The positioning of dual qualification studies in Finnish upper secondary education and government policy since the 1980s

This article explores the positioning of dual qualifications (DQs) in the Finnish education policy and the education system since the late 1980s. The analysis is carried out in the context of academic-vocational divide. At the end of the 1980s, Finland questioned the functionality of the strict academic-vocational divide in post-compulsory education, and a unified upper secondary education was initiated. DQ was the result of two contradictory political discourses: the aim to make education system more equal and the 1990s’ market oriented education policy. In the 2000s, although segregation at the upper secondary level was strengthened, the DQ simultaneously became an established study route. However, in 2007 due to changes in political power, the DQ was repositioned on the periphery of education policy and academic-vocational divide became stronger. The main focus as regards the functions of DQs until the end of the 2010s was on efforts to enhance the use of educational resources and improve the possibilities for individual and flexible education choices. The aim of the current government, elected in 2019, is to strengthen cooperation at upper secondary level, which is also expected to include DQs. However, the actualisation might be mitigated by the educational reforms of the previous government.

EXAMINING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MORAL REASONING AND CRITICAL THINKING IN TEACHER STUDY PROGRAMMES IN SLOVAKIA

Introduction: Since both components critical thinking and moral reasoning are considered to be major phenomena, the development of which is a priority of all world education policies, they are paid a lot of attention in foreign countries. However, foreign studies have only made a little mention of examining their relationship and integrity as well as until recently, each dimension has been examined separately in Slovakia and there is no piece of evidence showing the relationship between them. Based on this, we have formulated the following scientific problem: Is there a relationship between critical thinking and moral reasoning? Methods and respondents: The basic measurement tool of our research was the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal used to determine the level of critical thinking. The level of moral reasoning was investigated by Lind´s Moral Competence Test. The examined sample consisted of the available selection of the 2nd and 3rd year teacher study programme students for lower and upper secondary education at the University of Prešov in Prešov (N = 241) and the testing itself was realized in the academic year 2020/2021. Results: Our research shows that the average value of the gross score in critical thinking of the teacher students is M = 43.26 (SD = 5.09) and the achieved average numeric value of moral judgment expressed by the C-score is M = 21.15 (SD = 12.88). Based on the Pearson Correlation results, we were discussing whether the calculated value of the correlation coefficient indicates the relationship between critical thinking and moral reasoning and whether there is a relationship between moral reasoning and individual cognitive components of critical thinking and the results of the research show interesting findings about the relationship between critical and moral reasoning of teacher students. Conclusion: The conclusions of the research lead us to redesign the undergraduate training of future teachers in the context of the World Economic Forum challenges and the support for minds of the future according to H. Gardner - critical, creative, disciplined, ethical and tolerant - as a critical and moral integrity.

Higher Order Thinking by Setting and Debriefing Tasks in Dutch Geography Lessons

Tasks are a powerful instrument for geography teachers, as they let students engage with the subject. To advance the cumulative learning of students, teachers have to make sure that students learn how to deal with complex and abstract knowledge structures. In the Netherlands, teachers face a dilemma when it comes to task setting: the intended curriculum aims for a considerable part at (parts of) higher order thinking, whereas the high-stakes exams have a clear focus on the use of thinking strategies. This paper explores the task setting and debriefing of Dutch geography teachers by analyzing twenty-three videotaped lessons in upper secondary education by using the Geography Task Categorization Framework. The results show that Dutch teachers mostly rely on textbooks when setting tasks. The focus lies on reproduction and the use of thinking strategies. Tasks aiming at (parts of) higher order thinking are barely used. Furthermore, teachers use tasks from previous high-stakes exams already used in an early stage of upper secondary education. In the debriefing of tasks, teachers move from simple and concrete to complex and abstract knowledge and vice versa. However, most of these movements aim at simplifying knowledge structures. In the observed lessons, curriculum aims at the level of (parts of) higher order thinking are not achieved. The evaluative rules as set by the high-stakes exams and the type of tasks offered by textbooks seem to be dominant.

The reasons why the Regression Tree Method is more suitable than General Linear Model to analyze complex educational datasets

Any quantitative method is shaped by certain rules or assumptions which constitute its own rationale. It is not by chance that these assumptions determine the conditions and constraints which permit the evidence to be constructed. In this article, we argue why the Regression Tree Method’s rationale is more suitable than General Linear Model to analyze complex educational datasets. Furthermore, we apply the CART algorithm of Regression Tree Method and the Multiple Linear Regression in a model with 53 predictors, taking as outcome the students’ scores in reading of the 2011’s edition of the National Exam of Upper Secondary Education (ENEM; N = 3,670,089), which is a complex educational dataset. This empirical comparison illustrates how the Regression Tree Method is better suitable than General Linear Model for furnishing evidence about non-linear relationships, as well as, to deal with nominal variables with many categories and ordinal variables. We conclude that the Regression Tree Method constructs better evidence about the relationships between the predictors and the outcome in complex datasets.

Learning to create images with computer code

Programming is becoming a part of the school curricula in Norway both in lower and upper secondary education – this includes subjects such as art, design and craft. What can programming contribute to the learning processes of these subjects? ‘Tinkering’ is a creative phase in a learning/working process, emphasising both creation and learning. In this project, visual images are created via computer programming to enhance the main author’s learning. The process is structured into stages. The important phases of the learning process are realised as a result of tinkering with existing codes. An important discovery for the learner, and one key aspect of programming images is that, as a mode, it opens up ways to create repetitions effectively, resulting in various patterns. This turned out to be motivating for the learner. This paper discusses tinkering as a learning process that is relevant to programming within art, design and craft education.

Individual Characteristics of Teacher Education Students: Re-Examining the Negative Selection Hypothesis

Teachers’ individual characteristics, such as cognitive and academic abilities, interests, and personality, are considered relevant for their professional competencies, successful teaching, the development of students’ competencies, and student achievement. This study re-examined the idea that the teaching profession attracts people with rather unfavorable characteristics, differentiating teaching degrees and study majors. Using extensive data from the German National Educational Panel Study (NEPS; Starting Cohort First-Year Students; N = 8952) and multinomial logistic regression, the study investigated whether students’ individual characteristics influence the choice of (a) study programs (teacher education vs. other) and (b) teaching degrees (primary and special vs. lower secondary vs. upper secondary education/Gymnasium). The empirical results showed that individual characteristics predict the choice of study programs and teaching degrees and that it is crucial to take into account teacher education students’ heterogeneity when investigating teacher education and the teaching profession.

Népesség, szelekció, oktatás

Összefoglaló. Írásunk a középiskolai és a felsőoktatási felvételi adatokat felhasználva mutatja be az elmúlt évtizedek beiskolázási trendjeit, fókuszálva az elmúlt másfél-két évtizedben végbemenő folyamatokra. A középiskolai beiskolázás adatai szerint egyrészt megállapítható, hogy a rendszerváltás utáni trend 2011 után megtört, a középiskolás korosztályon belül egyre csökken azok aránya, akik részt vesznek valamilyen középfokú képzésben, másrészt a képzésben maradók preferenciái ugyan az általános képzés felé törekednek, de a felvettek számát és arányát tekintve mégis a szakképzésben tanulnak többen. A felsőoktatásba újonnan bekerülők jelentős hányadát adják a frissen érettségizettek, akiknek a létszáma az utóbbi 15 évben folyamatosan csökken, ezzel egyidejűleg azonban a részidős képzésekben tanulók létszáma is meredeken visszaesett. Summary. The study presents enrolment trends using secondary and tertiary enrolment data, focusing on trends over the last two decades. The data on secondary school enrolment shows that, on the one hand, the post-transition trend was broken after 2011, with the proportion of secondary school students enrolled in some form of upper secondary education decreasing, and on the other hand, while the preferences of those who remain in education are tending towards general education, more people are enrolled in vocational education and training in terms of both the number and the proportion of enrolments. A significant proportion of new entrants to higher education are recent graduates from secondary education, whose number have been declining steadily over the last 15 years, but at the same time the number of part-time students in higher education has also fallen sharply.

Reaching Higher? Horizontal Stratification in the Educational Careers of Immigrant Descendants

Educational expansion raises the influence of sorting across fields of study for children’s future life chances. Yet, we have little knowledge about horizontal stratification in the educational careers of children of immigrant parents, who often are positively selected on education relative to non-migrants in their origin country despite having comparatively low levels of absolute schooling. This paper examines the educational careers of immigrant descendants relative to majority children using Norwegian administrative data. We find that most immigrant descendants of non-Western origin experience substantial ethnic disadvantages in early school grades and have a lower likelihood of completing upper secondary education. However, they also have a higher probability of entering higher education, and they select more prestigious and better-paying fields of study. The ethnic penalty in school grades and upper secondary school completion disappears when adjusting for parental years of education, likely because immigrant parents are positively selected from their origin country. However, parental selectivity provides little insight into immigrant children’s high ambitions later in their educational careers. Overall, our findings reveal a complex pattern where immigrant descendants overcome early disadvantages at school by making increasingly ambitious choices as they progress through the educational system.