Browsing by Subject "institutionaalinen yhteistyö"

Objectives. The objective of this thesis was to examine a planning project concerning an informal learning environment, undertaken by the Kaisaniemi Botanic Garden, that used participatory methods in involving students and teachers. Through finding a synthesis between this undertaking and previous research on the subject, another objective was to build a model which other informal learning environments could use in carrying out similar projects in an appropriate manner. The thesis approaches institutional cooperation through the concept of boundary crossing, especially as interpreted by Akkerman and Bakker. Methods. The study was conducted using a qualitative approach. The research data was collected through semi-structured interviews, in which the three employees of the garden who were mainly in charge of the project were heard. The data was analysed using the methods of content analysis, and the model was constructed by utilizing the traditions of grounded theory. Results. The project was considered successful, but it’s non-recurrent execution was deemed problematic. The biggest obstacles were the everyday challenges of large institutions – schools and informal learning environments – and their balancing in relation to one another. The participatory design framework created in the study offers informal learning environments a nine-step plan of action, which runs through three phases – preinteraction, interaction and postinteraction – in a circular manner.