantly shaped the work of teachers. When evaluating three-step support and its introduction, it is important to highlight the experiences of teachers who practice it on a practical level. In previous studies, teachers have highlighted several challenges related to three-step support and its practice. Teachers have experienced their skills to support students with special educational needs as weak. The purpose of this study was to find out how novice teachers in the early stages of their careers experience three-step support and its practice. The aim of the study was also to find out what kind of skills novice teachers felt teacher training had offered them to practice three-level support. Methods. The study involved four novice teachers, all of whom had less than three years of work experience after graduation. All teachers had graduated from the University of Helsinki. Teachers had experience of practicing three-step support in their own work. The data was collected by semi-structured interviews. The data was analysed using data-driven content analysis. Results and conclusions. Teachers felt that the three-step support model included some functional elements such as the structure of the model, collaboration, and the structure brought by pedagogical documents. The model also saw much to be improved such as flexibility, boundaries of support steps, consistent practices and resources. The practice of the three-step support was stressful due to poor know-how, laborious documentation and high responsibility. Teachers experienced that co-operation with the work community and other professionals supported their work. Teacher training was perceived to provide mainly theoretical skills, while practical skills had remained weak. Teacher training was felt to contain lot of theory and the importance of learning through practice was emphasized.

Tavoitteet. Käsillä oleva ekologinen kriisi vaatii kiireellisiä uudistuksia myös kasvatuksen ja koulutuksen kentältä. Ekososiaalinen sivistys on uudenlainen sivistysmuotoilu, joka lisättiin uusimpaan perusopetuksen opetussuunnitelmaan osaksi kasvatuksen ja opetuksen arvopohjaa. Kaiken toiminnan pohjana tulee olla ekologinen kestävyys, jonka päälle sosiaalista ja taloudellista kestävyyttä voidaan rakentaa. Uusi sivistyskäsitys keskittyy vastuullisuuden, kohtuullisuuden ja ihmistenvälisyyden edistämiseen. Tässä tutkimuksessa tarkastelen opettajakouluttajien näkemyksiä ekososiaalisen sivistyksen käsitteestä sekä sen sovellettavuudesta opettajankoulutuksessa. Tutkimus tuo tärkeää tietoa opettajakouluttajista sekä opettajankoulutuksesta aikakaudella, jossa opettajat kamppailevat yhä lisääntyvän työmäärän ja vastuun kanssa. Tutkimuksen teoreettinen viitekehys koostuu perinteisen sivistyskäsityksen, ekososiaalisen sivistyksen sekä luontokäsityksen muotoilusta. Menetelmät. Tutkimus toteutettiin laadullisten tutkimusmenetelmien mukaisesti puolistrukturoitua, temaattista haastattelumenetelmää käyttäen. Haastattelun aineisto koostui kahden opettajakouluttajan haastattelusta, jotka toteutettiin etäyhteyksin maaliskuussa 2021. Etähaastattelut äänitettiin ja litteroitiin myöhempää analyysia varten. Tutkimuksen keskiössä olivat opettajakouluttajien näkemykset ja merkityksenannot tutkittavasta aiheesta, joten analyysi toteutettiin fenomenografista analyysia hyödyntäen. Analyysi rakentui yksityiskohtaisemmista merkitysyksiköistä kohti laajempia kuvauskategorioita. Opettajakouluttajien käsityksiä kuvaava tulosavaruus ekososiaalisesta sivistyksestä sekä sen sovellettavuudesta opettajankoulutuksessa muodostivat tutkimuksen tulokset. Tulokset ja johtopäätökset. Tutkimustulokset osoittavat, että ekososiaalinen sivistys näyttäytyy opettajakouluttajien näkemyksissä yhtäältä tärkeänä mutta monimutkaisena. Ekososiaalisen sivistyksen sovellettavuus opettajankoulutuksessa ilmeni opettajakouluttajien näkemyksissä ongelmallisena ja sattumanvaraisena. Uudenlaiseen sivistysmuotoiluun sisältyy niin filosofisia, arvoristiriitaisia ja poliittisia pulmia, jonka vuoksi ekososiaalisen sivistyksen toteutuminen ei ole opettajakoulutuksessakaan yksinkertaista. Arvopohjamuutokset vaativat aikaa lähteäkseen käyntiin. Tulevaisuustaitojen opettaminen kuten epävarmuuden sieto, sinnikkyys, aktivismi sekä rikkaat tunnetaidot edistävät osaltaan ekososiaalisen sivistyksen toteutumista.

Tämän kirjallisuuskatsauksen tavoitteena oli selvittää, kuinka kirjallisuudessa on kuvattu opettajankoulutuksen vetovoimaa ja siihen liittyviä tekijöitä. Tavoitteena oli myös tarkastella opettajankoulutukseen hakevien hakumotiiveja. Vuosina 2013–2019 opettajankoulutuksen hakijamäärät laskivat huolestuttavan paljon ja tilanteesta uutisoitiin ”hakijamäärien romahduksena”. Kuitenkin keväällä 2020 hakijoiden määrä kasvoi hieman. Opettajankoulutukseen hakiessa hakija pohtii koulutuksen lisäksi myös opettajan työtä, johon koulutus valmistaa. Tämän vuoksi käsittelin tutkielmassa opettajankoulutuksen vetovoimaa kokonaisuutena, johon kuului myös opettajan työ. Tässä katsauksessa menetelmänä käytettiin kuvailevaa kirjallisuuskatsausta. Katsaukseen valikoitui sekä suomalaista että kansainvälistä kirjallisuutta. Aineiston haussa käytettiin erityisesti seuraavia sanoja: opettajankoulutus, opettajan ammatti, ammatin vetovoima, ammatin houkuttelevuus. Tämän katsauksen tulokset osoittivat, että opettajankoulutuksen vetovoimaan vaikuttavat muun muassa media, palkkaus ja yliopistotasoinen koulutus. Opettajankoulutuksen ja opettajan ammatin arvostus liittyy vahvasti alan vetovoimaan. Jos opettajan työtä arvostetaan yhteiskunnassa, alalle on enemmän hakijoita. Opettajankoulutukseen hakevien tärkeimpiä hakumotiiveja ovat opettajan ammatin luonne, ihmisläheinen työ, samaistuneisuus, soveltuvuus ja sattuma. Opettajan ammatin luonteeseen liittyvissä hakumotiiveissa korostuvat opettajan ammatin työajat, lomat ja palkkaus. Myös opettajan työn ihmisläheisyys sekä mahdollisuus työskennellä lasten ja nuorten kanssa toistuivat kirjallisuudessa. Suomalainen opettajankoulutus on edelleen vetovoimaista, mutta tilannetta tulee seurata, jotta mahdolliseen vetovoiman laskuun on mahdollista reagoida tarpeeksi nopeasti.

Teaching profession and teacher education are valued in Finnish society. It’s been noticed that the popularity of teacher education is on the decline and society is discussing the teacher shortage. The aim of this thesis was to view student teachers’ views on teacher education and images of the teaching profession and school. The aim was to find out If there are differences between classroom teacher students’, early childhood education teacher students’, special education teacher students’ and subject teacher students’ views and images. Thesis material was collected using a ready-made questionnaire from the student teachers at the University of Helsinki as part of a research project called The attractiveness and retention of the teacher's work in the spring of 2023. 277 students answered the survey. Thesis was made using quantitative methods. Used meters were condensed by principal component analysis ja formed principal components’ mean dif-ferences between study tracks were explored by one-way analysis of variance. There are differences between the study tracks regarding views on teacher training. Subject teacher students saw the quality of teacher education and the employment situation of those who have graduated from teacher education as weaker than classroom teacher students and early childhood teacher students. Views on teacher education as an area of application pressure did not differ. There were also differences between the study tracks regarding the images of the teaching profession and the school. Early childhood education teacher students differed from classroom teacher students and subject teacher students regarding the challenges of the teaching profession and social factors as well as their own school experiences and career advancement opportunities. Classroom teacher students differed from subject teacher students in the images of the possibilities of the teaching profession. Opinions about the appreciation of the teaching profession and its change didn't differ. The results show that student teachers have many different views and images. Teacher education is a many-sided education, but all student teachers don’t see it equally positively. The teaching profession is made up of various factors and student teachers have many different images of the teaching profession. It is important to get information about the perceptions of future teachers when the challenges of education increase. However, the differences in views and images indicate that teacher education doesn’t give all student teachers the same understanding.

Academic, research-based education has long been the main organizing principle of Finnish teacher education. The research-based approach is used to refer to the academic nature of teacher education but also to the objectives and contents of teacher education. Research skills are considered to be an essential part of teachers' proficiency. The aim is to educate teachers who will continuously develop their own as well as school practice through inquiry. The purpose of this study is to find out what kind of skills teachers gain from research-based teacher education. The focus is on the teachers' personal experiences. The aim is also to find out how teachers reflect their experiences in every day work in relation to the goals of teacher education. The research data was gathered by interviewing five class teachers. The teachers had graduated from the teacher education program in the university of Helsinki during 2007–2012. They had worked as class teachers for 2–7 years. The data consisted of individual semi-structured interviews. The analysis was based on the categories that were found from the data. Overall, the teachers of this study were content with their education and thought that it had provided them with a good basis for teacher's practical work. The studies in education were thought to be a necessary basis for teaching. Together with the studies in research, teachers thought that the educational courses had developed their professional thinking and ability to reflect their own and school practice critically. Teachers recognized the goals of the research-based approach and described their attitude towards their work as research-orientated. They were continuously trying to improve their professional skills and pedagogical thinking. Also collegiality, which is often thought to be a characteristic of the new kind of professional teaching culture, was thought to be an important part of their work as a teacher. However, the results indicate that the theoretical approach in their education was somewhat irrelevant to the teachers' practical work. The teachers would have hoped more practice-oriented studies in their education. In general, the theoretical approach was appreciated but the theory in teacher education should be more connected to teachers' practical work. According to teachers' experiences, emphasizing the importance of academic skills and research in teacher education weakens the connection between the teacher education and the teaching profession.