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The aim of the research was to find out the views of the kindergarten teachers concerning Christianity and it´s role in the religious education. The research was implemented as a qualitative case study. The basis was to look at the history of the christian teachings as a pedagogical aim in the religious education in the beginning of the 1900-century and the changes that the multi-religional society today have brought in the contents and the practice. The backround theory was Mervi Muhonen and Kirsi Tirri`s ( 2008) definition of the six different dimensions of the Christian pedagogics. These six dimensions can be divided in to two; the spiritual part and the human part. In the research three kindergarten teachers were interviewed. They work in Helsinki, Vantaa and Pirkkala. All the three of them vary in their personal attitudes toward Christianity. The form of the interview was a half-structured theme interview and the interviews were implemented separately and individually. The interviews were recorded, transcribed and analyzed. The analysis was done according to the theory-based content analysis and the material was classified into themes. In the results was noticed that all the three kindergartenteachers were emphasizing the human part of the reliogious education in their practical daily-base activity. The spiritual part was emphatized only by those of the kindergarten teachers, who had a personal belief. In most of the kindergarten groups the spiritual part was totally transferred to the church and to homes. The research results showed that the kindergarten teachers experienced that the christian tradiotion is a part of the Finnish cultural tradition and also an important part for the next generation to pass on. All the three kindergartenteachers said that the general attitude towards Christian education has changed to be more cautious during their professional career. The way how the christian education was performed was influenced by the personal intrests and beliefs of the teachers. The research also showed that without a strong, personal faith in the midst of the multicultural and multireligional society and its demands, the education of the Christianity was easily given forward, to the church and its representatives.

The purpose of this study was to explore how kindergarten teachers evaluate their experiences of continuing education and what kind of continuing education they feel that they need. In addition to this the study also wanted to find out how kindergarten teachers feel continuing education influence on their expertise. There is a statutory continuing education obligation in the kindergarten teachers profession. Also earlier studies have shown that teachers feel continuing education to be motivating them in their coping at work. Also new kindergarten teachers feel that possibilities in professional development affirm their commitment to the industry. This study carried out as qualitative research. Data for the research was collected via interviewing three kindergarten teachers. They all had over twenty years of experience working as teachers. They were chosen for the study based on their experience in continuing education. The interviews were carried out as focused interviews. The collected audio data was then transcribed. Transcribed data was then analyzed using theory guided content analysis. Kindergarten teachers evaluated their experiences in continuing education based on supply and they felt that it was sufficient. The study also showed that kindergarten teachers felt that there were now more supply in continuing education than before. In addition the study showed that the support of superior in taking part in continuing education was an important factor for kindergarten teachers. They felt that shift arrangements were mainly the negative side of participation in continuing education. Kindergarten teachers also felt that the current topics of continuing education were important. All kindergarten teachers that participated in this study hoped that in the future the subjects of continuing education would concentrate on the changes happening in the field of early learning. They all mentioned the new national early learning plan. All kindergarten teachers felt that continuing education supported their expertise.

In today’s world and society physical exercise is constantly present in people’s conversations, as different points of view and current trends, in regards to exercise, strongly reflects the way we view our bodies. A healthy lifestyle, physical exercise as a part of it, are highly valued in our culture. The objective of this thesis was to observe physical exercise as a cultural, social and political phenomenon. The thesis describes the relationship between the physical activity of a person and the aspects and elements of his/her physical activity, as well as the factors influencing them. In addition, the construction of a physical relationship in the individual's life span is identified. The goal is to understand what drives people to move, and the different ways in which people are directed towards physical activity. The thesis was done as a literature review, ie a theoretical mapping of the research literature of the subject. The starting points for the thesis were based in the Social Sciences and a plethora of Finnish physiology studies were used as source literature. The point of the thesis is to present how exercise, in general, as a phenomenon, affects everyone. Every person has a relationship of sorts towards physical activity, which can manifest itself in many ways. In a world where sports surround us all, motivational encouragement in physical activity is justified, in particular, by its health benefits. The well-meaning intent may, however, partially turn against itself, as the exercise speech may also come as too strong of a guidance, or even in the form of forced exercise. The ideal of a model citizen is also produced through exercise speeches, while some people may feel completely left out. Exercise has become an instrument for controlling one’s body, which allows a person to implement a suitable, continuous self-improvement project.

Tiivistelmä - Referat - Abstract The father of kindergarten Friedrich Fröbel and his pedagogic views have not been a popular research study during the recent years. However, the history of Finnish kindergarten has been studied. According to these studies, Fröbel had a strong influence in Finnish kindergartens up until the 1980’s. Since the 1980’s there have been some changes in the Finnish kindergartens, e.g. in the operational culture and the eligibility criteria of the staff The emphasis has shifted from social pedagogy to early education with emphasis on pedagogy. Kindergarten teachers were trained according to Fröbel’s pedagogy until the late 1970’s. Therefore, many of the kindergarten teachers still working have received education that emphasizes Fröbel’s pedagogy. The hypothesis of this study is that Fröbel's pedagogy is still visible also in the Early childhood and Pre-school curricula. Part of the hypothesis is that the Fröbel’s pedagogy has changed compared to the early days’ Finnish kindergarten. This study aims to find out what is Fröbel’s pedagogy is and how it is reflected in the Early childhood education and Pre-school curricula. This study is a descriptive content analysis. The material used in this study includes Fröbel's textbook (in Swedish) Människans fostran and thereto related preface. The pedagogics described in Fröbel's textbook is later compared with the pedagogy described in Pre-school curriculum 2014 and Early childhood education curriculum 2016. In order to provide a comprehensive view of Fröbel’s pedagogy in Finland I have included also Elise Lujala's PhD Lastentarhatyö, kansanopetuksen osa ja kotikasvatuksen tuki – toiminnan päämäärät ja toteutuminen Pohjois-Suomessa 1800-luvun lopulta vuoteen 1938 and Maija Meretniemi's PhD Hyvä koti ja henkinen äitiys lastentarhatyön esikuvina: Aate- ja käsitehistoriallinen tutkielma Suomen varhaiskasvatuksen taustasta. To understand the shift of education criteria of kindergarten teachers I have studied an article by Eeva-Leena Onnismaa, Marjatta Kalliala and Leena Tahko-Kallio Koulutuspoliittisen paradoksin jäljillä – Miten varhaiskasvatus muotoutui sosiaalialan koulutuksia suosivaksi. In addition, the material also includes lectures by Marjatta Kalliala and Nina Sajaniemi at the University of Helsinki in 2016 and 2018. According to this study, some parts Fröbel's pedagogics agreed with the Early childhood education curriculum and the Pre-school curriculum. Fröbel concept and importance of childhood, play as part of learning, the developmental psychological view of child growth and development were also reflected in the Early childhood curriculum and Pre-school curriculum. Additionally, the idea kindergarten or early childhood education as a first part of life long education was visible in Fröbel’s textbook and the above-mentioned curricula. There were differences as well, Fröbel’s theological philosophy was not part of the curricula. There were also differences in the weighting of subjects in teaching. It goes without saying that Fröbel's pedagogy does not include media or technology education. Both the curricula and Fröbel’s textbook are works of their time. This study also helped me to understand the current state of early childhood education in Finland and the varying emphasis between social pedagogy and pedagogy during the recent years, and the contradiction between these in history and today.