Browsing by master's degree program "Master´s Programme in Education"
Now showing items 101-120 of 719
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(2022)The aim of this master’s thesis is to examine the teacher efficacy and collective teacher efficacy of those teachers who taught remotely during the autumn of 2020. Furthermore, the aim is to find out if some background variables are connected to these above mentioned constructs. Teacher efficacy and collective efficacy are based on the self-efficacy beliefs which describe person’s beliefs in their own ability to succeed in specific situations (Bandura, 1977). Teacher efficacy is connected to many positive outcomes, e.g., remaining in the profession (Burley et al., 1991), and job satisfaction (Skaalvik & Skaalvik, 2010). There is also evidence that teacher efficacy and collective teacher efficacy are connected to each other (Goddard & Goddard, 2001). This master’s thesis aims to supplement the previous research data on teacher efficacy and collective teacher efficacy in the context of COVID-19. The data used in this study are from a research project that aims to examine the effects of COVID-19 on studying, teaching and well-being. The project is run by University of Helsinki and Tampere University. The data were collected in November 2020 by sending electronic surveys to every comprehensive school in Finland. In total there were 5797 teacher participants, but the final sample consisted of those 1095 teachers who said that they had taught remotely during the autumn. The methods used in this quantitative study included describing the data and running correlation analyses and Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA). The dimensions of teacher efficacy were more correlated between themselves than the dimensions of collective teacher efficacy. The correlations between the two were even weaker. Class teachers had higher teacher efficacy compared to subject teachers or special education class teachers. Female teachers of the lower levels of comprehensive education had the highest levels of efficacy when teacher efficacy and collective teacher efficacy were examined together; the result is in line with several other studies (e.g. Greenwood, 1990; Edwards et al., 1996). Results indicate that remote teaching has weakened the collective teacher efficacy by decreasing the encounters of the work community. The result that class teachers had the highest levels of teacher efficacy might be explained by the vast level of general competence brought by the education or by their more reasonable workload.
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(2024)The aim of this study is to find out whether ECEC staff face ethical dilemmas and moral stress in their work and in what kind of situations ethical dilemmas and moral stress arise. In this work, ethical dilemmas refer to situations where a person does not know how they should act or situations where they know how they should act but due to various obstacles the action can’t be carried out. Moral stress, on the other hand, refers to the psychological reaction to the situation. Previous studies indicate that ethical dilemmas are stressors that increase the risk of burnout. Individuals who experience ethical dilemmas frequently have also more turnover intentions. This study seeks to create a deeper understanding of ethical dilemmas in order to better support the well-being of early childhood educators in their work. This study is a qualitative study where interviews were used as a data collection method. A total of nine teachers and practical nurses in ECEC who work with children aged 1–5 years served as informants in the study. The interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analysed using a phenomenographic analysis. The results showed that ECEC staff experience ethical dilemmas and moral stress in their work but to varying degrees. The reasons behind ethical dilemmas were several but it was noticeable that the amount of moral stress varied from person to person. The informants also mentioned several different methods for dealing with ethical dilemmas. The ways mentioned varied depending on the dilemma in question. In order to better support the staff and prevent the occurrence of ethical dilemmas, the informants wished for more staff in the field, open communication and support within the work community or from an external organisation. More research is needed to create a better understanding of the factors that reduce moral stress and to identify whether structural changes in the workplace would be required to increase well-being in the sector.
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(2022)The purpose of this thesis is to examine classroom teacher’s views on participation and agency in primary school’s visual arts education. The study aims to find out how classroom teachers define the concepts of participation and agency and in what ways it is found possible to promote these things in school in general, and visual arts classes in particular. The theoretical framework of participation and agency is based on the socio-pedagogical approach of participation. The promotion of participation and agency is viewed in social and political contexts and examined through the concept of engaged pedagogy. The study was conducted as a qualitative interview survey. A total of six people were interviewed for the study and the interviews were conducted as semi-structured thematic interviews. Interviews were conducted both by using online connections and in person. All the interviewees were working as classroom teachers or special class teachers that had taught visual arts to primary school students. According to the study, classroom teacher’s views in participation and agency could be categorized as opportunities to influence, personal experiences of meaningfulness and active acts. The views in promoting participation and agency in school and in visual arts education adapted the above-mentioned categories. Participation and agency were promoted via social and political means. The opportunities to impact were associated to both political and everyday decision-making. Promoting student’s identities and internal motivation were emphasized in the personal experiences of meaningfulness. Active acts consisted of dialogical and interactive working methods that emphasized responsibility among students.
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(2022)Objectives. This thesis examines the European Union higher education governance. Previous research has shown that political steering of higher education institutions has strengthened over the recent decades, and growing convergence between the education policies of European states. The purpose of the thesis is to examine the kinds of thinking according to which the Union governance seeks to shape the space it governs, and what kind of position the higher education occupies in the picture. The European Union hasn´t got educational policy competences for steering educational institutions, but previous research has shown that the Union nevertheless does practice education policy steering. Methods. In this thesis, the European Union higher education governance was scrutinized by analytics of governing with the data consisting of Higher Education for Smart Specialization manual, produced by the European Commission. The HESS Manual is directed to the Union Member States regional administrators with a higher education policy competence and responsible for regional development. The manual instructs regional administrators to carry out such regional governance and higher education steering model reforms that serve the political objectives of the Union. The analysis of HESS Manual was carried out by Peter Millers and Niklas Roses analytics of government, according to which the HESS Manual was scrutinized as a technology of government, with the aim of specifying characteristic thinking of Manual and therefore of governing. Results and conclusions. The thesis demonstrates that the characteristic thinking of the Union values economic and technological progress and seeks to harness both the governed space and the higher education towards this ambition. The thesis also shows that according to the characteristic thinking of the Union, existence must be earned through contributing to political objectives. The thesis shows the Union governs by setting prerequisites to resources in an environment which requires economic resources.
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(2023)Finnish elementary students’ mathematics performance is well above average in international comparison, but research shows that it is declining. Also, students’ motivation is not as strong as could be expected according to their performance. We used the person-centred approach to investigate Finnish third-, fourth-, and fifth-grade students’ mathematics motivation profiles. In addition, we explored differences between the motivation profiles regarding students’ mathematics identity, performance, and their parents’ mathematics-related attitudes Participants were 304 Southern Finnish third-, fourth-, and fifth-grade students from five separate schools and their parents/guardians (N=241). The surveys were conducted during spring of 2021 in the pilot stage of an international research project focusing on students’ mathematical motivation. Analysis was conducted with Mplus. Motivation profiles were derived by a latent profile analysis (LPA), additional analysis used bch and r3step methods and crosstabulation (spss). Analysis revealed three distinct types of math-related motivation profiles: highly motivated, non motivated and indifferent. Further investigation of the profiles showed that students’ higher mathematics identity is represented strongly in highly motivated group, as are students’ mathematics performance scores. Parents’ self-reported perceived low mathematics competence is highly represented in those students belonging to the non motivated profile. The article: ” Examining motivation profile differences across students' mathematics identity, performance, and parents’ attitudes” is planned to be published in the LUMAT-journal.
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(2023)This master’s thesis includes two sections: the present summarizing report and the article manuscript. The purpose of the study is to explore the benefits of an acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT)-based intervention course to university students’ well-being, using both quantitative and qualitative methods. The COVID-19 pandemic has decreased university students’ well-being and increased their risk of burnout. The declined state of student well-being calls for measures in exploring ways of promoting student well-being and preventing study-related burnout. The intervention course aimed to increase students’ psychological flexibility and organized studying skills, as means to positively impact their well-being and studying. A total of 189 participated in the study in the spring of 2021. Students’ risk of burnout was measured pre- and post-intervention, to statistically define whether students experienced that the course impacted their risk of burnout. To explore the course benefits in depth, students’ written reflective reports post-intervention were analyzed using abductive content analysis. The results were statistically compared according to the risk of burnout group assigned pre-intervention. The results showed that the intervention course led to a positive change in students' risk of burnout. The content analysis revealed seven main categories of benefits of the course: 1. improved general well-being, 2. improved self-knowledge, 3. increased psychological flexibility, 4. improved study practices and study motivation, 5. increased self-compassion, 6. gained peer-support, and 7. improved organized studying. These benefits were experienced by students regardless of their initial risk of burnout. The study highlights the potential of ACT-based intervention courses in improving the well-being and studying skills of university students, suggesting a need for further research on burnout prevention through such measures. The prospective publication channel for the research article manuscript is Research in Higher Education by Springer.
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(2022)Horse enthusiasts have insufficient knowledge about horse behaviour and welfare (BW) and learning and human-horse communication (LC), which poses a risk for both human safety and horse welfare. The main objective of this study was to investigate why riding school pupils participate or do not participate in non-riding education in BW and LC, using Self-determination theory (SDT). SDT posits that the quality of motivation is related to the individual’s basic psychological needs. A convenience sample of 568 riding school pupils from Finland and Sweden completed an online questionnaire. The results show that forty percent of the riding schools offered education in BW, and thirty-two in LC. Twenty-seven percent of the respondents had participated in education in BW, and twenty-five in LC at the riding school. The respondents were autonomously motivated to participate in education, i.e., they would participate because it is interesting and personally important. Perceived needs satisfaction at the riding school predicted autonomous motivation to participate. Education was offered to a greater extent in Swedish riding schools and Swedish participants participated more, experienced more autonomous motivation, and relatedness and competence satisfaction. To our knowledge, this study is the first to explore riding school pupils’ motivation towards non-riding education.
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(2023)For years, mathematics in Finland has deteriorated according to Pisa. The results of the students has deteriorated even if mathematic has an important roll in todays society. Mathematic is needed in many professions, but also in the everyday life. According to both national and international surveys, both mathematic results and the attitude towards mathematics has decreased. Previous research shows that childrens working memory is facilitated by learning things by heart. Research has also shown that traditional teaching methods and sufficient repetition improves students results. The aim of this study is to investigate how school books, used in mathematical education, have been changed during the last ten years, which teaching methods are used the most by teachers, and how teachers are working with pupils motivation towards mathematics. A survey and content analysis is used as collection methods. The survey consists of both open and closed questions. The schools books Min Matematik and Karlavagnen for the grades two, four and six has been analysed by content analysis. The surveys respondents consists of 20 teachers working in grade two, four or six, with a work experience of atleast ten years, in five municipalitys in southern Finland. The surveys results is analysed by using the programme IBM SPSS Statistics 28 and tematic analysis. The results showed that there is a difference between the school books used today compared to school books used ten years ago. Today there exists more variation and aid in the tasks. Ten years ago there was more repetitions in the books. Teachers, working in elementary schools, use the school book a lot during their classes, it is used almost every lesson. Teachers mostly use traditional teaching methods, which benefits pupils. The presence of aids in the mathematic education is big. Most of the teachers says that pupils attitude towards mathematic is unchanged. Most of the pupils have a good attitude toward mathematics. Teachers try to work with pupils motivation by showing the pupils when they will need the konwledge they get during the mathematic lessons, in their everyday life.
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(2023)According to the national core curriculum for basic education, formative assessment is central to every pupil’s individual learning process. Formative assessment can be defined as response that aims to support the pupil in understanding the goals for learning, perceive their own progress in relation to the set goals, and give the pupil tools to reach the specific learning goals for each subject. Interactive methods, such as discussion, self-assessment, and peer assessment are part of formative assessment. Previous studies have shown that pupils often become passive receivers in the assessment process and don’t feel that they benefit from the type of formative assessment they have received and that teachers have difficulties supporting pupils’ abilities to assess their own work. This study examines what kind of formative assessment pupils perceive as beneficial for their learning, and how self-assessment, according to teachers and pupils, can be used in order to support learning and the pupils’ abilities to self-assess. The study takes a qualitative, phenomenographic approach. The material was gathered by conducting focus group interviews with pupils in grades 5–6 and teachers for grades 1–6. The informants formed nine groups of three to four pupils and two groups of three to four teachers per group. The interviews were transcribed and analysed thematically. The results show that considering the pupils’ prior knowledge, setting clear goals, and using versatile materials and methods, along with continuous, personal, motivating, and fair feedback are types of formative assessment that pupils perceive as supportive of their learning. The results also point out that efficient self-assessment requires clearly stated goals and instructions, and should be conducted alongside wider work processes, with support from discussion between pupils and teachers.
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(2022)Aim: The aim of the study is to find out how primary school teachers understand the concept of formative assessment, how they apply assessments in teaching and what kind of support and resources that are needed to implement assessments in practice. This is to make any misconceptions visible and to gain insights into how much support teachers need to practice formative assessment in teaching. Studies show that formative assessment is a complex phenomenon, difficult to implement in practice. Misconceptions occur among primary school teachers and there seems to be a great need for support measures in the form of time, education and resources from the school. Method: The survey was conducted using semi-structured interviews. The participants in the survey consisted of seven Finnish-Swedish primary school teachers in grades 1-6, from three different schools. The results of the study were recorded, transcribed and analyzed using thematic analysis. Results and conclusions: The result of the study shows that primary school teachers have a wide perception and understanding of the concept of formative assessment. Despite this, class teachers tend to use formative assessment for summative purposes, which indicates that there is a limited understanding of formative assessment. The class teachers need to increase their understanding of formative assessment specifically in relation to the summative assessment. The results also shows that the primary school teachers are familiar with several different strategies for the formative assessment, but at the same time they need more practical knowledge about some formative strategies. The descriptions of the strategies did not always correspond to the basic ideas behind the formative assessment, which in turn shows that it isn’t that easy to implement formative assessments in practice. The study also shows that primary school teachers have a need for support and resources for formative assessment, especially primary school teachers with less experience. The primary school teachers especially experienced a lack of time and space to discuss the assessment with other colleagues in the school. The class teachers also wanted more courses and further training in the subject to get more practical tips on how to work with formative assessment. This in turn shows that the school is an important platform for the professional development of primary school teachers, especially in matters concerning assessment.
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(2023)Objectives. The aim of this user-centered design-based research was to create a disc golf bag suitable for running use, designed for active disc golf enthusiasts. The research was based on the FEA model developed by Lamb and Kallal (1992) for the development of clothing design. This model considers user needs and preferences in product design-based, with the fundamental principles of product functionality, expressiveness, and aesthetics. Previous bag and backpack studies have shown that it is essential to consider proper fit, even weight distribution, ergonomics, and the weight of the bag/backpack in relation to the carrier's weight. Methods. The data for this thesis were collected from an active disc golf enthusiast, whose needs and preferences were the basis for product development. The participating individual played the role of an expert in the research. The research questions consisted of three parts: "What are the user's design criteria for a functional disc golf bag?", "How to develop an ergonomically functional disc golf bag for running use?", and "Does the developed bag meet the user's preferences and the product's suitability?". The research data was obtained through theme interviews, prototype testing and evaluation, as well as voice messages, which were transcribed according to design criteria. The research progressed iteratively between the researcher and the user. After gathering user data, the researcher analyzed the material, followed by collecting additional user data and analyzing it. Data collection took place progressively, following the research questions, starting in the autumn of 2022, and concluding in the autumn of 2023. Results and Conclusions. As a result of the design-based research, the user evaluated the product to be functional and in line with their desires, needs, and expectations. The user highly valued the product developed in collaboration with the researcher, which supports their hobby. The results indicated that the developed bag is functional, ergonomic, and practical. The user's satisfaction was also reflected in the product's usability and its ability to meet their needs. This reinforced the success of the development research and demonstrated that involving the user in the design and development of the product can be extremely beneficia.
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FUNA-DB -mittarin luotettavuus samanaikaisvaliditeetin näkökulmasta : Vertailua RMAT-mittarin kanssa (2022)Currently in Finland there are very limited number of assessment tools in use to identify mathematical learning difficulties in children aged 9 to 16. This study examines the validity of the FUNA-DB measure for assessing mathematical learning difficulties in terms of concurrent validity. The objective of this study is to determine how FUNA-DB correlates with a previously developed RMAT measure, and how, compared to the RMAT measure, FUNA-DB identifies those children and adolescents who potentially should be suspected to have a mathematical learning difficulty. This research is part of a larger FUNA research project in Finland. The study was performed by having 318 children tested with both FUNA-DB and RMAT measurements. The analysis of the data was performed using quantitative research methods. The correlation of FUNA-DB and RMAT was measured by task sections using Pearson’s correlation coefficient. In addition, configural frequency analysis was used to determine whether both FUNA-DB and RMAT recognize the same weak students. In addition, descriptive statistics were examined. The results of this study showed that FUNA-DB and RMAT correlated with each other for all task sections (p <0.001). In addition, statistically significant correlation was identified between task sections where the tasks did not correspond to each other in terms of content. FUNA-DB and RMAT both identified the same low-performing students (p<0.01). The results of this study confirm that FUNA-DB appears to be a valid and effective assessment tool in identifying mathematical learning difficulties. Moreover, the study showed that the language best spoken by the student was not relevant to the results of the FUNA-DB measurement, while in the RMAT test, those who spoke Finnish outperformed (p<0.05) the students who did not speak Finnish as their mother tongue. Therefore, FUNA-DB does not seem to be tied to a student’s language skills and it specifically measures math proficiency, as it should. However, the as-sessment of the validity and reliability of the FUNA-DB test in this study remains rather one-sided, yet there are ongoing studies which examine the reliability and validity of FUNA-DB in other means.
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(2019)Objectives. The goal of this thesis is to examine various positive methods in which a teacher can confront a challenging student in the classroom and redirect the student’s behaviour to fit the lessons agenda. This thesis will also aim to examine what kinds of challenging behaviour can be found from analysed drama lessons. Previous research has shown that teachers find interactions with challenging students to be often demanding. In the modern classroom teachers must be prepared to face challenging students and therefore there is a need to research teachers already working in the field to see how they confront challenging students in a positive way. Methods. The research for this thesis was done as a case-study based in video observations, where footage from the 2018 KEHU-project was utilized. The research footage contained five filmed lessons, which were taught by five various drama-specialized teachers across Finland. The teachers participating in this project taught grades one through third grade. The nature of this research was based on qualitative methods. The material was processed through content analysis and classification. Results and conclusions. Challenging behaviour was categorized into four distinct categories based off the filmed drama lessons, which were disruptive behaviour, wandering, disobedience and negative verbal or physical interaction. Challenging behaviour filmed during the lessons were often quite mild forms of challenging behaviour. Based on the results the teachers mostly conducted positive confrontations against challenging students and were able to redirect behaviour with efficient and practical methods. This thesis provided promising information in regards that teachers can redirect behaviour towards the lesson’s goals with positive interactions. Having a respective attitude towards students and striving towards dialogical interactions from the teacher appears to improve confronting the student, which has been proven in earlier research to be meaningful in regards to the students behaviour.
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(2022)The objective of the thesis is to find out how different environmental factors and the quality of school adults' interaction affect the well-being of students and the easing and escalation of challenging situations. The topic of the thesis is important because the mental symptoms and challenging situations of students have been perceived to have increased in the school world. Data was collected through interviews (n = 4). The interviewees were young people who had completed primary school and who had received support from a special rehabilitation class for mental symptoms. The study is phenomenological and its research design is data-driven content analysis. The material has been systematically analyzed by coding and classification. The core of the thesis was the interaction chains observed in the data and the well-being factors. The chains of interaction that ended in a negative outcome included a school adult’s blaming, indifferent, punitive, derogatory, uncertain, or unknown response. Interactions with a positive outcome included seeking a solution, being compassionate, or strengthening positive behavior. In addition to the quality of the interaction, the well-being factors at school also had a particular impact on the prevention of challenging situations and the promotion of pupil well-being. The most significant well-being factors that emerged from the data were the small group, the close-knit group in the class, the best friend in the class, a few friends in the class, differentiated and individualized tasks, and the ability to choose one’s own doing or task. These factors were able to prevent, e.g., challenging social situations as well as challenging school tasks, which often occurred in the triggers of the chains of interaction. In addition, the importance of permanence in the school world was emphasized in the well-being factors.
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(2022)The aim of this study is to describe, analyze and interpret how newly graduated teachers in Sweden experience the availability, the various forms and adequacy of social support in the work community. This study is made in collaboration with the research projects SAMS (Samverkan och social stöd i den finlandssvenska skolan) and ECTPA (Early Career Teacher’s Professional Agency across four European countries). The theoretical framework consists of the model for social support at different system levels (Cornér, 2020; Pyhältö, 2018). The model includes of four components and three of them are relevant to this study: support sources, support forms and support fit. Support sources are the sources of social support, i.e., from whom do the newly graduated teachers feel that they receive support from in the work community. Support forms includes the different types of social support, i.e., emotional support, informational support, and instrumental support The experience for what type of social support is needed versus how much the newly graduated teacher receive in practice, is called support fit. This study is based on qualitative, semi-structured interviews conducted in October of 2021 and on the network plots drawn by each informant. The purpose of the network plots was to map the newly graduated teacher’s professional networks. The study involved 9 newly graduated teachers who worked across Sweden in primary, secondary, and upper secondary schools. The interview data were analyzed by using thematic analysis and with a deductive research approach. The most important assets for social support were mentors, the collegial team and the teachers who share the same grade or subject. The principals were one of the smallest assets. Emotional and informative support is provided by agents with teaching and supervisory roles, while school management only provides informative support. Relatives and friends provide both emotional and informative support, while social media only provides informative support. The instrumental support was deficient in terms of insufficient time for planning. The adequacy of social support has decreased due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the newly graduated teachers want more social support from the school management as well as more time for reflection and feedback. Suggestions for further research could be to research the nature of the distance that exists between the newly graduated teachers and the school management.
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(2022)The purpose of this qualitative research was to describe and interpret the meaning and grounds of worldview education from the guardians perspective and their wishes regarding worldview education in early childhood education. Previous research has shown worldview education to be a tense content area within early childhood education. Studies have focused mostly on the professionals point of view. Whereas little attention has been given to the guardians perspective. The research questions were as follows: 1. What meanings do guardians give to worldview education in early childhood education? 2. What grounds do guardians present for worldview education in early childhood education? 3. What wishes do the guardians express towards early childhood worldview education? The data consisted of four thematic interviews and open-ended entries of the questionnaire. 11 guardians answered the questionnaire. The data was analyzed using theory-driven content analysis, and utilized methods based on discourse analysis. The results were mirrored with Balčin et al.'s (2021) model of the worldview dimension of worldview education. The data shows that guardians see multi-perspective worldview education as a way of promoting accepting differences and as a mediator of a model of a good person. The necessity of the content area was questioned as early childhood education resources are critical. The meanings were built from a secular and pluralistic dimension. The guardians' grounds for worldview education focused on a shared Finnish value base, the nurturing of cultural tradition and the rights of the child. The grounds were located in the secular and monovalent dimension. The guardians expressed a preference for religious sensitivity and valued a high level of competence in worldview education from the professionals, nonalignment of worldview education, uniform practices, caution on trips to other worldview communities and stronger description of worldview education and discussion about it. The wishes were focused on the secular dimension. The guardians had a positive attitude to multi-perspective worldview education, but the practices related to its implementation revealed tense questions and attitudes in which the interpretation of one's own background in worldview education was highlighted. This thesis reveals that discussion about world-view education between guardians and personnel in early childhood education is in major role promoting multi-valued society which allows different worldviews. Discussion requires personnels' competence of worldview reflection and sensitive attitude towards religion and worldviews. In the light of this thesis, these previous skills should be supported among personnel in early childhood education.
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(2023)Various implementation media can be used to create instructions to support independent skill learning. Despite this, little research has been done on the perception and significance of instructional materials for learning a craft skill. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to understand more deeply the connection between perceptions and learning a craft skill independently. In addition, the goal was to get deeper understanding on the inner processes of the mind that apply observations made from the instructions into practical activity and finally into skill. Of special interest in the study were the observations made by those learning craft skill independently of the instructions implemented using different media, as well as the cognitive processes in the process of learning craft skill. The primary research material consisted of recordings containing videos of the computer screen and thinking aloud, which the test subjects produced while learning Tunisian crocheting independently in an online learning environment. The secondary research material was reflections written by the test subjects afterwards. The test subjects produced recordings unsupervised. The recordings were analyzed with the Atlas.ti 22 following the principles of protocol analysis. The reflections were analyzed by thematizing the content relevant to the research. Based on the research results, the learning of a motor skill is based on the observations that are made in the learning process, but along with the observations, experimentation and practice promote the learning of the skill. The study also showed that the implementation of e-learning materials in multimedia serves different learners in learning a skill, even though video instructions require less cognitive effort. For this reason, it is recommended that the instructions intended for self-study of craft skills are implemented in the online learning environment using different media. The results also challenge to develop more flexible e-learning platforms.
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(2022)Aims. The aim of this master’s thesis was to examine the association between poor gross motor skills, fine motor skills and early mathematical skills in 4-years-old-children. Previous research has shown that both gross and fine motor skills are associated with academic performance at school age, especially in mathematics, but research is still limited for under school age children. This study provides additional information on how poor gross motor skills are associated with fine motor skills and early mathematical skills before school age. Methods. This study was conducted using quantitative methods. IMB SPSS Statistics 27 was used for the data analysis. The data of this thesis was obtained from the Toimi ja opi -study and included 188 Finnish children aged four years in 2019. The research data was test results of the FMS (fundamental motor skills) test, fine motor skills tests and the Finnish Early Numeracy Test (Lukukäsitetesti). Gross motor skills were measured using the FMS (TGMD-3, KTK, MABC) -test. Fine motor skills were measured with three fine motor skills (LENE, BAS, WISC-3) tests. Early mathematical skills were measured using the Finnish Early Numeracy Test, that is based on number sequence skills and relational skills. In the results, means were examined with correlations and one-way analysis of variance. The association and relationship between the FMS and the Finnish Early Numeracy Test were analysed with Pearson correlation coefficients and the one-way ANOVA. Results and conclusions. The results of this master's thesis showed a statistically significant correlations between gross motor skills, fine motor skills and early mathematical skills. The results showed a statistically significant difference between poor gross motor skills and normally developing gross motor skills in the mean scores of the fine motor skills test and the Finnish Early Numeracy Test. The lower the score the child scored on the gross motor skills test, the lower the scores were on the fine motor skills test and early mathematical skills test. Results showed that the association between these skills can be seen already before school-age. Results underline the notion that in early childhood education should pay attention to identify the poor performance in motor skills in children and when they are observed, need the possible other difficulties be surveyed, so the support can be started at early stage. Early support can prevent the later difficulties in learning and development.
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(2023)Objectives. The aim of this study was to find out how the day-care centre managers define inclusive early childhood education and what kind of thoughts inclusion evokes in them. The study also examines how the day-care centre managers (both managers and deputy managers) guide and support their employees towards an inclusive way of working. The starting point for the study was the interest in how the renewed National core curriculum for early childhood education and care (drawn up by the Finnish National Agency for Education, OPH, 2022) emphasize the implementation of inclusive early childhood education as part of the value base. Methods. The research was carried out as a mixed methods research in which the material was handled both qualitatively and quantitatively. The research material was collected using an electronic questionnaire (N=23). Quantitative research data was analyzed using statistical methods, whereas qualitative research data was analyzed using data-driven content analysis. The survey was carried out using an e-form for managers and deputy managers of Finnish-speaking day-care centres in the city of Helsinki. Results. The results showed that the views described by the managers and deputy managers of day-care centres towards inclusive early childhood education are versatile. The respondents were mainly unanimous about the value of inclusive early childhood education in furthering the development of participation, equality and equitable treatment. However, inclusive early childhood education was seen from various perspectives among the respondents considering the amount of support measures and resources available for the operation. According to the results, managers see themselves playing a key role in the implementation of inclusive early childhood education as a part of the everyday life of the day-care centres. Nevertheless, the means to promote the realization of inclusion were seen very differently depending on the respondent, and there are no official policies set on the matter on behalf of the city.
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(2023)In a mediated society, the importance of media education is emphasised, and it is important that media education and news are processed with children and young people in schools. News aimed at children offer teachers a good way to discuss about current affairs with children, as well as provide media education. This study examines how news and current topics are handled in primary schools and utilized as part of teaching. The study also examines the importance of news aimed at children for teachers and pupils. The subject of the study is Helsingin Sanomat’s Children's News, a news media aimed at children in Helsingin Sanomat. Children's news is commonly utilized in schools, but there is no information on how Children’s news is used in schools. In addition, research on the educational use of news and news for children is largely focused on international research, so the aim of this study is also to produce research information on the topic specifically in the Finnish context. This study is a qualitative case study that examined Children's news in educational use and also teachers' and pupils’ experiences on educational use of and more generally on Children's news. The data of this study consisted of semi-structured themed interviews with primary school teachers and of a teaching experiment which was conducted on the basis of the interviews. The data in the experiment was collected from primary school pupils using a questionnaire and semi-structured themed interviews. The data was collected in two phases in 2021 and 2022. The method of analysis for both data sets was qualitative content analysis. Based on this study, Children's news was utilized in teaching weekly and specifically as part of the actual teaching. The Children's news broadcast, which most of the pupils also mentioned that they liked, was exploited the most in the teaching. Children's news was used most frequently in Finnish language and literature lessons, but also, for example, as part of the work on transversal competence skills such as learning skills. Educational situations with Children’s news were not usually very planned and the planning appeared particularly as checking the news topics beforehand as well as by the acquisition of any additional information. The main methods of teaching with Children's News were discussions and written methods of working. Interviews with teachers also highlighted the importance of handling news in teaching, as well as the importance of news aimed specifically to children. Pupils also felt that following the news was a positive thing and being informed about world events was important. The results show that Children's News offers opportunities for a wide range of uses in primary school education, including media education, integrative instruction and as part of the work on transversal competence skills. I hope that this study will provide examples and perspectives on educational use of news and media education and encourages to use of the news as part of teaching.
Now showing items 101-120 of 719