This article discusses a comparative study, funded by the European Union, of the teaching of mathematics in five European countries, (Flanders, England, Finland, Hungary and Spain) to students in the upper primary (ages 10-12) and lower secondary (12-14) years. These ages were chosen as they represent a time when many students' experiences of…

Interest in biology and the out-of-school experiences of Finnish secondary school pupils (n = 3626, median age 15) were surveyed in the spring of 2003 using the international ROSE questionnaire. Likert-scaled items were categorised with an explorative factor analysis. The scores of eight interest-context factors and seven out-of-school experience…

Misconceptions of Finnish secondary students about phases of the moon illustrate the separation of school learning from experience and cognition outside of school. Three approaches to overcome the encapsulation of school learning are suggested based on theories of V. V. Davydov, J. Lave and E. Wenger, and the author. (SLD)

Learning a foreign language by the cultural immersion technique, used by the Scandinavian Seminar, an international experiential education organization, is described, based on American college students' experiences studying in Scandinavia. Also explored is the learning concept of experiential education. (JMD)

The "folkehojskoler," innovative Scandinavian secondary schools based on radical humanistic ideas, are examined from both empirical and philosophical perspectives, focusing on three elements: ideology; the student experience; and the teaching culture. Implications for goals, objectives, assumptions, forms, and practices in American…

This paper examines the context of teacher education in which certain students work as teachers whilst at the same time they study in a teacher education programme. The two phenomena that are discussed are the integration of theory and practice, and learning while working. These are located in the wider framework of teachers' pedagogical thinking,…

A study in Finland examined rural students' experiences of the transition from a small rural primary school (grades 1-6) to a bigger village secondary school (grades 7-9). Qualitative data were obtained from essays written by 132 students in 13 small rural primary schools, 1 village school, and 1 city school. Students wrote the essays as…

The paper presents an evaluation of student and tutor experiences in the introductory module of a European Masters programme in e-Learning, Multimedia and Consultancy. The aims and outline of the Masters programme are described, together with the pedagogical approach adopted in the introductory module which explores open and flexible learning…