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The aim of the study: The preschool education of mathematics has been studied fairly little. However, the earlier studies have showed that mathematical education in preschool has failed to compensate the differences in mathematical skills of the pre-schoolers. The aim of this study was to find out how the Varga Neményi teaching method effects in the Finnish preschool education and especially for children with problems in their learning or development. The effectiveness of the teaching method was studied from the view of children's mathematical abilities and their involvement to activity. Also children's opinions of mathematics and themselves as learners of mathematic were studied. Research method: Multiple research methods have been used in this study. The study has features of the action research. The intervention of mathematic, based on Varga Neményi-teaching method, was carried out in preschool group with children of special needs. All ten pre-schoolers participated in the research. Some of the children had need for intensified or special support. Children's skills in mathematics were studied using MAVALKA 1 – survey in the beginning and in the end of the intervention. Children's involvement to activity was observed and assessed using LIS-YC Scale also in the beginning and in the end of intervention. Children's opinions of mathematics and themselves as learners of mathematics were studied with interviews and drawings. Findings and conclusions: The engagement of children was statistically significantly higher during the mathematic lessons based on Varga Neményi- method than during the other type of preschool action. The engagement of children strengthened during the intervention both in mathematics and in other preschool activities. Children's skills in mathematics improved during the intervention. The skills in mathematics of the children with lower performance in the beginning of the intervention improved the most. The children experienced mathematics to be something functional, interactive and mainly pleasant. In the light of these findings, the Varga Neményi teaching method seems to suit well to the Finnish pre-school education, and for children with special needs.

Music interventions carried out by caregivers of persons with dementia (PWDs) have lately become the focus of music rehabilitation in dementia research. Dementia can be burdening for caregivers and it may disrupt the relationship between PWDs and caregivers. The aim of this thesis was to determine whether 1) awareness deficits frequently observed in PWDs manifest in rating discrepancies between PWDs and their caregivers when rating mood and quality of life of PWDs or if these differences are primarily explained by caregiver burden and 2) a caregiver-based music intervention can attenuate the rating discrepancies. In the current study, 89 PWD-caregiver dyads were randomly allocated in three groups: singing group, music listening group, and control group. Cognition, mood, and quality of life of the PWDs were assessed at baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 6 months after intervention. Discrepancy scores were calculated between the PWDs' and caregivers' ratings in Cornell-Brown Scale for Quality of Life in Dementia (CBS) and Quality of Life in Alzheimer's Disease (QOL-AD). Correlations of the discrepancy scores to intervention outcomes and baseline PWD and caregiver characteristics were examined. Differences between intervention groups in CBS and QOL-AD discrepancies were analyzed with ANOVA. QOL-AD discrepancy was associated with dementia severity at baseline. CBS discrepancies were consistently associated with caregiver burden, higher discrepancies corresponding to higher burden. The intervention groups did not show any differences in change in the discrepancy scores in mixed-model ANOVAs. Further research with more focused measures is needed to determine whether music interventions can alleviate awareness deficits and/or PWD-caregiver discrepancies and, regarding the latter, to reveal the exact route of the effect.

The aim of this study was to analyse how applicants applying for faculty of law and participating in a preparatory course while preparing for the entrance examination speak about the competition connected to the applying. The study focuses on discourses that are built when talking about the competition. The aim was also to study constructed discourses when talking about possibilities of succeeding in the competition in law school admission. Previous studies show that capitals have impact on one's educational choices. One of my aims was to construct understanding of what kind of meanings the cultural, the social and the economic capital get in the process of applying to a law school and participating in a preparatory course. There has been only little research about the role of preparatory courses in admission to higher education. The goal of this study was to fill this research gap and produce researched information about the role of preparatory courses. The qualitative research data consist of interviews with six law school applicants who took part in preparatory courses. The data was collected with a semi-structured interview. One of the interviews was a pair interview and four were individual interviews. The data was analysed with critical discourse-analytical approach The higher education applicants aim to make reasonable education choices when participating in the competition over study positions. The applicants assessed their own position and possibilities to succeed in the competition in relation to the other applicants. The preparatory course was constructed as a trump card that applicants could use to succeed in the competition. It was also produced as something that is self-evidently part of applying to law school. On the other hand preparatory course was constructed as something one could use to decrease the uncertainty caused by the competition.Based on the reasonable educational choice -discourse, the self-evidence -discourse, the imaginary competitor -discourse and the trump card -discourse one can argue that cultural, social and economic capital are constructed as meaningful factors in the competition of higher education. They create possibilities and limitations when participating in the competition over study positions in higher education.

Aim. Children’s early social-emotional maturation plays an important role in their development. A report in Finland has shown that daycare centers need tools in everyday life to support children's socio-emotional development. Thus, the SAGA intervention was created by Kalland, Linnavalli & Von Koskull (2022). In the intervention, the staff at the day care center were trained in mentalization theory. Over the course of twelve weeks, the staff at the daycare engaged in regular shared storybook reading sessions with children aged 3–5. The aim of the discussions was to support the children in reflecting on mental states and to get them interested in their own and others’ inner world. In this thesis, the discussions between teachers and children during shared storybook were analyzed. The aim of the study was to describe, interpret and analyze the way the staff at day care centers discuss with the children about the inner world. Additionally, the study aimed to examine how these discussions function as a basis for the children's mentalization. One goal was also to analyze how the staff use questions to encourage children’s reflection on the inner world. Methods. The research material was gathered by videotaping moments of shared storybook reading. Thirteen different groups of children were filmed, with a total of seven adults and 57 children featured in the 13 video clips. The video footage has been transcribed and analyzed through content analysis. Results and conclusions. The results showed that most of the teachers discussed the storybooks with the children in a way that encouraged reflection on the inner world. These discussions served as a basis for the children's mentalization. The majority of discussions about inner mental states focused on identifying and naming emotions, with less reflection on thoughts, wishes or underlying reasons. There were some reflections that required a higher level of mentalization in the children. Self-reflection and reflection based on the characters' perspective were evenly distributed in the children's reflections. The teachers asked more open than closed-ended questions about the inner world. Some groups had little or no discussion about the inner world. This seemed to be because the teachers had not mastered the content of the education, failed to get the children to participate in the discussion, or that the theme of the storybook was more abstractly connected to the inner world.

The purpose of the research was to study how Finnish lower-stage schools participating in the international network of UNESCO schools, also called the Associated Schools Project (ASP), prepare their students for the future at the level of their school-based curriculums. In the research, the future trends were discussed, and the importance of their consideration in educational practice was explained from a global viewpoint: Based on the examination of today's problematic world state, and development trends characterized by globalization, the challenges and demands set for schooling and education in the future were discussed. Understanding the significance of an individual's action and responsibility was considered to be the central resource for building a more just and sustainable future. The study was grounded on a theoretical model developed by the researcher, which combined the models of Dalin & Rust (1996) and UNESCO (Delors et al. 1996) about future-oriented learning. The model consists of four basic elements of curriculum; "Nature", "Culture", "Myself", and "Others", and four dimension of learning; "Learning to know", "Learning to do", "Learning to live together" and "Learning to be". The model represents the holistic aspect of educational theory, and its aim is to maintain a balance between its different components. The research material composed of ten lower-stage UNESCO schools' school-based curriculums. They were analyzed using the theoretical model by the methology of content analysis. The research results were notably consistent between the different schools. They showed cultural learning and learning concerned with "myself" to be clearly more emphasized than learning referring to nature and other people. In addition, they reflected the central position of subjects, knowledge and skills, thus leaving the development of the pupils' personalities, and particularly learning concerned with living with other people, in a marginal role. The question about whether the schools prepare for the future interms of their curriculums, was discussed in the light of the results. The research offered a way and a model to approach the relationship between education and the future, and to evaluate schools' future-orientation. Based on the results, the schools are suggested to lay more stress on learning concerned with nature and other people, and focus more on developing the mental capasities of their pupils and competencies they need for living with other people. Above all, what the present societies require of schools is education which produces balanced and broadly aware human beings who have the mental strength to face the challenges of the future and abilities to direct it along the lines they desire.

This study examines university students experiences about the drama pedagogy in foreign language teaching. The study observes students experiences and thoughts about drama pedagogy in foreign language teaching at the university level. How student’s foreign language learning self-concept and student’s goal setting affects to the student’s choise to participate to the drama group at the university?

The aim of this study was to test the associations between job satisfaction and job strain, defined according to Karasek's Job Demands-Control Model, as well as type D personality traits. Previous studies have mainly focused on job characteristics and other external circumstances when studying wellbeing at work. The relationship between occupational wellbeing and individual factors such as personality traits has received less attention. Based on previous studies five hypotheses were set: 1) type D personality is associated with lower job satisfaction, 2) type D personality is associated with higher job strain, 3) job strain is negatively associated with job satisfaction, 4) job control moderates the association between job demands and job satisfaction, and 5) the association between type D personality and job satisfaction is mediated by job strain. The data consisted of 1117 participants of the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns study. All participants were full-time employed Finns aged 30 to 45. Type D personality was measured with a modified questionnaire based on DS14 (Denollet, 2005), job control was measured using items from the Job Content Questionnaire (Karasek, 1985) and job demands was measured using items from the Occupational Stress Questionnaire (Elo et al, 1990). Job satisfaction was measured with a single-item scale. The hypotheses were tested using linear regression analyses. The effects of gender and education level were controlled for. Employees with type D personality were found to experience lower job satisfaction and higher job strain when compared to non-type D counterparts. Of the two type D traits, only negative affectivity was a statistically significant predictor of job satisfaction. Job strain was associated with lower job satisfaction. The association between negative affectivity and job satisfaction was partly mediated by job strain. Based on these results it seems that type D personality, especially negative affectivity and job strain may be risk factors for lower occupational well-being.

Combining studying and goal-oriented sports is challenging. This master's thesis looks at the path of successful high-level athletes to the top and how they have experienced the combining of two careers. The aim is to look at the experience’s athletes have of combining sports careers and studies at different levels of education and what they have found challenging and what has been, on the other hand, successful. On average, sports careers at the top level are short, and after the end of their careers, many athletes find employment in jobs corresponding to their studies. The best way we can understand athletes' experiences is if we are also aware of how to develop into a top athlete. The data of the study consists of seven interviews. Seven Finnish athletes who have had successful sports careers and who also have had varied study experiences were interviewed for the purpose of the study. The study data was collected in autumn 2021 through a thematic interview. The interviews were recorded and then transcribed. A phenomenographic approach was used in the analysis of the data. Based on the research results, athletes had similar experiences combining study and sports in comprehensive school. Combining these did not require any special effort. However, the sports-oriented classes in comprehensive school provided an opportunity for morning training. In high school, different experiences were experienced. It was possible to combine sports and studies in a regular high school, but it required initiative and support from the school side. In sports schools, it was easier to combine the two careers, and the school provided significant support to promote both athlete careers. In higher education studies, combining sports and studies was considered challenging. In particular, courses requiring attendance slowed down the completion of studies. However, the interviewees agreed that studying and graduating is possible during a sports career. Studying was seen as a counterbalance to the sport. Sports academies aim to simplify the combination of sports and studies. However, not all athletes knew how to take advantage of the services provided by sports academies because most of them were unaware of their existence. In the future, the activities of sports academies should be developed so that it is even more efficient and accessible to athletes.

This Master's thesis is part of a project on marginalisation in school. The main focus of this study is to review how eighth-graders, reflect on and challenge structures of gender, gender roles, sexuality and heteronormativity in school. Although the school as an institution should be safe, inclusive and equal, structures that are problematic exist. The thesis used a feminist poststructuralist approach and gender was an important theme. The theoretical framework of the thesis described gender, sex and sexuality through both a societal perspective and a school perspective. The material for the study was collected from 2013 to 2014. The sample in this thesis consisted of 11 individual interviews and 4 group interviews with students in the eighth grade in a school in the capital area in Finland. The method of analysis was qualitative content analysis. How students challenge gender roles, heteronormativity and sexuality is something that there is not much research about. Hence, it was central to analyse what kind of structures exist in the school. It emerged that the students have to put up with stereotypical gender roles, threats of violence, appearance requirements, offensive name-calling, and a pressure to select a suitable hobby. Boys behave violently towards girls to a greater extent than the other way around. The results also indicate that the school is a very unsafe place for students with a non-heterosexual orientation. In school there is in general very little discussion about heteronormativity and sexuality. There were students in school who challenged the norms. There was a group of girls that explicitly challenged the structures. They questioned girl- and boy colours, and that educational materials, practices and environments in the school were heteronormative and gender-divided. Although there has been a change from previous research in that students are challenging structures, results indicate that gender roles and heteronormative structures still exist in school, which is problematic. Overall the thesis demonstrates that it is very hard to be a student in the eighth grade today. Bullying and excluding structures in school are common. The schools should actively review their own practices. Students who challenge the structures give hope to that despite everything, small changes in the everyday life in school are possible.

Introduction. Previous studies suggest that dyslexic pupils have inordinate difficulties learning foreign languages at school. The present study examined the mismatch negativity (MMN) brain responses elicited by foreign language words and nonwords in dyslexic children compared to typically reading controls. MMN reflects early processing stages in auditory cortex. The aim of this study was to determine whether dyslexic pupils have impaired MMNs for foreign language words or speech stimuli in general, and whether word familiarity has a different effect on the two groups. In addition, the correlations between MMN differences and reading and cognitive skills were analysed. Methods. Participant groups consisted of 14 dyslexic school children, and 14 typically reading controls. Before brain recordings, literacy skills and cognitive functioning were tested. Brain responses to English words (she, shy) and nonwords (shoy), and Finnish words (sai, soi) and nonwords (sii) were measured with electroencephalography (EEG). Results and conclusions. The results suggested that compared to controls, dyslexic children's MMN responses to foreign language were impaired for a familiar word she, but only. However, the groups did not differ in processing speech-sounds in general. In addition, weak MMN responses to the foreign word were associated with poorer reading skills and slower rapid naming in mother language. The results of this study suggest that the establishment, access and activation of memory representations for foreign words is impaired in dyslexia. In addition, the finding that poor performance in native language reading is correlated with the strength of brain responses to foreign language suggests that there are common factors underlying literacy skills and foreign language learning.