The aim of the study was to explore the Finnish preservice and inservice teachers' knowledge of language constructs relevant for literacy acquisition. A total of 150 preservice teachers and 74 inservice teachers participated in the study by filling out a questionnaire that assessed self-perceived expertise in reading instruction, knowledge of…

Compares British and Finnish reading instruction in the primary grades. (RB)

Results of a study of early reading responses of young children in a Finnish preschool challenge the belief that grapheme-phoneme regularity is a critical factor in beginning reading. (JM)

Reviews the typical approach (synthetic phonics) to teaching reading in Finland. Suggests that teachers in English-speaking countries can learn from problems Finnish teachers face and vice versa. Finds that, despite a highly regular writing system, Finnish teachers find that a heavy phonics emphasis does not solve their reading instruction…

A 13-month study investigated phonological abilities and reading acquisition in six 7-year-old Finnish nonreaders. Results found gradual progress at the group level; however, analysis of the individual profiles indicated large interindividual variations in the rate of improvement and in the relationship between different phonological manipulation…

Twenty-six Finnish at-risk first-graders received practice in linguistic awareness. When compared to controls on phonological awareness, listening comprehension, and WISC-R scores, the intervention group showed a more rapid building-up of phonological awareness, especially phoneme-blending ability, as well as superiority in word recognition,…