Jari Lavonen,
Faculty of Educational Sciences
University of Helsinki, Finland
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!