EXCHANGE OF EXPERIENCE BETWEEN TRAINERS FROM CE PRO DIDACTICA AND A GROUP OF TEACHERS FROM THE ALKIO COLLEGE IN FINLAND

On 27 June, at the CE PRO DIDACTICA, took place a debate workshop on good educational practices from us and from the Alkio College in Korpilahti, Jyvaskyla, Finland.

After a brief presentation of the experience gained in implementing projects and providing educational services for the professional and personal development of our beneficiaries, the Pro Didactica trainers team listened to the reflections of the College’s Director (Jaana Laitila) Finnish, Swedish and English (Laura Tuomainen and Sepala Reettz) teachers (www.alkio.fi).

The main ideas of the debates started from the status of the teacher in the Finnish school, which, indeed, supported the practice, has a high-level education from the faculty (3 years of undergraduate and 2 of a master’s degree plus one year of the psycho-pedagogical module) then enjoying a great freedom in class. The contest for a vacant post in a school can be from 10 to 100 people, and the teachers’ usual ratings are completely missing – there are no papers to be written, no attestations or advancement in the didactic degree. There is ongoing training, there are various organizations that provide such services at school or community level, teachers, with the acceptance of direction go to training programs, then share with colleagues what they have learned, but nobody forces them to go there. The salaries of the teachers are quite high, but also the socially advanced status, the vocation, the conditions in the institutions contribute to the state of well-being and to their preservation in the school.

Those inside can not explain the key to the successful recognition of Finnish education on a world-wide scale for years, but it is clear that the whole society supports and promotes school to become very good, to deliver high-quality studies, to create good conditions for the social, physical and mental well-being of its actors, to motivate pupils / students to achieve their goals and to fit into society as active citizens.

We can not say that colleagues in Finland do not have problems, the rate of aging of the native population is fast enough and more visible and immigrants are encouraged to come here and occupy many jobs, young teachers are not very interested in going to work in school, because more and more children are experiencing behavioral problems, and parents are becoming more and more difficult to address.

Finally, we express our hope for continuing collaboration with Alkio College for the mutual dissemination of advanced experiences and the values that support quality education, especially in a virtual way, if project budgets are not available / sufficient in this respect.

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