Abstract
This paper will discuss the goals and benefits of innovative teaching methods in primary schools. This topic is an essential one in modern society because children have to develop along with the world’s newest technologies. Also, learning programs and psychological approaches must be considered in this discussion, as the use of multimedia without a proper understanding of it is pointless for young people who cannot appropriately analyze what they see.
Moreover, this paper will analyze innovative schools as potential business projects, as this type of education still must be popularized in various countries. The final results of the research that will be presented in this proposal will show whether the model of Finnish education is beneficial only for local children or it can be successfully adopted by teachers from other parts of the world. Since the ideology of primary schools in Finland is different from that of many other countries, some strategies implemented in the Scandinavian country might be inefficient for representatives of other nations.
Introduction
As in every other sphere, education is developing rapidly and opening new opportunities for schoolchildren. Nowadays, many European educational institutions (to be specific, the school of Lauttasaari in Helsinki, Finland will be discussed in the given proposal as its workers implement all of the innovations described below) are using unique methods and learning programs in their daily activities. With the help of various multimedia resources, there are more possibilities to make students interested in a certain subject or demonstrate aspects of it to them in more detail.
Innovative teaching methods do not only refer to the technological part used in class. A psychological approach and an analysis of children’s behavior and perception of the information they receive are also important for discussing this work. It appears that some educational methodologies have a tremendous impact on the development of students. The following text is intended to present a research proposal with information about new methods, and learning programs that teachers use in Lauttasaari to understand whether the considered system can be implemented in schools all over the world or it is centered specifically on children in Finland.
Definition of the Research Problem
In this paper, innovative teaching methods imply both digital devices used in Finnish schools to help children grasp all the information presented during their lessons better and various pedagogical or even psychological techniques that local educators use to make children interested in the process of studying. This paper will combine a discussion of these innovations to provide a better understanding of the environment that is necessary for the model of ideal education that is now practiced in Finland.
The primary problem of this research project is the fact that teachers from the Lauttasaari School use innovative methods in their work with children, while other institutions all over the world cannot adopt the same educational models due to teachers’ unawareness of their efficiency in their regions. Indeed, there are many advantages to the new techniques and models (using interactive blackboards, setting computers for every learner, and creating digital presentations for every lesson) of working with children in the class. However, the drawbacks of these methodologies need to be identified and addressed in the future as well.
Literature Review
The use of multimedia remains one of the most popular innovative teaching methods and tools used in the Lauttasaari primary school at the moment. When children interact with computers, electronic gadgets, and other technologies, they can gain a better experience with subjects that are described in books (Aris, Putri, and Susanti, 2016). Such materials as video, audio, and text files become available for teachers who use them throughout the learning course, as well as for children who have a better perception of the provided information through all the visual aids mentioned above (Aris, Putri, and Susanti, 2016).
Moreover, it is necessary to develop learning courses with the integration of such pedagogical approaches as phenomenon-based learning, co-teaching, portfolio creation, mind maps, Z-A approach, and others.
Unfortunately, there is a tremendous number of schools around the world that still use outdated educational techniques to teach their students. However, older methods (acquiring necessary information from books, using physical objects to create pieces of art, and listening to opinions of only one teacher) are known to be inefficient for young people in the twenty-first century. Therefore it is essential to understand what knowledge is given to children at the moment and what the industry needs (Clark and Mayer, 2016, p. 35). To analyze whether interactive work is more effective than regular communication between teachers and their students, it is necessary to list some advantages of the first method and compare it with older learning techniques.
The first advantage of using multimedia resources is their value for teaching children to think analytically and solve problems effectively. In comparison, older methods that were used in school programs could not develop these abilities in learners who only listened to their teachers’ ideas (Tay, 2017). Educators in the Lauttasaari School want children to assess various situations on their own. It not only makes them intellectually dexterous, but it also prepares them for their future lives where they will have to make wise decisions regularly (Tay, 2017).
Another important advantage of using computers and computer programs in schools is letting children gain experience working with a wide range of graphic and text editing software (Meeusen et al. 2018, p. 48). Not only do they train and improve their skills in activities that are common and necessary in the modern world, but they also work in pairs, which makes their collaboration even more interesting and productive (Niemi, Toom, and Kallioniemi, 2016, p. 93).
Unfortunately, many teachers in some Asian countries and the United States of America do not let their students create material for upcoming classes. However, when learners work with information that they will study later, they also obtain the necessary background that prepares them for their classes.
It would be appropriate to mention that educators make children work in groups in the Lauttasaari school. (O’Hanlon, 2017, p. 136). When students collaborate on a project together, everyone has a chance to contribute to its planning and implementation. Young boys and girls communicate with one another and develop a mutual understanding of each team member’s opinion concerning the task. Credible research shows that projects are accomplished better and more professionally when they are created by several people (Saloviita and Schaffus, 2016).
The main factor that differentiates, for example, a Finnish primary school Lauttasaari situated in Helsinki from other educational institutions in the rest of the world is the method of communication with teachers (Domingo and Garganté, 2016). Traditionally, teachers deliver certain pieces of important information to students. Children then have to write everything down to remember all the data that was presented during their lessons. In comparison, when people work with multimedia, the relationships between students, teachers, and additional materials are more equal (Saloviita and Schaffus, 2016). This model makes it possible for every person in the class to grasp and share information with others.
It should be stated that the multimedia methodology described in previous paragraphs is not popular all over the world. Moreover, people do not even know about all the advantages of learning by using digital materials in classes. Therefore this is a promising idea for a business project. The market is not crowded in the majority of developing countries and other nations that do not invest significantly in education (Aris, Putri, and Susanti, 2016).
According to an initial analysis of the market, it is clear that parents are ready to pay additional money to allow their children to develop using the latest methods, which appear to be more efficient than the methodologies used in public schools (Aris, Putri, and Susanti, 2016). However, the establishment of an educational institution requires much more investment than other similar businesses because all the necessary electronic equipment is currently quite expensive.
The following section is intended to provide an overview of other innovative learning methods used in the Lauttasaari School that have had good results in engaging children and making them more interested in what they learn. To obtain a better understanding of the entire learning process in the Finnish school, it would be proper to overview some learning tools that assist children during their lessons and world with digital devices. The first tool is called a mind map (Tay, 2017).
The first iteration of this approach was developed by Tony Buzan in the previous century. According to it, students were required to take notes using only keywords from their lectures to recall the material they studied without having to extensively reread or analyze it again (Domingo and Garganté, 2016).
Nowadays, this strategy has been changed, and teachers in Lauttasaari are required to build these mind maps for children who attend their classes. However, children are allowed to contribute to the creation of different mind maps that they will be using during their lessons (Tay, 2017). For instance, a teacher might ask them to prepare little pieces of material that will be integrated into the presentation later, which makes the learners develop a sense of responsibility and their labor’s importance for their classmates (Tay, 2017). This method seems to take less time than its previous form, while students can understand what knowledge is central, and what information is presented as background context.
Mind maps are effective because they are made in the form of pictures (or sometimes audio or video files) (Aris, Putri, and Susanti, 2016). However, each of the approaches mentioned above effectively influences a person’s brain so that information is retained almost permanently. The text is always the same and it does not differ in various sources. In contrast, multimedia materials are more colorful and unique, which makes students remember the particular presentation of the information that was taught (Stokhof et al. 2018).
According to several research projects conducted to test the theory described in this paragraph, approximately ninety percent of all information acquired through reading was hard to recall for the sampled participants (Niemi, Toom, and Kallioniemi, 2016, p. 79). In comparison, they could remember seventy percent of the same material presented in the form of video.
As to the concept of video lessons, teachers who work for the Lauttasaari School collaborate with YouTube bloggers to conduct research and make popular presentations about literature, history, and other educational topics (O’Hanlon, 2017, p. 158). Therefore children are sometimes assigned to review these bloggers’ channels or other videos as homework. It appears that when children see a young person talking about a certain subject, they become more interested in it, as it gives them an ability to discuss the knowledge they have gained with their peers (Lahtero and Risku, 2014).
From a business perspective, this model of education is difficult to implement, but it provides many more benefits than regular educational approaches. Moreover, if children do not have a device to explore the Internet, they are allowed to use school computers, which makes teachers more responsible for what their students learn online.
Another innovative technique that is implemented in the Lauttasaari educational institution is the requirement to teach people using humorous elements. Several surveys show that students are more attracted to the lectures of teachers who have both charisma and a sense of humor (Clark and Mayer, 2016, p. 89). It is a challenge for learners to spend hours studying the theoretical aspects of their subjects. Children have a lot of energy that they strive to expand during the day. Therefore it is more efficient to present lectures with jokes and entertaining stories, which students are more likely to recall in the future. The process of learning can be a tremendous challenge, and people sometimes want to relax.
It should be mentioned that this method of teaching was adopted by teachers from the school in Helsinki mentioned above from their colleagues in the United States of America (Lahtero and Risku, 2014). People in Western European countries are known to have some challenges with feeling free in front of an audience. In comparison, the American mentality was not as limited in the previous century. Humorous and friendly forms of communication between teachers and students make their collaboration less tense and much more productive. When each participant in a lesson feels free to ask questions, make remarks, and express their opinion, the process of education becomes reasonable for everyone in the school (Lahtero and Risku, 2014).
In Finland, teachers do not hesitate to admit that they do not know everything about their professional subjects, which makes schools beneficial for their development as well (O’Hanlon, 2017, p. 158). The concept of educational institutions in Germany, France, and England is aimed at mutual development and the discussion of various topics between classmates and teachers. This model gives everyone a chance to be involved in interesting conversations and gain useful knowledge by grasping other people’s arguments.
The next learning method to be reviewed in this paper is called the Z-to-A approach. This model refers to the explanation of general concepts concerning any topic or professional sphere. When students are unfamiliar with terms or phenomena mentioned during the lecture, they ask their teachers to explain what one phrase or another means and how it is related to what they are studying (Clark and Mayer, 2016, p. 90). This approach helps students develop an interest in the material they learn, and children must be the initiators of descriptive explanations given by their educators.
Hence the students always know details of their subjects that are somehow connected to the primary material planned for the lecture (Clark and Mayer, 2016, p. 89). Nevertheless, there are several drawbacks to this system. Once the audience is interested in something, it may take hours for a teacher to explain some topics tangentially related to it. Moreover, the main concept of the lecture might be lost if a professor begins to explain every minor point to his or her students.
The practice described above is common in the Lauttasaari School because politicians think that children have a right to understand everything that is being said during lectures (Tay, 2017). Moreover, local ethical norms and moral considerations do not allow other participants of the learning process to blame or laugh at their classmates for not knowing some general information.
The main purpose of the Z-A approach is to make children interested in something by showing them the results of particular calculations or actions (Domingo and Garganté, 2016). When they understand that a method demonstrated by their teacher is efficient in particular instances, they strive to understand how they can repeat the same actions. Hence a teacher is obliged to explain to them what it takes to reach a certain point.
Another concept that is widely practiced in Lauttasaari School is the explanation of various concepts through the use of mnemonics and different words instead of descriptive sentences (Tay, 2017). Once students reach the point where they understand the topic presented during the lesson, their educator begins to conclude by summarizing everything that has been said in detail. However, the children are given a chance to develop a general understanding of the studied subject before the teacher’s explanation becomes too obvious.
The last learning method that is widely used in the Lauttasaari School in Helsinki, Finland is role-playing. Children are encouraged to analyze the scenarios they are given to work with ahead of time (Tay, 2017). When students are obliged to make wise choices based on their theoretical knowledge, they are more likely to understand what their future work may be like. Moreover, this approach is beneficial for learners who have problems understanding the materials presented during lectures.
Unfortunately, some people cannot grasp information without having a chance to practice it under realistic conditions. As the system of Finnish education remains one of the most highly developed in the world, teachers pay attention to the abilities of every class member (Hyry-Beihammer and Hascher, 2015). Hence children are not limited in their ideas or desires to try something in real life. This methodology was intended to address the problem that people tend to give up doing something because of a lack of appropriate support and involvement.
It should be stated that the Lauttasaari School has the goal to help children identify what they like and what they want to do in life (Tay, 2017). All this psychological work is done beginning in childhood. It has been estimated that adults have more passion for activities that they were interested in as children (Clark and Mayer, 2016, p. 178).
Therefore local educational institutions provide learners with a wide range of hobbies and give them opportunities to develop in something besides school. For instance, Finnish primary school students do not have any homework, as all the material is learned in class until the afternoon (Tay, 2017). With this system, children have enough time to relax and be engaged in their hobbies. Unfortunately, not all countries take into account their citizens’ preferences regarding their favorite activities that could help them earn a living and become much happier.
The Finnish education system has been claimed to be the best in the world for the last fifteen years. Although Finnish children are not obliged to read classic literature or write poems, they do these activities of their own will (Hyry-Beihammer and Hascher, 2015). Teachers do not tell their students that some author was great. Instead, they tell them facts about an admirable person so that they arrive at the appropriate conclusion about the individual at the end of their courses.
The most significant difference between this methodology and other models used in other parts of the world is that knowledge is not imposed. However, if children are paying particular attention to a different topic, teachers are glad to help them to learn more about their interests at any moment. Such a free system makes children want to know more, while in other countries students want to be done with their homework as soon as possible.
The example of Finnish schools can serve as a business project in other developed countries as well. While many parents might consider such a system inappropriate for a child’s development, other citizens will be glad to know that their children are taught to do what they want, as this is the main component of their happiness in the future. Unfortunately, similar educational services might not be available for people of low social status. Nevertheless, the promotion of free education might be supported by the government, as politicians want younger generations to be educated in innovative sciences and other spheres because this would be beneficial for their countries’ statuses in the future.
The main element of the Lauttasaari School that makes the process of education more pleasant is its innovative equipment and approach towards children (Tay, 2017). Students have access to the newest technical inventions and computers so that they can accomplish any of their tasks with the help of these machines (Hyry-Beihammer and Hascher, 2015). Also, classrooms are equipped with elements that are necessary to educate children at a high level. For instance, rooms organized for chemistry classes have the materials that are encountered in books for demonstrating reactions and making observations (Hujala et al. 2016). In turn, classes for learning music have a wide range of modern and classical instruments for students to choose from.
In conclusion, it can be stated that another element that differentiates Lauttasaari from other educational institutions around the world is that teachers treat their students as if they were adults (Tay, 2017). They can discuss any topic with them and share their thoughts concerning various observations made during the learning process. Unfortunately, this behavior could be considered unacceptable among some societies or nations.
Gaps in the Existing Literature
Fortunately, there were not many gaps in the literature reviewed in the previous section. Nevertheless, several issues were noted during the review process. To begin with, it should be stated that many authors do not explain how such teaching methods as mind maps or the Z-A approach are used in real conditions.
Some teachers from other regions do not have enough experience to identify which strategies must be used in different cases. Therefore, it would be beneficial for them to have a rating or a list of the best pedagogical models for working with children. (Hyry-Beihammer and Hascher, 2015). It is advantageous to make a specifically structured outline of a lesson that provides the use of engaging information and theoretical data in percentages. Everything depends on the time given to teachers to explain a particular topic.
Justification of the Research Interest
It is important to carry out this research project because understanding the best educational systems in the world and how they compare might have a positive impact on the development of national primary school systems and their employees’ approaches to their work. Borrowing the ideas of the Lauttasaari School might make students happier and let them have more passion for learning different disciplines.
Modern children are not interested in completing school programs (Niemi, Toom, and Kallioniemi, 2016, p. 128). Instead, they strive to become the best in their outside hobbies. The integration of these activities into the process of education will show children that their interests are important to society. Hence they will be encouraged to study and pay more attention to what can give them more opportunities to advance professionally in various industries in the future.
This proposal contributes to this topic by considering certain business ideas that can help children from all over the world to gain more experience and knowledge that is interesting to them. By creating more liberal and free educational institutions, it is possible to promote equality among children from different states in their professional activities as they grow up (Saloviita and Schaffus, 2016).
Moreover, the author is responsible for the appropriate evaluation of the theories and statements presented in the proposal. In turn, the empirical knowledge developed in this paper is the result of the author’s research and conclusions made after the evaluation of multiple research and materials in the discussed topic. Therefore, the information presented in this work can be considered reliable and evidence-based.
Operationalization of Variables
To identify and operationalize variables properly, it must be stated that the primary purpose of the research discussed in this proposal is to understand whether the model of education practiced by teachers in the Lauttasaari School is effective for students in other countries or not. The observation will be conducted with the help of teachers who are ready to make the students from their classes prove or refute the main question of the research.
As it is mentioned previously, all the variables will be measured with the help of interviews and observations. Every participant of the experiment will be asked to answer several questions as to their experience with innovative teaching methods borrowed from the Lauttasaari School and local teachers. Also, variables will be measured with the help of the children’s reactions analysis.
It is necessary to understand whether all the changes in their education programs will have a positive impact on their moods or not. In the end, every student’s impressions will be considered after the experiment. If they are not satisfied with various innovative learning methodologies used by educators from the Lauttasaari School in Helsinki, their courses are unlikely to change in the future. It is essential to remember that students must be interested and enjoy the process of learning (Niemi, Toom, and Kallioniemi, 2016, p. 129).
Therefore, the adoption of the lesson structures practices in Lauttasaari might adversely impact children’s desire to study as they are not used. To acquire accurate results of the observation, it would be proper to implement the innovative teaching methodologies in classes with the first year inexperienced students. Perhaps, this observation will give results in the measurement of variables.
The variables measurement methods described above suggest that the test can be regarded as fair and that there is little chance for mistakes in the study’s final results. The most essential element of any research project is for all participants of its sampling to be subject to similar conditions. Otherwise, some methodologies discussed in the literature review section might not give the expected results.
Purpose of the Research
As was mentioned above, the main purpose of the research is to identify whether or not the methodologies that are used by school teachers in the Finnish school called Lauttasaari can be effective for other educational institutions in separate parts of the world. Unfortunately, various models of primary education might have different impacts on learners from different societies.
Although Finnish schools are often considered the best on the planet because they focus on students’ desires to advance professionally in particular spheres, this method might not work as well among children raised in other communities. There is always a chance that some things concerning education are effective only for a certain group of children. Therefore not every country in the world uses the same system of education that is common in the Lauttasaari primary school.
If the goal is reached and the study’s aim is accomplished, the model of the Lauttasaari Primary School might be considered a profitable business project for people who do not know much about all the benefits of this education system or do not have access to other institutions that already use these methods regularly to help their children become both wise and happy at the same time (Saloviita and Schaffus, 2016).
Also, it is necessary to observe students’ reactions to the improved program, as they might not be used to such a learning methodology. This is also an essential factor in designing an educational process because the children must be interested in it. Otherwise, learning might become a daily routine for them, which hurts a person’s motivation to reach new heights and be active in various activities related to school.
The aim of this study is intended to define whether children of various national and cultural backgrounds can learn according to the educational model of the Lauttasaari School or not. Can the model development and used by educators in the Finnish school be effective for students in other parts of the world, or it is dependent on the cultural factor of the northern country’s population?
The development of this research is important for business-like purposes because the investments required to establish a professional educational institution that meets all the standards of the Finnish school mentioned above are tremendous. Therefore, it is necessary to assess children’s abilities in different countries to choose the most beneficial location to start the business project realization.
If the factor of students’ abilities to learn according to the Finnish educational model with the use of various digital devices and pedagogical tools, the new school might not bring any profit. Moreover, parents have to be persuaded that the methodologies described above are efficient. Evidence-based research is one of the most credible sources that can be trusted in this instance.
Method
Research Design
The type of research described in this proposal is qualitative as it implies both the assessment and comparison of the educational system in the school of Lauttasaari in Helsinki, Finland, and other institutions all over the world. Also, the behavior of students and their attitudes towards the improved system will be recorded and compared to that of their peers in Lauttasaari.
In general, the research is qualitative because the majority of information used in it helps understand the major differences between educational institutions in the Lauttasaari School and some educational institutions in other parts of the world. It is necessary to state that the main problem of the given research is the tremendous gap between the studying processes common in different nations and the world’s most developed Finnish model of education.
Unit of Analysis
As was mentioned in the previous sections of the proposal, the objects of this research are children of different ethnic backgrounds who have to demonstrate their attitudes and readiness to follow a Lauttasaari educational program. Students are unlikely to give false information about their attitudes toward things relevant to this research. Therefore, the acquired data will likely be accurate.
The age of participants will vary from nine to ten years old. However, every participant in the experiment also has to be a fourth-year student in a primary school. There are no considerations as to the gender of sampling, as both males and females have the same cognitive abilities. As the research question requires the initiators of this study to evaluate how students from different societies will react to the new rules in their educational institutions, it would be appropriate to have several experiments in various states (excluding Finland).
Sampling Method
The model of stratified sampling was chosen for this research. This strategy is beneficial for the types of studies mentioned above because scholars need to work with a certain group of people that have particular characteristics. In this case, the experiment is focused on children aged from nine to eight. Therefore, it is necessary to visit schools and have their principals’ permission to work with the students. One group of sampling will consist of approximately twenty to thirty children (depending on the number of students in the class). In turn, there will be at least ten groups that will undergo the test in various regions of the world.
The participant of the research will be chosen with the help of the World Wide Web. It is necessary to collaborate with ten schools in different countries that would represent various cultures (China, Germany, the United States of America, the United Arab Emirates, the Republic of South Africa, Russia, Brazil, India, Israel, and Italy).
The groups of children from the countries mentioned above will be found with the help of their teachers. The contacts of these educators will be found on the websites of schools situated in capitals of every listed region. I would choose participants from these states because their inhabitants will make a general impression of how the educational model would be perceived in many other countries with similar cultures and mentalities.
The schools must be private as governmental institutions might not want to participate in the research due to their set schedules. To contact teachers who work in the most suitable schools for the study in the countries listed above, it is necessary to organize Skype conferences with interpreters and discuss all the aspects of the observation. If the representatives of the desired schools will not agree to contribute to this research, they will be asked to recommend schools that would gladly do this.
It would be enough to organize only one lesson with the use of innovative learning methodologies in each school that will participate in the study. The observation of the student’s reactions and attitudes towards the model of education developed by workers of the Lauttasaari School will be going on for only one academic hour. The interviews will be completed on the next day after the experimental lesson (it will take approximately twenty days to complete all the work with the children).
Data Collection Methods
There are only two data collection methods that will be used during this study – interview and observation. With the help of multiple interviews with each member of the research sampling, students’ expectations and attitudes towards the changes in their educational systems will be acquired. In turn, observations made by researchers during the learning process will show how young people react to the changed structure of their lessons.
All the observations and interviews that will be made during the study will be helpful to answer the proposal’s main research question by providing the results of educational experiments with children from different countries. All the acquired information will show whether the discussed model of education is efficient in other countries (outside of Finland).
As was stated above, each student will be asked to answer several questions after the conclusion of the work with the study’s sampling. All the results of this data collection method will be relevant because each answer will be supported by the controllers who will record their observations during the lessons involving innovative techniques. Conclusions based on observation can also be considered relevant sources of information, as professional psychologists and teachers will be asked to evaluate the situation in classrooms full of children.
Data Analysis Techniques
As in other qualitative studies, the process of data analysis will be based on the evaluation of categorical variables (Stokhof et al. 2018). Also, data acquired from observations conducted in various parts of the world will be compared to understand how cultures and social environments influence students’ reactions to the learning methods described in the literature review. Moreover, the data gathered with the help of interviews will be important for determining children’s attitudes towards an improved system of primary education in their schools.
Ethical Issues
All participants in the study must remain anonymous. In professional practice, people who read or provide references to the academic writings they review also have a right to keep their data confidential. All children and their parents will be informed that the research results will be published without mentioning their names or other information they have a right to keep private. Moreover, the final report is recommended to be made available with limited online access. Therefore every individual who might want to make use of its results must either pay for the material or contact the authors of the project.
It should be mentioned that there will be no conflicts of personal interests, as all the participants and observers will be independent of other people and their prejudices as to the main questions of the study.
Timeline
Significance of the Research
Education is the most significant aspect of people’s lives because it gives individuals the knowledge that will help them become properly socialized and make wise decisions throughout their lives. It is necessary to make children think critically and objectively beginning in childhood, as it becomes more difficult to grasp some theoretical knowledge in adolescence and maturity (O’Hanlon, 2017, p. 164).
Considering different models and innovative methods in primary education is crucial in today’s world. Technology is developing rapidly. Therefore modern children need to understand much more than people did in earlier times. To conclude, it is important to state that this project may provide the key to spreading high-quality methods of learning around the globe. People need to know about various techniques that have a positive impact on the progress of their children in different spheres of their interests and activities.
Reference List
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