Browsing by Subject "opettajan valtuudet"

According to previous studies, teachers work has changed and has become more intense. It requires more diverse knowledge and skills from teachers than before. Because of inclusion and integration the school classes are more heterogenic. Teachers reports of different discipline and classroom management problems are increasing. The objective of this study was to understand how teachers and principles create and maintain classroom discipline and what are their options to act when someone or something threatens students right to study in a safe learning environment. They were also asked if they are pleased with their authorization to act in these situations. The data of this qualitative study consists of interwievs of five teachers, two principals and one special education teacher. The interviewes were semi-structured. Also three letters to the editor in Helsingin Sanomat magasin were used as a stimulus during the interviews. The data was analyzed by using directed content analysis. The results show that discipline consist of the interaction between the teacher, the student and the subject. Teacher plays a key role as a person who builds discipline and manages different types of disruption in it. Teachers and principals are mostly pleased with their authorization and feel that they have what they need to success in classroom management. However, they feel that students also have an independent affect on the classroom environment especially if there are too many students that have different needs or difficulties to manage school. That’s why students needs should be taken into consideration while forming groups. Interviewees also agreed that schools have too little resources to prevent or solve problems that threat discipline. Because of too few resources the student that have special needs but are ingrated in the normal classes don’t get the help and support that they need to learn and that they are entitled to. The teachers and principles also hoped that the schools would have the resouses to hire more professionals of different fields to the schools so that the co-operation of multiple professionals would help to support different students comprehensively.