Students’ collaboration in technology-enhanced reciprocal peer tutoring as an approach towards learning mathematics

Education and Information Technologies - Technology-enhanced Reciprocal Peer Tutoring (RPT) was carried out with Finnish, nine to ten year-old primary school students (N=40). The RPT as a method of...     

Understanding Early Childhood Science Education: Comparative Analysis of Australian and Finnish Curricula

Research in Science Education - This research is a comparative study of Finnish and Australian science curricula in early childhood education (EC). The study aims to figure out the constructivist...     

Evaluating the efficacy of a teacher-guided comprehension-oriented learning strategy intervention among students in Grade 4

This study examined the effects of a teacher-led learning-strategy intervention program on fourth-grade students’ reported use and perceived effectiveness of rehearsal and comprehension-oriented learning strategies. During 18 program units, teachers taught about learning and various learning strategies, including visualisation, elaboration and categorisation. Strategies were practised in math, language and science classes. Participants were comprised of 82 fourth-grade students in the intervention group and 387 fourth-grade students in the control group. Students’ reported use and perceived effectiveness of learning strategies were assessed before and at least 4 months after intervention using a web-based word-memorisation task and associated reflection questions. The intervention group tended to use more comprehension-oriented learning strategies in post-tests, and the intervention group also showed an increase in perceived effectiveness of comprehension-oriented learning strategies. Still, rehearsal was evaluated as the most effective strategy in both the control group and the intervention group. Explanations for these findings and possible future directions are discussed.

     

Learning with the Natural Environment: How Walking with Nature Can Actively Shape Creativity and Contribute to Holistic Learning

Learning takes place in various spaces through human and nonhuman interactions. Considering the urgent need for rethinking how humans relate to nature, in this article we present a MA level course in the context of art, craft and design to discuss how learning with the natural environment approach can impact learning experiences. We introduce walking with nature as a creative method that fosters students’ ability to let the environment actively shape their creative events. The encounter with nature-based materials in their different forms and following the material's flow provides students with a foundation for their creative processes. This study proposes that walking can facilitate the entanglement between the student's knowledge and encountered materials, generating an emotional and dialogical relationship with the natural environment that contributes to a holistic learning experience. We propose that such an experience can help in comprehending the importance of the caring actions we need to take and maintain towards the nonhuman world.     

Joint supervision practices in doctoral education – A student experience

This paper presents a study of students’ experiences of joint supervision practices and supervisors’ professional work in doctoral education in one department of a Finnish university. A qualitative methodology was used to explore students’ experiences of joint supervision practices and an inductive protocol was used to analyse the data gathered through thematic interviews (N=11). The results describe three identified joint supervision practices: the complementary, the substitutive, and the diversified. The results suggest that departments and faculties should develop more official support and guidance for students to identify additional supervisors during their doctoral education.     

Using Class Blogs in 1:1 Schools—Searching for Unexplored Opportunities

This article focuses on class blogs and presents results from 1:1 schools in Sweden. While Swedish schools are increasingly using Web 2.0 technologies (e.g., wikis and blogs), most of this use is still at an experimental stage. To further the understanding of how blogs are and can be used, we compare class blogs used in practice with the fast-growing literature in the field. Previous work suggests eight uses: collaboration, making assignments, journal writing, instruction, posting supplemental material, community building, external readers, and prompting. In practice, we found blogs to be used in a fairly narrow way—mainly for instruction and posting supplemental material. We hope that this article will inspire teachers to further their blog use.     

Children’s physical activity in day care and preschool

The purpose of the study was to investigate the dynamics of physical activity (PA) in day care and preschool. The participants were 823 Finnish 1–7-year-old children from 50 day care centres and preschools. The research methods were systematic observation, evaluation of children’s skills and interviews with children. Altogether 18,366 observations were collected. Vygotsky’s concept of the ‘zone of proximal development’ is redefined in relation to PA. The results of the study show that environmental factors, and specifically peers, do indeed play a significant role in enhancing PA among children. There are cogent reasons for paying more attention to the dynamics of children’s PA. Furthermore, there is reason to ponder extensively how to provide opportunities for PA and, more precisely, the development of motor competence in the day care and preschool context.     

The role of the working memory and language skills in the prediction of word problem solving in 4- to 7-year-old children

The aim of this study was to analyse the role of verbal and visuo-spatial working memory (WM) and language skills (vocabulary, listening comprehension) in predicting preschool and kindergarten-aged children’s ability to solve mathematical word problems presented orally. The participants were 116 Finnish-speaking children aged 4–7?years. The results showed that verbal WM (VWM) did not have a direct effect on word problems in young children but was indirectly related to word problems through vocabulary and listening comprehension. These results suggest that in young children, VWM resources support language skills which, furthermore, contribute to variation in solving orally presented word problems. The results also showed that visuo-spatial WM had a direct effect on performance in word problems, suggesting that it plays an important role in word problem solving among this age group.     

The making of entrepreneurial subjectivity in adult education

This article focuses on the idea of entrepreneurial subjectivity and the ways in which it is shaped by the entrepreneurial discourse in adult education. As a result, we argue that educational practices related to adults form a particular kind of ideal subjectivity that we refer to as entrepreneurial. In order to understand how this entrepreneurial discourse in adult education works, we will analyse how the young adults we have interviewed engage in the discourse and what effects this has for the construction of their subjectivities. Our joint empirical analysis is based on discourse-analytic methodology and on our previous empirical studies. Our research results suggest that participants in adult education end up constructing their subjectivities within the limits and possibilities of the entrepreneurial discourse that are made available to them. Embracing the entrepreneurial discourse construed in terms of autonomy and freedom, young people are expected to make a project out of their own subjectivities. As an effect, education as well as young adults’ autonomy is limited to a question of speaking in accordance with what is expected.     

Institutional barriers for adults’ participation in higher education in thirteen European countries

As the demand for international education increases, middle-income non-English speaking countries, such as South Korea, play an increasing role in hosting the world’s students. This mixed-methods study compares the different motivations and experiences of international students within and outside the East Asian region. Based on findings, this paper suggests the possibility of Korea developing its position as a regional hub for education in East Asia. It also discusses related issues such as English-Medium Instruction in Korean higher education as well as strategies for international student recruitment.