Browsing by Subject "POPS 2014"

The national core curriculum for basic education (FNBE 2014) brings changes in pedagogical outlines. Some of the key goals are to enhance pupil participation, diversify assessment and increase the use of technology. The teacher's task is to instruct and guide the pupils. The new curriculum also emphasizes transversal competences in the instruction of subjects. Furthermore there are many essential changes in crafts subject which causes stress among some craft teachers. The curriculum (FNBE 2014) defines crafts as a multimaterial subject in which the competence of managing holistic craft process (HCP) is a central principle. Crafts is defined by design, technology and craft expression. Furthermore, craft teaching requires co-teaching among craft teachers and co-operation with other subjects. This study aims to find out what kinds of reflection the new curriculum causes among craft teachers. The study was performed as a qualitative case study, in which the data was collected from the meetings of craft teachers in peer group mentoring sessions in January-March 2017. The group consisted of a mentor and eight participants who were female craft teachers in Uusimaa. The length of their teaching careers varied from two years to twenty-five years. Data was coded with ATLAS.TI-program. The analysis was data-based content analysis. According to this study, all the changes in the national core curriculum for basic education 2004 have not been fulfilled in craft teaching. Therefore the new curriculum (FNBE 2014) challenges teachers more than expected. Teachers' reflection includes a mixture of strong feelings and a large amount of questions and worries. Changes in the curriculum inspire teachers but not all teachers have the means to fulfill the requirements of the new curriculum. Learning problem-solving skills, co-operation with other teachers and student groups consisting of both girls and boys are considered the positive aspects of the new curriculum. Teachers also have more freedom to implement their teaching, and pupils can choose more optional lessons than before and be directed according to their interests. Teachers feel sorrow and anxiety because they are afraid that pupils' craft skills are weakening. The small number of craft lessons complicates the execution of the new curriculum. Some teachers experience the new technology in a very negative way as well as the experimental nature of the crafts. Instead, learning the traditional craft techniques and making "proper" artifacts is still considered important. Teachers feel positive about the increased co-operation between craft teachers but have trouble starting and finding time for it. Teachers' well-being is challenged with increased challenges. Craft teaching in accordance to the new curriculum requires resources to teaching groups sizes and to the planning co-teaching. Craft teachers need further education with design teaching, integration of technology, documentation and assessment. Teachers feel sorrow and anxiety when because they are afraid that of the weakening of pupils' craft skills are weakening. The small amount number of craft lessons is kept as a problem complicates the fulfillment execution of the new curriculum. A part Some of the teachers experience the new technology in a (very) negative way and as well as the experimental role nature of the crafts. Instead, learning the traditional craft techniques and making "proper" artifacts is experienced still considered important. Teachers experience feel positive about the increased co-operation between craft teachers good but it feels tough to start co-operation but have trouble starting and finding time for it. Teachers' well-being is challenged with increased challenges. Craft teaching in accordance to the new curriculum requires resources with to teaching groups (sizes) and to the planning of co-teaching planning. Craft teachers need further education with design teaching, integration of technology, documentation and assessment.

In the last few years, no extensive research has been done on schools' morning assembly practices. The last larger study was done in 1989. Since then, the Finnish school legislation and the Finnish National Curriculum have both changed significantly. The Basic Education Decree obligates the Finnish schools to have morning assemblies as a part of every school day. It states: "A day's work must be started with a brief morning assembly." This study had two main goals. The first goal of this study was to gather specific and intensive information on three schools' morning assembly practices. The tradition in Finland is to have both shared morning assemblies where the whole school gathers together, and each class' own morning assemblies. This study focuses on both types of morning assemblies. The second goal was to examine what the teachers of these three schools found to be the main purpose of morning assemblies, how meaningful they found morning assemblies, and what they thought about religious morning assemblies. This study was conducted in two phases. The first phase was conducted in two schools ("school 1" and "school 2") in November-December 2015 using questionnaires to examine the morning assembly practices. In the second phase of this study, in October 2016, the material was gathered from "school 3" also using questionnaires. Two teachers were interviewed from each school; six teachers in total. The respondents to the questionnaires were teachers and classroom assistants. A mixed methods –strategy was used to analyse the results of this study. The material gathered by questionnaires was organized in Microsoft Excel; percentages were used to express the results. The interview material was analysed using thematic analysis. According to the results, in all three schools it was usually the teacher who organized the class' own morning assemblies. In "school 1" morning assemblies were usually held in the class room every day. In "school 2" only 66,7% of respondents answered that they had morning assemblies every day in the classroom, and in "school 3", only 60 % of the respondents answered that they held morning assemblies every day. According to the respondents, shared morning assemblies were held at least once a month in "school 1". In "school 2", shared morning assemblies were not held as often. In "school 3", shared morning assemblies were held multiple times in a month, but some of them were held via the tannoy. In all the schools the Evangelical Lutheran Church had a significant role in the shared morning assemblies; more so in schools 1 and 2. The teachers found the class' own morning assemblies to have a lot of social importance. According to the teachers, both them and especially their pupils liked to share things about their lives during the morning assemblies. The teachers also stated that morning assemblies were especially important for pupils with special needs; they need a lot of structure in their schooldays, and that is what morning assemblies can provide. According to the interviewed teachers, the shared morning assemblies helped to create a sense of community in the schools. Most interviewees had positive or neutral reactions towards religious morning assemblies, although some teachers were worried about the pupils who don't participate in the religious morning assemblies; the interviewees thought that those pupils miss out on the sense of community. The religious morning assemblies were also thought to be too difficult to understand for the pupils. Most of the interviewees were somewhat open to the idea of other religions' (than the Evangelical Lutheran Church) representatives to hold morning assemblies, but none of the interviewees had themselves considered that option before the interview.