Browsing by discipline "Education"

Aim. In pre-primary education ADHD-diagnosed children can be found in special groups, integrated groups and also in ordinary groups. It is important that teachers, who work in pre-primary education groups, recognize the individual needs of ADHD-diagnosed children and consider them in all teaching situations, including physical education. The purpose of this study was to find out the needs of ADHD-diagnosed children in pre-primary education during physical education and teachers’ ways to consider these needs. Methods. This study was a qualitative study. The material was collected in January 2018 by interviewing four pre-primary teachers working in the Helsinki metropolitan area, whose groups included an ADHD-diagnosed child. The interviewees were all trained as kindergarten teachers and one of the interviewees was also a qualified special kindergarten teacher. All pre-primary education teachers had at least 15 years of teaching experience and two interviewees had also worked as a day-care centre’s manager. The interviews were conducted as theme interviews in the pre-primary teachers’ workplaces. After the interviews, the material was transcribed and analyzed by content analysis. Results. The results showed that some of the ADHD-diagnosed children had difficulties with regulating their behaviour and emotions. Additionally, one ADHD-diagnosed child had weak motor skills and two very low self-esteem. The needs of ADHD-diagnosed children in physical education were, in spite of the common diagnosis, individualised. Pre-primary teachers make sure to consider ADHD-diagnosed children’s needs in physical education making sure that children have various options to move, simplifying the teaching situations, developing routines that add the feeling of safety and strengthening the child’s self-esteem for example giving lots of positive feedback. All pre-primary teachers evaluated the meaning of physical education as very important in their group that includes ADHD-diagnosed child. Tiivistelmä - Referat - Abstract Aim. In pre-primary education ADHD-diagnosed children can be found in special groups, integrated groups and also in ordinary groups. It is important that teachers, who work in pre-primary education groups, recognize the individual needs of ADHD-diagnosed children and consider them in all teaching situations, including physical education. The purpose of this study was to find out the needs of ADHD-diagnosed children in pre-primary education during physical education and teachers’ ways to consider these needs. Methods. This study was a qualitative study. The material was collected in January 2018 by interviewing four pre-primary teachers working in the Helsinki metropolitan area, whose groups included an ADHD-diagnosed child. The interviewees were all trained as kindergarten teachers and one of the interviewees was also a qualified special kindergarten teacher. All pre-primary education teachers had at least 15 years of teaching experience and two interviewees had also worked as a day-care centre’s manager. The interviews were conducted as theme interviews in the pre-primary teachers’ workplaces. After the interviews, the material was transcribed and analyzed by content analysis. Results. The results showed that some of the ADHD-diagnosed children had difficulties with regulating their behaviour and emotions. Additionally, one ADHD-diagnosed child had weak motor skills and two very low self-esteem. The needs of ADHD-diagnosed children in physical education were, in spite of the common diagnosis, individualised. Pre-primary teachers make sure to consider ADHD-diagnosed children’s needs in physical education making sure that children have various options to move, simplifying the teaching situations, developing routines that add the feeling of safety and strengthening the child’s self-esteem for example giving lots of positive feedback. All pre-primary teachers evaluated the meaning of physical education as very important in their group that includes ADHD-diagnosed child.

Aims. Aggressive behaviour should not be allowed to children. At the day care, it is important to intervene every situation when child behaves aggressively and guide him to find better ways to behave. The aim of the research was to find out how kindergarten special education teacher and kindergarten teacher understand child’s aggression behaviour, what kind of experience they have about it and how they support a child who behaves aggressively at day care. In my research, I focus on children who are over 3 years old. Methods. Research method was qualitative, phenomenographic research. As a data collection method, I used theme interview and as a method of analysis, I used content analysis. I interviewed one kindergarten teacher, one special education kindergarten teacher and one kindergarten resource special education teacher. All of them work for the city of Helsinki and they have between 20 to 40 years of work experience. Results and conclusions. According to the research results, the interviewees thought that child’s aggressive behaviour was both physical and verbal. All of the interviewees told that they encounter child’s aggressive behaviour almost daily at their work. There were similarities and differences in the way kindergarten special education teachers and kindergarten teachers support a child who behaves aggressively. Different educational backgrounds might be explanatory factor. All of the interviewees brought up that it is important that adults remain calm when a child acts aggressively. Due to the safety reasons, they sometimes had to hold the child until the child can be calmed down. The kindergarten special education teachers brought up teaching the child the skill to recognize and name feelings.

Tunnekasvatuksella voidaan vaikuttaa oppilaan kokonaisvaltaiseen hyvinvointiin, akateemiseen menestykseen sekä koulun sosiaaliseen ilmapiiriin. Tunnetaitojen heikkous puolestaan altistaa käytöshäiriöille ja syrjäytymiselle. Tutkielman tarkoituksena on kuvata, millaisia mahdollisuuksia tunnetaitojen opetuksen integroimisella äidinkielen ja kirjallisuuden oppiaineeseen voi olla. Tunnekasvatuksen tarve on huomioitu uudessa opetussuunnitelmassa, mutta käytännössä opetus ei ole vielä systemaattista ja ennaltaehkäisevää, oppilaiden tasapainoisen tunne-elämän kehitystä tukevaa. Tutkielmassa kuvataan tunnekasvatuksen asemaa suomalaisessa alakoulussa opetussuunnitelman velvoittamana, oppiaineeseen sitoutumattomana sisältönä. Tutkielmassa selvitetään, miten äidinkielen ja kirjallisuuden oppiaineessa voidaan tukea tunnekasvatuksen tavoitteita ja mikä merkitys lastenkirjallisuudella voi olla oppilaan tunnetaitojen ja kokonaisvaltaisen hyvinvoinnin kannalta. Tutkielma toteutettiin kuvailevana kirjallisuuskatsauksena. Aineistona käytettiin kotimaista ja ulkomaalaista teoriakirjallisuutta, tutkimuksia ja muita tieteellisiä artikkeleita, sekä muutamia opinnäytteitä. Aineisto on rajattu harkinnanvaraisesti suhteessa tutkittavaan ilmiöön. Tunnekasvatuksen asema alakoulussa on yhä hajanainen, vaikka opettajat tunnustavat tunnetaitojen merkityksen oppimisen edellytyksenä. Kirjallisuuskatsauksen perusteella tunnekasvatuksen integrointi äidinkielen ja kirjallisuuden oppiaineeseen näyttäytyy tarkoituksenmukaisena ja tehokkaana. Tunnekasvatuksen tavoitteita on mahdollista tukea äidinkielen ja kirjallisuuden opetuksen osana, kun toiminta on tavoitteellista ja opettajat tietoisia vaikutusmahdollisuuksistaan. Lasten- ja nuortenkirjallisuuden lukemisella ja käsittelyllä voi alakoulussa olla tunnetaitojen tukemisen kautta rooli oppilaan kokonaisvaltaisen hyvinvoinnin edistäjänä.

Aiemmat tutkimukset ja keskeinen teoria aiheesta osoittavat, että ilman aikuisen sensitiivi-syyttä ja emotionaalista herkkyyttä aikuisen on mahdoton tavoittaa lapselta tulevia aloitteita ja sanattomien viestien merkitystä. Pedagogisesti sensitiivisellä aikuisella on muun muassa kyky tunnistaa lapsen tunnetiloja sekä taito vastata niihin sopivalla tavalla. Tutkimuksen tavoitteena oli selvittää varhaiskasvatuksenopettajien käsityksiä sensitiivisen aikuisen merkityksestä ja tarkastella sitä, millä tavoin sensitiivisyys opettajien mukaan ilme-nee heidän toiminnassaan päiväkodin arjessa. Tutkimuksessa kysytään 1) Mitä merkityksiä varhaiskasvatuksen opettajat antavat aikuisen sensitiivisyydelle lapsen kohtaamisessa päi-väkodissa? 2) Millä tavoin varhaiskasvatuksen opettajat kuvaavat sensitiivisyyden lasta koh-taan ilmenevän omassa toiminnassaan? Tutkimus toteutettiin laadullisena tutkimuksena, ja tutkimuksen aineisto kerättiin haastatte-lemalla kolmea varhaiskasvatuksenopettajaa. Tutkimus toteutettiin puolistrukturoidun haas-tattelun avulla, ja tutkimusongelmaan pyrittiin etsimään vastauksia analysoimalla haastatte-luista saatua aineistoa sisällönanalyysin avulla. Tutkimuksen aineiston analysointi tehtiin pääasiassa aineistolähtöistä sisällönanalyysiä käyttäen, mutta osittain käytettiin myös teoriaohjaavaa sisällönanalyysia. Tutkimustuloksista kävi esille, että kaikki varhaiskasvatuksenopettajat pitivät aikuisen sensi-tiivisyyttä ensisijaisen tärkeänä ominaisuutena päiväkodissa työskentelevälle henkilölle. Sensitiivisyys koettiin asiana, joka on opettajan työn ytimessä. Tutkimustulosten mukaan sensitiivisyys nähtiin erityisesti aikuisen kykynä luoda lämmin vuorovaikutussuhde lapsen ja aikuisen välillä. Haastateltavat kuvasivat sensitiivisyyden ilmenevän toiminnassaan tietyn-laisena lapsen kannattelemisena, joka tulee esille muun muassa aikuisen ilmeissä ja eleissä, sekä lapsen sanallisena ja fyysisenä kannustuksena. Haastatteluista saadut tulokset olivat keskenään varsin yhteneväisiä sekä keskenään, että aiheeseen liittyvän keskeisen teorian kanssa.

Objectives. The purpose of this study was to find out the experiences of pre-school children on how to deal with bullying situations. The aim was to get the children to have their own voice in an issue that touches their world of experience. The study also sought to find out how children define bullying and whether they feel some ways of resolving bullying situations as negative. Earlier studies have shown that bullying also occurs with early childhood education. Studies have also found that intervention methods classified as sensitive produce better results from both victim and bullying perspectives than non-sensitive methods. This research provides an important child perspective on how to deal with bullying situations. Methods. This research is qualitative research and research perspective is phenomenology. The research material was collected from two kindergartens in Espoo, where a total of five pre-school children were interviewed. A total of three children were interviewed in the first nursery and two children in the other. The interviews were carried out in thematic interviews at the nursery premises in November 2018. Individual interviews were recorded and transcribed. The material was analyzed by material-based and theory-driven content analysis. Results and conclusions. From the results of the research it can be stated that children could name different forms of bullying: psychological, physical and verbal. The easiest thing is to name physical forms of bullying, such as hitting, kicking and throwing goods. The solutions to bullying situations in children's experiences varied between sensitive and non-sensitive methods, and it was not possible to name very in-depth solutions - for some, simply telling the adult was enough. From children’s point of view it seems to be important either to learn something or move forward from the bullying situations. Adult’s role didn’t always seem to be central in solving the bullying situations, but children also named the victim, the bully and a defender. On the other hand, in the case of negative solutions, the adult was always a key factor. Negative solutions are, according to the investigator's interpretation, mostly those in which the situation is not actually solved, only suspended. This research can be used as a tool to develop activities to prevent and tackle day-to-day bullying.

In this Bachelor's Thesis, the effect of the attachment style on the coping strategies of adults in romantic relationships and on the relationship satisfaction is examined. The attachment styles were examined in the framework of the attachment theory developed initially by the British psychiatrist, John Bowlby. The study questions were 1) how individuals of different attachment styles experience relationship satisfaction and what kind of coping strategies they use in emotionally stressful situations and 2) how individuals of different attachment styles experience the dissolution of a relationship. Adult attachment has been studied as an important predictor of romantic relationship quality in many earlier empirical studies which also is a starting point for this study. The Thesis was executed as a descriptive literature review. The research material consisted of 11 peer reviewed articles that were collected from the Academic Search Complete (EBSCO) and the Ovid PsycARTICLES databases of the library of the University of Helsinki. The material collected was limited to the years 2000—2015. All the articles were in English and they were written by international researches. A content analysis was used as an analysis method. The results of all the articles support the view according to which internal working models which are based on the attachment style affect the quality and satisfaction of the relationship. In general, securely attached couples were doing well in their relationships and were able to use many different constructive coping strategies in their relationships. Insecurely attached couples used easily negative coping strategies in emotionally stressful situations which often made relationship conflicts worse and reduced the relationship satisfaction. After the end of the relationships, securely attached individuals tend to have less negative emotions than insecurely attached individuals. It seems that attachment plays also a role in the dissolution of a relationship.

Aims. The purpose of this thesis is to study subject teachers’ conception of the special support given in schools. The special education system in Finland has been renewed in recent years. The special support given in schools is divided into three steps (general support, intensified support and special support) and it is called the tripartite support system. The idea behind this division is that the measure of support is planned individually according to the need for support (Basic Education Act, 1998/642). Previous studies have shown that the reform of the special education system has expanded the job description especially when it comes to elementary school teachers and subject teachers and this is experienced as add to the work load (OAJ, 2012). First, the intension of this thesis is to analyze how subject teachers emphasize the heterogeneity of the groups they teach. Furthermore, it is also reflected if there is a certain trend subject teachers discuss about their skills to support pupils with special needs. Finally, it is studied how subject teachers see their capacity and possibilities to provide sufficient support for learning and school attendance. Methodology. The thesis was a qualitative case study and the analyzing methods were discourse analysis and thematic analysis. Research material consisted of four semi-structured interviews of subject teachers. Results and conclusions. The study revealed that the teachers have positive attitudes towards students with special needs, although they had not received supplementary training to carry out the tripartite support system. The teachers had not participated in multiprofessional cooperation and they considered not having sufficient resources to support their students as the law and the Finnish National Core Curriculum demand. However, subject teachers judged that the special education support and the right for student counseling occurs in their school. According to these findings, subject teachers’ continuing education should still be increased. In addition, subject teachers should also become a solid part of the multiprofessional team planning the support for the students with special needs. Besides, it should be taken into account that teachers have sufficient resources to provide the support as required in the National Core Curriculum and Basic Education Act.

Tämän kandidaatin tutkielman tarkoituksena oli koostaa aikaisempia tutkimuksia kuvailevan kirjallisuuskatsauksen keinoin ja tarkastella onko luonnossa olemisella ja liikkumisella sellaisia ihmisen hyvinvointia edistäviä tekijöitä, joita voidaan hyödyntää kasvatuksen ja koulutuksen kontekstissa ekososiaalisen sivistyksen teorian näkökulmasta. Tutkimuskysymykseni ovat 1. Millaisia aineettomia hyötyjä luonto tarjoaa ihmisen hyvinvoinnin edistämiseen? 2. Miten luonnon tarjoamia hyvinvointivaikutuksia voidaan hyödyntää opetuksessa ja kasvatuksessa ekososiaalisen sivistyksen näkökulmasta varhaiskasvatuksen ja peruskoulun kontekstissa? Aineisto muodostui Googlen Scholar (3), Journal (3) ja Helka (3) tietokannoista kerätyistä artikkeleista. Yksi tutkimuksista valikoitui mukaan taustatutkimusta tehdessäni. Aineisto koostui kymmenestä (10) tutkimusartikkelista, joista seitsemän (7) on suomeksi, yksi suomalainen tutkimus, joka on englanniksi ja kaksi (2) espanjalaista tutkimusta, jotka olivat englanninkielisiä. Aineiston analyysi toteutettiin sisällön analyysin keinoin hyödyntäen teoriaohjaavasti suuntautunutta menetelmää. Tulokset antoivat viitteitä siitä, että luonnossa oleminen voi parantaa ihmisen psyykkistä, sosiaalista sekä fyysistä hyvinvointia ja vihreä ympäristö edistää lasten kognitiivisia taitoja, kuten työmuistia ja tarkkaavaisuutta. Työelämän kontekstiin liittyvässä tutkimuksessa havaittiin, että luonnossa olemisella ja ulkoilulla on vaikutusta positiivisesti työn imuun, tarmokkuuteen sekä tuottavuuteen. Tulosten perusteella luonnon hyvinvointivaikutuksia voisi hyödyntää myös varhaiskasvatuksen ja peruskoulun kontekstissa ekososiaalinen sivistys huomioiden.

Tavoitteet. Vain kolmannes suomalaisista nuorista kokee saavansa kunnollisia valmiuksia kouluun tai lähiympäristöön vaikuttamiseen (Myllyniemi 2018). Samanaikaisesti 83% alaluokkien opettajista katsoo, ettei ole saanut riittävästi koulutusta demokratiakasvatuksen toteuttamiseen koulussa (Opetushallitus 2011). Tämän tutkimuksen tavoitteena oli tarkastella, millaisia yhteiskunnallisia toimijoita opettajaopiskelijat ovat, miten he näkevät yhteiskunnalliseen aktiivisuuteen kasvattamisen ja millaisia valmiuksia opettajankoulutus antaa yhteiskunnalliseen aktiivisuuteen kasvattamiseen. Teoreettisenä viitekehyksenä käytän aktiivisen kansalaisen ja demokratiakasvatuksen käsitteitä. Menetelmät. Tutkimus toteutettiin kuvailevana kirjallisuuskatsauksena. Aineisto koostui kahdeksasta vertaisarvioidusta artikkelista, joista kolmessa käsiteltiin suomalaista opettajaopiskelijaa ja opettajankoulutuslaitosta. Tulokset ja johtopäätökset. Opettajaopiskelijat pitivät aktiiviseen kansalaisuuteen kasvattamista tärkeänä tavoitteena. Suomalaiset opettajaopiskelijat pitivät opettajaa yhteiskunnallisena vaikuttajana ja käyttivät demokraattisia menetelmiä opetuksessaan. Erilaisilla kansalaiskasvatukseen liittyvillä ohjelmilla oli vaikutusta opettajaopiskelijoiden yhteiskunnallisen ymmärryksen kasvuun, mutta kriittisyys ei johtanut yhteiskunnallisen toimijuuden kehittymiseen. Suomalainen opettajaopiskelija lähestyi tarkasteltavassa aineistossa yhteiskunnallista kasvatusta säilyttävän perinteen kautta siinä missä muut länsimaalaiset opettajaopiskelijat näkivät tärkeänä kriittisemmän lähestymistavan yhteiskuntaan. Tässä mielessä suomalainen opettajaopiskelija asemoituu lähemmäs turkkilaisia opiskelutovereitaan kuin länsimaisia opiskelijakollegoitaan.

Objectives. Previous studies have shown that the importance of learning content knowledge has decreased in a world where to apply knowledge has become a requirement in almost all branches. To meet these future needs, supporting thinking skills has come internationally as a top priority in teaching activities. However, research has shown teachers' ability to teach thinking skills inadequate. The purpose of this study is to clarify the concept of thinking skills and the development of these skills in accordance with the theory of Demetriou et al. (2011). In addition, the aim is to find out what factors, especially in relation to the teacher activities, support or undermine the development of pupils' thinking skills at school. Methods. The research was carried out as a systematic literature review. After choosing the topic, the data was collected from the Thinking Skills and Creativity -journal in accordance with the admission and exclusion criteria defined in my study. Four peer-reviewed articles published in 2016-2018 were selected as material, all of which deal with teachers or teacher students and the teaching of thinking skills. The key words were "teacher" or "teaching" combined with "teaching thinking skills". Results and conclusions. The results showed several shortcomings in supporting thinking skills. Teacher-oriented teaching style, poor understanding of the concept, persistent beliefs about learning, inadequate knowledge and skills, and the content of teacher education proved to be obstacles to the development of thinking skills. The results also showed that how to learn is relevant to the development of cognitive skills (not so much what to learn). The results showed that student-centered ways of working also supported thinking skills development. Teacher's self-efficacy towards thinking skills, as well as sufficient knowledge and skills in thinking skills, supported the development of pupils' cognitive development. In conclusion, there is enough evidence of student-centered work practices to support future skills learning and the need to reform teacher education to better support the development of future teachers' thinking skills.