Browsing by Author "Yli-Kuivila, Lotta"

Safe learning environment is a student´s right based on the Finnish law (2013, 29 §) and national curriculum (POPS, 2014, s.29). Taking care of safety is a requirement of student wellbeing (Noble etc., 2008, s.7-10). Safe learning environment is based on physical and mental safety. Physical safety includes state security and physical integrity while mental health includes social, psychological, and pedagogical security. Emotional security is based on all these five areas. (Hurme & Kyllönen, 2014, s.28-29.) My personal interest and the lack of research available in Finnish has led me to study the use of dogs in education. The purpose of this master`s thesis is to describe, analyse and interpret how teachers think service dogs affect safe learning environments. This thesis tries to increase understanding of safe learning environments and describe how service dogs affects those. I researched the following question: How teachers see a service dog affecting a safe learning environment (state security, physical integrity, social, psychological, pedagogical and emotional security)? This thesis is a qualitative research and it is made with semi-structured interview. I interviewed six teachers for this thesis. All teachers have used a service dog in education for at least one and half years and some of them have used service dogs for more than five years. The inter-views are analysed by using content analysis. This thesis shows that a service dog can help students` emotional security and mental security however there are few exceptions. The biggest concern teachers have on the use of service dogs is ensuring the physical security of all students. As the benefits of service dogs on students' wellbeing and safe learning environment exceed the negative effects, I suggest that they should be more widely adopted based on the available research.