Browsing by Author "Valkendorff, Tiina"

This study is an article-type master's thesis, and its purpose was to describe the discussion about the school choice on a Finnish online discussion forum. The research questions were: How is school choice discussed in an online discussion forum? What kind of reasons for school choice are there on online discussion forums? In this study, school choice refers to choices away from a local school. Previous studies have shown that school choice is associated with educational differentiation. In Finland, research of the school selection has been carried out using interview and questionnaire form, statistical data and official documents. The material in this study complements Finnish school choice research, bringing a new perspective into it. The study contributes to the debate about school choice and the differentiation and specialization of primary schools, and also aims to increase understanding of school choice. The material of the study consists of a discussion of school choice, which took place on a dis-cussion forum called Vauva, produced by Sanoma media Finland. The data was collected by using keywords (school * AND selection OR school selection). The material consists of 79 threads where school choice was discussed. The discussion took place in 2005-2015. Quali-tative content analysis and thematic design were used as research methods. The study showed that the school choice debate is multidimensional. In the forum, the authors sought information and shared views and experiences. The material included talk of schools considered to be good or weak and indications of the importance of the school’s reputation. Ethnic and socio-economic criteria were linked to the choice of school, ie factors related to the students' family background, well-being and safety, as well as criteria related to teaching. The criteria for school choice were combined with a discussion of different residential areas, and the quality of schools was seen to be related to the characteristics of the residential area. In the study, school choice is also linked to housing policy issues. The article was published in 2018 in Finnish Yearbook of Sociology of Education vol. 2: Promises of and Faith in Education. Valkendorff, T. 2018. Discussion of School Choice and the “problem” of local school. In. Silvennoinen, H., Kalalahti, M. & Varjo, J. (eds.) Promises of and Faith in Education. Research in Educational Sciences 79. Jyväskylä: Finnish Educational Research Association FERA. [In Finnish]