Research Proposal

Here is the my completed Research Proposal.  Yay!
Trace

Tracy Tasso

Prof. Sonia Apgar Begert

English 102

05 May 2015

Introduction

U.S. school performance is always a concern for parents, educators, and those who wish for intelligent adults able to succeed in today’s world.  It has been shown for many years that America’s schools are not succeeding in accomplishing this task.  The country of Finland has repeatedly shown extraordinarily outstanding results in quality education.  It consistently ranks among the best educational systems in the world. This project will compare the United States school system with that of Finland, with the topic of school reform in mind.  Should America’s schools incorporate Finnish teaching techniques?  Should the school structure, (public schools, charter schools, etc.), be changed to one that is more like Finland’s?  Does the United States have to change more than just its schools in order to succeed at raising children prepared for the world? It may be that it is not only Finland’s schools that better serve to educate children, but rather its entire social contract.

Review of Literature

Sources reviewed include “What We Can Learn from Finland’s Successful School Reform” by Linda Darling-Hammond from a 2010 issue of Rethinking Schools.  Its author describes the historical timeline of Finnish school reforms that has resulted in one of the top school systems in the world.  Another article, “Finland is #1!” by Wayne D’Orio from the Administrator Magazine website, describes the differences in Finnish society that has contributed to its success in education.  LynNell Hancock wrote “Educating Americans for the 21^st Century” for Smithsonian in 2011 and this article has excellent interview quotes from Finnish teachers and educators. Another good article that spoke directly with Finnish instructors was “Finland, Collaboration, and Co-teaching” by David Loertscher and Carol Koechlin from Teacher Librarian, 2015.  In this small article the two educators describe the flexibility of teachers deciding for themselves to teach their respective classes together. “Teacher Education in Finland: A Review of a National Effort for Preparing Teachers for the Future” by Olli-Pekka Malinen and others in The Curriculum Journal, 2012, is an excellent description of teacher training and requirements in Finland. It will be used to contrast American teacher education. “Why is Finnish Teacher Education Successful? Some Goals Finnish Teacher Educators Have for Their Teaching” by Marja-Terttu Tryggvason in European Journal of Teacher Education”, 2009 further discusses teacher education in Finland and how it is designed. “Hard-wired for Innovation? Comparing Two Policy Paths Toward Innovative Schooling” by Scott Ellison is from a 2009 issue of International Education and discusses the different policies of Finland and the United States in regards to school reform, focusing on how the United States leans towards a marketplace approach.  One source that was reviewed but most likely will not be used in the final paper is “Finnish Lessons: What Can the World Learn from Educational Change in Finland?” by Anja Franko from a 2011 issue of CEPS Journal: Center for Educational Policy Studies Journal.  This article was in reality merely a review of the book “Finnish Lessons: What Can the World Learn from Educational Change in Finland?” by Pasi Sahlberg, Another source that likely will not be used is “Finnish Education – Reaching High Quality and Promoting Equity”  by Pirjo Linnakylae from an issue of Education Review.  I do not have the exact print year, but as the article says that the Finnish population was relatively homogenous, I believe it is too old for my purposes.  “Towards Community Oriented Curriculum in Finnish Literacy Education” by Marita Maekinen in 2013’s European Journal of Teacher Education is a dense report on national literacy in Finland, and how it has developed.

Plan to Collect Information

I plan to find around three other peer-reviewed articles on the American school system.  I need this information to balance out with all of the information that I have off the Finnish educational system.  I also plan to watch the documentary “Waiting for Superman” about school reform in America.  The same director/producer of that documentary also, previously, did a documentary on American teachers.  I plan to view it, as well. Finally, I plan to find visuals – charts, tables, etc. – to include in my paper in order to enhance my information.

Project Timeline

I plan to finish finding my research sources this week.  Following that I will spend the next two weeks reviewing all of my collected data.  The final week of May I will complete my paper’s outline, rationale, and abstract.  The first two weeks of June I plan to write drafts of the paper and have them edited, reviewed, and commented on by various peers.  On June 15^th I will have the final paper.

Working Bibliography

Darling-Hammond, Linda. “Steady Work: Finland Builds a Strong Teaching and Learning System.” Rethinking Schools. 2010 Vol. 24 No. 4. Print.

D’Orio, Wayne. “Finland is #1” Administrator Magazine: Curriculum. Web. 23 Apr. 2015

Ellison, Scott. “Hard-Wired For Innovation? Comparing Two Policy Paths toward Innovative Schooling.” International Education. 39.1 (Fall 2009) 30-48. Print.

Franko, Anja. “Finnish Lessons: What Can the World Learn from Educational Change in Finland?” CEPS Journal: Center for Educational Policy Studies Journal. 167-170. Print.

Hancock, LynNell. “Educating Americans for the 21^st Century.” Smithsonian. 1 Sep. 2011. Print.

Linnakylae, Pirjo. “Finnish Education Reaching High Quality and Promoting Equity.” Education Review. 17.2 Print.

Loertscher, David, and Carol Koechlin. “Finland, Collaboration, and Co-teaching.” TeacherLibrarian RSS. El Kurdyla LLC, 1 Feb. 2015. Web. 23 Apr. 2015 http:www.teacherlibrarian.com

MaeKinen, Marita. “Towards Community Orientated Curriculum in Finnish Literacy Education.” European Journal of Teacher Education. Routledge. Vol. 36, No. 1 97-112. 2013. Print.

Malinen, Olli-Pekka, Vaesaenen, P., Savolainen, H. “Teacher Education in Finland: A review of a national effort for preparing teachers for the future.” The Curriculum Journal. Vol. 23 No. 4 Dec 2012 567-584.

Tryggvason, Marja-Terttu. “Why is Finnish Teacher Education Successful? Some goals Finnish teacher educators have for their teaching.” European Journal of Teacher Education. Vol. 32 No. 4 Nov 2009 369-382 Routledge. Print.