BACKGROUND: The emergence of COVID-19 resulted in a substantial loss of education because of global school closures. Face masks are a potential measure to restrain the COVID-19 spread; therefore, this paper evaluated the effectiveness of face masks in reducing COVID-19 incidence in school settings. METHODS: A systematic review was conducted by…

The purpose of this study was to review academic papers on the experiences of binary and non-binary trans people in physical education (PE), published between January 2000 and August 2022. The selection process yielded 16 articles from Brazil, the UK, Spain, Canada, Finland, Ireland, New Zealand, and the USA. The discussion focuses on five themes…

This article, based on a mixed-method study, examines which dimensions of worldview are addressed by a group (N = 134) of Finnish students and in-service educators when interpreting a written imaginary case from everyday school life. The findings are interpreted in the framework of worldview literacy, derived from the concept of religious literacy…

This paper describes the process of developing classroom culture that promotes reciprocal intercultural encountering in the primary school. Storycrafting, an oral storytelling method used for democratic encounters between participants, was used to connect classes in Scotland, Finland and Belgium over three cycles of design-based research.…

This descriptive case study examined how teaching practices were evidenced in Grade 1 classrooms in two different cultural and educational contexts, Finland and Japan. Teachers' teaching practices were video-recorded in 53 classrooms in Finland and six classrooms in Japan and rated with the Early Childhood Classroom Observation Measure by trained…

Creating opportunities for meaningful social relationships between through collaborative learning has been suggested to facilitate all students' social inclusion. However, little attention has been given to the interaction processes leading to unsuccessful knowledge co-creation in mixed-ability peer groups including students with and without…

In the context of global crises, the priorities of vocational education and training (VET) need to be reconsidered. VET should educate critically reflective global citizens who are capable of acting to create a more just and sustainable world both in their workplaces and in society at large. This study examines VET teachers' views on addressing…

This study compares the adoption and spread of an educational innovation--a project-based, interest-driven, science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics learning program--in two culturally distinct contexts: a large school district in the southeastern United States and the public schools in Helsinki, Finland. Using actor network…

Frequent exposure to victimization by peers is related to greater psychological problems. It is often assumed that peer victimization is associated with fewer psychological problems in classrooms where defending victims of bullying is common (i.e., a norm). The few studies testing this claim have been cross-sectional and have produced mixed…

After claiming asylum, refugee children work to re-build their worlds across three dimensions: safety, belonging, and success. This article examines the pedagogical practices that support this work arguing that a key, but under-examined practice draws on what we have termed pedagogical love. Building on a qualitative Finnish-Australian study, we…

The existing literature on early childhood education (ECE) quality is predominantly from the US or other developed countries. In low-and-middle-income countries (LMICs), systematic research on ECE quality, however, is very limited. In the present study, we explore variation in structural and process indicators of ECE quality in two Eastern…

Teacher self-efficacy (TSE) is assumed to affect classroom environment, although empirical evidence for this assumption is still elusive. This study examines the relationship between TSE in behaviour management and classroom behavioural climate using a two-level cross-lagged model. TSE in behaviour management was assessed with six-item subscale of…

The purpose of this research was to study how teachers do differentiated teaching in practice. The main research question was: How do Finnish teachers do differentiated teaching? It was specified with sub-questions: (1) How are the various elements of the model of differentiated teaching emphasized by teachers?; (2) Which methods do teachers use…

Research Findings: This study examined whether teacher-child interaction quality varied as a function of type of activity in toddler classrooms in four European countries (Finland, Netherlands, Poland, and Portugal). It also investigated whether specific activity settings, namely levels of adult involvement, use of whole group, and children's…

The construction of new schools has undergone much debate as children and teachers spend a significant proportion of their lives in physical learning environments in schools. The school soundscape is central but often underestimated. In this study, we investigated teachers' experiences of soundscapes in two modern Finnish comprehensive schools by…