Wiikki Teacher Training School

Meeting with Marja Martikainen,
Leader of Upper Secondary School level at University of Helsinki Viikki Normal School

Viikki Normal School is quite big school in Finnish scale. It is a school community, which involves pupils in 1. – 9. grades and, also preschool grade, and gymnasium. Altogether, they have 960 pupils, 100 staff members and about 250 teacher student trainees.

Wiikki Normal School is part of the University of Helsinki, Faculty of Education, being one of the Finnish schools, which provides basic education but it is also the practice school used by university in their primary teacher, subject teacher, and special teacher education (*).

Thus, all the practice schools used by Finnish universities are carrying the name ‘normal school’ (normaalikoulu) and serving as a training school for teacher students where the basic and advanced practice is carried out. In Helsinki, they are having also one gymnasium, Helsingin normaalilyseo, as a practice school for teacher students, and a lot of kindergartens, schools, and other academies as a partner schools where the field practices are carried out.

In Viikki Normal School all teachers are at the same time trainers, as supervisor teachers for teacher students. During the practical training period teacher students (=students) work mainly in pairs, going into classroom with one supervisor teacher in the field (=supervisor). Students will have guidance and mentoring by that supervisor, and they will teach independently about 10 lessons per week at some practical period. The aim of a certain lesson is discussed, and lessons are planned together with supervisor. A Supervisor tells about the class, and a student makes first overall plan for lesson series, and then specific plan for each lesson, which supervisor reads. Then they will sit down, and go through the plan together: discuss about it, re-organize and re-plan it, and after that the student is ready to give the lesson.

During the teaching the supervisor and, also some other teacher student trainees will sit behind the classroom, and afterwards the student and teacher will go through and discuss the lessons together. Right after the lesson student, supervisor and other trainees will have some minutes to discuss and evaluate in a very constructive way, how it went, and other very first feelings.

Viikki Normal School teachers also provide subject specific seminars for students, e.g. how do you teach grammar, literature, oral skills, and other, very practical issues but based on theory. The school is trying to be very specific into that, and give some tools to teach, and make the lessons. They try to teach them to see school as a community, as a working place being more about something else than just professions, including networking, entrepreneurship, student care, anti-bullying etc. Marja is providing the seminars about work of principal. Thus, in Viikki Normal School all subject teachers are having free spaces in their schedule.

One example about practice periods of subject teachers, student aiming to be a math teacher will have subject studies and then 60 ECTS program of Pedagogical Studies for Teachers (which includes 10 ECTS + 10 ECTS practice periods). Pedagogical studies involve theoretical studies in education at the university, and after them normal school takes care of practical training period. In Viikki it means that after getting theoretical background during the autumn, teacher students arrive after autumn holiday, in the week 43 and will work at the school until Christmas. They will return to university having more theory during January–February and after that they will have the second practical training period after spring holiday, in the week 11 until May. Altogether, they will have two great periods of basic and advanced practice during the year.

https://www.helsinki.fi/fi/harjoittelukoulut/helsingin-yliopiston-viikin-normaalikoulu (unfortunately only in Finnish)

*) In the Degree Programme in Educational Sciences there are six study tracks in Finnish and three in Swedish. The study tracks in Finnish are Special Education, Home Economics Teacher Education, Textiles Teacher Education, Kindergarten Teacher Education, Class Teacher Education and General and Adult Education. The study tracks in Swedish are Kindergarten Teacher Education, Class Teacher Education and General and Adult Education.

The first cycle university degree only is available in kindergarten teacher education. Those who have obtained a Bachelor's degree in kindergarten teacher education may apply for studies leading to a Master's degree.

Students in all other study tracks take first a Bachelor's degree (3 years) and continue their studies to a Master's degree (2 years). In Finland, in primary and subject teacher education (excluding kindergarten teacher education), formal qualifications can be obtained only by completing a second cycle university degree.
( https://www.helsinki.fi/en/faculty-of-educational-sciences/studying/degree-programme-in-educational-sciences )

By Kati Pitkänen