Browsing by Subject "Finnish language and literature"

Introduction. Although e-­learning is a widely discussed and studied topic both in Finland and internationally, the use of e-­learning materials in Finnish and literature has not been researched before. The objective of this study was to gather information about teachers experiences of using e-­learning materials in teaching Finnish in lower secondary school. The research questions were: 1) What e-­learning materials do teachers of Finnish and literature use? 2) What are the characteristics of good quality material and what problems appear in using e-­learning materials? Methodology. An online survey was used to map teachers experiences and opinions, and a total of 71 recipients took the survey in February 2015. Quantitative analysis was employed to organise the respondents into groups according to their use of e-­learning materials, and subsequently qualitative analysis of the respondents answers to the open‑ended questions was used to shed light on the initial results. Previous research on the evaluation of e‑learning material was harnessed when formulating the survey and analysing the results. Results and conclusions. The study clearly shows that there is a great need for e-­learning materials of both better quality and a greater variety. The majority of the respondents viewed the possibilities of e-­learning materials positively, but presently they found the variety of the material inadequate. Furthermore, some of the respondents viewed their own capabilities in the use of ICT lacking, and they were more likely than others to either not use e‑learning material or limit their use mainly to the material provided with the textbook they were using. This highlights the need for developing materials that address both the needs of teachers just learning to use ICT and those advanced in using it. Besides, the majority of the material used by all the respondents to the survey comprised of mechanical exercises, and therefore there is a need to develop a wider variety of materials. The searchability and accessibility of material should be solved; many teachers believed quality material does exist, but is not easily found with search engines. Lastly, the study of the use of e-­learning materials and ICT in general in teaching Finnish and literature should be continued, and the best practices of its application in the classroom should be mapped.