The Association of Kindergarten Teachers in Finland's Brochure
on the early and pre-school education of children between the ages of 0 and 6
play, friends, learning and care
To t he Re a d e r
The Association of Kindergarten
Co nt ents
Teachers in Finland LTOL is the trade
union of experts on early education. Its
membership consists of kindergarten
What is early education?
3
Day care centers – the pedagogical core of early education
4
Learning environment
5
Increasing challenges of early education
6
Kindergarten teachers working with parents
7
Early education – entity with many components
8
teachers, special kindergarten teachers,
directors of day care centres, municipal
supervisors of family and other day care
or others who work in a supervisory
capacity. The range of the members'
job descriptions is broad.
The members hold the degrees of
kindergarten teacher or Bachelor or
Master of Education (Early Education).
The most recent category of members
is formed by the social educators
working in day care and polytechnic
graduates with the degree of Bachelor
Under-3`s – setting up a basis for development
8
3–5`s – the world is open for learning
10
of Social Science.
Since its founding in 1919, LTOL has
actively promoted the interests of its
Pre-school education for 6-year-olds – facing new challenges 11
members and of children and families,
and strives to promote a high standard
Many good ways of arranging pre-school education
of early education in Finland. LTOL is a
13
member of the Trade Union of Education
in Finland OAJ, itself a member of the
All children are special – some need particular support
14
Sources
15
Confederation of Unions for Academic
Professionals in Finland AKAVA.
This brochure contains information on
early education for parents, decisionmakers, students and educators in
the field.
”We´d eat a little, sleep a little, and play a lot.”
A child's definition of an ideal day care centre as quoted in the survey ”Suomalainen päivähoito, Lapsen oikeus varhaiskasvatukseen”[Finnish Day Care.
The Child's Right to Early Education] by Eeva Hujala and Päivi Lindberg
What is early education?
Early education is target-oriented educational interaction during
the child's early years. The aim of early education is to promote
the child's growth, development and learning. The child's first
sphere of life is the home. Parallel to the home, public early
education – day care and pre-school education – form a daily
environment of development for the child.
The national guidelines for early education define early education
The various forms of day care are the most essential operating
as part of lifelong learning. Early education, pre-school education
environment of public early education. Day care exists primarily
as part of it and comprehensive education form a continuum of
for the child. To begin with, the construction of the day care system
consistent progress for the child's development.
was based on the desire to enable the mothers of small children
to take jobs outside the home. The system was separated from
Early education supervised or steered by society is provided mainly
labour policy in 1996, since when all children have a subjective
in municipal or private day care centres and in family day care.
right to day care.
Other elements which influence the child's life are various clubs
and play groups, leisure associations and children's own play
To some extent, the responsibility for the care, upbringing and
culture.
education of small children has always been divided among several
actors in our society. In addition to parents, the children's daily
The Finnish early education system is based on values found in
lives have been affected by members of the extended family and
international conventions on children's rights, in legislation and
others in their immediate vicinity. At present, the responsibility
other regulatory instruments.
for education is increasingly shared between the family and the
The most important of the values in the UN Convention on the Rights
of the Child is the child's human dignity. Associated to this basic value,
the Convention lists the following four general principles:
• prohibition of discrimination and requirement of equal treatment of
children
early education services provided by society.
Public early education services are, in fact, an essential element
of the daily lives of Finnish families with small children and of the
environment in which children act and learn. At the same time,
• the child's best interest
they are also a part of a wider network of services provided to
• the child's right to life and development to his or her fullest potential
families with children. Day care is also profitable from the point
• observing the child's opinion.
of view of national economy, and according to research it is most
Stakes, Core Curriculum for the Early Education Plan.
likely to generate surplus for public economy.
3
Day care centers – the pedagogical core of early education
The pedagogical core of Finnish early education lies in the activity
An early education plan is drawn up for every child in day care.
of day care centres. Their activity is legislated for and guided by
It is drafted in collaboration with the parents. The carrying out of
Acts and Decrees on day care and pre-school education, as well
the plan is reviewed regularly.
as by various other documents concerning the content of early
education. These lay down the general principles of the activity.
Parents expect the day care centre staff to possess in-depth knowledge of children. The planning and carrying out of the activity of
Day care centres employ a staff representing various professions.
day care groups is handled by kindergarten teachers. The kinder-
A day care centre is an educational community where good co-
garten teacher education aims at developing the sensitivity to
operation between adults forms the basis of a balanced activity.
notice the child's needs and the skill to activate the child in ways
For the child, the day care centre should be a safe, inspiring and
which support his or her development. Every child in a day care
supporting environment in which the child feels that he or she is
centre should be entitled to support from a kindergarten teacher
important and valued.
in his or her development and learning.
The basis of the educational activity of day care centres if formed
by the child's group and the relationships to other children and
adults which it offers. A stable home group creates a sense of
security and gives the child an opportunity of rehearsing interactive
skills with familiar children and adults. The sense of belonging
and the opportunity to grow together with other children are
valuable for all children. They are especially important for those
who have no other children in their immediate vicinity.
A good peer group in which the child experiences affection and
acceptance promotes social skills, fostering self-awareness and
the development of self-confidence. In the group the children
have access resources which no relationship with an adult could
provide. Positive interaction and intimate friendships make it
easier for the child to adapt and move along the pathway from
day care to school. They also promote motivation and the learning
of different skills, as well as a positive attitude to learning.
In recent years, however, group sizes in day care centres have
become too large. LTOL considers it important that group sizes in
day care centres are sufficiently small, that is, small enough to
enable the favourable growth and development of children.
4
Learning environment
The creation of an inspiring and safe environment for play and
learning, observation of the children's development and provision
of activity which promotes development are essential factors in
the education provided by day care centres.
The learning environment in a day care centre is simultaneously
action-oriented, culture-oriented and physical. What is essential
is the linking of activity to the physical environment and ensuring
that it supports the child's development. The keyword is to adopt
the child's viewpoint for reflection and for the forming of new
challenges.
A good learning environment is one in which the children are
allowed to study the world around them and thus actively to construct a personal understanding of it. A good learning environment allows the children the freedom to test their ideas, apply
their imagination and express their thoughts and emotions
creatively through visual expression, music or motion.
In constructing the learning environment for the children the needs
of individual children, small groups and larger groups need to be
borne in mind.
An environment which inspires learning and is versatile and flexible
will awaken the children's interest, desire to experiment and
curiosity, and encourages them to act and express themselves.
Stakes, Core Curriculum for the Early Education Plan
5
Increasing challenges
of early education
For several reasons, work within early education has become
more challenging. As an example, changes in family relationships
and working life have an impact on the lives of children and their
families. Decision-making power and, with it, responsibility have
increasingly been delegated to individual day care centres. The
increasing impact of research on early education also contributes
to more challenges. The growth of research data on early education,
concerning topics such as the essence of childhood, or the learning,
growth and development of children, has strengthened the conception that early years have a significant impact for a person's
whole life.
Kindergarten teachers and the directors of day care centres are
expected to have in-depth knowledge on children and childhood,
the skill to identify difficult periods during development, the skill
to plan activity which develops the child and, among other things,
the skill to supervise adult employees.
One of LTOL's aims is that the eligibility criteria for the position
of a kindergarten teacher should include a master's degree in
early education.
6
Kindergarten teachers
working with parents
The best support for parents that early education can offer is to
ensure a high standard of early education services.
An open and confidential interaction between the day care staff
and the parents forms the basis for the safe growth and
development of a child. Throughout the more than 110 years of
the history of their profession, kindergarten teachers have aimed
at working together with families. The co-operation always starts
out from the child's needs and the support to his or her development. Kindergarten teachers bring into the co-operation their
expertise on childhood. The challenge of co-operation between
parents and day care centres is to create a genuine division of
labour as regards upbringing, with the result that both parents
and staff learn more and more about child development. Where
necessary, the day care centre will assist the parents in seeking
help from other service units, such as the Child and Family Advice
Clinics, speech therapists or child protection services.
7
Early education
– entity with many components
Early education is an entity which observes the early education
pedagogics and pays attention to the special needs of children of
different ages.
Under-3's – setting up a basis for development
In the world of the day care centre, the under-3's are often placed
in a group of their own. The forming of small groups of children
of this age is supported by findings in developmental psychology,
among others. A small group with maximally stable interpersonal
relationships, as well as plenty of time and leisure to learn new
things at one's own pace are essential needs of the under-3's.
Separate facilities with functional links to older children and their
activities are one of the practical requirements for a good day care
for the under-3's.
The development of the youngest children continues to be a topic
of intensive research, and to make use of the new data the day
care centres need educated personnel. LTOL considers that every
group of under-3's should also have a kindergarten teacher.
Co-operation between home and day care is of particular
importance for the growth of the under-3's. The children's activity
poses particular challenges for both parents and day care staff,
since the smallest children are still unable to use words in
explaining what they intend or need. Small children should be
helped to adapt to the group and the new growth environment by
both the parents and the staff.
To begin with, the small child will express his or her intentions
holistically through gestures, expressions and movements. He or
she needs to have an educator nearby who is familiar with the
child's individual way of communicating. The educator gains an
insight in and responds to the child's communicative initiatives,
thus encouraging the child's willingness to interact.
Stakes, Core Curriculum for the Early Education Plan.
8
It is important for the day care staff to understand the basics of
the welfare of small children, such as a regular daily routine, need
for sleep, mealtime arrangements, individual manner of play and
the significance of emotional climate. All these are discussed
The world of objects forms the first step towards play for the small
together with the parents.
child. Studying objects and playing with them is essential for a
child's development. During play, the child constructs the world
Small children learn through play and imitation. Even play is first
in which he or she lives in, investigates the surroundings and
learned with an adult. Play gains new forms in contacts with other
interacts with them. Play involving objects creates the prerequi-
children. Studies show that even at the age of one year, children
sites for the use of imagination and fantasy. During their second
enjoy each other's company and may form stable friendships with
year, children engage more and more in pretend play. They are
other of their own age.
much attached to anything that they can play house with, as long
as it is the right size. The quality of play reveals the child's
Participation in daily routines gives pleasure to small children
development stage, but at the same time, play makes develop-
and teaches them new things. Contact play and games are
ment possible. For an adult, it affords the opportunity of suppor-
invaluable tools in learning the basics of communication. The
ting the child's development. Adults serve as models for children.
under-3's require an environment which enables them to move
Without adults and parents, the child will not learn about the
about freely and encourages them to do so. Activity is organised
cultural practices of the surrounding world.
in small groups, to avoid noise and the need to wait for one's
turn. The continuous development of the content of activity for
the under-3's is an important goal of early education.
9
3-5's – the world is open for learning
It is important that the child's transfer to a new group is prepared
thoroughly and in close co-operation with the family. As a rule,
children are eager to become one of the big ones, but they still
need understanding support from adults both at home and in day
care.
Play, physical activity, investigation and expression related to
various art forms are typical ways of acting and thinking for
children.
Stakes, Core Curriculum for the Early Education Plan.
Play continues to be especially important for children. It is their
primary way of structuring experiences, solving problems and
creating new things. The kindergarten teacher education imparts
a broad knowledge base on the significance and potential of play
for children of different ages. All those working with the group of
children need to be sensitive, active and genuinely interested in
supporting and observing play. The play skills of the 3–5's develop
in group, with time, space and an encouraging environment for
play.
Children are also often interested in learning to read and write at
the age of 3–4. They like to learn nursery rhymes and to play with
sounds, they recognise the shapes of words in their environment
and draw letter shapes on paper. Fairy tales, stories and
conversation are an essential element in supporting language
development.
The 3–5's must be provided the opportunity of participating in a
broad range of activities and of interacting with other children. It
is important that eventual development problems are identified,
so that support can be provided as early as possible. Early
rehabilitative intervention is crucial for the child's later
development and is also sensible from the point of view of national
economy. Thus, the environment and supervision of day care and
early education for the 3–5's plays a crucial role. In order that
10
developmental retardation could be identified and rehabilitative
action taken, all groups should be supervised by kindergarten
teachers who have the necessary skills for this, thanks to their
education.
It is important that the developmental needs of the 3–5's are
taken into account both when drawing up the municipal early
education plans and in individual day care centres. With the
obvious importance of the younger and elder groups, the needs
of this age group may be in danger of being overlooked.
Pre-school education for the 6-year-olds
– facing new challenges
The pre-school education for the 6-year-olds is a part of early
education. Early education and comprehensive education form a
consistent, progressive entity for the child's development.
As stated in the Core Curriculum for Pre-School Education, one of
the tasks of pre-school education is to promote the child's growth
towards humanity and an ethically responsible membership of
society. An essential task for pre-school education is to promote
a favourable climate for the child's growth, development and
learning. It is important to strengthen the child's healthy selfconfidence. Through pre-school education, children are guaranteed
equal opportunities for learning and starting school.
Pre-school education takes into account the goals and contents
of both early education and comprehensive education. There are
regulations on the goals and extent of and access to teaching,
the locations in which it is provided, the size of teaching groups
and the eligibility criteria for those providing pre-school education.
Pre-school education can be provided in the day care centre or at
school. The legislation on pre-school education is part of the Act
on Comprehensive Education. The Core Curriculum for Pre-School
Education is binding on all pre-school education providers in all
municipalities and all units providing pre-school education,
whether day care centres or schools.
11
The content of teaching consists of entities which are linked to
ring the teaching. However, integrated entities and the learning
the child's sphere of life and which broaden it. Various domains
process are more important than individual content areas. The
of knowledge are taken into account when planning and delive-
content areas of pre-school education include language and interaction, mathematics, ethics and worldview, environmental and
natural studies, health, physical and motor development and art
and culture.
At the start of the pre-school education all children should receive
an individual pre-school education plan. This is drawn up together
with the parents and the child.
Play is an essential part of pre-school education both in the day
care centre and at school. One of the challenges is to make sure
that pre-school education is not identical to school either in day
care centres or at schools. Kindergarten teachers play a crucial
role in the planning, delivery and evaluation of pre-school education in Finnish municipalities.
The pre-school education year occurs at an extremely sensitive
point in the child's development. The lives of many six-year-olds
are characterised by a normal development crisis, bringing
extensive changes, during which the child's manner of emotional
experience, self-image and relationship to the surrounding reality
undergo a change.
The key task of pre-school education is to provide an educational
response to this transition stage in the child's development, by
organising activity which supports the child in the search for a
new identity. An essential tool for this is to develop the child's
creative imagination in all situations. The development of learning
capabilities should not focus exclusively on teaching substantive
knowledge and facts.
Pre-school education is based on the integration of teaching.
Integrative teaching consists of entities which are linked to the
child's sphere of life on the one hand, and to contents which
broaden and structure the child's world view on the other.
12
National Board of Education, Core Curriculum for Pre-School Education.
Many good ways of arranging pre-school education
The learning environment in a day care centre is excellently suited
to pre-school education. In the day care centre, the 6-year-olds
are either placed in groups of their own or in integrated groups
for the 3–6's. In groups for the 3–6's, some of the activity is shared
in by all, while a part of it is organised separately to meet the
goals of pre-school education for the 6-year-olds. Play and activity
which is shared in by children of different ages helps to develop
both the younger ones, who learn from their elders, and for the
elder children, who learn and consolidate their skills in working
together with their juniors.
In groups for the 3–6's the skills and needs of children of different
ages are taken into account when planning and carrying out the
activity. There are also wide individual variations between the
children, for not even all 6-year-olds have entered the same
developmental stage. The group structures in pre-school education should primarily be reflected on from the educational point
of view, not exclusively from the point of view of costs or administration.
The learning experiences during a child's early years should form
a coherent entity. Learning should always be based on the child's
previous experiences. When drawing up education plans and
curricula, the progress should be from the younger children
towards the older ones: the needs of the under-3's should be
considered first, and gradually after that the primary education.
During the transition from day care to primary education, good
co-operation between parents, day care and the comprehensive
school is crucial.
13
All children are special
– some need particular support
An important part of early education is the organisation of care,
upbringing and education for children in need of special support
or rehabilitation. As far as possible, children in need of special
support are placed in ordinary day care groups. According to the
principle of integration, special education is delivered as part of
mainstream early education services, to the extent possible. In
order to provide the required individualised teaching, some
children will be placed in a special group or an integrated special
group. The special education experts in these groups are special
kindergarten teachers.
To place a child in need of special support in an ordinary group
requires good co-operation between the family, the experts involved in examinations and rehabilitation for the child, and the
day care centre. Together with the parents and the rehabilitation
experts, a personal rehabilitation plan is drawn up for the child,
describing the special measures or the activities which are part
of the group's normal activity to support the child's development
and rehabilitation. The group's kindergarten teacher has the overall responsibility for the rehabilitation plan and its delivery, but
the whole staff involved with the group participates in the delivery.
To help with the planning and delivery municipalities employ
itinerant special kindergarten teachers.
The attainment of integration in day care requires appropriate
group sizes and adequate staffing levels. LTOL considers that the
presence of children in need of special support in a group should
always lead to a decrease in its maximum size. Individual children
may need both an assistant and a group below maximum size.
By law, children of pre-school age in special education shall receive
a Personal Plan Covering the Organisation of Education.
LTOL has produced two publications on special education and day care,
available in Finnish.
14
So ur ce s :
UN Convention on the Rights of the Child:
Kohtaamisia päiväkotiarjessa – kehysana-
http://www.unicef.org/crc/crc.htm
lyyttinen näkökulma varhaiskasvatustyöhön,
Laki lasten päivähoidosta [Act on Children's
Anna-Maija Puroila, 2002.
Day Care] (36/1973)
http://kajaaninkampus.oulu.fi/vaka/
Perusopetuslaki [Act on Comprehensive
Kokeiluops.pdf.
Education] (628/1998)
Kirjoitus ”Kuusivuotiaan hyvässä oppimis-
Child Welfare Act (683/1983): http://www.
ympäristössä tehdään yhdessä”, Maritta
finlex.fi/pdf/saadkaan/E9830683.PDF
Hännikäinen, 2000.
Opetusministeriön päätös peruskoulussa
järjestettävän esiopetuksen perusteista
[The Ministry of Education's Decision on
The Association of Kindergarten Teachers in
the Foundations for Pre-School Education
Finland's brochure on the early education
Arranged in the Comprehensive School]
and pre-school education, "Play, friends,
(OpMp 574/1991)
learning and care", was written by a team of
Esiopetuksen opetussuunnitelman perusteet
experts:
[Core Curriculum for Pre-School Education].
Pentti Hakkarainen, Professor
National Board of Education, 2000.
Aili Helenius, Professor
Government Resolution Concerning the
Special Kindergarten Teacher Merja Laitinen
National Policy Definition on Early Childhood
Maritta Norberg, Day-Care Centre Director,
Education and Care: http://www.vn.fi/vn/
M.Ed.
stm/english/pao/publicat/child_education
Eeva-Leena Onnismaa, Researcher, Lic.Ed.
/child_education.pdf
Airi Vuolle, Communications Coordinator
Varhaiskasvatussuunnitelman perusteet
[Core Curriculum for the Early Education Plan].
Stakes, 2003.
Layout: Satu Salmivalli
Varhaiskasvatustyöryhmän muistio [Memo-
Translation: Lingua Nordica Oy
randum of the Committee on Early Education].
Photos: Pertti Nisonen
Sosiaali- ja terveysministeriön työryhmä-
The photographs were taken in the Westen-
muistio 1999:4.
dinpuisto day care centre of the City of Espoo,
Mikä lapsiamme uhkaa? – Suuntaviivoja 2000
the Myrskyluoto and Hippaheikki day care
-luvun lapsipoliittiseen keskusteluun, Marjat-
centres of the City of Helsinki, and during a
ta Bardy, Minna Salmi, Tarja Heino, Stakes,
visit to the Theatre Museum of the children
Raportteja 263/2001.
of the Pacius day care centre of the City of
Kuka lasta kasvattaa, vanhemmuuden ja yh-
Helsinki.
teiskunnallisen kasvatuksen suhde vanhempien puheessa, Maarit Alasuutari, 2003.
Suomalainen päivähoito, Lapsen oikeus varhaiskasvatukseen, Eeva Hujala, Päivi Lindberg, 1999.
Lasten päivähoito investointina, Jouko Kajanoja, 1999.
Lastentarhanopettajaliitto
Barnträdgårdslärarförbundet
Akavatalo, Rautatieläisenkatu 6, FIN-00520 Helsinki, +358 9 15021, faksi +358 9 142 720, e-mail [email protected], www.lastentarha.fi