A Study on the System to Educate Teachers Who will Teach Primary School English at Finnish Universities

2017 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26370728
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Foreign language education
• Research Institution: Kansai Gaidai University (2015-2017); Naruto University of Education (2014)
• Principal Investigator: ITO Harumi 関西外国語大学, 外国語学部, 教授 (90176355)
• Research Collaborator: Kuure Leena オウル大学 ; Blomberg Seija オウル大学 ; Jeskanen Seija 東フィンランド大学 ; Watson Greg 東フィンランド大学 ; Koivistoinen Hilkka 東フィンランド大学 ; Hamalainen Seppo ユバスキュラ大学 ; Sarja Anneli ユバスキュラ大学 ; Heimovaara Elisa ユバスキュラ大学 ; Hughes Glyn ユバスキュラ大学 ; Kalaja Paula ユバスキュラ大学 ; Kalaja Mari ユバスキュラ大学 ; Jaatinen Riitta タンペレ大学 ; Klemola Juhani タンペレ大学 ; Toivonen Vesa タンペレ大学 ; Tsuomi Marja タンペレ大学 ; Garant Michael ヘルシンキ大学 ; Lavonen Jari ヘルシンキ大学 ; Tanskanen Sanna-Kaisa ヘルシンキ大学 ; Pietilä Päivi トゥルク大学 ; Smeds John トゥルク大学 ; Niemi Tuija トゥルク大学
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2018-03-31
• Keywords: フィンランド / 小学校英語 / 教員養成システム / 小学校英語教科化 / 教科ジェネラリスト

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Since both class teachers and subject teachers can teach English at primary school in Finland, a field research was conducted at six Finnish universities offering programmes for educating both class teachers and subject teachers. This field research disclosed that the most distinctive feature of the programmes for educating prospective teachers who will be able to teach English at primary school lies in the system of educating subject generalists who will be able to teach English as a subject teacher at any level of schooling, primary, lower secondary, or upper secondary. This is in sharp contrast with the system in Japan, where English subject teachers will be able to teach English only at lower secondary or upper secondary school, not at primary school. The Finnish system has a number of significant implications for Japan, where securing a sufficient number of English subject teachers who will be able to teach English at primary school is an urgent issue to solve.

Free Research Field

英語教育学