Special Education in Finland

FINLAND is a small North‐European country with a population of about 5 million. It has historical ties with Sweden and Russia. Consequently, there are two official languages in the country: Finnish and Swedish. The education system is based on a 9‐year comprehensive school. Education is compulsory for all children between the ages of 7 and 16. Health and welfare services for children with disabilities are mainly provided within the regular services but special services are ensured by special laws. Special education services are provided at every level of education and learning environment modifications range from remedial education to individual instruction at home. In the comprehensive school about 16% of all pupils receive special education in some form. The majority of special pupils receive part‐time special education by resource room teachers. Individual and group integration has increased strongly during the last decade and more emphasis is placed in the development of individual special education programming.     

特殊困境未成年人家庭教育的地方立法保障

家庭教育影响孩子一生,家长应该肩负起加强孩子思想道德、人身安全、心理健康、行为习惯等教育任务的主体责任。可是,对于一些留守、流动、孤残等特殊困境儿童,家庭教育的实施还存在很大困难。为了保障特殊困境家庭的未成年人健康成长,重庆等一些地方通过地方立法,界定了政府、学校和社会为特殊困境未成年人提供家庭教育指导服务的法律责任,产生了良好的社会效果,但也存在一些保障范围不足的问题。为此,地方立法应该建立一种家庭尽责、政府推进、学校指导和社会参与的家庭教育关爱机制,让更多的特殊困境未成年人能够享有科学优质的家庭教育指导服务。     

How Good Are Our Schools

ABSTRACT

Research suggests a positive relationship between schools’ efforts to engage parents and parents’ involvement in their child's education. The authors investigated school socioeconomic status, school size, grade level, and student–teacher ratio as predictors of schools’ efforts to engage parents of students receiving special education services. The dependent variable was the Schools’ Efforts to Partner with Parents’ Scale, which has been validated for states’ use in their federal accountability systems. Mean school-level scores were calculated for 265 schools in a large southeastern state. Results indicated that student–teacher ratio was the strongest predictor of parents’ perceived school engagement efforts. Implications are drawn for ways in which all schools, including those with high student–teacher ratios, can improve their collaboration with parents of students receiving special education services.     

Special support and neighbourhood school allocation in Finland: a study on parental school choice

Although freedom of parental school choice has expanded to the Finnish education system, the government has maintained the principle of neighbourhood school allocation. Moreover, the Finnish education system has recently undergone a reform of its special needs education; all pupils are entitled to receive support in three categories of general, intensified or special. The focus of this article is to examine parental positions on school choices in relation to the parents’ social class and their children’s support needs in basic education. The results of the study are based on a quantitative questionnaire, which collected responses from 208 participants drawn primarily from four different municipalities in Finland. The study found that the category of a child’s support, rather than the socio-economic class of the parents, determined the child’s school allocations. Furthermore, the more support the parents felt their children needed, the more importance they placed on special education practices and less on the neighbourhood school allocation. In addition, the parents’ opinions were found to differ based on social class, rather than category of support. In conclusion, we argue that the social segregation of students with special educational needs can be avoided, if the principle of neighbourhood school allocation is preserved.     

Finnish Elementary School Teachers’ Attitudes Toward Gifted Education

This study examined Finnish elementary school teachers’ (N = 212) attitudes toward the gifted and their education. On a general level, teachers’ attitudes toward gifted education were slightly positive. Teachers saw that gifted students have social value and that they need special services. The results of teachers’ attitudes toward specific gifted education options were in line with earlier Finnish research, because teachers supported differentiated teaching but were more negative toward acceleration or separating the gifted into their own groups. However, despite the strong support for differentiated teaching for the gifted, teachers’ positions toward practice were more skeptical.     

Elective home education and special educational needs

This paper reviews the literature on home education with reference to special educational needs (SEN). A rapid expansion in home educating families is noted. Parents present a variety of reasons for this, including those with concerns about the provision for their child's SEN.
In one Local Education Authority (LEA), data were obtained through questionnaires from 65 families when they first registered their children for home education. In addition, 12 families, who had been home educating their children for more than 2 years, were interviewed about their experiences. Many of the children involved had SEN, but most of the parents and children expressed satisfaction with their present arrangements. However, there was often a feeling expressed that they would have preferred their children to have attended school, if their special needs could have been met. Implications for education services policy and schools' practice are discussed.     

Does special education predict students’ math and language skills?

A large number of children are today receiving special education in Norway. The high cost to society and possible long-term consequences for the students make it important to understand the interrelationship of the causes and effects related to receiving special education services. Unfortunately, at present there are only few rigorous studies of the effects of receiving special education services. This study examined the interrelationship between receiving special education services and students’ math and language skills in upper secondary school in Norway. Data from 2756 students in the large population-based special education study (SPEED) was used that included information from questionnaires on students’ development, learning environment and family background. Results showed that students receiving special education services had slightly lower scores on their language test but similar scores on their math test compared to the group of students not receiving special education services, when conservative methodological approaches were used to control for possible covariate bias.     

The transition from high school to postsecondary education for students with learning disabilities: a survey of college service coordinators

Federal legislation requires that students with disabilities receive services to assist them in the transition from high school to post-secondary life. Transition services must address students' understanding of their disability, learning strengths and weaknesses, career decision-making skills, and preparation for the increased demands of postsecondary education. This study surveyed coordinators of special services for students with disabilities at 74 colleges and universities in New York state. Respondents provided their perceptions of how well the students they served had been prepared by the transition services they had received in high school. Overall, little satisfaction with transition services was expressed. Respondents were most satisfied with high schools' provision of updated evaluations for students prior to enrollment in college, and they rated students' preparation for self-advocacy as the greatest weakness of current transition services.     

Profiles of Asian American students with LD at initial referral, assessment, and placement in special education

Alhough Asian American students are underrepresented in special education, recent studies have highlighted concerns about the cultural and linguistic appropriateness of the identification and placement process. This study examined the characteristics of Asian American elementary students with learning disabilities (LD) in a school district in the Southwest that was selected because it served the largest number of Asian American students with LD in the state. Due to the small numbers of students served, the sample included all Asian American students with LD in Grades K to 5 (N = 26). Variables of interest included students' demographic characteristics, factors associated with referral, assessment practices and student profiles, and instructional recommendations for special education services. The results suggest that the experiences of Asian American students with LD are similar to those of Mexican American students with LD reported in earlier studies. These findings also reflect the challenges faced by educators in providing appropriate educational services for language minority students.     

The practices of dealing with children with special needs in school: a Norwegian perspective

The article has two parts. Part one deals with some historical developments in the field of special education in Norway. There has been a change in formulated policy from a clearly segregated system, then integration and mainstreaming and now intentions about inclusion as an ideal. The second part is about children with behavioural difficulties and especially children diagnosed with ADHD (Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorders) and how they are treated within the education system. Knowledge about these children’s situation is not very well developed or widespread in the Norwegian education system. The numbers of children with an ADHD diagnosis vary a lot between schools. Both diagnosis and treatment connected to ADHD have been highly controversial in Norway, as in many other countries. The gap between ideals and realities is a striking element in special education in Norway and also for these children. The inclusion criteria have not been met. The reasons for this are discussed.     

Assessment of teacher and school psychologist knowledge of Attention‐Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

The purpose of this study was to investigate teacher and school psychologists' knowledge of Attention‐Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). One hundred thirty‐two kindergarten through 12th‐grade general education teachers, special education teachers, and school psychologists responded to a 24‐item questionnaire concerning treatment and possible causes of ADHD. The results supported the hypothesis that school psychologists' knowledge level of ADHD would be significantly greater than the knowledge level of special and general education teachers, but did not support the hypothesis that the knowledge level of special education teachers would be significantly greater than the knowledge level of general education teachers. Increased years of professional experience was negatively associated with increased knowledge about ADHD. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Assessing the needs of training on inclusive education for public school administrators

This study assessed the needs of urban school leaders for special education preparation in a large public school district in the USA in order to assist the school administrators with improving their knowledge and skills for providing appropriate services to students with disabilities and their families to support inclusive education. The needs survey was created based on the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC 2009) standards for school administrators in the USA and the literature in special education. The validity and reliability of the instrument were verified. The needs assessment measures 10 aspects regarding special education knowledge and skills as indicated by 10 factors in the exploratory factor analysis. Quantitative data analyses on a sample of 289 participants revealed that there were significant differences in the needs of training in special education knowledge based on the school administrators’ backgrounds. The current research supports the call for the professional development and inclusive education for school leaders. The findings of the current study indicated that school leaders wanted the knowledge to make them more successful in serving students with disabilities to answer the call for inclusive education.     

Preparing pre-service teachers for home–school cooperation: exploring Finnish teacher education programmes

Abstract

Cooperation between home and school benefits pupils’ wellbeing in many ways. Hence, it is of utmost importance that teachers are able to cooperate with families in early childhood education as well as in primary and secondary education. In order to work effectively with the diversity of families, teachers need to develop their skills and knowledge while in teacher education programmes. Earlier research has suggested that teacher education programmes do not address this issue adequately. In this article, programme managers in Finnish teacher education programmes are asked to reflect on how cooperation is covered in their programmes. Based on the data, collected through an online survey, home–school cooperation can be considered an integral part of teacher training: most of the programmes surveyed offered modules that concentrated either solely on the issue or as part of other modules. Cooperation was also discussed from various perspectives during the modules. Respondents considered their graduates to be either competent or somewhat competent to cooperate with families. According to programme managers, modules should be developed in relation to strengthening the theoretical basis of cooperation, and especially in enabling pre-service teachers to practise their skills in cooperation while they are having their practical training at schools.     

Language of inclusion and diversity: policy discourses and social practices in Finnish and Norwegian schools

The terrain of inclusion studies in discussed in this paper from the perspective of policy discourses and teachers’ constructions on student diversity. We start by discussing the concept of inclusion from normative and analystic perspectives. We then look at the kinds of discourses that can be found in the Finnish and Norwegian curricula, as well as teachers’ interviews when they talk about their students. On this basis we analyse how the patterns of diversity and inclusion are conceived and constructed; the phenomenon of ‘diversity’, as it is formulated in policy documents and as it is expressed in categories with which teachers operate and act upon in school; and, ‘diversity’ in the context of inclusive practices. We draw from ethnographic studies in Finnish and Norwegian schools; both from mainstream and from special classes.     

Educating all children: ten years later

This article reviews the Tenth Annual Report to Congress on the Implementation of The Education of the Handicapped Act (EHA), covering the 1986-1987 school year. In addition to reporting the current status of services (i.e., numbers of students served, their placement, resources allocated and needed for their support), the report also discusses and cites data pertinent to (a) transition from secondary education; (b) state and federal efforts anticipating full implementation of preschool special education services under Public Law 99-457; and (c) the classification of students with learning disabilities. Some directions for research on special education at a national level are suggested.     

Teacher attitudes towards inclusive education in Finland and Brandenburg,Germany and the issue of extra work

Positive teacher attitudes are considered an important prerequisite for the successful inclusion of students with special educational needs in the mainstream classrooms. This study surveyed teacher opinions about inclusion in Finland (N?=?298) and Brandenburg, Germany (N?=?163), two educational systems in which the number of students transferred to segregated special education is exceptionally high in international comparison. For the measurement of attitudes, a 10-item scale, teachers’ attitudes towards inclusive education, was used. The results showed that Finnish teachers were more positive towards inclusion than Brandenburg teachers (d?=?0.46). The Brandenburg teachers were especially worried about the extra work caused by inclusion. This concern was possibly related to the different structures of educational organisation. Additional support services were more easily available for the Finnish teachers than for their Brandenburg colleagues. It is argued that teachers’ concerns should be addressed to promote inclusion in schools.     

‘The best school for my child?’ Positions,dispositions and inequalities in school choice in the city of Barcelona

This article deals with the discourses and practices employed by families involved in school choice processes in the city of Barcelona (Spain). It draws upon a study conducted by the authors in 2008/09, and it is based on surveys completed by a representative sample made up of 3245 families, as well as 60 in-depth interviews with families with children at the age of commencing universal pre-primary education (three years old). Firstly, the article focuses on the types of concerns and pressures that families experience when choosing a school for their child. Secondly, we analyse the level and type of knowledge that parents have at their disposal about the field of school choice, as well as how they use and benefit from available information channels. Finally, we identify three unequal positions in which families find themselves when negotiating the field of school choice: ‘maximising’, ‘guaranteeing’ and ‘displaced’. These positions are, in turn, directly related to families’ locations in the social structure, which are also unequal.     

Efficacy of teacher in‐service training for attention‐deficit/hyperactivity disorder

Children with attention‐deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) evidence many problems in the classroom. Teacher in‐service training is routinely used to inform school professionals about a number of special topics; however, the efficacy of such in‐service training for ADHD has not been established. The present study examined the efficacy of brief in‐service training focused on evidence‐based assessment and treatment of ADHD. Teachers from six schools (N = 142) in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area were randomly assigned at the school level to receive in‐service training immediately or to a waitlist control group that received in‐service training 1 month later. Measures of ADHD knowledge and use of behavior modification techniques were obtained at pre‐‐ and post‐‐in‐service intervention. Results indicated that the in‐service training resulted in increased ADHD knowledge. Special education teachers also reported increased use of behavior modification techniques resulting from the in‐service training. Clinical and research implications are presented. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.