To work as a qualified teacher in Finland, university students practice in a teacher training school during their studies. The Master’s Degree includes 20 credits of training for both class teachers and subject teachers.Internationally recognised teacher training programmes When Sirkku Myllyntausta started her career as a teacher 41 years ago, she had no idea she would be responsible for teacher training at the University of Helsinki.Sirkku Myllyntausta currently works as Lecturer and Teacher Training Coordinator in the Viikki Teacher Training School in Helsinki. She is in charge of all the class teacher trainees who come to the school during their compulsory trainee periods. The teacher training schools in Finland can be compared to university teaching hospitals for medical students. The teacher’s profession is highly respected in Finland. A teacher is an expert, comparable to an engineer, lawyer or a medical doctor. Enhancing pupils’ eagerness to learn, fostering a spirit of equality in school, and how to achieve positive learning results are topics that Sirkku Myllyntausta discusses with Karoliina Salonen, a young class teacher trainee, who is about to teach a class in a few minutes.
In many countries, a teacher trainee would be sitting and observing the work in the back of the class. Not in Finland.
– The teacher trainees are really engaged and work hands-on from day one. Karoliina nails it down, Sirkku Myllyntausta says. The profession is demanding and, at times, it can be very intense. You need to use a lot of personal empathy. You also have to be able to draw the line and know when to hand a pupil over to other professionals, such as speech therapists or psychologists, she explains. Even though the teacher training period in both class and subject teacher trainings is only 20 credits, out of a the 300-credit Master’s degree in total, it really is meaningful and important for the students. The guided teacher training periods offer each student a possibility to try out in practice everything they have learnt during their studies. Paramount in teacher training is combining theory and practice.
– The role of the guiding teacher at the teacher training school is of great importance, because it enables the student to reflect upon her own development. The main idea behind teacher training practices is to help the students develop as teachers in many different ways, Karoliina Salonen explains.
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