University of Lapland and the Teacher Training

1. University of Lapland and the Teacher Training Editedby Principal Eija Valanne, PhD. TeacherTrainingSchool of the University of Lapland

2. Finland in Brief • Situated in northern Europe with an area of 338 145 km2 of which • 68 % forest, • 10 % water and • 8 % cultivated land • 5,2 million people with average density of 17 persons per square kilometer • Sovereign parliamentary republic • Official languages Finnish (91,9 %) and Swedish (5,5 %) • GPD 28 643 € / capita (in 2004)

4. Basic Education • Finnish children start their actual schooling at the age of seven at a comprehensive school. • Basic education is provided free of charge including all the school material and warm meals every day. • The nine-year education is the same for all pupils. • The leaving certificate gives eligibility for all types of upper secondary education and training.

5. A school year is 190 school days, starting in mid- August and ending in early June. • The maximum duration of a school day is five lessons during the first two years of basic education and up to seven lessons after that (19 – 30 lessons per week). • The government determines the national objectives of basic education and the allocation of lesson hours between different subjects. • Schools’ curriculums are based on the national core curriculum drawn up by the National Board of Education.

6. Upper Secondary Education • After the basic education half of the age group choose the upper-secondary school (another half continue education in vocational studies). • General upper secondary education is course-based and ends in a national matriculation examination – generally in three years. • Before graduating, a minimum of 75 courses have to be passed. • The national matriculation examination comprises exams in the mother tongue, the second national language, the first foreign language, mathematics, humanistic studies and science studies. • Four of the exams have to be passed for the matriculation certificate, which provides eligibility for universities and higher vocational education.

7. PISA A three-yearly global assessment that… …examines the performance of 15-year-olds in key subject areas as well as a wider range of educational outcomes • Including students attitudes to learning, their beliefs about themselves, and their learning strategies … collects contextual data from students schools, parents and systems to identify policy levers Coverage • Representative samples of between 3,500 and 50,000 15-year-old students drawn in each country • Most federal countries also draw regional samples • PISA covers roughly 90% of the world economy .

8. Mean science scores – OECD countries OECD (2007), PISA 2006 – Science Competencies for Tomorrow’s World, Table 2.1c

9. Mean reading scores – OECD countries OECD (2007), PISA 2006 – Science Competencies for Tomorrow’s World, Table 6.1c

10. Mean mathematics scores – OECD countries OECD (2007), PISA 2006 – Science Competencies for Tomorrow’s World, Table 6.2c

11. Reasons for the learning results • Basic teaching can be characterized as efficient • The time students spend studying was one of the lowest in the countries surveyed • The resources allocated to education are OECD average • Teachers’ commitment and high ethics are the key strengths of our education • Teacher’s profession is highly appreciated • All the basic education teachers have a Master’s degree • Teachers are quite independent and trustworthy • There are • no inspections • no obligatory national testing during basic education • no public ranking lists

12. The University of Lapland • The northernmost university in Finland and in the European Union. • The University of Lapland is located in the city of Rovaniemi on the Arctic Circle. • 4,500 Students • 600 Employees(teaching and research 48 %, other personnel 52 %) • Annual Budget 48 million euros Lapland University Foundation promotes teaching, research, and the activities of the student community.

13. FiveFaculties: • Art and Design • Education • Law • Social Sciences • Tourism and Busines

14. Faculty of Education • Degree Programmes • Education • Adult Education • Media Education • Teacher Training • Special characteristics of the Northern regions: inclusive education and teaching in sparsely populated areas • Substantial research in women’s studies and media education

15. The Main Elements of Teacher Education Consist of Studies in: • Academic disciplines • Research Studies consisting of methodological studies including a BA thesis and an MA thesis • Pedagogical studies: obligatory for all teachers and include teaching practice • Communication, language and ICT studies • A personal study plan • Optional studies

16. Abilities needed in teaching professions • The ability to support different learners • The ability to co-operate with other teachers in schools or other educational settings • The ability to promote co-operation with parents, authorities, businesses, etc. • The ability to develop and improve the curriculum and learning environments • The ability to solve problems in school life • The ability to reflect on one’s own professional identity

17. The Unique Way of Organizing Teacher Training in Finland • Every university organizing teacher education has a teacher training school. • There are 13 teacher training schools, which are administratively part of the faculties of education. • The quality of supervision in teacher training schools is considered to be as particularly high. • The functional connection between teacher training schools, departments of education and other university departments • Applying educational and didactic theory and know-how in practice • Evaluation of teaching practice and supervision • Schools’ operations are governed by universities and financed by the Ministry of Education.

18. Teacher Training Schools in Finland

20. Duties of Teacher Training Schools • Basic and upper secondary education • Student teachers guidance • Teaching experiments and research • In-service training

21. 7126 m2 in three buildings Two old buildings from the years 1948 and 1952 One new wing from the year 2000 Teacher Training School of the University of Lapland

22. Music classes • From the third grade on • 4-5 lessons of music per week • Instrumental learning • School choir • Performing experiences

23. Environmental studies including outdoor activities • Experiences of nature • Knowledge of nature • Taking care of the nature • Outdoor activities that get more challenging the older the children get • Exploring the neighborhood woods • Camping out in the woods • Canoeing trips • Hiking in the wilderness

24. Physical education classes • Gives the pupils possibility to learn to enjoy different kind of sports by having time to really learn the skills • Gives student teachers possibility to concentrate on physical education lessons • Enables experimental studies in the class

25. Teachingpracticesin the university of lapland

27. References and further information: • Reseach-based Teacher Education in Finland –Reflections by Finnish Teacher Educators, 2006, Ritva Jakku-Sihvonen and Hannele Niemi (eds.) • Education in Finland 2006, Statistics Finland • Teacher education in Finland, www.oaj.fi • PISA 2003 –tutkimus, http://ktl.jyu.fi/pisa • Education and Science in Finland, 2006, Ministry of Education • http://www.minedu.fi • http://www.oph.fi (curricula) • http://virtual.finland.fi • http://www.eurydice.org