Tag Archive for: atmosphere of school

A Holistic Learning Approach for All the World’s Students in the Fourth Industrial Revolution

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School of all students

Two lunchrooms of the school have been changed for the biggest restaurant in the southern part of the whole Finland. Why and how is it possible? Every May the last classes of Kirkkoharju basic school in Finland are celebrating the end of their 9 years of studies. Most of 8 grades have started to plan this day well in advance. It means that they have to first discover a theme to the day. That theme gives them ideas for the decoration and the food that the kitchen staff will prepare. But before decorating the dining halls, the normal lunchrooms, students have to practice how to serve. The teachers of domestic science will be as restaurant managers or butlers. They will give the sign for waiters and waitresses so that all three kinds of foods will be served at the same time.

The main role of celebration are the 9th grades, 15 year old students. This can be the last day they are together before going to the next step – half of them goes to colleges and half to vocational schools. They have also started to prepare this day months ago. Some of them have made their own dresses. Students have made the designs of dresses but also handicraft teachers have helped them to choose the right fabric. With class teacher the students have a possibility to talk about how to small talk with an adult in the table they sit together. They talk together about good table manners so that they can feel themselves relaxed and comfortable.  Sport teachers have taught them different dances.

Everything is ready for celebration. Waiters are waiting with the class of sparkling lemonade. Principal and assistance principal will shake visitors and students hands and welcome them. This is a good day to invite school partners, they can talk with students about their dreams and see how they have grown up to be the good citizens of community.

They toast, they hear speeches, they are valued, there are resected. For many this is the only occasion where they are in the center of a happening together with all their friends. It is an exciting reception for the waiters that all goes well. The occasion is exciting also for the 9th graders, but also for the staff of school.

When we started to build this ceremony many adults said that it will be chaos, students will get drunk and break things! No – they have always behaved perfectly. When you give them the trust and responsibility, they are happy to take it.

After eating, speeches and some program, it is time to dance. It is such a joy to look when students are dancing different kind of dances. Many months of preparations will come true. Well behaving students are ready to their future, with cognitive and emotional competencies – adaptability and social resilience.

How to create the school for all students, so that every student feels that the school is their school?  This is one example among many. What is the culture of your school – does it shape and grown the future-ready kids?

We decided to build a holistic event, where every student will be part of it and where they can learn different skills and values.  The students grow from youngsters to young adults and we support them during their journey!

As part of the Top Global Teacher Bloggers / CMRubinWorld.com / Global Search for Education  http://www.cmrubinworld.com/TGTB,  above is my answer to question of April: A Holistic Learning Approach for All the World’s Students in the Fourth Industrial Revolution

 

How Can We Work to Consistently Cultivate Values of Thoughtfulness and Empathy Without Directly Teaching it?

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As part of the Top Global Teacher Bloggers from Cathy Rubin’s Global Search for Education, this is my answer to this question:

Atmosphere of school

In early 2000 British school evaluators were invited to visit some Finnish schools. I was wondering how it is possible that people who don’t even understand our language, can get any picture from our school? Later when I was myself a principal and had the opportunity to visit in many schools around Finland and some aboard, I did understand. Only looking, doing observations how students, teacher-student and teacher-teacher meet and talk to each other, you can get a picture of the atmosphere of the school. Also looking the corridors and common spaces, you get the idea of how students and their work are respected in the school.

In my opinion the ground for good learning environment for students is the prevalent human understanding of staff. How attended the teacher is with every student. I have seen schools where teachers did not say good day when passing by a student! I have been in situations when teacher is more bullying than educating student. Mostly I have seen teachers with sincere care and interest to the student’s life. School has to have values which everyone in the school knows. Every year there comes new students in the school so those values are good for them to know too.  The leader of the school has the most important role to maintain and show that values are respected in the school community.

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Photo: Steve Weaver

Role of teacher

How we behave in daily situations in school? We have hundreds of ears and eyes around us. We are role models for students all the time, even we are not conscious about it.  We can operate as agents of high ethics modelling acceptance and empathy. Furthermore, as teachers it is important to promote the development of social and emotional skills and knowledge in our students that promote mindfulness, empathy and compassion. We can be facing situations like bulling where we are expected to have opinion or solution to solve the situation.

It is important that as teachers we have common ideas when building the rules of schools. Are the rules of the school more for discipline or as a guideline to increase young people’s understanding of wrong and right? There are still schools in this world which have detention time instead of having discussions why the student did something not acceptable. In some countries teachers are still allowed to use a cane to hit and discourage the student! These practices support distrust and unfairness. How to promote the values of thoughtfulness and empathy?

What role do we give for students in the school?

I am so proud of the ways how the biggest celebrations are organized in my school. All the students from the grades 5, 3 and 1 are performing in the end of autumn term.  All students from the grades 6, 4 and 2 are performing in the end of spring term. Teachers have planned such program numbers that every child has a role. Every child is appreciated and have an important role in school community.

In many countries students have their own school faculty, where they learn how to influence and give their opinion what they want to have or change in the school practices. What about when they have a change in planning of their studies? In the Finnish curriculum this is one of the most interesting adding to student’s rights.

Shortly, celebrating unity diversity in different level, opens the doors to ethics and support high values of thoughtfulness and empathy. I hope that schools provide the best education opportunities for every child across the globe.  I hope that schools sets students on positive life tracks that will carry humankind, today and tomorrow.