Visions for the School of Tomorrow – Students´Perspectives How to Handle the Future?

1. Visions for the School of Tomorrow – Students´PerspectivesHow to Handle the Future? Tuomo Lähdeniemi, MEd 1.3.2011 Liedon Vanhalinna

2. On Paper, Everything Seems Fine But, • 8.3 % of pupils at BE-level are in special education (2008, Statistics Finland) • During past 15 years the number has septupled • Inclusion highly problematic in practice • 8 % of the young (18-24 yrs) haven´t done any post-BE-exams • Appr. 20 % of 25-29 year old men without any exams after BE • 7.4 % (> 60 000) of children are child welfare clients (YLE, 2009) • The number has doupled during last three years • 16 000 children taken into custody by social welfare authorities (OKM) • Almost 35 % of youngsters suffer from sleep disorders (Kämppi et al, 2008, OPH)

3. We Cannot Change the Past, But We Can Forecast the Future Some perspectives Everyone is an expert when talking about school Building up the school system is based on historical, political and cultural development Making change takes decades, the results can be seen only afterwards Operational environment is very complicated in many ways, causal connections are difficult to understand Long-term commitment on the state and municipal level is a challenge; is there a coherent vision for the future school? Nobody knows the future

4. Observation Filters "Implanting Strategic Management”by Igor Ansoff. Prentice Hall 1984ISBN 0-134-51808-X Surveillance filter defines the area that we observe, e.g. our current situation, contacts and networks. The challenge is that discontinuities usually come from outside of our current mind set. Mentality filter is formed of previous (success) experiences and we have a tendency to filter novel issues off, because they have not been important to us before. Power filter prohibits people to express their ideas to those who possess more organizational power or power based on expertise.

5. How to Monitor Early Discontinuities? signal Wisdom of Crowds Filter Theory Threshold of mainstream awareness Zone of Signal strength diminishing returns noise Time Zone of highest opportunity and greatest risks Brian Coffman (1997): Growth of signal in a noisy channel

6. Muutosvoima Challenge: Defining Space of Opportunity Change drivers Application of Michael Raynor’s concept of Strategy Paradox (2007)

7. Building Commitment to Developing the School of Future "Committing to change" (146-160) in Conner Daryl R., Managing at the Speed of Change; How resilient managers succeed and prosper where others fail. John Wiley & Sons 1992, 1998 ISBN 0-471-97494-3 Conner, Darryl R. & Patterson, Robert W. “Building Commitment to Organizational Change.” (18-30) Training and Development Journal 36, 4 (April 1982). Result Action Internalization Commitment Acceptance Requires personal reflection and sharing with others. Understanding Interest Awareness

8. Experts Say – The Educational Trends of the Future Electronic education via the Net will enable interconnected learning experiences, choices, and opportunities for billions worldwide Educational content will be delivered by new computer, interactive TV, satellite, and Internet technologies Interactive online multimedia and multidimensional content will revolutionize learning Students and teachers will prefer on-demand virtual learning to traditional school programs Virtual Reality scenarios that depict real-world and fantasy experiences will increase the learning impact for all types of education Real-time Net chats with other global learners will make virtual education a satisfying social experience beyond the limits of time and distance Institute for Global Futures 2009

9. Our Web-based Brainstorming Method ”What kind of knowledge and skills do you need now and in the future?” ”When you think about school, what comes to mind first?” ”Our school succeeds in...” – Evaluation of thoughts ” How well does our school manage these aspects? - Barometer ”How could we learn these even better?”

10. When You Think About School, What Comes to Mind First? 4,0% (2328) 6,3% (3683) 7,4% (4319) 3,5% (2050) 12,2% (7094) 16,3% (9430) 7,5% (4375) 38,7% (22470) 3,9% (2275)

11. Sense of Hurry Comes to Mind the Most When Thinking about School 39 % of those surveyed chose this picture (43 % of girls, 35 % of boys) Pupils talk about their busyness in general, working after school hours, and making it to class and the bus on time, etc. Some associate sense of hurry and timetables with school only,others with their life situation and hobbies, as well. Work is something you’re supposed to do in school, but I feel some teachers are too demanding. I’m always busy. My teachers give too much homework, so there’s no free time. … In school there are exact timetables, so the clock is an essential part of school… I’m always stressed out about my assignments. I’m always in a hurry to get somewhere (work, hobbies, friends, events), and then there’s always school work waiting in the queue. I feel I don´t have enough time. Do I have to ditch something and decide what is important and what is not???

12. Co-operation and Friendships 16 % of those surveyed chose this picture (18% of girls, 14% of boys) Pupils talk about friendhips, social relations, and collaborating with others Good spirit and good learning environment is also mentioned quite often In school, we have good spirit and good possibilities for learning. I chose this because here in school you get to meet new people, and you’re developing your social skills all the time. Studying in comprehensive school is based on co-operation. When you get along with others, everything goes well. Specially friends and good teachers create a positive learning environment. School prepares us for the future – social relations are one of the most important aspects of that. To me, this picture means tolerance. It´s not important how my friends look, as long as they are nice and friendly.

13. What does Comprehensive School Succeed in? Language skills Mathematical skills Ability to read and write Health and sports Social skills Expression skills All-round education Learning skills Everyday skills How well are these learned in our school? Work skills Concentration and motivation International issues Technology Climate and environmental issues N=58412 OPH, 2010 Art and design Dispersion of thoughts and ideas

14. Evaluation of Some Subjects Voluntary languages Religion How well are these subjects learned in our school? Biology Geography History Civics Handicraft Swedish Economy Dispersion of thought and ideas

17. Issues Arising from the Pupil Survey • While policy makers deal with how many hours each subject should be taught, the pupils want a well-balanced school life • Lack of connection between school and other aspects of pupils’ lives • Pupils get a profound learning experience when they can apply school learning in real life – there’s a huge need for practical learning and implementation • How to broaden the learning environment outside the classroom? • Pupils want to participate in developing the school life – content, methods, facilities, etc. • How to funnel this need in a constructive way? • Pupils use SOME and other technological solutions everyday – why do they have to ditch these in the classroom? • Teachers fail to recognice the possibilities furnished by the new learning technologies – from that perspective, our school is a sinking ship. • Pupils need acceptance, feedback and understanding maybe more than ever. • Pupils need caring and healthy contacts with adults they can trust • Face to face contact is always important

18. The Critical Challenges in Teaching Practice 2009 Mental well-being Group size Lack of time Special teaching and pupils Work space and buildings Collaboration Estimated criticalness Pupils´ problems Sufficiency of resources Leadership and leaders Safety Competencies Salary Parents New technology Developing Extra work Constant changes N=1332, OAJ, 20009 Dispersion of thoughts and ideas

19. The Critical Challenges in Teaching Practice 2011 Increasing extra work Special pupils Learners of a different level Group size Salary Difficulties in school-going Lack of resources Changes and renewals Well-being Competencies Unwanted behaviour Lack of appreciation Parents Curricula Community well-being Insecurity Leadership Technology Work space Teaching methods N=2547, OAJ, 2011

20. Issues Arising from the Teacher Survey • How to let the teachers concentrate on teaching, coaching and raising the pupils? • Trivial extra work, administrative duties and spreading of child welfare issues into schools exhaust teachers´ motivation • Learning difficulties and other problems are well identified – what say the teachers? • Reasons? Integration? Inclusion? Special teaching in general? Clinics? Resources? Visions for the future? • Mental health problems among pupils are increasing rapidly, drugs are becoming a problem • How and when to intervene? • What is the school’s role? • What happens to a ”normal” pupil in the midst of all these challenges? • How to describe the reality of school life concretely enough for the public? • Appreciation of teachers work is decreasing – consequences can be radical • Recruitment, salaries, working conditions, serurity etc. • Leadership is one of the ticking time bombs in our schools • Principals don´t have enough time to stay omboard – administrative tasks take time • Dealing with matters is totally different from dealing with people • How to motivate principals to motivate teachers?

21. Building the School of Tomorrow – What Do We Need? • Deep and long-term dialogue between politicians, the authorities, teachers, scientists, business people, parents and pupils at the local, regional, national, and international level • Clarifying the vision: what REALLY is important for us in the future? • VALUES, VALUES, VALUES • Those who complain about the expense don’t understand the meaning or the value of investing in our children • How to be environmentally responsable and how to raise environmentally responsable children? • It’s easy to find the change-makers - just look yourself at the mirror! • Talking is important, actions are essential.