FINNISH KNOWLEDGE IN MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCES IN 2002

Transcription

1 FINNISH KNOWLEDGE IN MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCES IN 2002 FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME LUMA SUPPORT GROUP FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME 1

2 2 FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME

3 ABSTRACT On the basis of the public debate fuelled by scientific communities, industry and other players, Prime Minister Paavo Lipponen's first government incorporated into its programme the objective of raising the level of mathematical and scientific knowledge in Finland to the international standard. In 1996, in order to achieve the objective, the Ministry of Education launched an extensive programme to develop knowledge in mathematics and the natural sciences (LUMA Joint National Action) for In 1998, an interim assessment of the implementation of the programme was made, on the basis of which some aspects of the programme were revised. A number of quantitative and qualitative objectives and numerous subprojects have been appointed for the LUMA Programme. Not all of the Programme's objectives have been achieved, but in many subareas the trend has been right. The enrolment in science and technology in higher education has increased even beyond objectives, but the numbers of upper secondary school students studying advanced courses in mathematics and extensive syllabuses in the natural sciences have not risen at the desired rate. Thus, not enough of these kinds of upper secondary school students graduate for the needs of higher education and the information society. It can indeed be observed that, in its current form, the matriculation examination fails to support study of the natural sciences adequately and does not encourage students to take advanced courses in mathematics. For this reason, efforts must continue both for increasing the choices of broad syllabuses at upper secondary schools and for supporting the initial phase of studies by students entering higher education with narrower knowledge. Girls/women in particular would have the prerequisites to select the advanced course in mathematics and especially physics at upper secondary school considerably more often than at present. They are also still a clear minority among physics and technology students in higher education, even though their share of technology students appears to be rising gradually. On the other hand, university studies in biology and geography and the training of class and kindergarten teachers do need more men. The number of those studying to become subject teachers ought also to increase especially in mathematics, so that the teachers born in the baby boom FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME 3

4 years, who are due to retire at the end of the decade, could be replaced with competent teachers. In basic education, the quality of learning results looks good in the light of international studies. In the OECD's PISA study, Finns ranked in the targeted best quarter in both mathematics and the natural sciences and, also according to the IEA's TIMSS 1999 study, Finns are above the international average. In addition, equality of education appears to be implemented well both regionally and between schools and genders. The dispersion of the results is one of the smallest in the international data, i.e., there are relatively few drop-outs and high-flyers. Nevertheless, according to international and national estimates, 10 % 20 % of the age-group have such defects in knowledge of mathematics and the natural sciences that they will face difficulties in continuation studies. In fact, this is already evident in the general upper secondary school but even more so in vocational basic education because the majority of those with poor or fair skills in mathematics and the natural sciences apply for vocational education. During the LUMA Joint National Action, teaching in vocational education has in fact been developed to take better account of students with defects in their basic knowledge and skills, but challenges will remain in this domain in future, too. On the other hand, the number of high-flyers in Finland could be increased. The extra hour of mathematics in the upper forms in the new division of lessons in basic education and also the clarification of the position of physics and chemistry in the lower forms will support improvement in knowledge and skills in these subjects in future. Also worthy of note is the fact that although knowledge of mathematics among girls and boys is the same when they complete comprehensive school, a considerably smaller percentage of girls choose advanced courses in mathematics at upper secondary school. This is probably to be explained by the fact, observed in studies, that girls have less self-confidence than boys in their knowledge and skills in mathematics. The situation is similar in physics and chemistry, too. More and more attention will have to continue to be paid to boosting girls' self-confidence and motivation to study these subjects. The Joint National Action Programme is distinguished by the fact that several different players are involved, each with their own resources. Not only the state's education administration but also the municipalities, schools, 4 FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME

5 educational establishments and higher education institutions as well as industry and many organisations have made a significant contribution. The Ministry of Education and National Board of Education have allocated a total of EUR 34 million in development funds for the Joint National Action and the National Board of Education's project group has devoted approx. 20 man-years during the project to developing teaching in mathematics and the natural sciences. Nevertheless, the most important work has been carried out at schools and educational establishments, where teachers have undertaken additional studies and developed teaching across subject boundaries. Teachers' in-service training has indeed been one of the most visible of the projects in the LUMA Programme: approx. 11,000 teachers have taken part during the Programme period in supplementary training funded by the National Board of Education, and completed some 85,000 Finnish credits, i.e., roughly 128,000 ECTS credits. The maintainers of educational establishments have provided the development work with economic opportunities in the form of resources for educational and development work and learning environment investments. Subject teacher organisations, other organisations and industry have supported the teachers' development work in a variety of ways. Schools, educational establishments and higher education institutions have engaged in significant co-operation that transcends the boundaries between the various levels. Higher education institutions have provided schools with their equipment and expertise, given teachers supplementary training and carried out research and researcher training projects relating to the learning and teaching of mathematics and the natural sciences. These have been funded by, inter alia, the Academy of Finland. Knowledge of mathematics and the natural sciences has also been fostered in the field of lifelong learning by directing measures to early childhood education, liberal adult education, publishing, hobby and club activity and also information. The science centres have, for their part, carried out valuable work in this sector. FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME 5

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7 CONTENTS ABSTRACT 3 CONTENTS 7 1 THE LUMA PROGRAMME 9 2 THE OBJECTIVES OF THE LUMA PROGRAMME AND THEIR IMPLEMENTATION Enrolment in higher education The matriculation examination Knowledge and skills in mathematics and the natural sciences among schoolchildren Gender equality Knowledge and skills in mathematics and the natural sciences in vocational education The opportunities for citizens Training of subject teachers of mathematics and the natural sciences 40 3 THE LUMA PROJECTS AND THEIR IMPLEMENTATION The development and information network Starting level measurements LUMA in the municipalities and schools The LUMA project and vocational education Assessment of and research on mathematics and science teaching Mathematics and natural sciences in schools and educational establishments Quality assessments as a natural part of the learning process Equality-enhancing projects Special support measures Teacher training reform projects National development programme for projects of lifelong learning Municipalities, business and industry, and research institutes participate in the Joint National Action Development of co-operation between universities, polytechnics, upper secondary schools, and vocational institutions 155 FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME 7

8 SOURCES Materials for Joint National Action LUMA Other LUMA materials 167 LIST OF ANNEXES FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME

9 1 THE LUMA PROGRAMME On the basis of the public debate fuelled by scientific communities, industry and other players, Finnish Prime Minister Paavo Lipponen's first government incorporated into its programme the objective of raising the Finns' knowledge of mathematics and the natural sciences to an international level. According to the programme of Lipponen's second government (1999 ), knowledge of mathematics and the natural sciences is to continue to be strengthened. In 1995, on the basis of the Government programme, the National Board of Education launched a project to develop the teaching of mathematics and the natural sciences (the LUMA Project). The Ministry of Education extended the Programme to embrace players outside the school system as well and, in 1996, announced an extensive programme to develop knowledge in mathematics and the natural sciences (LUMA Joint National Action) for (Ministry of Education 1996). The LUMA Programme is a joint endeavour by the education authorities, schools and educational establishments, with contributions also being made by higher education institutions, industry and a number of organisations. The Joint National Action (Programme) is distinguished by the fact that the various players take part in it with their own resources. In 1998, an interim assessment of the implementation of the Joint National Action (Programme) was implemented (Ministry of Education 1999a), on the basis of which the programme was revised (Ministry of Education 1999b). The various parties have invested considerable intellectual and material resources in the Joint National Action. The Ministry of Education and National Board of Education have assigned a total of approx. 34 million euros in development funds to the Joint National Action. The greatest share of this covers increasing the mathematics, science and technology education at universities (approx. EUR 14.3 million), considerable in-service training for teachers (approx. EUR 9.4 million) and a programme to expand teacher training (approx. EUR 3 million), as well as equipment acquisition subsidies for pilot upper secondary schools (approx. EUR 1.7 million). In addition, funds have been assigned for the co-ordination of the LUMA Programme and for various education development projects. The National Board of Education's Project Group has spent approx. 20 man-years during the project FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME 9

10 on developing the teaching of mathematics and the natural sciences. Nevertheless, the most important work has been carried out in schools and educational establishments, where teachers have taken supplementary studies and developed teaching across subject boundaries. The maintainers of educational establishments have provided the development work with economic opportunities in the form of resources for teaching and development work and learning environment investments. Subject teacher organisations, other organisations and industry have supported the teachers' development work in a variety of ways. From industry, for example, Nokia PLC has provided EUR 1.38 million in support for schools' equipment acquisitions and activity and for the education of the particularly gifted. In addition, the Economic Information Office has invested approx. EUR 2.0 million in schools' support material and in various publicity campaigns directed at the young, girls in particular. The Chemical Industry Federation, the Federation of Finnish Metal, Engineering and Electrotechnical Industries (MET ry.) and the Federation of Finnish Electrical and Electronics Industry (SET ry.) have also supported LUMA work through numerous development projects. Schools, educational establishments and higher education institutions have engaged in considerable co-operation across the boundaries between the levels. Higher education institutions have made their equipment and expertise available to schools, provided teachers with in-service training, and implemented research and researcher training projects relating to the learning and teaching of mathematics and the natural sciences, funded, inter alia, by the Academy of Finland. Knowledge and skills in mathematics and the natural sciences has also been fostered in the field of lifelong learning by directing measures at early childhood education, liberal adult education, publishing, hobby and club activity, and information. Science centres have, for their part, carried out valuable work in this sector. In 1996, in order to support the Joint National Action, the Ministry of Education appointed a working group (the LUMA Support Group), whose task is to - encourage participation by various responsible organisations in the implementation of the Programme - monitor and support the implementation of the objectives and to - take part in arranging assessments of the Programme in 1998 and FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME

11 Ministers of Education and Science Olli-Pekka Heinonen and Maija Rask have served as Chairmen of the Support Group, and Permanent Secretaries Vilho Hirvi and Markku Linna as Deputy Chairmen (Annex 1). The need for the Joint National Action was justified by recording expertise needs and shortcomings in the original Joint National Action Programme, some of which were revised after the interim assessment. The revised LUMA Programme notes the following: "Reasons for the growing need for mathematics and the natural sciences: - Understanding of and expertise in mathematics and the natural sciences as an important part of basic education in modern society and in the future, - The demands of the information society, - Growth in knowledge-intensive industries, in information industry sectors in particular, - Safeguarding of Finland's competitiveness and manpower requirement, - Implementation of the principles of lifelong learning, - The needs for knowledge and skills in the natural sciences which safeguards sustainable development, - The information needs of political and economic decision-making, - The everyday need of citizens for knowledge and skills in mathematics and technology. The most serious shortcomings in mathematical and scientific knowledge: - The number of those studying advanced courses in mathematics and advanced courses in physics and chemistry at upper secondary school will not suffice for the needs of technology and science education at universities and polytechnics. - The learning results in physics, chemistry and biology are inadequate for application and experimental work skills in particular. - Too few subject teachers of mathematics and the natural sciences graduate for the estimated need. - Few women study in physics and technology sectors. FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME 11

12 - In mathematics, school studies advance more slowly than at international level." The original Joint National Action Programme defined six objectives for the Joint National Action, to be achieved by means of ten projects. Each project consisted of several sub-projects. In the revised Programme, there are seven objectives, and their contents and the projects were rendered more precise to some extent. The objectives of the revised Programme are: 1. The total annual intake at universities and polytechnics in natural resource sectors and in technology and transport will be at least 17,000 students. A total of a minimum of 10,000 master's degrees and polytechnic degrees will be taken in these sectors each year. 2. In the matriculation examination, more than 17,000 students will take the examination for the advanced syllabus in mathematics each year. In the general studies test, more than 12,000 students will take physics tasks and more than 9,000 chemistry tasks. The shares of biology and geography will remain at least at the present level of 15,000 candidates. More than 10,000 of those who complete upper secondary school education will have taken at least six advanced courses of physics, and more than 8,000 will have taken at least three advanced courses in chemistry. 3. Schoolchildren and students will attain good and wide-ranging knowhow in mathematics and the natural sciences, including in particular the conceptual management of things and application of knowledge, as well as skills at experimental and observational work. In international comparisons (inter alia, PISA and TIMSS-R) Finland will rank among the best quarter of the OECD countries. 4. Gender equality will improve. At upper secondary school, more than 40% of the students on advanced courses in physics will be girls. More than 30% of new students in technical fields will be women. More than 30% of new students in class teacher training and university biology courses will be men. 5. Students at vocational institutions will achieve the skills in mathematics and the natural sciences that are demanded in different sectors and professions and required for continuation studies. Teachers in 12 FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME

13 vocational education will have a command of recognising students with learning difficulties and of guiding them, and will undertake to develop action-based teaching methods. 6. Citizens will have opportunities to obtain the skills in mathematics and the natural sciences that are required by the information society and sustainable development. The potential of the educational establishments engaged in liberal adult education in particular and of advisory organisations and the media will be harnessed for this. 7. The number of subject teachers of mathematics and the natural sciences will correspond to the needs of schools and educational establishments and of other educational and cultural activity. Each year, a minimum of 140 subject teachers with mathematics as their major, a minimum of 90 with physics or chemistry as their major and a minimum of 80 with biology or geography as their major will graduate. The projects in the revised LUMA Programme are: 1. The pilot activity by municipalities, schools and educational establishments, launched by the National Board of Education will be continued in a reformed form, along with interest group co-operation, and the dissemination of the results obtained will be rendered more effective. 2. Assessment, research and researcher training relating to the teaching of mathematics and the natural sciences will be rendered more effective, along with the utilisation of assessment and research results in the development of teaching and teacher training 3. The prestige of mathematics and the natural sciences will be increased in the teaching and syllabuses of schools and educational establishments, and resources will be assigned for the formation of appropriate learning environments 4. Quality assessments as a natural part of the learning process 5. Projects to increase equality 6. Special support measures 7. Projects to reform teacher training 8. A national development programme for lifelong learning projects 9. The municipalities, industry and research institutions involved in the FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME 13

14 Joint National Action 10. Development of co-operation between universities, polytechnics, upper secondary schools and vocational institutions The sub-projects of these projects are shown with dashes in the subheadings in Chapter 3. After the interim assessment, a research project into the effects of the LUMA Joint National Action was launched in accordance with the revised Programme. This was implemented by the University of Jyväskylä's Institute for Educational Research (Aroluoma 2001). In addition, the National Board of Education's LUMA Project has published several reports on the progress of the Project and on associated indicators (National Board of Education ). Other important sources have been the learning result assessments conducted by the National Board of Education (see sources) and the reports of the international TIMSS and PISA studies (see sources). Other co-operation bodies have also published a lot of material relating to the Joint National Action, which is listed in the sources. The data for this national final assessment have been gathered not only from the above sources but also by sending questionnaires to LUMA municipalities and teacher training schools, universities, polytechnics and other co-operation bodies. Responses to the questionnaires have been coming in since early 2002, and so, as a rule, they provided information on the situation and development up until the end of Under the Joint National Action Programme, the national objectives set by the Ministry of Education and the international standard will be used as the criteria in the final assessment. This final report examines the implementation of the national objectives and projects in accordance with the structure of the Programme. The objectives according to both the original and the revised Programme are thereby presented in each section. The international assessment will be arranged in the autumn of 2002 and a separate report concerning it will be published. 14 FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME

15 2 THE OBJECTIVES OF THE LUMA PROGRAMME AND THEIR IMPLEMENTATION 2.1 ENROLMENT IN HIGHER EDUCATION Original objective: The annual intake will be approx. 14,000 students in natural resource sectors and in technology and transport at universities and polytechnics. Revised objective: The total annual intake in natural resource sectors and in technology and transport at universities and polytechnics will be at least 17,000 students. A total of a minimum of 10,000 master's degrees and polytechnic degrees will be taken in these sectors each year. The original objective has already been achieved at the start of the programme period and the number of new students in these fields has continued to grow. In 2001, there were 9,101 new students on university courses in the natural sciences, technology and in agricultural and forestry sciences and 11,719 on polytechnic courses in the natural resource sector and in technology and transport (courses for young people and adults), i.e., a total of 20,820 (Diagrams 1 2). The number of polytechnic degrees taken has grown briskly, a natural consequence of the establishment and gradual expansion of the polytechnic system in the 1990s. On the other hand, the growth in the number of master's degrees is slower. In 2001, 5,203 polytechnic degrees were taken, and 3,875 master's degrees, i.e., a total of 9,078. If the overall growth continues according to the trend for , the objective of 10,000 degrees will be attained in 2002 (Diagrams 1 2). There are more detailed itemisations in statistical annex 24. FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME 15

16 New students of the natural sciences, technical sciences and agricultural and forestry sciences at universities and students graduating with a master's degree New students Master's degrees Diagram 1. New students of the natural sciences, technical sciences and agricultural and forestry sciences at universities and students graduating with a master's degree Sources: Educational establishment statistics and Persons applying for and accepted for places at higher education institutions 2001, Statistics Finland; graduates in 2001: KOTA, Ministry of Education. New polytechnic students of technology and transport and of the natural resource sector and polytechnic degrees taken New students Polytechnic degrees Diagram 2. New polytechnic students of technology and transport and of the natural resource sector and polytechnic degrees taken (courses for young people and adults). Sources: Educational establishment statistics and Persons applying for and accepted for places at higher education institutions in 2001, Statistics Finland; graduates in 2001: AMKOTA, Ministry of Education. The growth in student numbers and the increase in the dispersion of their basic knowledge in mathematics and the natural sciences has led to higher education institutions having a growing need to support students in the initial phase of studies in mathematics and the natural sciences. For this reason, there is a need for measures that will improve the knowledge and skills of basic school pupils and of students at second-level educational establishments. 16 FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME

17 2.2 THE MATRICULATION EXAMINATION Original objective: In the matriculation examination, more than 16,000 students will take the more demanding examination in mathematics. In the general studies test, more than 9,000 students will take physics tasks and more than 8,000 chemistry tasks. The shares of biology and geography will remain at at least the present level. Revised objective: In the matriculation examination, more than 17,000 students will take the examination for the advanced syllabus in mathematics each year. In the general studies test, more than 12,000 students will take physics tasks and more than 9,000 chemistry tasks. The shares of biology and geography will remain at least at the present level of 15,000 candidates. More than 10,000 of those who complete upper secondary school education will have taken at least six advanced courses of physics, and more than 8,000 will have taken at least three advanced courses in chemistry. MATHEMATICS In recent years, the number of students taking the examination for the advanced syllabus in mathematics has gradually risen, reaching 14,729 in 2001 (all types of candidates 1), spring and autumn combined). If the trend continues along the same lines, they will number approx. 15,000 in 2002, and so the objective of 17,000 will not be achieved (Diagram 3). If one examines actual matriculation candidates alone1, the numbers of candidates taking the advanced syllabus in mathematics are a further two thousand lower: in 2001, they numbered 12,469. In the spring of 2001, candidates taking the advanced syllabus in mathematics accounted for 47.5% of all candidates taking mathematics. Approx. 40% of students completing upper secondary school have 1) In the matriculation examination, the type of candidate known as actual candidates refers to candidates taking the upper secondary school syllabus who are taking the matriculation examination in the subject in question for the first time. All types of candidates also include retakers of an approved and rejected examination, students taking a vocational qualification and other special cases. The current statistical system employed by the Matriculation Examination Board permits the number of candidates taking part in each examination sitting to be ascertained, but not the performances of matriculants who have gained the examination certificate in a specific year. FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME 17

18 taken the advanced syllabus in mathematics (40.1% in the spring of 2001). In recent years, this percentage has barely altered, but, nevertheless, the number of those opting for the advanced syllabus has risen owing to the growth in the total number of upper secondary school students. In 2001, 13,864 chose the advanced syllabus in mathematics and 20,764 the short course in mathematics (Diagram 5). The numbers of those answering the mathematics test in the matriculation examination in the calendar years Short course Advanced cource Diagram 3. The numbers of those answering the mathematics test in the matriculation examination in the calendar years N.B., until 1996, only the numbers of actual candidates taking the examination in the spring were recorded. Since the opportunity for decentralising the matriculation examination which began in 1996, the records have also included those taking the examination in the autumn and the figures include all types of candidates. In the matriculation examinations, the aim is for an average of 5% of candidates to be failed, but in mathematics the failure percentages are usually higher: in the spring of 2001, 9.3% of those who had taken the advanced syllabus in mathematics and 10.9% of those who had taken the short course in mathematics were awarded the grade of failed. In the autumn examinations, the failure percentages are higher in the advanced syllabus in mathematics in particular (26.9% in the advanced syllabus and 11.8% in the short course in mathematics in the autumn of 2000). Source: Matriculation Examination Board THE GENERAL STUDIES TEST IN THE MATRICULATION EXAMINATION PHYSICS In , the number of actual candidates answering physics tasks in the general studies test has varied between 7,310 and 10,120 (Diagram 4). The inclusion of all types of candidates increases the numbers by approx. two thousand: in 2001, 9,012 of the actual candidates and 11,164 of all 18 FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME

19 candidates took physics. Thus, approx. a thousand more are needed for the objective to be reached, if all candidates are taken into account. In , 5,798 7,778 students completing the upper secondary school took a minimum of six advanced courses in physics annually; in 2001, they thus numbered 7,295. It appears that the objective of 10,000 will not be reached within the next few years (Diagram 5). CHEMISTRY In , a minimum of 4,014 and a maximum of 6,619 actual matriculation candidates have answered chemistry tasks in the general studies test. The inclusion of all types of candidates increases the numbers by a good thousand: in 2001, 5,027 of the actual candidates and 6,162 of all candidates took chemistry. The objective of 9,000 is still a long way off (Diagram 4). In recent years, the number of students completing upper secondary school who have taken a minimum of three advanced courses in chemistry has stabilised at around 6,000; in 2001, they numbered 6,018. It appears that the objective of 8,000 will not be reached within the next few years (Diagram 5). BIOLOGY AND GEOGRAPHY The number of actual candidates answering biology tasks has fallen from 18,100 in 1995 to 12,045 in The inclusion of all types of candidates increases the numbers by approx. three thousand: in 2001, 15,242 of all candidates answered biology tasks, which meets the objective of 15,000 (Diagram 4). The number of actual candidates answering geography tasks has varied. Nevertheless, it has remained almost every year above the objective of 15,000 (15,310 actual candidates in 2001). The inclusion of all types of candidates increases the numbers by almost four thousand: in 2001, 19,173 of all candidates answered geography tasks (Diagram 4). FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME 19

20 The trend in the numbers of actual matriculation candidates answering tasks in physics, chemistry and geography in the general studies test that forms part of the matriculation examination in Geography Biology Physics Chemistry Diagram 4. The trend in the numbers of actual matriculation candidates answering tasks in physics, chemistry and geography in the general studies test that forms part of the matriculation examination in N.B. until 1996, only the numbers of actual candidates taking the examination in the spring were recorded. Since the opportunity for decentralising the matriculation examination which began in 1996, the records have also included those taking the examination in the autumn. Each year, 28,000 33,000 candidates take part in the general studies examination. (28,544 in 2001). In the general studies examination, the candidates' failure percentage is close to the normative 5 per cent. Sources: Matriculation Examination Board and the indicator publications of the National Board of Education's LUMA Project. 20 FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME

21 Numbers of students completing the advanced syllabuses in mathematics and natural sciences of students taking the upper secondary school syllabus in the academic years % 23% 39% 38% 27% 25% 28% 28% 27% 25% 21% 21% 20% 19% 17% 17% Physics Chemistry Biology Geography 39% 40% 40% 41% Advanced course in mathematics Diagram 5. Numbers of students completing the advanced syllabuses in mathematics and natural sciences of students taking the upper secondary school syllabus in the academic years according to the year of completion of the academic year. The percentages above the columns indicate the ratio of those who took the syllabus in the subject in question to all students who took the upper secondary school syllabus. Since 2000, the figures have also included students on evening courses at adult upper secondary schools and upper secondary schools. Prior to that year, only students at day-time upper secondary schools were recorded. Each year, the upper secondary school syllabus is taken by more than 34,000 students, a good two thousand of whom are adult students (in 2000, the figures in question were 34,744 and 2,186). Sources: Indicator publications of the National Board of Education's LUMA Project and Statistics Finland as well as the National Board of Education's database on educational establishments OPTI. In the advanced syllabuses in mathematics, physics and chemistry, the quantitative objectives thus failed to be reached quite clearly in both the numbers participating in matriculation examinations and those taking the advanced syllabuses in particular. It can indeed be noted that the matriculation examination in its current form does not support adequately the study of the natural sciences nor encourage students to take the advanced syllabus in mathematics. The matriculation examination should be developed so that it is of greater benefit in student selections at universities and polytechnics. The effects of reforms to the matriculation examination are examined in Chapter ) Advanced syllabus refers to the fact that a minimum of six advanced courses have been taken in physics, three in chemistry, two in biology and two in geography, in addition to compulsory courses. There is one compulsory course in physics, one in chemistry, two courses in biology and two in geography. A minimum of ten compulsory courses have to be taken in the advanced syllabus in mathematics. FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME 21

22 2.3 KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS IN MATHEMATICS AND THE NATURAL SCIENCES AMONG SCHOOLCHILDREN Original objective: Schoolchildren and students will obtain good and wideranging knowledge and skills in mathematics and the natural sciences. In international comparisons, Finland will rank among the best quarter of OECD countries. Revised objective: Schoolchildren and students will obtain good and wide-ranging knowledge and skills in mathematics and the natural sciences, including in particular the conceptual management of things and application of knowledge as well as skills at experimental and observational work. In international comparisons (inter alia, PISA and TIMSS-R) Finland will rank among the best quarter of OECD countries. In Finland, the assessment of education is a statutory task of both the organiser of the education and the national education administration. The national assessments of basic education conducted by the National Board of Education are based on assessments, conducted every other year in alternate years, of mother tongue and literature as well as mathematics in the final phase of basic education. In addition, the results of other subjects and other knowledge and skills are assessed according to a separate plan. In addition to national assessments, Finland also takes part in some international comparisons. Among these, in the field of mathematics and the natural sciences, the most resources have been devoted to the OECD's PISA study and the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA)'s TIMSS-R study. Several universities and other bodies also carry out studies into learning results. These studies are described in greater detail in Chapter 3.4. NATIONAL ASSESSMENTS AND STUDIES During the LUMA Programme period, national assessments of learning results for mathematics and the natural sciences have been conducted in mathematics in 1998 (Korhonen 1999), 2000 (Korhonen 2001 and Niemi 2001) and 2002 (results have not yet been published) and in the natural sciences in 1998 (Rajakorpi 1999). These assessments have been made in 22 FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME

23 the final phase of basic education, and the assessment of mathematics in 2001 in year 6 as well. In addition to the above studies, the learning results for mathematics and the natural sciences in the vocational basic qualifications were assessed in 1998 (Wuolijoki 1999 and Saloheimo 1999). In addition, starting level measurements were carried out for the seventh class of the basic school and the starting group at upper secondary school in 1996 (Leino 1997) and 1999 (Rajakorpi 2000). The assessments of the vocational basic qualifications are described in Chapter 2.5 and the results of the starting level measurements in Chapter 3.1. The national assessment of learning results at the upper secondary school is based mainly on the matriculation examination system. The Matriculation Examination Board endeavours for its part to diversify analysis of the results by gathering a wider range of data on candidates and learning environments. Nevertheless, the matriculation examination does not provide information on all the subjects studied in schools and, on the other hand, not all candidates take part in the same examinations. The share of the natural sciences in the school's final examination depends on the student's choices. For this reason, in the autumn of 2001, the National Board of Education assessed the learning results in physics and chemistry of students in the third year at upper secondary school. The results of the assessment are due to be published at the end of 2002 (Halkka 2001). TIMSS AND PISA In the PISA study for 2000, Finnish schoolchildren in the ninth class rank among the best quarter of OECD countries in accordance with the objective of the LUMA Programme in both mathematics and the natural sciences. In terms of the pupils' point averages in mathematics, only Japan fared statistically significantly better than Finland; in the natural sciences, only Korea was significantly better than Finland. According to the TIMSS 1999 study, Finland ranked a good average among the 14 OECD countries involved. According to Pekka Kupari and Pasi Reinikainen, better success in the PISA study can be explained by at least the following aspects (Kupari et al. 2001, Välijärvi and Linnakylä 2002): - many of the contents included in the TIMSS study had not been taught to class 7 pupils in Finland, whereas, in many other countries, pupils FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME 23

24 had received a year or even two years more school tuition at the time of the study. - the emphasis in TIMSS was more on tasks which measure things that have been learnt at school, in which information only needs to be modified a little. On the other hand, PISA tasks require different data and processes to be combined in new situations. The situation descriptions of the PISA tasks were also often long, and so they called for good literacy and the ability to discover what was essential. These characteristics of PISA tasks have been emphasised in the syllabuses of the Finnish basic school. - the emphasis in the PISA natural sciences' tasks was more on learning contents examined in biology and geography lessons than was the case in TIMSS When examining the results of PISA, one should remember that, because mathematics and the natural sciences did not play a major role in the 2000 study, their tasks covered only part of the main content areas of these subjects. And so it will be interesting to look forward to the results for mathematics in the 2003 PISA and the results for the natural sciences in the 2006 PISA. By that time, the effects of the LUMA Programme ought to be comprehensibly visible in learning results. According to international assessments, the dispersion of learning results between different pupils, genders, schools, areas and language groups is one of the smallest among the comparison countries, i.e., equality of education is implemented well in Finland. There are thus relatively few complete drop-outs and very bright high-flyers in Finland alike. Despite this, at the weaker end, there are still too many pupils whose knowledge is defective to such an extent that they will have difficulties in later studies. In mathematics, it is estimated that approx. a fifth of pupils in the final phase of basic school fall into this category according to the 2000 national assessment, and in the natural sciences approx. 10% of class 7 pupils according to TIMSS In future, the aim should be to reduce still further the number of these poor performers and, on the other hand, the number of the brightest high-flyers could certainly be increased. 24 FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME

25 KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS IN MATHEMATICS According to various assessments of mathematics, it appears that, in the higher classes for basic education, Finnish schoolchildren have a reasonably good command of the application of knowledge and problem-solving referred to in the LUMA objective. The mathematics contents which they manage the best are fractions and number sense and the processing of data, statistics and graphs. On the other hand, in algebra and to some extent in geometry, sub-areas that have traditionally been regarded as central, their expertise is weaker. The greatest room for improvement here is in the conceptual management of things. The mathematical maturity of students finishing upper secondary school is measured by means of a matriculation examination. According to Aatos Lahtinen, Chairman of the Matriculation Examination Board (National Board of Education 2002), pupils who have taken the short syllabus in mathematics in particular often have considerable difficulties using the opportunities provided by mathematics for solving even simple problems. Another cause for concern is the sharp division of pupils who have taken the advanced syllabus in mathematics into better and worse achievers, something which is manifested in the poor level of those taking the test in advanced mathematics as a supplementary examination, in the choice of the test in mathematics based on the short syllabus and failure to take the examination in mathematics at all. These matters ought to be tackled, inter alia, by reforming the distribution of classroom hours and the core curricula so that enough time is left for assimilating core matters. KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS IN THE NATURAL SCIENCES According to the 2000 PISA, Finnish class 9 pupils were best at tasks in which they were required to display comprehension of scientific concepts, i.e., it appears that this LUMA objective will be achieved. They were also better than the average for the OECD in knowledge acquisition skills, something which can be interpreted as being indicative of the skills in experimental and observational work which are referred to as a LUMA objective. The content areas of the natural sciences in which pupils were particularly competent were life and health. They were also relatively good at other content areas, i.e. the globe and environmental issues as well as technological applications of the natural sciences. FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME 25

26 According to TIMSS 1999, Finnish class 7 pupils were particularly good at chemistry, one explanation for which is the fact that the majority of the learning contents required in chemistry questions had already been studied by the time of the study. They also had a relatively good command of methods of acquiring scientific information and of environmental and natural resource issues, as was the case in PISA, too. Expertise in geography lagged the furthest behind the top for the OECD countries, which is probably due to the emphasis in Finnish syllabuses being on content areas other than the ones which are central to TIMSS. Nevertheless, Finnish pupils also possessed a knowledge of geography that was average for the OECD countries. In the 1998 national assessment of the learning results in the natural sciences of class 9 pupils in basic education, expertise in biology was satisfactory, in geography and physics fair and in chemistry poor. The result tallies badly with international comparisons as regards chemistry in particular. One explanation can be the fact that study of chemistry is often focused in the 7th and 8th classes, which means that matters are no longer fresh in pupils' memory in the 9th class. In addition, there were too few tasks in the various subjects for drawing reliable conclusions about specific subjects, and the tasks relating to chemistry were, in the view of the teachers, quite difficult. Also conflicting with international studies is the result of the national assessment which states that the application of knowledge in the various natural sciences was fair or poor. Further, unlike the international results, the national assessment found defects in educational equality, whereby the results showed a statistically significant difference between the genders, language groups and areas. One's attention is also drawn to the fact that, even though the boys' test results were on average better than the girls', the latter had better certificate grades on average than the boys. The different test results obtained by the genders were explained in part by attitudes: on the basis of an attitude survey, girls value biology and geography more, whereas, inter alia, physics and chemistry are more important to boys as regards continuation studies. Using the general studies test from the matriculation examination for measuring learning results in the natural sciences is problematical. This is because, firstly, not all students take the general studies test and, secondly, students freely choose tasks from different subjects, which means that 26 FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME

27 reliable conclusions cannot be drawn about the expertise in physics of those who answered, say, only one physics task. In the spring of 2001, 16% of all answers in the general studies test were on geography, 13% on physics, 11% on biology and only 5% on chemistry. In the point averages of the answers, chemistry, physics and biology have traditionally been at the top, which can be interpreted to mean relatively good-quality expertise in those who answered tasks on these subjects. On the other hand, the point average for geography is at the tail-end of the general studies subjects, i.e., there would appear to be a lot more to be desired in the quality of geography expertise than is the case with other natural sciences. If one examines how candidates concentrate on a single subject (the candidate answers a minimum of five questions out of eight on a specific subject), physics is at the top end (7,206 candidates in this category in the spring of 2001), from which it can probably be deduced that a relatively large number of candidates have broad knowledge of physics. It will be interesting to see what the national assessment due to be published at the end of 2002 has to say about upper secondary school pupils' expertise in the natural sciences. The proposed switch to subject tests in the general studies subjects included in the matriculation examination will probably also make it easier to assess the quality of expertise. EXPLANATORY VARIABLES OF KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS IN MATHEMATICS AND THE NATURAL SCIENCES According to Pekka Kupari, a significant factor in the good success of Finns in international comparisons is the teachers' high-calibre training and professionalism and the sufficient number of competent teachers for the various parts of the country (Välijärvi and Linnakylä 2002). The task types have also been particularly well suited to the emphasises in the Finnish syllabus. Studies indicate that the self-confidence and attitude of pupils are important for learning and, according to both PISA and TIMSS, the confidence in their own mathematics skills displayed by Finnish class 9 and 7 pupils is high internationally. In biology and geography, too, the pupils' self-confidence was pretty good in TIMSS, but it was slightly weaker in chemistry and physics. Boys had stronger self-confidence than girls in mathematics, physics and chemistry, whereas in biology the girls' selfconfidence was better than that of the boys. According to TIMSS, in FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME 27

28 geography there was no difference in self-confidence between the genders. There would also appear to be a clear link between the cultural and material background factors of the home and the pupils' performances in both mathematics and the natural sciences. In this respect, the situation of Finnish schoolchildren is good in international terms. QUALITATIVE IMPROVEMENT IN LEARNING It was observed in the interview study conducted by researcher Irma Aroluoma at 31 LUMA educational establishments (Aroluoma 2001) that teaching practices had developed a lot within a short period, and this had a positive effect on the ambience at lessons. An increase in experiences of success added to the delight of learning and study motivation, and this will certainly also have an effect on the quality of learning results. It is also to be expected that, within the next few years, learning results will improve more broadly as the good practices of LUMA educational establishments spread to other educational establishments as well. The study is described in more detail in chapter FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME

29 Diagrams 6a and 6b. Finnish pupils' expertise in mathematics and the natural sciences compared to the OECD countries which took part in the TIMSS 1999 study. Source: (Kupari et al. 2001). FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME 29

30 30 FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME

31 Diagrams 7a and 7b. Distributions of achievements in mathematics and the natural sciences in the PISA 2000 study Source: Pekka Kupari, Jukka Törnroos and Pasi Reinikainen, Institute for Educational Research (Välijärvi and Linnakylä 2002). FINAL REPORT OF LUMA PROGRAMME 31