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Pupils’ pedagogical well-being in comprehensive school—significant positive and negative school experiences of Finnish ninth graders

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Abstract

Basic education has two main goals: to promote high quality learning outcomes and pupils’ personal growth and well-being. The interrelated nature of learning and well-being is here referred to as pedagogical well-being. In this study, we explore Finnish comprehensive school pupils’ (N = 518) experienced pedagogical well-being by examining the kinds of situations that pupils themselves find either highly positive or highly negative during their school career. Pupils’ pedagogical well-being is empirically examined in two complementary aspects: (1) determining the point in the pupils’ school career in which the critical incidents are situated and (2) identifying the primary contexts of pupils’ experienced critical incidents of pedagogical well-being. Results showed that critical incidents for pedagogical well-being reported by the pupils were situated all along their school career. A variety of episodes causing empowerment and satisfaction, as well as disappointment and anxiety, were reported by the pupils. Pupils perceived the social interactions within the school community as being the most rewarding as well as the most problematic part of their school career.

Résumé

L’éducation fondamentale répond à deux objectifs : promouvoir des résultats d’apprentissage de haute qualité ainsi que la croissance et le bien-être personnels des élèves. Nous appelons bien-être pédagogique l’interdépendance intrinsèque à l’apprentissage et au bien-être. Notre étude explore le bien-être pédagogique ressenti par les élèves de l’école de base finlandaise (N = 518) en examinant les situations considérées par les élèves comme étant hautement positives ou négatives pendant leur cursus scolaire. Le bien-être pédagogique des élèves est empiriquement examiné sous deux angles complémentaires: (1) en déterminant le point du cursus scolaire des élèves où se situent les incidents critiques et (2) en identifiant les contextes primaires des incidents critiques affectant le bien-être pédagogique ressenti par les élèves. Les résultats indiquent que les incidents critiques rapportés par les élèves dans leur bien-être pédagogique se situent tout au long de leur cursus scolaire. Un certain nombre d'épisodes causant une valorisation des élèves et leur satisfaction, mais aussi leur déception et leur anxiété, ont été rapportés par les élèves. Les élèves ont perçu les interactions sociales vécues dans la communauté scolaire comme étant à la fois la plus gratifiante et la plus problématique partie de leur carrière scolaire.

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Acknowledgements

We wish to thank Annabel Battersby-Järvinen for the language revision. We also wish to thank the Finnish Ministry of Education and Finnish Work Environment Found for funding the research project Learning and Development in Comprehensive School.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Research and Development of Higher Education (YTY), Faculty of Behavioural Sciences, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 9, Room 415 (Siltavuorenpenger 20), 00014, Helsinki, Finland

    Kirsi Pyhältö

  2. Department of Teacher Education, University of Tampere, 33014, Tampere, Finland

    Tiina Soini

  3. Faculty of Education, University of Joensuu, P.O. Box 111, 80101, Joensuu, Finland

    Janne Pietarinen

Authors
  1. Kirsi Pyhältö
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  2. Tiina Soini
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  3. Janne Pietarinen
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Correspondence to Kirsi Pyhältö.

Additional information

Kirsi Pyhältö. Centre for Research and Development of Higher Education, Faculty of Behavioural Sciences, P.O. Box 9 (Siltavuorenpenger 20R), FIN-00014 University of Helsinki. E-mail: kirsi.pyhalto@helsinki.fi

Tiina Soini. Department of Teacher Education, University of Tampere, 33014 University of Tampere. E-mail: tiina.soini@uta.fi

Janne Pietarinen. Faculty of Education, University of Joensuu, P.O. Box 111, 80100 Joensuu. E-mail: janne.pietarinen@joensuu.fi

Current themes of research:

In research project: Well-being and learning in the context of comprehensive school community, especially the sense of professional agency and learning agency. Regulators of successful pedagogical development processes in school.

Most relevant publications in the field of Psychology of Education:

Pietarinen, J., Soini, T., & Pyhältö, K. (in press) Learning and well-being in transitions—how to promote pupils’ active learning agency? In D. Jindal-Snape (Ed.), Educational transitions: Moving stories from around the world. Routledge.

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Pyhältö, K., Soini, T. & Pietarinen, J. Pupils’ pedagogical well-being in comprehensive school—significant positive and negative school experiences of Finnish ninth graders. Eur J Psychol Educ 25, 207–221 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-010-0013-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-010-0013-x

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