Why is Finnish teacher education successful? Some goals Finnish teacher educators have for their teaching

Abstract

In recent years, Finnish research‐based teaching, according to international surveys, has been shown to lead to excellent results. Previous research has demonstrated that teacher education has often had difficulties in incorporating theory into practice, and that the effects of teacher education on the prior beliefs and views on teaching and learning of student teachers have been weak. The aim of the present qualitative study was to find out how the Finnish teacher education system deals with these problems by investigating the current goals Finnish teacher educators have for their own teaching in theoretical courses. A total of 18 teacher educators were interviewed in five focus groups on different teacher education programmes in Finland. The interview results showed that Finnish teacher educators transmit theoretical and pedagogical aspects by using them in their own teaching, which is research‐based. They also aim to educate reflective and exploring teachers by using a variety of methods in their own pedagogy. The exemplary role the Finnish teacher educators have can be helpful in influencing prospective teachers' behaviour and thinking.