Browsing by master's degree program "Magisterprogrammet utbildning i förändring"

The mental health of university students has been a concern worldwide for years, and the issues have been increasing gradually to this date. Factors related to increased stress and mental health issues among university students include poor academic performance. To succeed in studies, students need to acquire organized study skills, which are also connected to one’s psychological well-being. By increasing psychological flexibility, it is possible to learn skills of managing stress, thoughts, and emotions and thus enhance one’s own mental well-being. Psychological flexibility is the goal of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and refers to a skill to focus on the present moment and live in the pursuit of one’s own goals and values. The connection between psychological flexibility and well-being has been studied quite extensively with quantitative measures. However, there is less research about this connection in the context of higher education institutes and university students. Also, according to the knowledge of the researcher, there has been fewer studies on the impact mechanisms of the different sub-processes of psychological flexibility and ACT. More in-depth research with qualitative methods is also needed to gain better understanding about the phenomenon. In some studies, ACT-based interventions have been found to have a positive impact on university students’ psychological well-being and study skills, but more research is needed within this context. The study was conducted applying a mixed methods approach combining repeated measures ANOVA and inductive content analysis. The research group consisted of students who participated in the web-based course, Towards Better Well-being and Studying, during fall 2021 at the University of Helsinki, Finland. For the quantitative measurements, a control group was also used, consisting of students on the waiting list for the course. The research task of this study was to gain better understanding of the possible changes in the participants’ well-being and organized study skills during the course, as well as to examine, how the students attending the course have evaluated the effectiveness of the specific modules and tasks involved during the course. Quantitative results showed that the course had a statistically significant effect on participants' organized study skills, psychological flexibility, and emotional and psychological well-being. Comparing the results of students who participated in the course with those of the control group, whose measures remained mostly the same, confirms this finding about the effects of the course on well-being, organized study skills and psychological flexibility. The results of the qualitative part of the study were in line with these findings. Based on findings from inductive content analysis, the course’s different modules were perceived as useful, and the course had an impact on the well-being of most students as well as their organized study skills. Students’ responses displayed personal development and in-depth reflection both at an individual level and at a broader and societal level. The students felt that they had gained new insights and particularly many concrete tips on how to promote their own well-being and learning, which they will continue to use in the future.

Teachers’ epistemic beliefs may play a role in their own ICT use for learning as well as their students’. This study, focusing on how teachers’ epistemic profiles are related to teachers’ and their students’ ICT use reported by their teachers, is a new attempt to investigate teachers’ ICT use as a learning tool. The participants were 157 subject-matter teachers in Finland filled in a Likert-type questionnaire measuring epistemic beliefs and categories of ICT use based on the three metaphors of learning: knowledge acquisition, participation, and knowledge sharing and building. First, confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to assess the validity of the ICT instrument. Concerning teachers’ epistemic profiles, a person-oriented approach was applied. Based on latent profile analysis, means of all variables in ICT use scales between profiles were compared to examine the relation between epistemic profiles and ICT use for learning. The results showed that in terms of ICT use reported by teachers in two scales, knowledge acquisition was dominant as compared to the other two categories. Two epistemic profiles were defined among Finnish teachers: Knowledge-transmission and Reflective-collaborative profiles. By comparing teacher reported ICT use across the two profiles, the results demonstrated that teachers in the reflective-collaborative group were more likely to report using ICT for their own learning and for supporting their students’ learning.

In this thesis I studied children’s self-regulation with the data from the “friendship skills” intervention study in early childhood education and care. Self-regulation has been found to be central factor in school readiness and academic achievements as well as in general wellbeing. The data was collected in nine different early childhood education and care units (15 child groups), consisting of 162 children (n = 82 girls, M = 5,65, SD = 0.88). The study used Educator’s Evaluation Form (EEF, self-regulation) and Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ, internalising and externalising problems, prosocial behaviour) to measure self-regulation and both internalising and externalising problems and prosocial behaviour. I aimed to study associations between self-regulation and internalising and externalising problems, and self-regulation and prosocial behaviour, as well as between self-regulation and age. Another aim concerns the effect of gender on these associations. The hypotheses of the thesis were: (1a) self-regulation is negatively associated with internalising and externalising problems; (1b) self-regulation is positively associated with prosocial behaviour; (2) self-regulation is positively associated with age; and, (3) self-regulation is associated more positive with age in girls than in boys. Self-regulation was found to associate negatively with both internalising and externalising problems and positively with prosocial behaviour. Regarding age, gender was found to moderate the association between self-regulation and age (age by gender interaction) in that statistically non-significant positive association between self-regulation and age was found in girls and statistically significant negative association in boys. Gender was not found to moderate other associations. The results indicate that self-regulation may have profound affects to overall wellbeing of children. Gender-difference imply possible complexity in interconnections between self-regulation, age and gender. Additionally, boys may be in more vulnerable position regarding self-regulation especially when approaching to school entry. In discussion section, I discuss the results additionally in relation to the concept of self-regulation, which I view more broadly in developmental and educational perspectives. Moreover, I will suggest tentative model constructed for the process of self-regulation. Finally, I will give suggestions for future research.

Objectives. The world population aged over 60 years is estimated to increase to 1.4 billion by 2030. This increasing trend evidences the current need for promoting healthy ways of living and aging. Previous research has studied music as a protective factor for several aspects in aging-associated neurological illnesses. This thesis aims at researching if healthy amateur choir singers and controls across age in adulthood differ in self-reported cognitive functions, social support and quality of life. It is hypothesized that amateur choir singers will report higher values of the three aspects mentioned above. Methods. Participants (N=93) were recruited from two general population groups, amateur choir singers (N = 54) and controls (N = 46), from 3 age groups split as follows: young adults: 20–39 years (N=34, mean = 29.79, SD = 5.65); middle-aged adults: 40–59 years (N=32, mean = 50.31, SD = 6.47); and older adults: 60–90 years (N=27, mean = 69.37, SD = 7.62). Outcome measures were questionnaires on quality of life (WHO-QOL-BREF), social support (Social Provisions Scale, SPS), cognitive functioning (Cognitive Failures Questionnaire, CFQ; Prospective and Retrospective Memory Questionnaire, PRMQ). Statistical analyses were performed with SPSS. Results and conclusions. The variable “total years of education” was included as a covariate when comparing the age groups, due to significant difference in the demographic pre-analysis. When studying the effects of amateur choir singing (choir vs controls), none of the results were significant. In comparing the three age groups (young, middle-aged, old), significant group differences were found in all the domains of theCFQ (cognitive failures) questionnaire except for Names, with young adults scoring higher (indicating more cognitive failures) than the middle-aged and older adults. A significant singing x age interaction was observed in all CFQ domains (except Names) as well as in the Reliable alliance subdomain of the SPS, with choir singers showing a more positive trend (less cognitive failures, more social support) across the age groups compared to the control group. These findings suggest a possible protective effect of amateur choir singing on subjective cognitive and social functioning in aging, which should be further studied.

Finland has seen an increase of immigrants in the past twenty years. Currently, newly arrived immigrant students are placed in preparatory classrooms for up to a year to provide them with the language skills they need to integrate into regular Finnish classrooms. However, municipalities can choose whether they would like to offer preparatory education, as well as how they would like to structure it. This creates possible gaps for inequities to exist within preparatory classrooms. In the 2018 PISA results, Finland had the highest gap in reading scores between immigrant and non-immigrant students out of all OECD countries with an immigrant population of higher than five percent. This demonstrates that Finland has fallen behind other countries in educating its immigrant students. Therefore, this study attempts to examine how Finnish and non-Finnish cultures are viewed and discussed in preparatory classrooms, as well as how preparatory classrooms support the well-being of students and prepare students to succeed in school. This study consisted of semi-structured interviews of students and staff members within one lower secondary school in Southern Finland. This school had two preparatory classrooms, as well as one special “P2” classroom. Interviews were analyzed using an inductive approach to thematic analysis, where four themes and five subthemes were found by using a constructionist paradigm. The results of this study were that the preparatory classrooms at this school valued and appreciated non- Finnish cultures during discussions in class, but Finnish behaviors and ideologies were seen as normal and what students should adapt to when moving to Finland. Additionally, while teachers were able to provide a positive and supportive learning environment for students, the school did not provide enough emotional support or resources for students. Finally, a lack of resources and funding meant that students were not able to get the support they needed to properly develop the Finnish language skills required to succeed in school. This study indicates there is a need for more funding and resources to be allocated to preparatory classrooms, as well as larger-scale research on the benefits and shortcomings of Finnish preparatory education.

Children and young people across the world are online more than ever. With this, comes the risk of experiencing online sexual harms and exploitation which can be sources of trauma and impact students’ well- being, mental health, behaviour, academic and life outcomes. Teachers can be trusted adults in their student’s lives with the ability to recognise these kinds of harms and abuse and offer effective support and intervention. Finland shows a steady increase in children and young people experiencing online child sexual harms such as online sexual harassment, grooming and exploitation and a rise in the media coverage of these issues. This seeks to discover student teacher perceptions of online child sexual harms and exploitation of children and young people, whilst examining what student teachers might need to be able to understand and respond more effectively. Data was collected with individual interviews that included open questions and action tasks with four student teachers from The University of Helsinki. The study was guided by trauma-informed theory. Interviews were analysed using a mixture of deductive and inductive approaches to thematic analysis. In doing so, three themes and five sub-themes were found. The results of this study were that student teacher participants showed varied perceptions of online sexual harms and exploitation, related to the nature of abuse, victim, and perpetrator characteristics. These perceptions influenced participant ability to recognise potentially harmful situations. Additionally, participants lacked formal training in these issues. Finally, participants expressed unanimous professional anxiety in terms of how to practically respond to incidents of online sexual harms and exploitation of students, indicating a critical need for teacher education programs at the University of Helsinki to provide a more comprehensive education for student teachers that addresses understanding, identifying, and responding to sexual harms and exploitation online.

Objectives. This article-based master’s thesis explores the use of ChatGPT in educational settings. Previous research on human-LLM remains scarce, and most literature addressing the use of GPT in educational settings is theoretical and lacking empirical evidence. The new technological developments, however, urge for a deeper understanding of its novel dynamics for the development of efficient and safe AI-systems. Consequently, our study aims explore the use of a novel guided interaction design for modeling users’ information foraging behavior when navigating GPT-generated content and the role of Computational Thinking Skills in shaping such behavior. Methods. Conducted with nine educational researchers in a doctoral-level AIEd course, our research used editable prompt templates and keywords to structure the prompt crafting process. We modeled and analyzed participants’ interactions with ChatGPT in terms of exploration (to generate and explore various information landscapes) and exploitation (to delve deeper into a specific landscape). Additionally, we conducted the Computational Thinking Scale survey. We employed descriptive statistics to describe participants’ foraging behavior, and network analysis to explore the relationship between foraging behavior and Computational Thinking Skills. Results and conclusions. Our results suggested that Algorithmic Thinking and Creativity might encourage exploitation behavior, leaning more on AI-generated information rather than pre-defined design elements. Furthermore, including participants' interests in the interaction design seemed to foster a shared conceptual space in prompt construction. This approach encouraged the use and combination of diverse interests for content creation, as opposed to relying solely on individuals' interests. Our findings also suggested that exploitation prompts are predominantly driven by GPT-generated content. While this seems to add value to AI-generated content, it raises concerns about potential overreliance, especially in educational settings. The article, entitled ‘Exploring the Use of GPT-4 when Generating Personalized Case Scenarios for Higher Education.’, follows the guidelines of the International Journal of Artificial Intelligence in Education.

This study investigated the impacts of serious games (digital games) on the multiplication and division skills of elementary school learners in Finnish schools. Gamification is a popular learning strategy that has been extensively applied in literature. Studies reveal that gamification, in general, is useful for improving skills in various subjects. However, there are fewer studies dealing with the impacts of serious games on learners’ multiplication and division skills. This study deals with this shortage by applying a gamified intervention in mathematics classrooms. A quasi-experimental method was applied. The participants were split into two groups: the experimental (gamified condition) and control group. Both groups took the same pre-test on simple multiplication and division tasks before the intervention was introduced. During the intervention, the experimental group were instructed through digital games while the control group received traditional instruction. The intervention period lasted for two weeks. After the intervention, a post-test was administered and the mean scores of the two groups were compared as an index of their learning outcome. The results show that there was no significant difference in the learning outcome between the experimental group and the control group, although the control group scored slightly higher than the experimental group. There was also a decrease in scores for both groups from the pre- to post-test as the groups scored higher in the pre-test than in the post-test. This is due to ceiling effect observed in the pre-test which led to the post-test to be, intentionally, made considerably more difficult than the pre-test. The observed results could be attributed to several factors, key amongst them being the short length of the intervention. Further studies should last longer than two weeks and, further, a larger sample size should be used for the results to be meaningful and generalisable. With a larger sample, correlation analyses between playtime and test scores as well as teachers’ experiences with digital games could also be carried out.

This article-based master’s thesis explores the relations between futures education and systems thinking. By exploring a cross-curricular approach on futures education, this study focuses on futures thinking, systems thinking, and the city as a complex system. Previous research has shown that futures education can increase agency to change the future. Students have, however, been shown to be facing unprecedented levels of anxiety related to the future. Hence, the objectives of this study are to explore the impact of a futures education course on students’ systems thinking by approaching futures though wishful visioning. This study aims to discover how students’ systems thinking is supported by a course on visioning the city of the future, encouraging multiple perspectives of futures. The data was gathered during a futures education course at an upper secondary school in Helsinki, Finland. In groups, 11 students wrote their visions of the city of Helsinki in 2050. The visions were challenged and revised, and all versions of the text were collected. This study looked into the revisions made to the students’ visions between the first and final versions. Using an inductive qualitative thematic analysis, this paper explored the themes emerging in the visions. The inductive themes were categorized into social, natural, and technological thematic spheres. This study explored how the interconnectedness of those themes developed during the course. Through the analysis of the overlap between the thematic spheres, this paper analysed how students’ perceptions of complexity emerged and showed developed systems thinking. This study found that students’ systems thinking developed during the futures education course. Students’ future visions portrayed deepened understandings of the interconnectedness between social, natural, and technological spheres. The revisions of students’ future visions showed increased complexity in the topics they initially discussed from merely a singular point of view. The results indicate complex development of systems thinking, pointing to the wide-ranging cross-curricular benefits of futures education. The article pertaining to this master’s thesis is to be submitted to be considered for publishing in Frontline Learning Research.

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.