Päivikki Jääskelä

Identifying Themes for Research-Based Development of Pedagogy and Guidance in Higher Education.

The high value accorded to the research-based development of education in higher education communities means that researchers in the field have an important role in determining the foci of such efforts. However, it is important to ask whether higher education research is providing answers that satisfy practical educational needs. In this study, themes in higher education research published in Finland during 2000–2008 were compared to those addressed in non-refereed writings published by higher education teachers and students. The thematic analyses, (n = 1,298) focusing on topics related to learning, studying, and their promotion revealed the need for a broader life-wide framework for developing student-centred pedagogy and guidance practices in higher education.

Assessing agency of university students: validation of the AUS Scale

Fostering agency as a core component of professionalism is seen as a critical task of higher education. However, the tools for assessing university students’ agency, and the pedagogical and relational resources needed for its development, are lacking. The present study describes the theoretical foundations and factor structure of the newly developed Agency of University Students (AUS) Scale, which assesses students’ course-specific agency. In the factor analysis, 10 factors emerged. Four of these – Interest and motivation, Self-efficacy, Competence beliefs and Participation activity – are seen to represent individual resources of agency. The other four factors – Equal treatment, Teacher support, Peer support and Trust – represent relational sources of agency. Finally, Opportunities to influence and Opportunities to make choices represent contextual sources of agency. The psychometric properties and uses of the scale are discussed.

Models for the development of generic skills in Finnish higher education

Abstract This article examines how Finnish universities and other higher education institutes have responded to the challenges posed by rapid changes in the world of work and societies all over Europe, particularly with reference to the development of generic skills. The data were collected by means of individual and group interviews at three Finnish higher education institutes, including two universities and one university of applied sciences. The interviews involved 63 persons in charge of management, development and teaching at these institutes. As a result of the qualitative data analysis, we distinguished four models to represent the development of generic skills, which we named (1) Specialist Model, (2) Science-based Renewal Model, (3) Project-based Integrative Model, and (4) Model of Networked Culture. These models serve as analytical tools that help higher education institutes to examine their existing practices and to develop new ones.

Supporting and constraining factors in the development of university teaching experienced by teachers

ABSTRACT Higher education calls for reform, but deeper knowledge about the prerequisites for teaching development and pedagogical change is missing. In this study, 51 university teachers’ experiences of supportive or constraining factors in teaching development were investigated in the context of Finland’s multidisciplinary network. The findings reveal that the supportive factors in teaching development arise from the nature of the development itself, i.e. from the teachers’ opportunities to act as active agents in an authentic development process. Furthermore, the circumstances of the development also play essential roles (both constraining and supportive) in teaching development. Such support, at its best, will come when teachers and others view teaching development in the university context as being valuable and rewarding, and when teachers are encouraged by management and are supplemented with the necessary equipment, tools, and networks they need to do their job. Increasing interaction between the institutional levels can make educational development successful.

Seamless Learning Environments in Higher Education with Mobile Devices and Examples

The use of seamless learning environments that have the potential to support lifelong learning anytime and anywhere has become a reality. In this sense, many educational institutions have started to consider introducing seamless learning environments into their programs. The aim of this study is to analyze how various educational university programs implement the design elements for seamless learning environments with mobile devices. For that purpose, three cases involved in a Finnish teaching development project are explored by conducting semi-structured interviews with key participants. The themes of the interviews were related to the theoretical background for mobile seamless learning environments from previous literature. This paper describes the findings of the three cases as common aspects for designing mobile, seamless learning environments; and it proposes a research agenda on challenges related to designing seamless learning environments with the integrated use of mobile devices in the curricula.

University Teachers’ Conceptions of Their Role as Developers of Technology-Rich Learning Environments

This phenomenographic study examines how a diverse group of university teachers conceptualised their role as developers of technology-rich learning environments at one university in Finland. The research findings illustrate a variety of conceptions. Five qualitatively different ways of understanding teachers’ roles regarding the development of technology-rich learning environments were found: 1) innovator, 2) early adopter, 3) adaptive, 4) sceptic and 5) late adopter. In order to connect the whole set of interconnected roles to a theory of change, Everett Rogers’ innovation diffusion theory was exploited in the last phase of analysis. Finally, hierarchically structured categories were created along with five evolutionary themes of expanding intensity. These findings can be used as an assessment tool among teachers to identify their role in educational reform.