Ett relevant, intresseväckande, faktabetonat och diskussionsorienterat ämne

Finländska klasslärare talar om sin undervisning i samhällslära

Resumé

Social studies was introduced as a school subject in Finnish upper primary grades (4-6) by the current national curricula for comprehensive education 2014. Previously, social studies was taught only in grades 7-9 in the Finnish comprehensive school. The Finnish primary school teachers have by now taught social studies for some years. In this article, the research interest is focused on how five Finnish primary school teachers perceive social studies as a school subject and how they describe their teaching in social studies. The investigation is grounded in Berlin-didactic theory and uses its structural and factor analysis to identify the teachers’ views on aims, content, methods, and media for social studies in primary education, as well as their personal approaches towards the subject. Data was collected in early spring 2022, and the material is analysed through an abductive thematic analysis. The results show that all five teachers supported social studies teaching in upper primary education, as the subject deals with the society surrounding the pupils. Overall, the teachers seemed to have embraced the new teaching assignment of social studies with engagement and enthusiasm. Social studies in the teachers’ practice was characterized as a fact-based subject, dealing with micro-perspectives on society. The textbook functioned as a primary teaching source and discussions as the central teaching method. The age, previous knowledge and questions of their students were central factors determining the teachers’ didactical choices of content and methods. The analysis reveals several potential research areas for further investigation in Finnish primary social studies education, such as teaching economics and tools for dealing with societal conflicts in a more analytical way. Overall, the discussion of what constitutes the core of social studies in Finnish primary education needs to be further addressed.