This article explores the positioning of dual qualifications (DQs) in the Finnish education policy and the education system since the late 1980s. The analysis is carried out in the context of academic-vocational divide. At the end of the 1980s, Finland questioned the functionality of the strict academic-vocational divide in post-compulsory…

This article argues that women's vocational education needs to be viewed in relation to the development of vocational education and training (VET) more broadly. The history of women's VET is also a history of the term "women's education" itself and how, almost a century after it was introduced, this term is hardly used. Instead, we see…

Educational equality has been a central tenet framing educational policy in Nordic welfare states and stimulating school reforms in the 1960s and 1970s. However, the conceptualisation of equality has fluctuated, reflecting the changing economic and political climate within which policy statements have been made. In this article, we analyse policy…

This article analyses and compares the evolving role of general subjects in the curricula of initial upper secondary vocational education and training (VET) in Finland and Sweden during the 1990s and 2010s. The research illustrates how Bernstein's concept of 'pedagogic code' supports comparative studies on principles guiding changes to curricula…

Finland continues to lead the world in the global Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) results (Ministry of Education and Culture, 2016). Much has been written about Finland's common basic curriculum for all (grades one to nine), however little has been shared regarding Finland's secondary vocational education programs. Finland has…

Understanding today's Vocational Education and Training (VET) systems requires a comprehension of the rise and development, i.e. of the foundations of topical VET. This book provides a comparative view of its development in Europe. The contributions of renowned authors give insight into conceptual questions, cases, and challenges in this field.

Within most educational systems, men and women tend to specialize in different fields of study. Comparing Austria and Finland, this article traces the extent and patterns of gender segregation within different educational levels between 1981 and 2005. Relying on official enrollment figures, a logarithmic index is used to measure overall and…

This paper describes the development of education of students with special needs in vocational education. The paper is based on a case study research conducted in 2001-2005 in Jyvaskyla Municipal Federation of Vocational Education in Central Finland. The study consisted of two parts: firstly of the historical analysis of special educational…

Examines the attitudes of Finnish employers, employees, and the government over the last three centuries toward methods of acquiring vocational competencies needed in working life. Focuses on the apprenticeship/journeyman/master model and the vocational classroom model. (JOW)

Reviews the history of industrial training in Finland and analyzes the Finnish school system and the work environment. Highlighted are (1) development of rationalization training, (2) development of managerial training, (3) development of correspondence training courses, (4) training in private companies, and (5) industrial training in the past…

This study of the status and growth of vocational education in Finland was excerpted from Educational Reform in Finland in the 1970s (Reference Publications 4, Helsinki, Ministry of Education, 1970). (Editor)

Changes in the economy, nature, production and society together with increasing scientific and technological knowledge make demands of transforming school teaching in the field of technology education. This article analyses current trends in Finnish technology education. The aim of the article is to explore briefly the integration between Science…

By making visible certain entities, phenomena, changes and continuities as being relevant to vocational education, researchers are joint definers of work and education at their sub-national, national and supranational levels. Which stories and mappings are going to have currency in transnational discourses on VET? Studies about transformation of…

The overall educational strategy within the relevant historical, social, and economic contexts is described in a summary of the broad outlines of Finnish educational systems and reforms. Explanation of the comprehensive school experiment for primary, secondary, and vocational education precedes discussion of the higher education system, teacher…

Three parties in the present Finnish educational debate are identified: those who argue that the government lacks a clear comprehensive view of educational policy; those who defend the results of social democratic policy; and those who argue for economic competitiveness as the main goal of education. (MLW)