Curriculum description

1. Curriculum description FINLAND

2. Characteristics of the school system Basic structure of the educational system: Early childhood education Preschools (ages 6-7) Comprehensive schools (ages 7-15) and special schools • Comprehensive school 9 years • First 6 years, class teachers (MA) • Last 3 years, subject teachers (MA) public schools, few private 3579 comprehensive schools 3418 public schools 27 private schools (Christian, Steiner) 5 state schools (teacher training)

3. Characteristics of the general curriculum • National framework curriculum 2004 (1994, 1985, 1970) • is written and evaluated by Finnish national board of education • description or a guide for what are the main objectives and core contents in every subject and cross-curricular themes and some mentions about the methods how they should be taught. • subjects are divided to objectives and core contents. Some subjects are taught only for grades 1-4 and for 5-9 and some only for 7-9 • Municipalities and schools write their own curriculum based on the national framework curriculum, but they can have some emphasis on themes or contents (local interests). • Someteachers are involved in curriculum development on a national level but on a municipaland school level, teachers have the main responsibility of development. • parents have a change to comment the schoolcurriculum • curriculum in the municipalities and schools is written every second year

4. First six years • Subjects: • Mother tongue and literature • Foreign language (from grade 3) • Mathematics • Environmental and natural studies (grades 1-4) • Biology and geography (from grade 5 as a subject area of its own) • Physics and chemistry (from grade 5 as a subject area of its own ) • Religion • History (from grade 5) • Music • Visual arts • Crafts • Physical education

5. Cross-curricular themes at grades 1-6 Represent central emphasis of the educational and teaching work. Their objectives and contents are incorporated in to numerous subjects. • Growth as a person • Cultural identity and internationalism • Media skills and communication • Participatory citizenship and entrepreneurship • Responsibility for the environment, well-being, and a sustainable future • Safety and traffic • Human being and technology

6. Position and status of technology education in the curriculum • cross-curricular theme, Human being and technology is realized by theme weeks or studied within different subject areas • is emphasized in crafts and technical work (not in textile work) • crafts is compulsory for all at grades 1-6, but if pupils have to choose between technical and textile work, then contents of technology education is only for those who choose technical work for grades 5-7. • not a separate subject, schools or teachers have freedom to decide how much and how to teach technology

7. Aims of technology education General aims • focus is on technology – individual relationship and to see the importance of technology in our daily lives • understand technology, its evolution and impacts • to take the position on technological choices, ethical and responsible use of technology • the use of ICT

8. Main themes and structure of curriculum content Aims and approach: - technology in everyday life - environmental education - ethics of technology - technology in local industrial life - ICT, data networks - the development, modelling, and assessment of technological ideas - understand of the operating principles of tools, equipment and machines Food technology (home economics) is a separate subject (grades 7-9)

9. Pedagogical means and methods • Curriculum has been formulated on the basis of the concept of learning, which is described in the general part of the curriculum. Also guidelines for teaching methods are given. • All teachers have MA –degree with pedagogical studies. Therefore, they are free to choose pedagogical approaches to suit different situations. • No text books for technology education (TE)

10. Characteristics of the teachers in charge of technology education • Preschool teachers are in chargeon TE in preschool education (6 years) • Class teachers are in charge on grades 1-6 (years 7 – 12) • Teacher training departments give variable competence for TE  all teacher students study TE only short periods, if at all. No standards for TE. • Teachers in primary schools are mainly female • Some (limited) in-service training available • Traditional craft education has still a strong status in Finland • No separate organization for technology teachers

11. Conclusion Positive features: • there is some TE in primary schools • latest National curriculum 2004 contains TE • some (limited) TE in-service training for teachers is existing, particularly training for instructing technological innovative processes

12. Conclusion Negative features: • national framework curriculum guidelines are broad and imprecise • the concept of technology is unclear  technology education is understood in a narrow manner (for instance as ICT only) • not enough in-service training for teachers • gap between curriculum guidelines and actual teaching  cross-curricular themes are not understood or implemented by teachers, or are implemented only through thematic days/weeks or shortly within different subjects • TE is not a stand-alone subject • technology education is not available for all pupils (technical and textile work division) • division between boys and girls in craft education still goes on contrary to the guidelines of the national curriculum • old fashioned way of implementing the curriculum (even if there is no division - traditional crafts instead of modern technology) • technology is not consistently implemented in teacher education