Browsing by master's degree program "Magisterprogrammet utbildning i förändring"
Now showing items 21-40 of 64
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(2022)Objectives. The purpose of this thesis was to study the experiences of former lower secondary school pupils related to their school attendance problems (SAPs). The research seeks to provide information related to the phenomenon and the role of school-related factors in the Finnish context. Previous research has shown that teachers and other school personnel highlight the role of individual and family factors when explaining the reasons for school attendance problems and the pupils emphasize the importance of school-related factors. As such, the research questions are 1. How did school-related factors influence the pupils’ SAPs? 2. What kind of support was offered to the pupils when they were having SAPs? 3. What kind of support the pupils would have wished to get from the school personnel when having SAPs? Methods. Five former lower-secondary school pupils were interviewed during October and November 2021. The youth were 15-17 years old and had completed their basic education in a middle-sized southern city in Finland in 2020 or 2021. Semi-structured interviews were conducted using the phenomenological interview method and analyzed by interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA). Results and conclusions. All the pupils had lower academic achievement because of being absent from school. The participants considered their pupil-teacher relationships important. They highlighted the importance of being supported and seen as an individual. Some thought that their teachers did not believe them and their explanations for SAPs. Peer relationships were important for all the youth but there was also bullying and discrimination from peers. Some pupils were absent together with their peers, while for some the support gotten from the peers was important. The pupils would have wanted
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(2024)Abstract Finland enhanced its internationalisation efforts over the past decade to address demographic challenges. Finland’s impressive performance in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) in the early 2000s also resulted in a rising demand for its education system, increasing the export of education (Schatz, Popovic, & Dervin, 2017).). Consequently, this led to an increasing flow of international students to Finland; however, existing studies highlight that the graduates are facing challenges in securing employment in Finland (Shumilova, Cai, & Pekkola, 2012). While current studies offer nationwide insights, there remains a research gap in the education sector. Hence, this study aims to investigate how International Master’s Programmes in education support the career sustainability of international students, exploring perspectives from both students and graduates as well as programme leaders. Additionally, the study aims to understand the implications of internationalisation initiatives within these programmes on the social responsibility of international candidates. This study draws upon Tight's (2021) and Hans de Wit's (2013) frameworks to rationalise internationalisation in higher education and is guided by critical theories on internationalisation by Hughes Warrington (2012), Stein (2015), Pashby & Andreotti (2016), Haapakoski (2018), and Haapakoski and Stein (2020). This research employed a mixed methods approach, utilising two online surveys to collect data from students and graduates, as well as programme leaders, representing six International Master's Programmes (IMPs) across four Finnish universities. 52 respondents, including students and graduates, and seven programme leaders, completed the surveys. Quantitative data was subjected to descriptive analysis using SPSS, while qualitative data were subjected to reflexive thematic analysis and theoretically informed analytical reading. Initial coding was conducted using Atlas.ti to analyse the qualitative data. The findings of this study indicate that international students and graduates possess adequate multidisciplinary knowledge and skills; however, employers often prioritise Finnish language proficiency and subject-specific qualifications. While some individuals employed in the education sector expressed career satisfaction, many still encounter difficulties securing employment. Moreover, International master's programmes provide support for career sustainability, yet the needs of international students often go unmet. Although programme leaders recognise the challenges in the Finnish labour market, the career sustainability aspect of internationalisation remains largely overlooked. Therefore, this study highlights the necessity of integrating tailored strategies to better support international candidates' career sustainability as one of the primary aspects of social responsibility.
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(2023)The strategic objectives of Higher Education Institutions (HEI) encompass internationalisation, global competition, enhancing educational equity, and contribution to innovation and economic growth. These objectives are realised through the HEIs’ functions of teaching, research, and community engagement. International collaborations encourage sharing and valuing different forms of knowledge. GINTL (Global Innovation Network of Teaching and Learning) is a network of Finnish Higher Education Institutions and Indian partners for co-creating solutions for global educational challenges and collaboration in education and research. This network was formed as a part of the global component of Finland’s higher education internationalisation program and has been funded by the Ministry of Education and Culture for four years (2021-2024). The study aims to offer an overview and analysis of the collaboration process of a Finnish HEI with India under GINTL. Finnish stakeholders’ accounts of collaboration with India provide valuable insights and contribute to generating new knowledge in the area of global collaboration especially in the context of India, where the literature is sparse. The data was gathered through online interviews (N=9) with the GINTL India coordination team based in a Finnish University. Qualitative thematic analysis is used to analyse the data. Along with a critical description of the collaboration process with Indian partners, the study brings forth the factors crucial for success and constraints that may cause frustrations. The findings suggest that the successful execution of activities is influenced by the funding methods, establishment of trust, disparities in work culture, and accountability concerns. Notably time related issues are a common thread among all the factors that affect collaboration activities.
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(2023)Finnish educational leaders (FELs) experience high levels of stress in their work, which has prompted interest in their psychological wellbeing. Research shows that they have various roles and responsibilities, which can lead to poor psychological wellbeing. Most studies have focused on occupational resources, in line with the Job Demands-Resources theory when investigating how psychological wellbeing of FELs can be improved. Previous research highlights an association between sleep and stress, and how they have both been affected by COVID-19. This study examines the role of sleep as an external resource and its association with the stress of FELs as an indicator of their psychological wellbeing, and cognitive stress, before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study has three research questions with the following hypotheses. Firstly, that there is an association between sleep and psychological wellbeing of FELs. Secondly, that COVID-19 has had a negative effect on the psychological wellbeing of FELs. Lastly, that COVID-19 has had a negative effect on the sleep of FELs. The research sample in this study were FELs who were part of the Finnish school principal’s association and completed the Finnish Principal Occupational Health, Safety and Wellbeing Survey. The sample consisted of 1727 FELs over four years of data collection from 2019 to 2022. The measures of sleep, stress as an indicator of psychological wellbeing and additionally cognitive stress were collected using the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire II as part of the wider survey. The data was analysed using Jamovi v.2.3.21 and the types of data analysis used were Pearson correlation, linear regression analysis, comparing means and One-Way ANOVA. The study showed that this sample of FELs are generally stressed. The results showed a statistically significant association between sleep and psychological wellbeing. Sleep was also found to have an association with cognitive stress to a lesser extent. However, there were no significant findings for gender and year of study, in the association between sleep and psychological wellbeing. The results indicated that there was a slight decrease in stress during the COVID-19 pandemic, and a slight increase in sleeping problems, but these were not statistically significant. The study contributes to an understanding of the association between sleep and psychological wellbeing of FELs. The study highlights that further research is required to explore the association in more depth, and that FELs could consider practical strategies to sleep and wellbeing, whilst schools could consider strategies to lessen demands.
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(2022)Finland’s highly egalitarian educational system lacks official definitions and policies regarding gifted students. The Finnish National Core Curriculum proposes differentiation as the method by which to meet the diverse needs of students in the inclusive Finnish classroom. Previous research indicates that many Finnish teachers lack adequate knowledge about how to support and differentiate instruction for the gifted. This thesis focuses on gifted students’ experiences of differentiation in mixed-ability public schools in Finland. Four gifted students in grades 5 and 6 participated in one semi-structured interview where they were asked questions about assignments in school. The transcripts from the interviews were analyzed with a thematic analysis method and a hermeneutic-phenomenological research approach. Through the thematic analysis, six themes were generated from the material: Acceleration and ability grouping, lack of differentiation, finishing assignments early, inaction and unawareness in teachers, support from teachers, and dealing with peers. The results show that while all students had acceleration measures in place, the students did not seem to receive sufficiently differentiated instruction in school. They found assignments unchallenging, and finished their work early, leading to a lot of idle time in class spent doing things unrelated to the current lesson. Furthermore, the students described their teachers as passive and even unaware of the fact that assignments are too easy. Frustration and boredom seemed to be common feelings in the lived experiences of gifted students in the mixed-ability classroom, which further points toward the need for effective differentiation for gifted students.
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(2024)Public discourse in the modern era compels individuals to align with societal values, leading to entrenched viewpoints and biases. Intergroup bias pervades discussions across domains, necessitating rigorous examination and proactive efforts to reduce them especially within the framework of education. Implementing interventions rooted in social psychology to combat intergroup bias in education holds significant promise. Having selected pragmatic tools to address intergroup bias is particularly important in education as a more inclusive learning environment scaffolds learning, promotes critical thinking, and improves academic achievement. This study investigates the long-term effects of two intervention methods, paradoxical thinking and providing contradictory information, aimed at reduction of intergroup bias in the context of vaccine hesitancy. Paradoxical thinking involves presenting extreme or exaggerated viewpoints, while providing contradictory information highlights inconsistencies in held beliefs. Despite their potential efficacy in immediate contexts, the literature lacks holistic exploration into their long-term effects. To address this gap, 86 participants, with ages ranging from 18.9 to 55.3, were randomly divided into three groups, paradoxical thinking, contradictory information, and control group and each filled a survey before the intervention and the same survey six to nine months after the interventions. During the intervention statements designed on the tenets of paradoxical thinking and contradictory information concepts were read to the participants while generic sentences were read to the participants of the control group. The collected data of this longitudinal study was interpreted employing a mixed ANOVA analysis to assess changes in intergroup bias over time. One of the central findings of the study is the lack of significant differences in intergroup bias scores between the intervention groups and the control group. These findings highlight the complexity of addressing intergroup bias and suggest that while these interventions may not yield lasting effects, they can elicit subtle shifts in attitudes over time. While these interventions may not independently lead to substantial changes in attitudes over extended periods, they can provide valuable insights and opportunities for integration into educational practices, thereby cultivating a more inclusive and empathetic learning environment.
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(2023)This thesis aims to explore the main factors causing learning loss during the COVID-19 pandemic by conducting a literature review. The research questions are formulated in response to the practical needs and theoretical frameworks that have emerged due to the pandemic's disruptive impact on the education sector. The purpose of the study is to identify and understand the main factors causing learning loss among students worldwide. The literature review incorporates studies from various countries and diverse educational levels to gain a global perspective on learning loss during the pandemic. By analyzing both quantitative and qualitative research, the thesis aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the factors influencing learning outcomes. The methods used in this research involve a systematic review of existing literature, gathering data from academic databases and scholarly sources. The findings from the selected studies are synthesized to identify common themes and patterns of main factors causing learning loss during the COVID-19 pandemic. The literature review provides a comprehensive summary of previous studies, highlighting the main factors causing learning loss during the COVID-19 pandemic. These include the disruption of in-person learning, unequal access to technology, limited parental involvement, and the impact on student's mental health. These interconnected factors collectively shape students' learning experiences during this unprecedented time.
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(2024)The increase of multilingual children in Finnish ECEC has highlighted the need to assess its inclusivity and effectiveness in educating and caring for children from various backgrounds. As early childhood is a crucial time for the development of language, social-emotional skills, and experiences of participation, it is essential that all children are effectively supported in developing these skills and provided with experiences of belonging. This study aims to investigate multilingual children’s participation opportunities during a shared reading and discussion activity. Eleven video-recorded shared reading sessions from different ECEC groups were analysed using qualitative content analysis. Finnish was the language of instruction in all groups. Multilingual children’s behaviour was examined in reference to three categories: active engagement and participation, passive engagement with little participation, or interfering behaviour with limited engagement and participation. Based on these observations, groups were divided into three categories depending on if they were considered to have a lot, some or little participation and engagement for multilingual children. Teachers’ methods for facilitating participation and engagement were also investigated, which resulted in 6 main themes and 19 categories being identified. The analysis revealed that most multilingual children actively participated in the activity, and teachers used multiple methods to facilitate participation and engagement. However, there were several groups where some children did not participate actively and received little support and attention from the teacher. Children’s multilingual competence was also rarely made visible during the sessions, as Finnish was the only language used in all groups. While the findings were generally positive, the lack of support for some multilingual children’s participation and the prevalence of monolingual practices indicate that the use of language-aware and inclusive methods could be developed especially in reference to shared reading.
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(2023)Multilingualism is an inherent characteristic of human societies around the world, which is continuously reinforced by recent societal events such as migration or globalization. Yet educational contexts have only recently started to dedicate more attention to multilingualism in education. Education systems still fail to fully recognize and value multilingual learners’ competences, sometimes resulting in language-based exclusion. To address this, the present study examines the issue of continuities and discontinuities in terms of language use, between familial and educational contexts in multilingual contexts. Special attention is also given to language attitudes and ideologies, to investigate their impact and influence on linguistic practices. With the help of a sociolinguistic questionnaire giving insights into language ecologies in educational and familial contexts, a cross-cultural comparative analysis is conducted along with an in-depth analysis of one situation of languages in contact. This in-depth analysis addresses the educational policy level, questioning how policies can establish bridges to build continuity with the familial domain. The findings suggest that diverse situations occur across different sociocultural contexts. Nevertheless, some similarities emerged in the analysis, revealing that certain educational contexts promote continuity with the familial domain to a certain extent, while others do not promote continuity at all. Language attitudes and ideologies have a strong role on language practices and can contribute to the maintenance and vitality of certain languages, or jeopardize others. The in-depth analysis of one contact situation suggests that, in this context, the educational policy level attempted to promote some continuity, putting emphasis on mother tongue education and the development of multilingual competences for children. Nonetheless, explicit references to promote continuity between familial and educational contexts in terms of language use was missing. In addition, several sources pointed to the challenges of implementing such educational policies due to practical constraints such as the lack of qualified teachers or of a sufficiently high number of pupils participating in these initiatives. The analysis confirms that sociolinguistic questionnaires focusing on eliciting information on the ecology of languages can be a valuable source of data for education and policy-making. Although not designed for educational purposes, the data provided extremely insightful information. Therefore, this thesis highlights that tailored sociolinguistic questionnaires can represent a rich source of information for evidence-based policymaking. Overall, this study acknowledges the advancement and positive consideration given to multilingual education in different sociocultural contexts, and at different educational levels. However, more efforts are needed in order to meet multilingual learners’ needs, provide equitable chances and promote social justice in education. Reconsidering multilingualism not only as a right but also as a richness for individuals and society is a concrete example of the goals ahead. This study thus concludes by pleading for more action at all educational levels and beyond, to promote truly inclusive multilingual education and contribute to the important endeavor of changing education.
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(2023)Objectives. This thesis will use Russian-American psychologist Urie Bronfenbrenner’s Bioecological theory of Human Development. This theory applies to the topic of trauma because it suitably explains the complexity of trauma through the theory’s outline of human development occurring in complex multiple layers of influence and differing levels of reciprocal interaction. In addition, it is considered to be a cross-cultural theory. Methods. Method for this thesis is a narrative literature review. A Narrative literature reviews have a less rigid structure than a systematic literature review, but still considered a qualitative analysis. As it name illudes to a narrative literature review is a narration of a carefully curated collection of articles, analyzed through the lens of the researchers own experiences, and through the use of a grounding theory. Although this method is more typcal for a bachelor’s thesis, it should not be underestimated as the literature review is the starting point of any research, to discover what has already been studied in order to build upon that. Selection of Topic: Trauma is not a new topic. As mentioned in the history of trauma section, its roots are in the battle fatigue experienced by soldiers returning from World Wars I and II. However, as a topic in education is relatively new, and the extent of its novelty also depends on geography. In the United States, it has been researched and written about, and foundations and centers on the topic have been created. In the Nordic countries, trauma’s effect on learning has not received comparable levels of attention. Results and conclusions. Are teachers aware of trauma, its manifestations, and how manifestations of trauma can mimic manifestations of learning disabilities? Is the one question this thesis asked and the answer is some do. This literature review has demonstrated that certain countries or regions, particuarly the U.S have extensive published research on trauma as well as a plethora of resources in a range of academic fields studying it. It also highlights the glaring gaps in research and literature on this topic in certain regions, most notably the Nordic countries. This leads me to ask why have the Nordic countries, especially Finland, the world leader in education, are not researching this topic and applying findings to teacher training and improving learning outcomes.
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(2023)Objectives. Research revealed that the Covid-19 pandemic caused stress (Cooke et al. 2020). Whether or not this also applied to principals in Finland will be tested in this study. This study discovers in what way there is a difference in the self-reported as well as the physiological stress of Finnish principals between 2019 and 2020. Researchers have found a connection between stress and social support among principals (Beausaert et al., 2016; Upadyaya et al., 2021). This thesis investigates in what way there is a connection between self-reported and physiological stress of 2020 and the experienced help and support for the Covid-19 procedures. Based on previous studies by Upadyaya et al. (2021) and a someway similar investigation by Beausaert et al. (2016), the hypothesis was that the dataset will reveal a connection between stress and social support. The research questions of this study are: 1. In what way do the principals’ physiological and self-reported stress levels for 2020 differ from 2019? 2. In what way is there a connection between principals’ self-reported as well as physiological stress and the experienced help and support for the Covid-19 procedures? Methods. All the physiological, as well as questionnaire data that are used in this study were collected in 2019 and 2020 by Katariina Salmela-Aro’s research group at the University of Helsinki. The physiological data was retrieved with Firstbeat’s device: Bodyguard 2. In this study, a selection of questionnaire data, and SDNN values that were retrieved during working time (8 a.m. till 5 p.m.) and sleeping time (midnight till 6 a.m.) have been used. Results and conclusions. The self-reported scales of “Cognitive Stress Symptoms”, “Stress” and “Somatic Stress Symptoms” between 2019 and 2020 were analysed as well as the physiological data. A significant result has been found only in the cognitive stress symptoms. Surprisingly, cognitive stress symptoms decreased in 2020, compared to 2019. A significant connection between the self-reported stress of “Cognitive Stress Symptoms”, “Stress” and “Somatic Stress Symptoms” with the experienced help and support of the Covid-19 procedures from Guardians of pupils/students have been found. As well as a significant connection between self-reported “Stress” with the experienced help and support of the Covid-19 procedures from the State level. The physiological data recorded during the night correlated significantly with ‘’Guardians of pupils/students’’, ‘’Municipal education board’’ and the ‘’State level’.
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(2022)The aim of this study is to examine parents' beliefs on what impact Covid-19 has had on our young children's physical activity. With the term young children, I refer to children aged from one to six years old. The research questions for this study are the following: 1. How do parents view the impact Covid-19 has had on children's physical activity? 2. What kind of change in the child’s physical activity can be seen? 3. Is there a change in the child’s attitude towards physical activity? In the chapter physical activity some background on how children master physical movements will be presented. The chapter contains children’s physical development, as well as benefits and the needs for physical activity. Physical development and physical activity go hand in hand, developing physically often leads to the child becoming more physically active. In the chapter Covid-19 and everyday life, viewpoints on how the Covid-19 pandemic has affected young children’s everyday life and especially physical activity are examined. The Covid-19 pandemic led to activities organized for families with children, such as story-time in library, music-play at the library/church and family café etc. stopped to decrease the spreading of the Covid-19 virus. A short complete lockdown took place in the beginning of spring 2020, where early childhood centers closed, and only parents/guardians who could not stay at home with their children had the right to bring their child to early childhood education. The parents that had the opportunity to stay home with their child were offered online early childhood education via the early childhood education center that they normally attend to. How much activities were sent out depended on the early childhood centers approach and beliefs (Hilppö, et al. 2020; Nurhonen et al. 2021). However, it was decided later that early childhood education centers remained open during the pandemic, and children were offered everyday life as normal as possible. Even though, early childhood education centers opened, the Covid-19 restrictions still existed (Nurhonen et al. 2021). How these restrictions were followed depended on the family. With the use of questionnaire, that were sent out to early childhood education centers and parent-child activities I have tried to get a view on how parents view the impact Covid-19 has had on young children’s physical activity. Has the pandemic affected young children’s physical activity? What are the parents’ beliefs? and how well with Covid-19 going on can children be physically active? I collected 103 answers from the questionnaire. Looking at the collected data I have also tried to see how and what attitudes towards physical activity children have. Do they enjoy being outdoors, physically active and has this changed during the pandemic? What can be concluded from this study is that even though the Covid-19 pandemic has been going on for 2 years it has not, according to the parents of the children, affected young children's physical activity that markedly. The children of this study seem to be as physically active as before the Covid-19 pandemic. This study is only a sample of a specific number of people, trying to explain how Covid-19 has affected the daily lives of children. Further study is needed to fully understand the changes made by Covid-19.
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(2024)Objectives. The purpose of the study was to describe, analyse and interpret the views of Finnish kindergarten leaders on the opportunities, challenges and meanings of pedagogical management during the COVID-19 pandemic in spring 2020. Methods. The study is based on qualitative theory-based content analysis. I analysed deductively using a broad-based pedagogical leadership framework. The material consisted of answers from ECE leaders (n=492) to an electronic survey conducted in February 2021. The survey had several sections, of which in this study I focused on two open questions related to pedagogical leadership. Results and conclusions. Among the dimensions of broad-based pedagogical leadership, ECE leaders raised the most issues related to indirect pedagogical leadership. These include technical leadership (leading structures and conditions for daily operations) and human leadership (leading human resources). Distance working, meetings and professional education courses were possible through the extensive use of digital devices and programs, affecting the operations of daycare centres. ECE leaders highlight the importance of leading the staff to ensure their wellbeing, professional competency, and capacity building. Leaders found fewer opportunities and challenges related to the broad-based pedagogical leadership dimension of direct pedagogical leadership. Direct pedagogical leadership is one of the critical areas of ECE leadership in leading educational and learning processes. Professional and competent leaders promoted the activities of ECE centres. The success of direct pedagogical leadership promoted the development of practices and pedagogy. Many leaders noted that children's absences made it possible to achieve early childhood education goals. High-quality ECE leadership requires a qualified leader who masters all dimensions of broad-based pedagogical leadership. In Finland, ECE leaders' pedagogical competence and professional development should be studied, and leadership education should be planned, considering the diverse needs of work communities and child groups in pedagogical leadership. The article is published in the book Early Childhood Education Leadership in Times of Crisis: International Studies During the COVID-19 Pandemic, 2023, edited by Elina Fonsén, Raisa Ahtiainen, Kirsi-Marja Heikkinen, Lauri Heikonen, Petra Strehmel, and Emanuel Tamir.
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(2023)Personal practical theories (PPTs) of early childhood education and care (ECEC) professionals have not been widely studied. Personal beliefs, values and theoretical knowledge form the PPT that affects the decisions a professional makes in everyday work. Therefore, PPT can be considered as an integral element of professionalism in the ECEC field. Professionals' PPTs are often hidden and if not acknowledged and discussed, mutual understanding among professionals may be difficult to achieve. This qualitative study aims to provide some insight into the beliefs, values and knowledge of ECEC professionals, and describe the commonalities found in the PPTs of professionals. The data in this study was gathered from nine (9) semi-structured interviews in Finland. The respondents equally represented different disciplines that prevail in ECEC: pedagogy, social pedagogy and child nursing. The ‘onion model of levels in reflection’ developed by Fred Korthagen (2017) was utilised as a framework in formulating the interview questions and when interpreting the data with reflexive thematic analysis. The main finding in this thesis was the complexity and paradoxical nature of ECEC work which the professionals described. Similarly, the PPT of ECEC professional could be described as a region with a variety of complex dimensions. There were some common themes to be found in the data, one of them being advocating the best interest of children. Another important finding was the understanding of the cruciality of teamwork in ECEC. Consequently, the various PPTs of ECEC professionals should all be valued equally as this enables striving towards shared goals. Furthermore, discussing about PPTs among team members in genuine dialogue may foster the well-being of employees, and ultimately of children in the group. This study suggests that all ECEC professionals should engage self-reflection in order to recognise their underlying beliefs and values that affect their everyday work. This is a practice which enables professional development and also demonstrates ethical responsibility.
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(2024)The purpose of this thesis was to investigate the topic of the teacher as a person in ECEC teacher education. Previous research has shown that pedagogical practices are dependent on science and socio-political and economic trends but also subjective to interpretation by the individual teacher. According to Gallas (2010), just like researchers, teachers are never entirely objective. Personal beliefs, values and views influence a teacher's pedagogical work. Awareness and reflection not only as improving pedagogical practices for better results but also as rethinking one’s own motivations behind pedagogical choices and socio-emotional competences can have a profound effect on a teacher’s professional identity (Virmani et al., 2020). Research suggests that a holistic approach to teacher education (Körkkö, 2021; Klein, 2008), of building an inner perspective of the student’s own self, helps future teachers’ work practices. The research questions of this study look at how the teacher as a person is acknowledged and how the personhood of the teacher is supported in ECEC teacher education. To answer the research questions, an analysis of the curriculum for ECEC teacher education at the University of Helsinki was conducted. The method used was Discourse analysis with Bakhtin’s Dialogic theory as a theoretical framework. The results of this study suggest that the topic of the teacher’s personhood is sporadically present and rarely supported. The teacher as a person is meaningful when related to professional development. In general, the curriculum gives an impression of the teaching profession as normative and prescriptive, focused only on child-centred results. Leaving the person out of the professional in the curriculum could lead to teacherhood being seen as a technical occupation. Taking the personal aspect under consideration, on the other hand, could shed more light on teacher burnout and job dissatisfaction.
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(2024)This article-based master’s thesis evaluates and describes the levels of engagement and motivation, along with the experience of flow, in students studying Spanish as a second language at a metropolitan school in Finland during playful game-based activities, using the well-known online game platform Kahoot. The study aims to compare motivation and engagement in two scenarios: playful game-based learning activities and traditional lessons during Spanish language classroom activities. Additionally, it investigates differences in motivation and engagement between genders and explores the correlation between motivation, engagement, and flow during playful game-based classroom activities. A total of 103 students aged 10-15, from grades 4 to 9, participated in the research, utilizing validated psychological questionnaires to assess situational engagement, motivation, and the flow experience. We consolidated the three questionnaires the Situational Motivation Scale (SIMS), the Situational Engagement Scale (SES), and the Flow Short Scale (FSS)—into one digital survey that took place immediately after the traditional lessons and playful game-based learning activities were completed. This study employed quantitative research methods, utilizing statistical analyses, to investigate engagement, motivation, and the correlation with flow during playful game-based learning activities, as well as the differences between game-based learning and traditional lessons, and gender differences. This study found that, during situational motivation, the participants demonstrated a significantly higher difference in the Intrinsic Motivation factor in playful game-based learning compared to traditional lessons. The participants also expressed a significant difference in their level of interest when asked about their engagement during game-based learning. No gender differences were observed in either situational engagement or motivation; however, boys showed slightly higher levels compared to girls. A strong correlation was found between intrinsic motivation and flow during playful game-based learning. The study highlights the potential of educational games to promote student intrinsic motivation, engagement, and flow experience, emphasizing the importance of incorporating innovative and enjoyable learning methods such as games into the school classroom. The article relating to this master’s thesis is to be considered for publishing in The Journal of Language Teaching and Research (JLTR)
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(2024)The objective of this master’s thesis was to discover preschool teachers’ experiences with using music as an educational tool during preparatory Finnish language lessons. Language is a tool that helps humans connect with each other and their surroundings in a meaningful way. It is especially important for children who learn through play and interactions with others. Teachers and their pedagogical choices are in key position in supporting second language learning. Music has been found to be beneficial to second language learning. The significance teachers place on music as an educational tool can be observed by defining how and when they utilize music during language teaching sessions, and how they justify its use. The aim of this qualitative study was to discover personal motivation and experiences with using music as a teaching tool. Since the objective was to acquire the most valuable research results possible, the participants were chosen based on their personal knowledge and experience with using music during preparatory language teaching lessons in preschool. Seven qualified teachers were interviewed through semi-structured face-to-face interviews that were conducted in the summer of 2023. The participants all reported having had very positive experiences with using music as a teaching tool and having noticed significant benefits it has on second language learning. Participants had observed music impacting different areas of language learning, such as vocabulary recall, pronunciation, rhythm of language and sentence structuring. The impact was described as significant by the participants, which reflects findings of prior studies. Teachers valued its influence on supporting functions of learning such as memory, motivation and focus. Previous experiences with music seem to influence how comfortable teachers are with starting to implement music into their curriculum, and that support from colleagues has a vital role in encouraging its use. Having a teammate who has a strong background in music education was a key incentive that encouraged them to start utilizing it in their work, as it allowed new teachers to witness the effect music can have on language learning.
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(2023)The aim of this thesis is to investigate the experienced primary school teachers' implementation of the key characteristics of project-based learning (PBL) in South Korea. Six key characteristics of PBL were used in this study as the theoretical framework. The characteristics are driving questions, learning goals, scientific activities, collaborative activities, using digital tools, and creating artefacts. The other focus of this study is analysing the challenges that the teachers faced when implementing PBL. The study had two research questions. The first one examined how primary school teachers in South Korea implement the key characteristics of PBL, and the second one focused on what kinds of challenges they have when applying PBL. The data were collected by semi-structured online interviews of seven primary school teachers. Their project plan documents designed and implemented by the teachers were used as additional data. The collected data were analysed with qualitative content analysis mainly in an inductive way. The main findings are that the experienced teachers in South Korea employed PBL as follows: the teachers (1) designed PBL based on the curriculum and the students' interests, (2) tried to reflect the students' opinion, (3) created a PBL environment, (4) had the students practice related skills, (5) facilitated the students' learning, (6) designed collaborative work, (7) utilised digital tools, and (8) gave an opportunity to showcase the results of the learning. The study indicated that the teachers faced challenges such as managing time, ambiguity, and diversity. The teachers also described several challenges related to student engagement, collaborative work, lack of skills, resources, school support, and teacher expertise. These results confirm earlier research in other countries. The results and suggestions of the study can provide new insights of experienced teachers’ PBL implementation to teachers, schools, and curriculum developers wishing to implement PBL in classrooms. The findings revealed the strategies of PBL implementation, the need to guarantee teacher autonomy more in the curriculum and need of training for teachers’ professional development.
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(2023)Aims. The aim of the present study was to investigate how Chinese high school students’ psychological needs frustration in physical education courses relate to their school achievement, which was reflecting by the change of physical fitness test results. According to the concept of Self-Determination Theory (SDT), humans have three fundamental needs: autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Previous studies have shown that satisfying psychological needs lead to positive outcomes, while thwarting psychological needs cause negative outcomes. This research links Chinese high school students’ psychological needs frustration to their school achievement within PE context, which was conducted to assess the stability of school achievement in physical tests over time for students with different needs frustration groups. Methods. 518 students (274 male, 244 female) from three Senior High Schools in Beijing completed an online questionnaire during school days. Two-Step Cluster analysis in SPSS was used to group students into homogeneous clusters based on their scores for psychological needs thwarting. A mixed analysis of variance (ANOVA) was carried out to measure the between-group and within-group differences. Results and conclusions. Three distinct psychological needs profiles were identified: high frustration (20.3%), moderate frustration (54.6%), and low frustration (25.1%). For school achievement, it was discovered that students who reported high levels of frustration received the lowest grades in both high school entrance exams and current exams, whereas those who reported low levels of frustration received the highest grades. The mixed ANOVA results showed a significant difference in physical test scores between entrance exams and current exams, indicating a decline in physical performance over time across all three identified profiles. Overall, this study contributes to our understanding of the complex interplay between psychological needs fulfilment and academic performance, which could inform future research and interventions in this field.
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(2023)Previous research has shown that racism and discrimination negatively impact mental health and that students in Finland from immigrant families are more likely to report loneliness, anxiety, lack of close friendship, and poorer school belonging than their native counterparts. Furthermore, international schools, which is the empirical context of this thesis, have been criticized for being highly Western and white, leaving out important topics concerning BIPOC that would be expected to obtain an “international” education. Therefore, there is a need for more research into the lived experiences of racism of YPOC in an international school context and ways to support their wellbeing. To address this need, this thesis aims to investigate in what ways YPOC studying at an international school in the Greater Helsinki area cope with racism and how they find support. I focus on how race, racialisation, and racism affect their lived experiences and their sense of belonging, and how YPOC construct their racial and ethnic identities within white-dominated spaces. I also highlight sources of support for YPOC and how peer support is a means of supporting student wellbeing. The study was conducted using a participatory approach, with data collected through notes taken from a series of peer support group sessions I co-facilitated, as well as interviews. The planning of the research focus and facilitation of peer support group sessions took place in collaboration with a youth mental health association The data was analysed using a reflexive thematic approach to highlight themes in stories shared by the participating youth while acknowledging the value of research subjectivity. YPOC shared experiences of constantly being seen under the white gaze, being made aware of their race and Otherness in everyday life. They shared challenges with defining their identity and finding belonging and community, especially in transnational spaces. Finally, they affirmed peer support as a strategy for coping with the effects of racism, demonstrating the need for safe spaces for YPOC. This research indicates the need for contextualised mental health support for YPOC and action towards deconstructing institutional racism and Eurocentrism in the international school context.
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