Addressing collaborative learning in Finnish teacher education

Abstract

Little has been known about the implementation of collaborative learning (CL) in the context of teacher education and preparation of students for transferring their skills in CL into practice. Kaendler et al. (2015) state that teachers’ competencies related to the implementation of collaborative learning in practice should be fostered during teacher education. This research seeks to answer the questions of how CL is addressed and incorporated in Finnish teacher education and what strategies are applied to develop theoretical and practical skills of pre-service teachers in CL. To answer them, I invited for participation 6 experts involved in the development of teacher education curricula from 5 Finnish universities. The data, collected through semi-structured interviews, was analyzed through the Grounded Theory Approach (GTA), which usually results in the creation of a theory. However, the aim of this study was to develop a comprehensive description and understanding of the presence of CL as a 21st century skill in Finnish teacher education. I singled out five main themes (Defining CL, Evaluating CL, Identifying CL in Curriculum, Teacher trainers’ work in development of CL practices, Describing CL from students’ perspective), that identify CL from various aspects, point out its benefits and challenges, what students know and do not know about CL, and suggest what teacher trainers should do to foster CL in teacher training. These themes show that CL is not explicitly addressed in Finnish Teacher Education and there are several areas that need to be improved, including professional training of teacher educators, development of awareness of the concept of CL and positive attitudes towards it as well as the requirements related to the incorporation of CL in the curriculum.