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This study investigates the associations of adolescents’ financial socialization factors—financial education in school and families—with financial confidence (i.e., confidence in using financial and digital financial services). In addition, we examine how financial socialization factors indirectly relate to financial literacy skills through financial confidence and the role of demographic factors (adolescent gender, grade level, parental education, family wealth) on financial socialization, financial confidence, and financial literacy scores. We used data on the 4,328 Finnish 15-year-olds participating in the 2018 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). We measured financial literacy by cognitive test items and assessed financial socialization and financial confidence by adolescent questionnaires. First, the results showed that financial education in school positively predicted adolescents’ confidence in using financial and digital financial services. Second, financial education at schools and in families indirectly predicted students’ financial literacy through confidence in using digital financial services. Third, older adolescents were more exposed to financial education at school and in families, whereas adolescents from wealthier families and girls (vs. boys) were exposed to a more frequent discussion of financial matters with parents at home. Furthermore, the boys were more confident in using financial services than the girls, although the financial literacy score did not differ by gender; older adolescents were more confident in using financial services and achieved better financial literacy than younger ones. Finally, higher parental education in the family related to higher financial literacy but not to higher financial confidence, whereas family wealth was related to higher financial confidence but not financial literacy. peerReviewed

This chapter provides information on results of international achievement surveys and their use in monitoring educational outcomes in Finland. The educational monitoring system in Finland differs from that of many other countries. So far, little attention has been paid to its lack of standardised measurements and official control. Furthermore, Finnish education policies are strongly driven not by the aim to reach high rankings in international assessments but rather by the emphasis on quality and equity of education. This chapter describes the Finnish education system, its core curriculum for basic education and teacher training. We also review international achievement survey results and the education policy monitoring of the country in general. At the end of the chapter, we take a closer look at some monitoring results that have had an impact on political reforms and policy changes. nonPeerReviewed

Lukutaito on keskeinen pohja niin opiskelulle, lukunautinnolle, yhteiskuntaan osallistumiselle kuin oman identiteetin kehittämisellekin. Hyvä lukutaito luo vakaan pohjan, joka auttaa etenemään elämän poluilla. 2000-luvulla on kuitenkin havaittu, että Suomessa kiinnostus lukemiseen on vähentynyt ja heikkojen lukijoiden määrä on lisääntynyt. Opetusvelvollisuuden laajentaminen nostaa esiin kysymyksiä nuorten osaamistarpeista, -tavoitteista ja oppisisällöistä. Tässä kirjassa lukemista ja oppimista lähestytään kolmesta eri näkökulmasta, joita ovat hyvän lukutaidon kehittäminen, oppimisen moninaisuus sekä perusopetuksen jälkeisten tarpeiden ja tavoitteiden tarkastelu. Kirjan artikkeleissa pohditaan mm. digitekstien vaikutusta lukutaitoon, lukutaidon merkitystä koulunkäynnille sekä taitotasoltaan ja taustaltaan erilaisten nuorten koulupolkuja. Kirjan artikkelien lähtökohtana on PISA 2018 -tutkimus, jossa arvioinnin pääalueena oli lukutaito jo kolmannen kerran PISA-historian aikana. Kirja sopii kaikille oppimisesta ja koulutuksesta kiinnostuneille, kuten opettajille, opettajankouluttajille, koulutuksen järjestäjille, koulutuspolitiikan päättäjille, opiskelijoille ja tutkijoille.

The Finnish education system has gone through an exciting developmental path from a follower into a role model. Also on the two-decade history of PISA studies, Finland’s performance has provided years of glory as of the world’s top-performing nation, but also a substantial decline. This chapter examines Finland’s educational outcomes in recent PISA-study and the trends across previous cycles. Boys’ more unsatisfactory performance and the increasing effect of students’ socio-economic background are clear predictors of the declining trend, but they can explain it only partly. Some of the other possible factors are discussed. peerReviewed

The aim or the present study was to examine the relative importance of financial education in school and families and dispositional factors (competitiveness, work mastery, meta-cognition) in predicting financial literacy among Finnish adolescents. The data on the 4328 Finnish 15-year-olds was drawn from the PISA 2018 assessment. Financial literacy was measured by tests, and financial education and dispositional factors were assessed by adolescent questionnaires. First, the results showed that financial education in school was positively associated with adolescents’ financial literacy skills, whereas parental involvement in financial matters did not relate or related negatively to financial literacy scores. Second, dispositional factors, such as competitiveness, work mastery, and meta-cognition (effective strategies to understand/remember information, to summarize information, and to evaluate source credibility) were the strongest positive predictors of the financial literacy scores. Overall, the present study emphasizes that certain social factors (schools and families) and especially dispositional characteristics (personality/motivation and critical thinking/learning strategies) may shape the development of the financial skills of adolescents. peerReviewed

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One of the aims for compulsory education is to diminish or alleviate differences in children’s skills existing prior to school entry. However, a growing gender gap in reading development has increasingly been documented. Regrettably, there is scant evidence on whether differences between genders (favouring girls) have their roots in pre-reading skills or whether determining mechanisms are related to factors to do with schooling. We examined the extent to which pre-reading skills assessed in Kindergarten (age 6) predict reading comprehension in Grade 9 (age 15) and, whether the gender difference in reading comprehension can be explained by gender differences in the Kindergarten pre-reading skills. A sample of 1010 Finnish children were assessed on letter knowledge, phonological awareness, rapid naming, vocabulary, and listening comprehension in Kindergarten and on reading comprehension using PISA Reading tasks in Grade 9. Path models showed that gender as well as Kindergarten pre-reading skills except for phonological awareness were significant predictors of reading comprehension in Grade 9 accounting for 28% of the variance. There were gender differences in most of the measures, but the prediction model estimates were similar for boys and girls except that for boys, letter knowledge was a somewhat stronger predictor of reading comprehension than for girls. The gender effect on reading comprehension was only partially mediated via pre-reading skills. The findings suggest that Kindergarten pre-reading skills are powerful predictors of reading comprehension in Grade 9, but the gender difference found in PISA Reading in Finland does not appear to be pronounced in Kindergarten but rather emerges during the school years.

Matematiikan osaamisen merkitys nyky-yhteiskunnassa korostuu. Kuitenkin PISA-raporttien perusteella suomalaisten poikien matematiikan osaamisen keskiarvo on laskenut sekä heikosti pärjäävien osuus kasvanut 2003-2015 (OECD, 2016, 395-397). Tutkimuksen tarkoituksena on kartoittaa suomalaisten poikien matematiikan osaamisessa tapahtuneen muutoksen taustoja opetussuunnitelmamuutoksen, koulussa koetun yhteenkuuluvuuden tunteen, saadun matematiikan opetuksen määrän sekä sosioekonomisen aseman kautta. Ilmiötä tarkastellaan suhteessa jatko- opinnoista poisjäämiseen ja syrjäytymiseen. Tutkimuksessa käyttämäni aineisto sisältää Suomen PISA-aineistoiden oppilaskyselyt 2003 ja 2015 sekä peruskoulun opetussuunnitelman perusteet 1994 ja 2004. Analysoin opetussuunnitelma-aineistot laadullisesti Beredayn (1964) vertailevan analyysin mallia soveltaen. PISA-aineistojen analyysin toteutin määrällisin menetelmin ristiintaulukoinnin ja Mann-Whitneyn U-testin avulla. Opetussuunnitelma-analyysin tulokset osoittivat, että opetussuunnitelman perusteiden 1994 ja 2004 matematiikan osuudet eroavat sisällöllisesti pituudeltaan, ohjaavuudeltaan sekä suhtautumiseltaan matematiikan opiskeluun ja opettamiseen. 1994 perusteiden matematiikan osuus on väljempi ja vähemmän opettajan toimintaa ja opetusta ohjaava kuin 2004 perusteiden matematiikan osuus. PISA-aineistojen yhteenkuuluvuutta mittaavien muuttujien analyysi osoitti niiden pokien osuuden kasvaneen, jotka eivät koe sopivansa kouluun ja koulun yhteisöön. Matematiikan opetukseen käytetty aika puolestaan on lisääntynyt. Sosioekonomisen aseman muuttujien analyysin tulos antaa viitteitä yhteiskuntaluokkien välisen kuilun kasvamisesta ja oppilaiden vanhempien koulutustason noususta. Tilastokeskuksen tietoja vasten tarkasteltaessa POPS 1994:n mukaan opiskelleet pojat vaikuttavat olleen yhteiskunnallisen asemansa suhteen peruskoulun jälkeisinä vuosina paremmassa tilanteessa kuin POPS 2004:n mukaan opiskelleet pojat. On mahdollista, että opetussuunnitelman matematiikan osuuden väljyys ja luottamus opettajan autonomiaan tukevat oppilaiden matematiikan oppimista. Niinpä POPS 1994:n mukaan opiskelleiden poikien PISA:lla mitattu matematiikan osaaminen on ollut POPS 2004:n mukaan opiskelleiden poikien tasoa korkeampaa huolimatta matematiikan opetuksen määrän kasvusta. Matematiikkaa heikosti osaavien sekä heikosti kouluun yhteenkuuluvuuden tunnetta kokevien määrän kasvu POPS 2004:n mukaan opiskelleilla voivat pitkällä aikavälillä vaikuttaa syrjäytymiseen koulutuksen ja työn ulkopuolelle jäämisen kautta.

PISA-tutkimusohjelma (Programme for International Student Assessment) toteutettiin vuonna 2018 seitsemännen kerran. Taloudellisen yhteistyön ja kehityksen järjestön OECD:n (Organisation for Economic and Cultural Development) toteuttaman tutkimusohjelman tarkoituksena on etsiä vastauksia siihen, miten peruskoulun päättövaiheessa olevat tai sen juuri päättäneet 15-vuotiaat nuoret osaavat etsiä, arvioida ja soveltaa tietoa arkielämän sekä tulevaisuuden tarpeista nousevien tehtävien ja ongelmien ratkaisemiseksi. Suomi osallistui vuoden 2018 tutkimuksessa ensi kertaa talousosaamisen (Financial Literacy) arviointiin, joka oli tarjolla kansainvälisenä vaihtoehtona. Talousosaamisen arviontiin on voinut osallistua vuodesta 2012 alkaen, eli se oli nyt tarjolla kolmatta kertaa. Talousosaamisen arviointiin osallistui 20 maata, joista 13 oli OECD:n kuuluvaa ja 7 niin kutsuttua partnerimaata. nonPeerReviewed

Julkisuudessa on vuosien varrella arvosteltu suomalaisten ja etenkin nuorten talousosaamista ja taloudellista lukutaitoa. Heikon osaamisen on katsottu aiheuttavan ylivelkaantumista ja muita ongelmia. Syitä tilanteeseen on etsitty erityisesti koulutusjärjestelmästä, jonka ei katsota antavan riittäviä eväitä talousasioiden ymmärtämiseen ja hoitamiseen. Tässä artikkelissa pyrimme tuomaan esille tutkimuksissa havaittua tietoa etenkin suomalaisten nuorten talousosaamisesta. Tulostemme perusteella huoli on jonkin verran liioiteltu. nonPeerReviewed

PISA toteutettiin vuonna 2018 seitsemännen kerran. Taloudellisen yhteistyön ja kehityksen järjestön (OECD:n, Organisation for Economic and Cultural Development) toteuttaman tutkimusohjelman tarkoituksena on etsiä vastauksia siihen, miten peruskoulun päättövaiheessa olevat tai sen juuri päättäneet 15-vuotiaat nuoret osaavat etsiä, arvioida ja soveltaa tietoa arkielämän sekä tulevaisuuden tarpeista nousevien tehtävien ja ongelmien ratkaisemiseksi. PISA painottaa nuorten valmiuksia hyödyntää osaamistaan jatko-opinnoissa, erilaisissa työtehtävissä ja vaihtelevissa arkielämän tilanteissa. Ensitulosten raportissa tarkastellaan erityisesti lukutaidon osaamista, mutta myös matematiikan ja luonnontieteiden osaamista. Lisäksi tuodaan esiin joitain oppimisen kannalta keskeisiä taustatekijöitä ja muuttujia. Talousosaamisen tulokset raportoidaan OECD:n linjauksen mukaisesti erillisessä raportissa kevään 2020 aikana. Vuoden 2018 PISA-tutkimukseen osallistui yhteensä 79 maata ja aluetta (taulukko 1.1). Näistä 37 oli OECD-maita ja 42 niin kutsuttuja partnerimaita tai valtioiden sisäisiä alueita tai kaupunkeja. nonPeerReviewed

In Finland, the national Core Curriculum for Basic Education defines the learning objectives along with the numerical grade to be given for good competence in each school subject in the final phase of basic education. While serving as a guideline for schools and teachers, it should also ensure an objective evaluation of all students in Finland. In this paper, we take a closer look at the equality of student assessment in Finland in the light of student performance in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2009. This study investigates the relationship between the grades given to students in mother tongue and literature at different schools and the same students’ reading literacy performance in PISA 2009. The results are presented as a map produced using a method called kriging (McCoy and Johnston 2001). Kriging is a geostatistical interpolation method based on the statistical relationship among measured points’ spatial autocorrelation. In this case, the method produces contour maps illustrating areal differences for educational variables. The contour maps and related analysis indicate that teachers tend to adjust their grading practices to the general competence level of their class or school rather than strictly following the national curriculum guideline for student assessment. This may lead to local variations in terms of students’ school grades as indices of learning achievement and becomes evident when contrasted with an external, nation-wide reference point, such as their reading literacy performance in PISA 2009. Keywords: reading literacy, learning achievement, geographical illustration, school grade, equality (Published: 5 December 2016) Citation: Education Inquiry (EDUI) 2016, 7, 29413, http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/edui.v7.29413

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This study examined language skills and pre-literacy skills (phonological awareness, rapid naming, and letter knowledge) before school-age as predictors of PISA reading at age 15 in two groups of children, with (n = 88) and without (n = 70) family-risk for dyslexia . Moreover, effects of family-risk on these early predictors, reading fluency , and PISA reading were examined while controlling the effect of gender. Children were followed from age 2 to 15. Family-risk had a significant effect on early language and pre-literacy skills, reading fluency and PISA reading. A similar model predicting PISA reading fitted the data well in the Family-risk and the No family-risk group. Language skills explained a good portion and pre-literacy skills to a lesser extent the variance in PISA reading. Altogether 68% of the variance in PISA reading was explained in the Family-risk group and 44% in the No family-risk group. Findings suggest that family risk sets children at elevated risk to develop long-standing difficulties in language and literacy and that the early language and pre-literacy skills are strong predictors of reading as far as PISA reading at age 15.

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In 2013, the authors prepared a report on educational excellence and equity in Finland based on PISA 2009 data and asked the question “Could Finland achieve both excellence and equality goals in the coming decade? Five years later, this report re-examines the challenge faced by Finland in light of recent PISA results. The Finnish school system, both the Finnish and Swedish speaking components, have consistently ranked at the top of the list of OECD countries. However, Finland’s performance has been dropping compared to previous years, while it failed to keep pace with performance improvements in other countries. Simply working harder along the same path will no longer work. Therefore, this report examines of evidence from PISA 2015 in context, to provide some insights for successful action by those involved in education in order to slow and eventually reverse the decline in student performance. The context in which Finland’s comprehensive schooling operates has changed: the numbers of students of school age are declining; there are more foreign language speakers than Swedish speakers in the population; and there have been Swedish school closures and amalgamations. There have been positive changes, too, such as the pioneering new curriculum. Suggestions are made for strategic action arising from analyses of PISA 2000 to 2015. A series of analyses on student performance over PISA cycles since 2000 in science, reading and mathematics show that there has been a decreasing gap between the average performance of students in Finnish speaking schools and students in Swedish speaking schools. The way this reduction was achieved is not sustainable because students in Finnish speaking schools declined in their performance and students in Swedish speaking schools who had a lower average to start with did not improve much. Thus, increased equality was gained at the expense of excellence. In general, science was the domain with the best performance and Swedish speaking students performed better in mathematics while Finnish speaking students had a higher average in reading in PISA 2015. It is time for Finland to compare performance with top performers wherever they may be and not just among OECD countries. In its heyday, Finland had scores that were similar to those of the top performer Singapore in 2015 and it should be able to achieve those scores again. Analyses of high and low performers, boys and girls and their social background also showed areas where steps can be taken to reduce risk of low scores, to respond early to low performance through monitoring and to provide both opportunities for academic and personal development. Suggestions were made for Finland to work at improving average scores all three domains to achieve higher average scores with less difference between students and schools, particularly through individualized teaching and planning for effective use of additional resources when needed. There were positive signs that both Finnish and Swedish speaking students continue to learn into young adulthood after their comprehensive schooling. The importance of coordinated approaches involving the Ministry of education, municipalities, schools, teachers and parents were highlighted for optimum results. Both excellence and equity should be the goals of education in the coming decade without sacrificing one for the other.

The purpose of the present study was to examine the relationship between reading literacy and age in an adult population aged 25 to 65 in Nordic countries using PIAAC 2012 data. More specifically, the study examined to what extent variations in the literacy proficiency of adults are explained by age and the recentness of qualifications when variables related to education, occupation, and skill use are controlled. The statistical method was regression analysis. The recentness of education explained only a part of the performance gap between the oldest adults and others. The significance of the length and scope of initial education in developing literacy proficiency overall, is difficult to compensate. There were insignificant differences between the Nordic countries. peerReviewed

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