Over the past decade Finnish education has been praised worldwide for its students' "amazing" results in the OECD PISA studies. Thousands of pedagogical tourists--including policy-makers, researchers and educators--have visited the country to find out about the reasons behind the success and to borrow, often uncritically and…

Examines mother imagery from the Finnish mythological epic "Kalevala," and describes how they offer healing imagery for understanding and acceptance of one's own mother and subsequently one's self. Offers background to the "Kalevala" itself, its language and to warriors, shamans, and sages in general. Examines seven mother…

Folklife is the study of tradition, of what carries forward through time, providing continuity and identity with a place or an activity. This collection of articles is intended to provide a forum for the discussion of theories and procedures of folklife study and to demonstrate both the variety of folklife communities and the unexpected…