Linnainmaa's School Counsellors are the pillars of everyday school life
The student resolutely grabs a maths book from his backpack and returns to her seat at the Linnainmaa school. The clean pages of the maths book reveal new tasks, which the student start to resolve with pencil sharpened.
Reetta Kramer, the School Counsellor, sits down next to the pupil, following the pencil's movements. When faced with a challenging equation, Kramer helps the student with a guiding question and a moment later the student eagerly numbers the correct answer on the page of her maths book.
Kramer is in her third year at Linnainmaa School, before which she worked as a short-term School Counsellor in various schools. Kramer is currently working with a special class of ten primary school-age pupils.
– Although the class is the same, every day is different, says Kramer.
Work that stays easily invisible
Many things add variety to a School Counselor's daily life. Kramer's school days start with a quick morning meeting to plan the day: groups are divided, tasks agreed and roles specified.
Everyday life in a special class requires constant anticipation and responsiveness. In addition, teachers need to be prepared to move quickly to other classes if help is needed elsewhere.
– The need to replace staff can arise at very short notice. Adaptability to change is key in this work.
In the classroom, students have individualized learning schedules, which means using parallel learning materials in the same lessons. This creates pressure on the instructor to keep up to date with all the materials.
– In one subject, up to four different textbooks can be used at the same time.
This is particularly challenging when there is only one adult in the class. In such cases, a large part of the lesson may be spent on instruction alone, leaving less time for actual teaching.
– Amount of hands and time are simply not enough in these situations, summarizes Kramer.
As the maths work progresses, Emilia Talvio arrives with a tinkering and play trolley next to Kramer. Talvio has worked as a School Counsellor at Linnainmaa School for a total of twelve years and, like Kramer, she has her own special class.
Talvio's routines and roles in the school day are very much the same as Kramer's, but instead of primary school pupils, Talvio instructs middle school pupils.
– In the morning, we quickly agree with the teacher on general matters, such as who will take which group from which class, tells Talvio.
A familiar pair of partners makes class work much easier and faster. Talvio recalls a pair of teachers she worked with for several years in a row.
– With a familiar pair of teachers, a good working rhythm develops. We both know exactly what we are doing or where we are at a certain time of day.
In the classroom, there is no hierarchy, although the teacher bears the pedagogical responsibility for the lesson. There is a clear and equal respect between teacher and School Counsellor for each other.
– We don't think in terms of hierarchy in class, but work well as a team, says Talvio.
Talvio recognises Kramer's observation that it is very difficult for a teacher or School Counsellor to hold a lesson together on their own. In general, the lack of School Counsellors would be felt very quickly in schools.
– Without us there would be a real mess. Even changing teachers is difficult for children.
Kramer and Talvio see the work of the School Counsellor as very important and meaningful. Although both have received a lot of good feedback from their own teaching pairs, the work of the Counsellors can easily go unrecognised by many others. Kramer and Talvio predict that in the future there may be a greater need for School Counsellors.
– We get praise for attendance and student-facing skills, but there is a desperate shortage of Counselors right across the board, even in general education classrooms, says Kramer.
– There certainly can't be fewer tutors, tells Talvio.
While the variety of work, sudden shifts and quick reactions increase the pace of everyday work, Kramer and Talvio emphasize the most central and valuable theme of their work.
– When a student learns and succeeds, it produces great sparks of joy and flashes of light for the child. You never get tired of a child's sense of achievement, smiles Kramer.
– What's more, the colleagues are top-notch and the great students are the perfect spice to this School Counsellor's work, concludes Talvio.
