Jari Lavonen,

Faculty of Educational Sciences

University of Helsinki, Finland

Jari.Lavonen@Helsinki.Fi

Finnish approach to

collaborative development of

teacher education

Conference for Teacher Education

Development

Minerva Plaza, University of Helsinki

7.2.2019 10.10-10.25

National Teacher Education Development

Program as a part of Finnish government

national reform program (2015 – 2018)

National Teacher Education Forum

(70 experts)

Literature review

Benchmarking

National brainstorming

Collaborative construction of Teacher

Education Development Program

Teacher Education (TE) Strategy

Vision

3 Aims

6 Actions

Implementation of TE strategy

Resources for 32 +20 pilot projects

(30 M€)

National seminars and meetings

Continuous self-assessment (quality)

3

Careful timing

Strive for consensus

Engage stakeholders

Partnership with unions

Sustainable resources

Careful piloting

Dissemination of outcomes of the pilots

Some outcomes of the research on teachers

and teacher education in various contexts(Husu & Toom, 2017)

Good teaching/teachers have an impact to learning and well-

being of students …. economic growth …

(e.g., Furlong, & al. 2009; McKinsey & Company, 2007; World Bank, 2010).

Outcomes of research on

- role of education in a society

- learning, engagement and individual differences

- the design and use of innovations, like digital tools,

- teachers and teacher education

should have an impact to continuous improvement of

teacher education. (Cochran-Smith et al., 2015).

Teachers should be willing and able to learn continuously

new competences, e.g. for inclusion, entrepreneurship,

networking and co-teaching, coming from the needs of the

society (Paine et al., 2015).

Finnish teachers’ challenges

(according to TALIS and PISA surveys)

Student-level

Students’ well-being and engagement in learning

Active learning processes and learning outcomes

Classroom level

Heterogeneous and multicultural classrooms

Learning of generic competencies

School and city level

Quality work

Leadership, versatile learning environments.

Society level

Better links with pre- and in-service TE

Education for sustainable development

Drop outs

Artificial intelligence, robotisation

National brainstorming as a part of

teacher education development

program

Teacher

union

Partners

Teachers

Teacher

educators

Teacher education should be based on a clear, shared vision

100

Important in the development of teacher education

• Deep knowledge in subject matter,

PCK and GPK, …

• Learning, engagement, diversities,

• Collaboration and interaction,

• Research skills

• Networking in different levels

• Ethical code…

• Curriculum knowledge and

skills

• Design and adoption of

educational innovations,

like learning environments

and inclusive classrooms

• Development of the school

culture with students,

parents, and stakeholders.

• Willingness and

competence for the

development of own

expertise through …

Six actions for the development of

teacher education (meet the challenges)

1. Holistic view to teacher education

- pre- and in-service education and induction phase

- development plans for teachers, schools and districts based on the

aims and the analysis of the needs

2. Selection of students …

3. Supporting the development of competences

needed in generating novel ideas and innovations

4. Collaboration culture and networks

- subject department – teacher education – practice school

- kindergarten – primary – secondary – vocational teacher education…

5. Supportive leadership

- schools as learning communities

6. Research based teacher education

- training programs and teaching/learning are based on research

- student teachers learn research skills

Strategy process:

collaboration and networking, partnerships, looking for

consensus, research orientation, … (Burns & Köster, 2016)

Pilot projects and dissemination of outcomes (Paavola & Hakkarainen, 2014; Maier & Schmidt, 2015)

Support to teachers’ and teacher educators’

professional learning: active participation, goal-

orientation, collaboration, networking, contextualisation,

reflection, research orientation, … (Kitchen & Figg, 2011; Loughran, 2014; van Lankveld, Schoonenboom,

Volman, Croiset & Beishuizen, 2017)

Communication channels for discussing the strategy

and implementation: Teacher Education Forum

meetings, local meetings, meetings inside and between

the pilot projects, … (Rogers, 1995)

What is known about the implementation

of the teacher education strategies?

Resources for 32 +20 pilot projects (30 M€), supportive

for professional learning and implementation of program

In the call for pilot project proposals it was emphasised:

Collaboration between universities and applied

universities, which are providing TE

Collaboration inside the universities: subject

department, faculty of education, teacher training

institutes

Collaboration between initial TE and schools,

municipalities, professional development programs

Research orientation in the pilot projects

International collaboration

National seminars and meetings

Continuous self-assessment (quality assurance)

Implementation of the development

program in practice

Teacher

Education

Forum

meeting at

Helsinki

15

Local

meeting

at Turku

Education

Research

Conference

at Tampere

Pilo

tP

roje

cts

• Activities and encounters – Strengthening inclusion and the

human rights-based approach in vocational teacher education

• Arctic Reformative and Exploratory Teaching (ArkTOP)

• Bothnia Learning Hub

• Building blocks for learning future art – Project to develop the

teacher’s professional competence

• Building sustainable research-based teacher education and

creative skills for teachers

• Developing subject teachers’ professional growth and subject

didactic skills in the field of science

• Digital tools for pedagogical development in Swedish-language

teacher education programmes at the University of Helsinki

• HowUTeach – Development of a digital self-assessment tool

supporting the development of teacher educators as teachers

• Informal learning and teacher education

• Teacher in a virtual classroom – Development of teachers’

pedagogical skills and the Digital Classroom model

• Programme to develop the teacher’s comprehensive interaction

skills

• Development of pedagogical studies for teachers

• Inclusive pedagogical leadership in educational institutions

• Professional development of teacher educators as part of

research-oriented teacher education

• Project to develop the teaching of oral language skills

• Progressive teacher education – engaging learning environments

Main focuses of the pilot projects

0 5 10 15 20 25 30

A new model for teacher competence

Teaching and supervision in teacher education

Digital learning and new learning environments

Development of supervised teaching practice

Multiprofessional collaboration

Development of leadership and networks

Multilangual learning and multiculutural…

Equality and gender sensitive education

Development of Special need education

Selection of student teachwers

Other

Self-evaluation of the pilot project

activities

1 2 3 4 5

There has been interaction among the projectmembers

We have been working collaboratively

The previous knowledge and skills of thepartners have been taken into account

Our working has been research based working

We have been working in authentic situationsduring the pilot project

Partners have been active in the pilot project

Partners have been networking in their owninstitute

Partners have been guided to evaluate their ownlearning, reflecting, during the pilot project Director

Partner

Self-evaluation of the pilot project

activities

1 2 3 4 5

Partners have learnt methods how to evaluatestudent

Partners have learnt digi-pedagogical skills

Partners have been active in evaluating theprogress of the pilot project.

Partners have been active in setting of the aimsto the pilot project.

Director

Partner

The pilot projects have been- focusing to the strategic aims of the Teacher Education Development Program and

- supporting the implementation of the six actions.

Most of the aims in the pilot projects were achieved well or very well

Directors and partners feel that the activities in the pilot project have been supportive to teacher educators’ professional learning and to the implementation of the strategic aims.

Focus in next actions is the implementation of the pilot project outcomes to the Teacher Education Programs and activities in the classrooms.

Based on the survey …

THANK YOU!