Browsing by Subject "haavoittuvuuden eetos"
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(2023)In my research, I examine special education as a discursive practice in the Foucauldian sense, in which ideas about disturbance are almost exclusively produced as individual characteristics. The discursive perspective also challenges the position of scientific knowledge and concretizes the power and control contained within it. My study is situated in special education context where the education system has assumed a significant role in constructing the normal individual. Therefore, the examination of disturbance is closely related to questions of exceptionalism. In my research, I investigate how disturbance is conceptualized in Helsinki university course materials. Additionally, I reflect on the positioning that materials offer to individuals, mainly in expert positions, who consume them. My data consists of two course books used in special education training, which I approach and deconstruct discursively. In my research, discourses appear as information systems that, instead of merely describing, act as significant building blocks in our thinking and actions. Thus, course materials are kind of a window into the ways in which disturbance and specialness are structured within the education system and more broadly in society. The results of my research show that disturbance is primarily presented as individual deficiencies, which reinforces my preconception that disturbances are personal faults or defect. Consequently, various skills and self-management strategies are offered as solutions to disturbance, which enable one to overcome it. The results also challenged individualistic views. The disorder was presented as a product of Western culture, where certain behavioral patterns are intentionally excluded from appropriate and correct behavior. The course material also placed the adult i.e. the teacher, in a position where they are seen as an actor outside the disorder, who is able to know and report how, when, and why the disorder develops.
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(2021)The conversation on the exhaustion and stress of higher education students is a common discussion. There is more emphasis on the individual's own responsibility, the pace of studying has become faster, and it is harder to use a degree to stand out in the job market. In this thesis, I examine the views University students have on their studies, and the wider social conditions these views indicate. The current ethos in our society highlights the responsibility of an individual. In this thesis, I describe this using a framework of neoliberalism and the Ethos of Vulnerability. The Ethos of Vulnerability considers possible structural problems to be caused by individuals' deficiencies. According to previous studies, the impact of the ethos has now reached the field of education. For this thesis, I have interviewed Finnish University students who are studying towards Bachelor's or Master's degrees in Educational Sciences. The interviews were conducted as two group interviews with 2 to 3 participants each. To analyse the empirical material and the impact of the ethos, I have applied discursive and discursive-deconstructive approaches. Based on my analysis, a degree did not guarantee a career or standing out from the crowd. Instead, students' additional actions and other factors were found to be more meaningful. It was highlighted that a degree prepares students for employability. Among students, it was rare to have holidays, and students felt that they were required to be constantly doing something. The responsibility for managing in and being enough for the job market fell on students' own shoulders. If students wanted to proceed in their studies to meet the desired goals, the quality of learning suffered. Most studies were performance-oriented, and health was considered secondary. Working alongside studying was hard timewise, but mandatory for some. Students needed to be proactive to progress in their studies. If the progress was not as desired, it was considered to be a fault in the individual's personal features. The Ethos of Vulnerability was visible in the data, but its effect on students' agency was not simple or straightforward. The students were also aware of the conditions that they were in, and some showed resistance, demanding structural change.
Now showing items 1-2 of 2