The basic education system conducts an annual survey to gather feedback from students and guardians on the past school year. The surveys examine views on topics such as the school atmosphere, learning, safety, bullying, and future readiness.
A total of 14 300 students and 2 300 guardians responded to the surveys conducted in May. In addition to students and guardians, basic education staff are also asked to evaluate the past school year.
– We have been collecting data in this way for five years now. The Ajatuksia kuluneesta kouluvuodesta (Thoughts on the Past School Year) survey provides valuable information on students’ and guardians’ experiences and feelings regarding school-related matters. Some of the questions are repeated annually, which allows us to track progress, while others focus on current strategic development priorities, explains Ulla Ojalammi, Director of Basic Education.
A sense of community and caring relationships with adults and peers are an important part of everyday school life. According to the survey results, the vast majority of students (91 percent) feel good at school. There are also adults at school to whom students can confide. 76 percent of students feel that there is at least one such adult at their school.
During recess, 4 percent of students feel very lonely. The results measuring the school atmosphere have improved over the past few school years.
Active commuting to school is an important part of children’s and young people’s daily physical activity, as well as promoting their well-being and learning. Students most often travel to school on foot (38 percent) or by bicycle (34 percent). Six percent of students are driven to school by car.
The new policy on mobile device use came into effect at the beginning of the last school year. According to the survey, the vast majority of guardians, principals, and staff believe the change has had a positive effect on students’ ability to concentrate in class. Seventy-six percent of guardians feel that the policy has improved their children’s focus on learning, and 91 percent of principals observed positive effects.
Students’ evaluations are more moderate. About one-third of seventh graders and about one-quarter of eighth and ninth graders feel that the change has had a positive effect on their concentration during class.
Nearly all students (93 percent) know what they are supposed to learn in class. Setting their own goals is also familiar to many, as 82 percent of students report that they know how to set goals for their own learning. Four out of five students report receiving feedback from their teacher on their learning.
The vast majority of guardians feel they receive enough information about their child’s learning. Seventy-two percent of guardians believe that teachers communicate learning-related goals, and 70 percent feel they receive sufficient feedback on their child’s learning and progress. All results have improved slightly from the previous school year.
Guardians rate their children as somewhat more persistent in their schoolwork than the students do themselves. When it comes to digital skills, however, students and guardians are in broad agreement. Just over 80 percent of students and guardians rate the student’s digital skills as good or excellent.
In everyday school life, students’ ability to look after their own well-being and that of others is reinforced. Eighty-eight percent of students in grades 5–9 say they know what to do if they are concerned about their own well-being or that of a classmate. 95 percent of students in grades 1–4 know how to respond when a classmate is feeling down.
Students’ sense of safety has improved. Three percent of students feel unsafe at school, compared to about five percent in previous school years. The majority of guardians (66 percent) believe that the school adequately addresses safety-related issues. About one-quarter of parents and guardians are unable to comment on the matter, and one in ten feel that safety is not being adequately addressed.
School safety and incidents of violence have been widely discussed in Finland in recent years. Forty-six percent of 5th–9th graders in Tampere’s basic education system report having witnessed an incident of violence at school during the past school year. This percentage is lower than in the previous school year, when the corresponding figure was 49 percent. Incidents of violence are being reported to school staff more frequently than before: 40 percent of students report having told an adult about an incident. In elementary school, incidents are reported to adults more commonly than in middle school.
Preventing bullying is one of the key goals of educational work in schools. According to the survey, 29 percent of students in grades 1–6 report having experienced bullying during the past school year. This percentage has risen slightly compared to the previous school year (27 percent).
Among students in grades 7–9, experiences of bullying have decreased. According to the survey, 13 percent of upper-grade students reported having been bullied during the past school year, compared to 15 percent in the previous school year.
The survey examined upper-grade students’ experiences with discrimination for the first time. About one in seven students (14 percent) reported having experienced discrimination during the past school year. The most common reasons cited for discrimination were related to opinions and appearance.
About 90 percent of parents and guardians consider basic education important for their child’s future. Nearly 85 percent of parents and guardians feel that their child has been well-prepared for the transition to further education.
Among students who have completed basic education, 33 percent strongly agreed and 41 percent somewhat agreed with the statement, “I have been well prepared for further studies at the upper secondary level.” In total, nearly three out of four students feel they have received a solid foundation from school to continue their studies.
