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The teacher-pupil interaction affects the quality of the pupils' school attendance and school performance significantly. The teacher-pupil interaction has been studied extensively, but the pupils' own perspective on the topic has received less attention. This study examined the pupil's perceptions concerning the teacher-pupil interaction during lessons. The teacher-pupil interaction is affected by several underlying factors such as the school, the class as a learning environment, as well as gender of the pupil. In addition, previous research has shown that school transition affects the quality of the teacher-pupil interaction. The study also looked at the differences in pupils' experiences regarding the quality of the teacher-pupil interaction between schools, class, upper and lower grades and between girls and boys. This study was conducted as part of the Education, Agency and Pedagogical Well-being in primary school - research project (Pyhältö , Soini & Pietarinen , 2010). The authors study involved nine classes from three different schools. Four eight grade and five sixth grade classes. The schools were located in different parts of Finland. The data was collected using images about lesson situations, to stimulate the pupils' writing about these situations. A total of 167 pupils answered the image-projection-task. Two different lesson-situations were selected into the study. The pupil descriptions of the circumstances were first analyzed via content analysis. The findings of the qualitative analysis composed were three different teacher-pupil interaction pro-files. These profiles were given numerical values , which allowed the examination of differences of the pupils' experiences between, gender, class, grade and school. The three teacher-pupil interaction profiles were termed as follows; the qualified, the cynical, and the teacher functioning as a part of the machinery. The interaction profiles were distributed very evenly across the data. There was a statistically significant difference between all the analyzed factors in the interaction profiles. In particular, the experiences about the teacher-pupil interaction between girls and boys proved to be virtually contrary. A more targeted research regarding the topic on a large sample size is needed. Future research would advisably be linked to the introduction of the new curriculum (POPS 2014), which aims to influence the teaching methods and practices and thus inevitably also effects on the teacher-pupil interaction.

During past decades, new theories of information have put pressure on Finnish schools to adjust the content of teaching. The Schools have responded by putting more emphasis on developing different skills required to process information. In history teaching this has meant putting historical thinking in the focus. Acquiring knowledge from the past requires analyzing different remains that contain information about past events. That is why students are taught to work like historians. The abilities to interact with historical sources are called historical literacy skills. Previous studies have shown that young students are beginners in analyzing historical sources, but researchers also have agreed that even young students have the capacity to think historically. Historical thinking and understanding the nature of historical knowledge have been made top priorities in the curriculum but the goals and criteria of learning have been criticized for being too demanding. Pessimistic estimations have also been made about their realization in the field. The purpose of this study was to examine 6th graders skills of making interpretations from historical sources. 22 student from the same class took part in the study. The students were given an assignment in which they examined two conflicting sources depicting the same historical events. The student's task was to evaluate the credibility of the sources and distinguish the motives of their writers. Student's answers were analyzed using qualitative methods. VanSledright's and Afferblach's theory of cognitive activities in evaluation of sources was used as a frame of reference. Results were in line with previous studies regarding young student's abilities to analyze historical sources. 14 students ranked in the lowest stage of cognitive activity and eight students in the next stage called identification. The students in the lowest stage regarded all information as knowledge and failed to distinguish the righters motives. While some answers contained glimpses of more advanced thinking, students were ranked in to the stage which their righting expressed the most. The results indicated that the students lacked strategies to interpret historical sources but some students were able to draw conclusions from the sources independently.

My master's thesis examines the dimensions of well-being in sixth-graders (school engagement, self-esteem, school burnout and depression) as well as their relations to each other. This thesis focuses on how social factors can predict the dimensions of well-being. Previous studies have shown that adolescent's school engagement has a positive effect even later in working life. According to research the support of classmates, teacher and family is related to the well-being in adolescents. The results of this study can be used to develop tools for support the well-being of adolescents. In addition, it might be useful for the future research of adolescents’ well-being. This is a quantitative study, and the research material was collected as part of the #Uuttakoulua - project. However, my thesis is not part of the project. The data was collected in three different schools in the metropolitan area surrounding Helsinki, and it consist of 156 respondents; 99 of them belongs to the experimental group with strength-based education and 57 belongs to the comparison group. Participants in the study were sixth-graders and their answers were filled by an online questionnaire. IBM SPSS Statistics 27 was used for data analysis. I used statistical methods to answer my research questions (independent sample t-test, means - standard deviations, Pearson correlation coefficient, linear regression analysis). The results showed that the well-being of sixth-graders is generally good. They experienced more school engagement and higher self-esteem than school burnout and depression. The dimensions of well-being correlate statistically significantly with each other, for example self-esteem and depression had a quite strong negative correlation. Based on the results, support of the family seemed to have a more significant impact on students’ well-being than other social factors.

Goals. The most integral component of the theoretical background for this study is the concept of self-efficacy, which was first introduced by Albert Bandura in Social learning theory (1977). Self-efficacy is understood in this study in a holistic way to consist of the context-specific competence-beliefs one has concerning his or her capabilities. Self-efficacy beliefs have been found to have a wide spread influence on motivation, achievement, goal setting, persistence in achievements and choice of tasks. In addition to the concept of self-efficacy, this thesis will review the concept of self-concept and competence-beliefs on a more general level as well. The main aim of this study was to find out what the general level of academic self-efficacy of sixth graders in Helsinki is. Another question of interest was whether subject-specific self-efficacy in any certain subject correlates more strongly with a broader sense of school-related self-efficacy than self-efficacy in other subjects. The goal was also to examine how student's self-efficacy beliefs vary between genders and between different classes. This study aims to produce information concerning the current level of students' self-efficacy. Methods. The data were collected in March and April of 2015 and in April and May of 2016 from 11 different sixth grades (N 204) in Helsinki. The method for collecting the data was an electronic survey that was filled out by the students while the researcher was present. Aver-ages from the data were examined to find out the general level of self-efficacy, a Mann and Whitney's U-test was conducted for finding out the differences between genders, a Kruskal-Wallis test was conducted in order to find out whether there was variety between the different classes, and correlations were looked for between the subject-specific and a more general sense of school-related self-efficacy. Results and conclusions. The results of the study were quite positive and showed that the level of sixth grader's school-related and subject-specific self-efficacy is fairly high. Self-efficacy in math, Finnish and biology and geography correlated with the general school-related self-efficacy slightly more strongly than self-efficacy in the other subjects. The differences in self-efficacy between classes and genders were fairly small and statistically significant in only a few subjects.

This research focuses on 6th graders self-efficacy in different fields of mathematics. Focus is on what is overall efficacy in different fiends of mathematics and does gender make a difference on that. Interest is also on does individuals have different self-efficacy in different areas of mathematics. Self-efficacy is Albert Banduras theory where individual evaluates one’s efficacy ahead of a task. Former research shows that there are four aspects that influences to self-efficacy and those are: performance outcomes, vicarious experiences, verbal persuasion, and physiological feedback. Performance outcomes are centric to self-efficacy in mathematics. In this research there are four fields of mathematics: arithmetic, algebra, geometry, and statistics and those are from the Finnish curriculum. There are loads of research about self-efficacy and mathematics but almost none of it compares different fields of mathematics or even evaluates efficacy in different fields. Most of the research focuses on how to improve self-efficacy in different fields if mathematics is separated to different fields at all. Researchers often measures people’s ability to count and separates mathematics into different areas and people experience different areas differently. Self-efficacy is related to a specific task and that’s why in this research I’m going to explore self-efficacy in different fields of mathematics. 69 sixth graders took part to this study and 33 of participants were girls, 32 boys, 2 non-binary and 2 didn’t want to give this information. This study was made as a survey where participants had to evaluate one’s self-efficacy on 12 different mathematic exercises. From every field of mathematics there were three questions that were differing in challenge. To get suitable math exercises I used primary school material. Participants saw the exercises for a particular time so that they couldn’t count the exercises but only assess their efficacy. The scale was from 1 to 5. Participants self-efficacy mean in different fields of mathematics was above four in every field and tests showed that there wasn’t statistically significant difference between genders in self-efficacy. Repeated measures variance analysis showed statistically significantly that individ- ual’s self-efficacy is different in arithmetic and algebra as well as in arithmetic and statistics. Self-efficacy seems to be dissenting in different fields of mathematics.

Objective. The aim of this intervention study is to examine which character strengths sixth graders spot in themselves and how do they present the character strengths in their everyday lives. The effect of the intervention is being determined as the changes in an observation group are discussed. This study is a part of Tämä Elämä –project, which emphasizes co- working and aims at preventing social exclusions of teenagers. Method. The study was carried out with a sixth grade class (19 students) in the Spring 2019. The class was given lessons on character strengths for a week with the help of Huomaa Hyvä! –materials which are composed for the purpose of bringing out the strengths of an individual. The students filled out an online form both at the start and in the beginning of the week so the effect of the intervention was opened for evaluation. The observation group of 24 students took part in the study. They didn’t receive classes on character strengths during the week. Results and conclusions. The most presented character strengths in the class are fairness, prudence and creativity. The students discussed the strengths through the topics of me-oth- ers, values, cognitive skills, emotions, emotional skills and attitude. The activities they pre- sented discussing their character strengths were e.g. games, activities with friends, home- work and exams. The knowledge and usage of character strengths expressed by the students was tested with repeated measures ANOVA in the software of Statistics Analysis Software SPSS. The factors of time or being a member of either of the groups was not classified as primary effect. The knowledge and usage of character strengths expressed by the students didn’t change signif- icantly.

Objective. Hearing loss is one of the most common chronic health problems, and the number is increasing as a result of population aging. Hearing aids are regarded as the main rehabilitation method for hearing loss. The goal of this follow-up study was to review the experiences of working aged new hearing aid adopters. The focus was to map out the expectations and satisfaction towards the hearing aid, and the disability experiences caused by hearing loss. This thesis is a part of Minna Laakso, Eila Lonka, Johanna Ruusuvuori and Tarja Aaltonen's research project "Communication with Hearing Aid". Also the data was collected as a part of the project. Methods. The population consisted of 42 working age hearing aid first time users (37 64 years). 16 of them were women. Before the hearing aid fitting the participants filled up two self-assessment questionnaires: Denver Scale and Expectations towards hearing aids. Two to three weeks after implementation of the hearing aid the participants filled up the second Denver Scale questionnaire and also IOI-HA questionnaire. Thus it was possible to compare the expectations, disability experiences and satisfaction. The research also studied the construct of Denver scale by using statistical principal component analysis. The model was then utilized in the other statistical analyses. Three participants were also interviewed. Half-structured interviews provided more detailed information about the experiences towards the hearing aid and the hearing loss. The contents of the interviews were then compared to the questionnaire data. Results and conclusions. The expectations towards the hearing aid were high in the study population, although there wasn t any correlation between expectations and short-range satisfaction. Changes in the disability as the result of hearing aid intervention weren t statistically significant. Principal components of the Denver Scale didn't follow the model introduced in previous studies. The contents of the interviews were moderately consistent with the questionnaire data. In this research it was noticed, that the high disabilities due to hearing loss can also be seen after the hearing aid intervention.

Aims. This study examines teachers as the supporters of social participation of hearing-impaired students in mainstream schools. Social participation means positive interaction, acceptance of classmates, mutual friendships and a feeling of acceptance by classmates. It is a key part of inclusion and to some extent it should also be understood as a precondition of learning. The aim is to find out what are the means by which teachers support the social participation of hearing-impaired students in mainstream classes. Another objective of this study is to determine whether teachers even consider the support of social participation as an integral factor when teaching hearing-impaired students. Methods. The research data was collected by questionnaires sent to teachers who had a hearing-impaired student in their class. All in all, the data consisted of about 109 teachers' views on teaching hearing-impaired student, but contained a total of 119 individual teacher-student relationships. Simple frequencies and cross-tabulations were used to describe the teachers in the data and their general attitudes towards teaching the hearing-impaired students. Answers to the open-ended questions were analyzed by content analysis and quantification of the data was carried out to further analyze the data. Results and conclusions. Based on the results of this study, it can be assumed that on the average teachers have positive attitudes towards teaching hearing-impaired students in mainstream classes and are confident in their own abilities. Teachers support the social participation of hearing-impaired students particularly by creating an accepting atmosphere as well as promoting open discussions among students. In addition, teachers support social participation by utilizing group work situations, taking into account special needs, training social skills, encouraging the hearing-impaired student and by uniting the entire class. Teachers feel that it is important to create the right kind of listening conditions when teaching hearing-impaired students. On the other hand supporting social participation is not seen as an integral factor.

Objectives. According to a study commissioned by UNISEF Finland (2012) Finnish students find their teachers distant. The results of the OECD Teaching and Learning International Survey (2013) indicate that Finnish elementary school teachers do not receive enough feedback about their performance. This main objective of this study was to examine elementary school teachers' attitudes towards students' feedback. The research questions were: How do teachers relate to feedback given by students? Which factors have an impact on teacher attitudes? The aim of the study was to introduce a new viewpoint to scrutinizing the current role of teacher and student in the teacher-student relationship. Furthermore, the aim was to provoke discussion about values behind and practices related to interpersonal communication and feedback culture in Finnish schools. The theoretical framework of this study consists of theories in educational psychology and speech communications. As a research topic student feedback on teacher-student relationship is quite new, there is little prior research available. Students' teacher views, expectations and experiences, on the other hand, have started to interest scientists increasingly. Methodology. The study was implemented as a qualitative attitude research. Research data was collected in the spring of 2017 during three group interviews. Nine teachers from three different elementary schools in the Helsinki metropolitan area were interviewed – three teachers from each school. The teachers shared their views on 32 claims presented by the interviewer. The research data was analyzed according to the principles outlined in literature about qualitative attitude research. For instance, an approach of discourse analysis was used. Results and conclusions. All in all, the teacher attitudes towards student feedback were favorable. However, as the teacher attitudes did include some variation, four different attitude profiles were identified. Two of the teachers approached students' feedback daringly, three tolerantly, two neutrally and two with reservation. The results suggest that a student's teacher-related experiences and their effects on the child and teacher-child relationship remain at least partially unidentified. That is why the role of both the teacher and the student as well as the existing communication culture in the Finnish schools should be examined critically and candidly. Student feedback in the student-teacher relationship might help build stronger and healthier pedagogical relationships which, in return, create better conditions for teaching and learning.

Objectives. The aim of this thesis is to find out which factors cause parental burnout. Furthermore, the aim is to produce information for parents, society, and decision-makers on how to raise a child with respect for childhood, but without them having to give up their own life. The study investigates risk factors that can cause burnout to parents. The research question is which factors affect parental burnout and to be more specific what the risk factors and protective factors of burnout are. In this thesis, a descriptive literature review was made. A lot of previous research has been done on the topic. The resource and burden factors of parenting research project have investigated the exhaustion of parents around the world. There are clear indications that exhaustion will soon be one of the national diseases unless something is done to the matter. The purpose of this thesis is to open the topic from the perspective of risk factors and to understand better the exhaustion of parents and to find out something new on the topic. I connect the subject to Home Economics, because I see that the subject contains content areas that young people could use in their future. Starting their own family and becoming a parent is relevant to most of the young people in Home Economics classes at some point in their lives. Methods. As a research method, I used a descriptive literature review. My research was based on the resource and risk factors of parenting (VoiKu) research project carried out at the University of Jyväskylä. The driving factor for the entire research process of this descriptive literature review is the research questions. The questions that I have prepared are based on a broad topic and theme related to parental burnout. The research material consists of previously published research information relevant to the research topic. The material is compiled from scientific publications that I selected from the International Investigation of Parental Burnout (IIPB) ─ research project. Results and conclusions. According to the results, risk factors for parental burnout were socially prescribed perfectionism, self-oriented perfectionism, child-oriented perfectionism, personality traits, unemployment, depression, anxiety, work flexibility compared to a partner, low support from a partner, lack of cooperation, parenting styles, the role of values, parents' negative views of adolescence, emotion regulation, emotion regulation strategies, positive parenting, and lack of social support. According to the results, these risk factors were related to parental burnout. The results showed that the risk factors of parental burnout are important to consider when a parent experiences burnout. The results also showed that parental burnout is a very multidimensional phenomenon, and each risk factor is unique, and it would be important to identify these risk factors to be able to react to them in time and for the parent/parents to get the support they need in time. Parental exhaustion often affects both parents, which means that it would be important to remember that the different service providers face families as a team and not just as individuals.