Finland from Re.ViCa

by Ulla Rintala, Aalto University

For the main entry on this country now see Finland

For entities in Finland see Category:Finland

Partners situated in Finland:

• Lifelong Learning Institute Dipoli (TKK Dipoli) - Helsinki University of Technology

Helsinki University of Technology is the oldest university of technology in Finland.

Finland in a nutshell

Source: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/fi.html

(mainly sourced from: Wikipedia)

Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic Country situated in Northern Europe. It is the eighth largest country in Europe in terms of area and the most sparsely populated country in the European Union. Finland has been a member of the European Union since 1995, independent since 1917 and autonomous since 1809. The capital city is Helsinki.

The population of Finland is some 5.3 million inhabitants and the majority is concentrated in the south: 71 % of Finns live in towns or in urban areas, whereas only 29 % live in rural areas. Finland has two official languages: Finnish and Swedish. Finnish is spoken by 91.5 % and Swedish by 5.5 % of the population. Sami (Lappish) is the mother tongue of about 1,700 people.

Finland is a democratic, parliamentary republic with a central government and local governments in 415 municipalities. Greater Helsinki (including Helsinki, Espoo and Vantaa) totals over a million residents and a third of the GDP. Other major cities include Tampere, Turku and Oulu.

Finnish education policy

(mainly sourced from: Ministry of Education)

Finnish education and science policy stresses quality, efficiency, equity and internationalism. It is geared to promote the competitiveness of Finnish welfare society. Sustainable economic development will continue to provide the best basis for assuring the nation's cultural, social and economic welfare. The overall lines of Finnish education and science policy are in line with the EU Lisbon strategy.

In Finland, the basic right to education and culture is recorded in the Constitution. Public authorities must secure equal opportunities for every resident in Finland to get education also after compulsory schooling and to develop themselves, irrespective of their financial standing. Legislation provides for compulsory schooling and the right to free pre-primary and basic education. Most other qualifying education is also free for the students, including postgraduate education in universities.

Parliament passes legislation concerning education and research and determines the basic lines of education and science policy. The Government and the Ministry of Education, as part of it, are responsible for preparing and implementing education and science policy. The Ministry of Education is responsible for education financed from the state budget. The Government adopts a development plan for education and research every four years.

Finnish education system

(mainly sourced from: Ministry of Education)

Source: http://www.edu.fi/english/SubPage.asp?path=500,4699 Another graphic can be downloaded as a PDF (1 page)

The Finnish education system is composed of nine-year basic education (comprehensive school), preceded by one year of voluntary pre-primary education; upper secondary education, comprising vocational and general education; and higher education, provided by universities and polytechnics. Adult education is available at all levels.

Students’ opportunities to progress from one level of education to the next are safeguarded by legislation. Both general and vocational upper secondary certificates provide eligibility for further studies in universities and polytechnics. A student completing one level is always eligible for the next level of studies. The qualifications of each level are governed by a separate Act of Parliament. Finnish education is free of charge at all levels.

Basic education is general education provided for the whole age group. Upper secondary education consists of general education and vocational education and training (vocational qualifications and further and specialist qualifications). The higher education system comprises universities and polytechnics, in which the admission requirement is a secondary general or vocational diploma.

Higher education

See also the following OECD reports for more information about the Finnish higher education:

Thematic Review of Tertiary Education - Country Reviews;

Thematic Review of Tertiary Education - Country Background Reports.

Universities in Finland

(mainly sourced from: Ministry of Education and Universities 2006 – Annual Report. Ministry of Education publications 2007:19.)

Universities, which are academic or artistic institutions, focus on scientific research and research-based education. They confer Bachelor’s, Master’s, Licentiate and Doctoral degrees. At the moment (June 2008), Finland has 20 universities and a National College for Defense, which work on the principles of academic freedom and autonomy. They are very independent in their decision-making. All universities are state-run, the government providing some 70 % of their budgets.

At universities, students can study for lower (Bachelor's) and higher (Master's) degrees and scientific or artistic postgraduate degrees, which are the licentiate and the doctorate. It is also possible to study specialist postgraduate degrees in the medical fields. In the two-cycle degree system, students first complete the Bachelor's degree, after which they may go for the higher, Master's degree. As a rule, students are admitted to study for the higher degree. Universities also arrange separate Master's programs with separate student selection, to which the entry requirement is a Bachelor's level degree or corresponding studies.

Studies are quantified as credits (ECTS). One year of full-time study corresponds to 60 credits. The extent of the Bachelor's level degree is 180 credits, and it is aimed to take some three years. The Master's degree is 120 credits, which means two years of full-time study on top of the lower degree. In some fields, such as medicine, the degrees are more extensive and take longer to complete.

University postgraduate education aims at a doctoral degree. In addition to the required studies, doctoral students prepare a dissertation, which they defend in public. The requirement for postgraduate studies is a Master's or corresponding degree. Universities also offer fee-charging continuing education and Open University instruction, which do not lead to qualifications but can be included in an undergraduate or postgraduate degree.

Universities select their students independently and entrance examinations are an important part of the selection process. An admitted student may only accept one student place in degree education in a given academic year. The aim is to simplify student selection procedures by means of a joint universities application system to be introduced in the academic year 2008 – 2009.

At the moment (June 2008), there are 10 multi-faculty universities, 6 specialized universities, 4 art academies and a National College for Defense in Finland. Annually (2006), some 20,000 new students attend university education, whereas the total number of students is some 160 000. The number of Master’s degrees completed at universities during 2006 totaled 13,100. The number of doctorates, in turn, amounted to 1,410. The average drop-out rate (2005) is only about 5.0 %.

Polytechnics in Finland

(mainly sourced from: Ministry of Education, Statistics Finland and Heinonen, O-P. (1997) Finland: Restructuring Higher Education. Prospects, vol. XXVII, no.4, December 1997.)

The first polytechnics were set up on an experimental basis in 1991, the aims being to raise the standard of higher vocational education, to make Finland’s training and qualifications more internationally competitive, to respond to the demands for new skills, to enhance the attraction of vocational education and to increase the efficiency of vocational education system. The reform was launched on the basis of guidelines issued by the government, and responsibility for bringing courses up to non-university higher education standard was entrusted to the institutions taking part in the experiment.

The first permanent polytechnics started operating in 1996 after a thorough evaluation process. In 2003, the polytechnics were given the same autonomy as universities. Till then, they had operated under the supervision of the Ministry of Education. The higher polytechnic degree was established in 2005 after a 5-year experiment. Additionally, the polytechnic reform entailed a total reorganization of other vocational education, the post-secondary college level being completely phased out, the post-comprehensive level being expanded, and the apprenticeship training gradually being increased.

Polytechnics, also known as universities of applied sciences, offer work-related education in response to labor market needs. Degree studies give a higher education qualification and practical professional skills. They comprise core and professional studies, elective studies and a final project. All degree studies include practical on-the-job learning. There are no tuition fees in degree education, and the students can apply for financial aid.

At the moment (June 2008), there are 28 polytechnics in the Ministry of Education sector: seven are run by local authorities, 11 by municipal education consortia and 10 by private organizations. In addition, there is the Åland University of Applied Sciences in the self-governing Province of Åland and the Police College subordinate to the Ministry of Interior. The polytechnics are co-financed by the government and local authorities.

The extent of polytechnic degree studies is generally 210 − 240 study points (ECTS), which means 3.5 – 4 years of full-time study. This education is arranged as degree programs. The entry requirement is a certificate from an upper secondary school or the matriculation certificate, a vocational qualification or corresponding foreign studies. The requirement for Master's studies in polytechnics is a Bachelors' level polytechnic degree and at least three years of work experience. The polytechnic Master's, which is 60 – 90 study points and takes 1.5 – 2 years, is equivalent to a university Master's in the labor market.

A total of 133,300 students attended polytechnic education leading to a degree in 2007. This was 700 students more than the year before. The number of new students was 36,600. In addition, a total of 21,000 degrees were obtained. The number of foreign students attending education leading to a degree was 5,400, 17 % more than the year before. In 2007, the number of degrees obtained by foreign students increased by 11 % from previous year and stood slightly over 500. The number of students attending education leading to a higher polytechnic degree was 3,400, which was 1,300 students more than the year before. Higher polytechnic degrees were obtained by 360 students.

Higher education reform

The Bologna Process

(mainly sourced from: Ministry of Education)

The Finnish higher education reform derives from the Bologna Declaration. In order to strengthen the position of Finnish universities in the European Higher Education Area, Finland has reformed the degree structure and is currently devising an international strategy for the Finnish higher education system. Another important means has been the strengthening of quality assurance in Finnish universities and polytechnics. The new two-cycle degree system was adopted by Finnish universities in August 2005, whereas polytechnics have kept the present system. The degrees were reformed compatible with the ECTS at the same time.

In Finland, universities and polytechnics have adopted the Diploma Supplement. It is a document jointly designed by the EU, the Council of Europe and UNESCO to provide information about the studies completed by the student, the status of the degree and the qualification provided by the degree for further studies and for jobs. The universities and polytechnics have a statutory duty to issue a Diploma Supplement to the student on request.

Structural development

(Koulutus ja tutkimus 2007-2012 – kehittämissuunnitelma. Opetusministeriön julkaisuja 2008:9. (FI) and Korkeakoulujen rakenteellisen kehittämisen suuntaviivat vuosille 2008 – 2011. (FI))

The Finnish higher education system consists of two complementary sectors, where universities and polytechnics have different missions and profiles (dual model). Universities focus on scientific research and research-based education, whereas polytechnics offer work-related education in response to the labor market needs. The Finnish higher education system is currently undergoing a structural development process, which is meant to be completed by 2012. According to the Ministry of Education, the aims of structural development can be listed as following:

• The quality of teaching and research improves.
• The impressiveness of education and research strengthens.
• The internationalization proceeds.
• The level of know-how arises and the competitiveness strengthens.
• The strengths of higher education are pulled together.
• The co-operational structures and administration evolve.
• The public research system functions better.
• The alternatives in individual education diversify.
• Services for students and researchers improve.

Additionally, the Ministry of Education has given recommendations and guidelines for the goals of structural development in Finnish higher education institutions.

Table I: HEIs' key figures in 2006 and vision 2020

	Polytechnics (2006)	Polytechnics (2020)	Universities (2006)	Universities (2020)
Number of institutions	29	max. 18	20	max. 15
Students (FTE)	105,000	95,000	120,000	105,000
Students (FTE) / teachers (%)	17.8	16.0	14.3	12.5
Basic degree / teachers (%)	3.5	3.7	1.6	1.9
Passing percentage (%)	70.3	76.0	55.4	70.0
Graduate employment and continuation to postgraduate studies (%)	88.7	90.8	88.8	91.0
Doctorate degrees / professor (%)	-	-	0.6	0.8
Scientific publications / teaching and research staff (%)	-	-	1.7	2.2

University reform

The new Universities Act will further extend the autonomy of universities by giving them an independent legal personality, either as public corporations or as foundations under private law. At the same time, the universities’ management and decision-making system will be reformed.

The Parliament passed the Universities Bill on June 16th, 2009. The reform of the Universities Act has been prepared in close collaboration with universities and stakeholders. The preparation began in spring 2007, and the start of activities will be on January 1st, 2010.

Proposal for the new Universities Act in Brief; February 20th, 2009 (pdf)

Structural development in universities

(mainly sourced from: Ministry of Education and Aalto Yliopisto)

In years 2006 – 2007, the Ministry of Education allocated some 18 M€ for the structural development of universities. In addition, three leading projects were launched in November 2006: The Aalto University, The University of Eastern Finland and the University Consortium in Turku. The reform will transform universities’ legal status from entities under the State Budget to an independent body corporate. This allows increased autonomy in university finances and administration.

The Aalto University is a new university, which will be created through a full merger of three existing universities: Helsinki School of Economics, Helsinki University of Technology and University of Art and Design Helsinki. The University of Eastern Finland is a new university built from two current universities in Eastern Finland: University of Joensuu and University of Kuopio. University of Turku and Turku School of Economics, in turn, make the University Consortium in Turku, which is then supposed to build up a new kind of university 3 years later.

In addition to the aforementioned projects, universities are supported in their collaborative projects and in collaboration with the polytechnics and other parties. Some internal development projects are also supported. The structural development in universities has not only been ministry-led, but the universities have also taken an active role in the processes.

Table II: Consequences of the structural development in Finnish universities

Nr	The new university / consortium	Consists of	Starts on
1.	Aalto University	(1) Helsinki School of Economics, (2) Helsinki University of Technology and (3) University of Art and Design Helsinki	January 1st, 2010
2.	University of Eastern Finland	(1) University of Joensuu and (2) Univeristy of Kuopio	January 1st, 2010
3.	University Consortium in Turku (new kind of university to be established in 2011)	(1) University of Turku and (2) Turku School of Economics	August 1st, 2008

Structural development in polytechnics

(mainly sourced from: Ministry of Education)

The most significant development projects amongst the polytechnics have been the three merger projects. At the beginning of year 2007, HAAGA University of Applied Sciences and Helsinki Business Polytechnic merged into HAAGA-HELIA University of Applied Sciences. Helsinki Polytechnic Stadia and EVTEK University of Applied Sciences, in turn, will become the Metropolia University of Applied Sciences in August 2008, and at the same time some, branch rationalization will be made with Laurea University of Applied Sciences. Furthermore, Swedish polytechnic Finland and Sydväst Polytechnic will become the Novia University of Applied Sciences in August 2008.

It has also been agreed that degree-led education and, thus, 12 units in 11 localities will be closed down. Education programs and areas of responsibilities are united so that education will be organized in groups of no less than 40 students. Additionally, the polytechnics will develop their distribution of work and, thereby, strengthen their profilization. The aim is that some 10 % (~2,500) of new students will be redirected in years 2008 – 2009.

Table III: Consequences of the structural development in Finnish polytechnics

Nr	The new polytechnic	Consists of	Starts / started on
1.	HAAGA-HELIA University of Applied Sciences	(1) HAAGA University of Applied Sciences and (2) Helsinki Business Polytechnic	January 1st, 2007
2.	Metropolia University of Applied Sciences	(1) Helsinki Polytechnic Stadia and (2) EVTEK University of Applied Sciences	August 1st, 2008
3.	Novia University of Applied Sciences	(1) Swedish Polytechnic Finland and (2) Sydväst Polytechnic	August 1st, 2008

Administration and finance

(mainly sourced from: Ministry of Education)

Polytechnic education is co-financed by the government and local authorities. The local authorities pay 54.7 % of the cost of basic education, general upper secondary education, vocational education and training and polytechnic education. In addition to its 45.3 % share of statutory funding, the government grants discretionary subsidies to education and its development. As the funds are not earmarked, the education providers can use them at their discretion. In addition to this public funding, polytechnics provide fee-paying services and carry out projects, which also bring them income.

Funds granted by the Ministry of Education to universities comprise core funding, project funding and performance-based funding. The appropriations and the objectives, direction, evaluation and development of university operations are determined in performance agreements concluded by the universities and the Ministry of Education. Universities also receive a great deal of external financing, e.g. for research projects, and have income from services they provide, such as continuing professional education.

Quality assurance

(mainly sourced from: Audits of Quality Assurance Systems of Finnish Higher Education Institutions – Audit Manual for 2005-2007. Publications of The Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council 4:2006.)

Quality assurance of higher education is one of the key development areas in efforts to construct a European Higher Education Area (EHEA). In 2005, The Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council (FINHEEC) launched a project for auditing the quality assurance systems of Finnish higher education institutions (HEIs). The purpose of auditing is to ensure that the HEIs have quality assurance systems in support of continuous and systematic improvement of operations, and that such a system works according to stated objectives, brings out change and has international credibility.

The FINHEEC audit model is founded in the principle of enhancement-led evaluation and is the universally accepted approach in Finland. The model also conforms to the ENQA Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area.

Finnish HEIs in the information society

Towards the information society

The nineteen eighties and nineties saw the breakthrough of the use of information technology in a wide spectrum. During that period, the critical amount of users was created inside the world of HE, first in communities of researchers, and then, as a natural continuum also in the researcher education. The birth of CSC and Funet helped Finnish HE to achieve an internationally high level in exploiting information technologies. The rapid expansion of the networks of HEIs allowed the massive access of students into the lateral communication of the community of students.

This, however, had little or no impact on the teaching of the institutions, except in some fields of natural sciences, medicine and technical sciences, while in the national strategic guidelines for primary and secondary education, including vocational education, the use of ICT in teaching and the systematic improvement of the ICT skills of teachers became a stated goal already in the nineties. For HEIs, it had to be waited that the overall discussion on pedagogy reached the point where it started to evolve into systematic forms. In Finland as elsewhere, the autonomy and decision making of HEIs have not been instrumental in implementing the national strategy in use of ICT in learning.

In the HEIs in Finland, the introduction of ICT in teaching stemmed largely from a different tradition than in schools and vocational education institutions, where the first wave of interest towards the possibilities of IT in teaching and the later hyper- and multimedia hype were huge. These waves matched well with the emerging conceptions about learning, and the subsequent modern methods which emphasized the student’s independent work exploratory and collaborative learning and process orientation.

In HEIs, two mainstreams emerged: on the one hand the culture of high-powered computation done in centralized supercomputer environments coupled with computer science, information technology and electronic data processing of the administration, and on the other hand the reflection of the development of different forms of distant teaching into the world of higher education. In this second mainstream, continuing education centers and open universities have played an important role.

Information society strategy period

Development of information society did not become an issue in Finland before the implementation of the first information society strategy in 1995 – 1999. In the HE sector, the focus was on improving the computer facilities, networks, library applications and applications serving the information and communication needs of researchers. Internet, net communications and learning platforms, net courses, digital materials and learning object repositories had their breakthrough on the period of the first information society strategy actually without significant direction from the strategy. The development of the field was so fast that the strategy work was falling behind, which was quite natural particularly at that time. Strategy work served decision-making and the mainstream of education, not the forerunners.

At the same time, an interesting convergence of several separate small traditions into a wide and diverse mainstream took place due to the fact that use of ICT in teaching was becoming more widespread. On one side, the experts of ICT in classroom teaching (computer-aided learning) noticed how the Internet was starting to make classrooms virtual. On another side, the education technologists of distant teaching and learning started noticing that network pedagogy offers possibilities beyond electronic distribution of teaching materials, returning assignments through the net or using video conferencing and telephone in communication. Many who had been awakened by the Internet found the research and development done by the forerunners. The virtual, often informal networks of experts and learning started to evolve into genuine flora of lifelong learning, the most famous of course being the worldwide network of Linux users.

The information strategy for education and research 2000 – 2004 grasped four important challenges for developing information society: 1) ensuring necessary skills for information society; 2) developing network learning environments; 3) securing the structures of information society; and 4) developing digital learning resources. For tackling the challenges belonging to the third group at HEI level, the Finnish Virtual University (FVU) and the Finnish Online University of Applied Sciences (VirtuaaliAMK), formerly known as the Finnish Virtual Polytechnic (FVP), were developed as a unifying concept.

Until the end of year 2006, the guiding document for the FVU and VirtuaaliAMK activities and related projects and networks was the Information Society Program for Education, Training and Research 2004 – 2006. The foci were set on establishing productive and economically viable practices and on encouraging exploitation of ICT in social innovations. The purpose for consolidating the virtual university was that projects and services initially operating on national funding were eventually to be transferred to the respective universities.

Virtual initiatives in HE

Finnish Virtual University (FVU)

Partnership of universities

(mainly sourced from: Finnish Virtual University)

The Finnish Virtual University (FVU) is a partnership of all Finnish universities. Its goal is to support and develop collaboration among universities in the utilization of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in teaching and studying. As a Consortium, it develops information network –based training and educational services for the shared use of its member universities. The Finnish Virtual University is not an online or distance education university and it does not provide university education. For online or distance education one has to enrol in one of the FVU member universities.

In the FVU framework, universities participate in the national collaboration, and in addition, each member university has a special unit to promote and support online learning and teaching locally. These units may be educational technology centers, learning centers or other locally relevant units. The FVU Service Unit implements the targets and tasks set by the Advisory Board and the Executive Board of the FVU consortium. Its operations are steered by the Executive Board. The Service Unit operates as an independent institute under the Helsinki University of Technology in 2007-2012.

The operations of the Finnish Virtual University are based on an Agreement establishing the Consortium of the Finnish Virtual University (FVU) signed by all Finnish Universities in January 2001, on an Agreement signed in November 2006 on the revision of the Rules and Regulations of the FVU Consortium and the establishment of the FVU Service Unit as an independent institute, as well as on the strategy approved by the Annual Consortium Assembly in March 2005. The Finnish Virtual University has special experience in the following areas:

1. Promoting student mobility: negotiating a nation-wide agreement on flexible study rights, providing online information services
2. Quality assurance in online education: developing tools and systems
3. Online learning materials and learning objectives: developing functional exchange systems
4. Teacher training in ICT: courses for university staff and local experts at universities
5. Web tools for planning and evaluating online education

The ideas and experience generated by the FVU are instrumental in the development of the European Higher Education Area (EHEA). The two prerequisites of EHEA, the two-tier degree structure and the ECTS-based system, were adopted by the FVU member universities in August 2005. To gain experience and to meet the other prerequisites of EHEA, the FVU is also involved in more than 40 national virtual university projects (2006) and several EU eLearning projects. Additionally, the Finnish (FVU) and Bavarian (VHB) Virtual Universities signed a Cooperative Agreement on the exchange of their member universities’ online courses and online learning materials in 2006.

Since the establishment of the FVU operations on a permanent basis as of 2007, the universities took on more responsibility for funding the operations. Part of the FVU operations are financed through a consortium fee, which member universities contribute to in relation to their staff and student numbers. Moreover, a number of development projects to implement the strategy are still operated with project funding awarded by the Ministry of Education grounded in the performance contracts between the Ministry of Education and the FVU member universities. The Ministry of Education also supported the startup of the Service Unit with information society program funding. The virtual university support units within universities are financed with budget funding from the universities.

History

(mainly sourced from: Finnish Virtual University, Information Strategy for Education and Research 2000 – 2004. Implementation Plan. and Suomen virtuaaliyliopistoverkostojen arviointi. Opetusministeriön työryhmämuistioita ja selvityksiä 2007:28. (FI))

The idea of a national virtual university came from two directions: from the universities themselves and from the Ministry of Education’s Strategy for Education and Research 2000 – 2004. Terms such as ‘virtual university’ and ‘online university’ started to pop up in the international and domestic university discussions at the end of 1990’s. At the same time, discussion begun about the globalization of educational markets and the European Higher Education Area. In Finland, the discussion swiftly crystallized into concrete proposals:

• At the 1998 term-opening ceremony of Helsinki University of Technology (TKK), rector Paavo Uronen brought up the idea of ‘Finland’s Online University’
• At the same time, the Minister of Education of that time, Olli-Pekka Heinonen, suggested that the committee preparing for the Information Strategy for Education and Research should include a proposal for a virtual university in the strategy. Such proposal was, in fact, included in the new information strategy for 2000 – 2004.
• In summer 1999, the Minister of Education Maija Rask set up an organization for implementing the strategy, including a working group on the virtual university.
• The working group prepared an implementation plan, according to which the development unit of the virtual university was established in 2000.

Based on the new strategy, the Ministry of Education financed a number of virtual university projects and activities in years 2001 – 2006, and the development of FVU during that time was, indeed, rapid:

2001: FVU Consortium Agreement is signed.

2003: Nation-wide Agreement on Flexible Study Rights is signed.

2004: Networks and ICT support units become part of everyday university life. Flexible Study Rights Service, JOOPAS, is launched.

2005: FVU Strategy for 2005 – 2010 is adopted.

2006: Cooperation Agreement between the Finnish Virtual University and the Bavarian Virtual University is signed.

2007: The FVU Service Unit starts operating as an independent institution of the Helsinki University of Technology, and the FVU cooperation among universities continues within the framework of the new consortium statutes.

2008: eLene (eLearning network) Cooperation agreement signed between the nine European partners.

2008: Agreement on the Founding of the European Network of Networks for Higher Education Online (EuNeOn) signed. The FVU is one of the founding partners.

In the implementation plan of the Information Strategy for Education and Research 2000 – 2004, there was also a mention about integrating polytechnics, companies and research institutes into the virtual university consortium. However, the polytechnics decided to launch their own ‘virtual university’ project at about the same time (2001), so the Finnish Virtual Polytechnic (see also chapter 5) was set in motion.

Services for students, teachers and developers

(mainly sourced from: Finnish Virtual University)

The various FVU services are meant for both universities’ internal use and their shared used throughout the country. All services are available in Finnish, and some also in Swedish and/or English. The support services for ICT use and cooperation include:

• Local ICT support units in universities
• Training in educational ICT use
• Information pools for shared use
• Guidance for setting up networks and projects
• Communication and events

Online services for Finnish degree students consist of (1) online services for flexible study opportunities, as well as of (2) counselling services on studies and learning skills. The online services for flexible study opportunities include Joopas.fi – Information Service for Flexible Studies, FVU Course Database including descriptions of courses offered by the Finnish universities, and Electronic Application System for Flexible Studies. The counselling services on studies and learning skills include OVI – Tool for designing personal study plan and IQ Form tools (IQ Learn and IQ Team) supporting individual student, student group and teacher during the studies carried out on the web. These tools can be used as supportive tools also in campus-based learning.

Online services for teachers include VerkkoVelho – Interactive guide for designing online courses, Softaräätäli – Educational technology selection tool, ARVO – Usability evaluation tool and OSKAR – Evaluation tool for staff ICT skills level. Developers’ online services, in turn, consist of Extranet – Materials and guidelines of nation-wide cooperative networks, Academic Forum – Interactive community forum, Strategy Service – Resources for developing universities’ strategies for educational use of ICT and Kokousympäristö – Meeting agendas and materials of FVU development operations.

Additionally, the Finnish Virtual University was one of the partners in the EU funded eLene-TLC – e-Learning network for Teaching and Learning Centre project developing an online Teaching and Learning Centre, which is a Europe-wide collaborative space for teachers, teacher trainers, instructional designers and learners in educational ICT use to meet skills, needs and expectations of the Internet-generation students.

In 2007, the Executive Board of FVU also approved the Finnish metadata model (FinnEduMeta), a specification for digital educational materials, and recommended that Finnish universities adopt the specification. FinnEduMeta is a metadata model for learning materials designed for use by all educational levels. When developing the specification, the target was to create a single metadata model that is sufficient to describe all digital educational materials in a way that enables the provision of high-quality and encompassing data search services.

The FinnEduMata specification complements the previous specifications produced by the Finnish Virtual University, i.e., Degree, Study Module and Course Unit Data (M1), Course Unit Realisation Data (M2) and Credits Data (M3).

Finally, at the beginning of 2009, the FVU services expanded with another service. The referee service for online learning material (at this stage only available in Finnish) was developed in 2007 - 2008 as a joint project between Lappeenranta University of Technology, Tampere University of Technology, University of Oulu, University of Joensuu and the FVU Service Unit. The service aims to increase shared use of quality online learning material produced in universities, and to acknowledge the work of the developers and evaluators of the material.

The referee service defines online learning material as an educational entity with its own contentual requirements and goals set for learning, and which is available via the Internet. The service focuses on reviewing online learning material that the producer wants to offer for shared use and for which the producer wants a referee evaluation quality mark.

Quality assurance

(mainly sourced from: Finnish Virtual University, Quality to the Web and VOPLA)

The Finnish Virtual University and the Finnish Online University of Applied Sciences established the quality criteria for materials published on virtual university portals in 2005. The criteria cover both the quality assessment and the development of materials. The criteria are used in such content providing projects, which are carried out by collaboration of HEIs and which produce outcomes to be published on the aforementioned portals. Additionally, the quality criteria can be used by other online material producers, administrators, developers and external evaluators.

Before publishing any material on the FVU portal, it must be evaluated using these criteria. The purpose of the evaluation is to make sure that the material is informative, functional and easily available. High-quality material must also meet the legislative demands.

The quality criteria base on the quality criteria of public network services developed in the ‘Quality to the Web’ project carried out by the Ministry of Finance. Additionally, the criteria have been adapted and supplemented so that they are suitable for the evaluation of materials particularly published on the portals.

Another FVU project (2004 – 2007), funded by the Ministry of Education, was the Quality Management in e-Learning (VOPLA). The VOPLA project was a joint venture between three Finnish universities; University of Helsinki, University of Kuopio and Lappeenranta University of Technology. Its work was steered, monitored and evaluated by a steering group, consisting of members from the Ministry of Education, Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council and the universities.

The VOPLA project aimed at developing materials and tools for e-learning quality improvement. Its goals were:

• to develop quality service,
• to support and enhance e-learning quality improvement in universities,
• to develop the expertise and commitment of staff in developing e-learning.

The Quality Manual (QM) for e-learning (available in Finnish) was one of the main outcomes of the project. The Quality Manual is a tool for developing quality in e-learning. It aims to give a wider perspective on quality management in e-learning by identifying contents and methods for quality management work. The main goal of the contents of the Quality Manual is to provide tools to enhance teaching and learning.

There are four quality handbooks in the Quality Manual: Handbook of Online Courses, Handbook of Online Resources, Handbook of Online Support and Handbook of Learning Organization. They all contain five aspects and three phases of e-learning quality management. The five aspects are: management, skills, resources, processes and evaluation. And the three phases are: describing the present state of e-learning, building up quality, and maintaining and developing.

The future of FVU

(mainly sourced from: Finnish Virtual University)

In November 2008, the Executive Board of Finnish Virtual University decided to set up a working group to plan for the future of FVU and its reorganization. The objective of the working group is to make a plan, how the Finnish Virtual University should operate in the future and how its current services should be organized from year 2010 onwards. The proposition will be discussed by the Advisory Committee of Finnish Virtual University in March 2009.

The Finnish Council of University Rectors (a co-operational organization for Finnish universities, founded in 1969) has also discussed the future of FVU as well as its funding in years 2010 – 2012. The Council sees that the current situation is not sustainable. However, functional services, such as JOOPAS, should be offered also in the future. Only the organization and the funding need to be changed.

Finnish Online University of Applied Sciences (VirtuaaliAMK)

National cooperative network

(mainly sourced from: Ammattikorkeakoulujen verkostohankkeet. Opetusministeriön julkaisuja 2007:1. (FI))

The Finnish Online University of Applied Sciences (VirtuaaliAMK), formerly known as the Finnish Virtual Polytechnic, is one the existing networking projects among Finnish polytechnics. It is a national cooperative network formed by all Finnish polytechnics. Its objectives are to develop, produce and offer internationally recognized, high-standard and competitive educational services and study entities aiming at flexible studies. The education and services make good use of different teaching and learning methods and modern information and communications technology.

The activities of the Finnish Online University of Applied Sciences are based on polytechnics’ network and cooperative development. The development unit coordinates the activities and develops various services together with the polytechnics. The activities of the Finnish Online University of Applied Sciences are divided into separate projects: projects of the development unit and projects of the polytechnics. The development among the network has been both transparent and under regular evaluation throughout the project. Additionally, the cooperation has generated several models of good practice, which has also made the future development easier.

The support of financiers or network of financiers has also played an important role in the activities of VirtuaaliAMK. The Finnish Online University of Applied Sciences is co-financed by the European Social Fund (ESF), Ministry of Education, Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, as well as by The Social Insurance Institution of Finland (Kela). Polytechnics' self-financing share is also significant.

History

(mainly sourced from: Ammattikorkeakoulujen verkostohankkeet. Opetusministeriön julkaisuja 2007:1. (FI))

The structural development of Finnish higher education system and, furthermore, taking advantage of its synergies have been a hot potato in the Finnish education policy recently. Especially in the development of Finnish polytechnics, a great emphasis has been put on the national cooperation and networking of polytechnics. In recent years, several networking projects have been launched in order to promote the polytechnics’ common goals, such as progress of studies, internationalization, launch of career services, and implementation of virtual studies.

The development of Finnish Online University of Applied Sciences is one of those projects and it was started in 2001, when the TAMK University of Applied Sciences was named as the project coordinator. As the coordinator, TAMK was responsible for the project implementation, organizing and coordinating the collaboration and supporting other polytechnics in the project. In years 2004 – 2006, the project got funding from the Ministry of Education, and the foci were on producing virtual study entities and developing the VirtuaaliAMK portal and its services.

The amk.fi -portal

(mainly sourced from: Ammattikorkeakoulujen verkostohankkeet. Opetusministeriön julkaisuja 2007:1. (FI))

The amk.fi –portal is probably the most visible part of the VirtuaaliAMK network. It operates as the information and cooperation forum, electronic service provider and marketing channel of the network. It offers services in all three languages (Finnish, Swedish and English) for close to 10,000 registered and tens of thousands of unregistered users. Additionally, there is an integrated eProduction Environment on the portal, which is developed for centralized education production. The environment is shared by all polytechnics, and it enables the collective production of study materials, study modules and entire study entities.

Pedagogical and technical quality assurance

(mainly sourced from: Ammattikorkeakoulujen verkostohankkeet. Opetusministeriön julkaisuja 2007:1. (FI))

The pedagogical and technical quality assurance of VirtuaaliAMK’s educational products and services are carried out with the help of various evaluation tools and supporting networks. In year 2005, quality criteria and evaluation tools for the quality assessment of VirtuaaliAMK’s materials on the portal were established together with the Finnish Virtual University. The criteria cover the quality assessment and development of teaching materials published on the portal.

Students and teachers at VirtuaaliAMK

(mainly sourced from: Ministry of Education and Ammattikorkeakoulujen verkostohankkeet. Opetusministeriön julkaisuja 2007:1. (FI))

From the student perspective, studying at VirtuaaliAMK means flexibility, freedom of choice and alternative forms of study. Students develop not only their substance know-how, but also skills that are essential in today’s network society. Studies at VirtuaaliAMK are free for the degree students, but also others interested in the VirtuaaliAMK studies can take studies online.

Both the number of applicants and study modules offered through VirtuaaliAMK (2003 – 2005) have steadily increased. In 2005, altogether 548 study modules were offered through the portal, whereas the equivalent figure for 2003 was 232. The number of applicants, in turn, was some 800 students (2005), whereas the equivalent number from previous year (2004) was some 600 students. In 2005, 650 students were accepted at VirtuaaliAMK. In 2004, the number was 450 students.

The goal of VirtuaaliAMK is that by the end of year 2012, all polytechnic students have the opportunity to take at least a quarter of their studies virtually. This requires that more virtual study modules are offered through the VirtuaaliAMK portal. Another important objective is the flexibility in studying across institutional boarders. This requires that the overall electronic services are further developed, and that both students’ and teachers’ information and media literacy are at the required level.

From the institutional perspective, VirtuaaliAMK increases the economic competitiveness, among other things. When a polytechnic is involved in the education production, its staff gains valuable experience in developing and producing online study material, adopts teamwork skills and gets to utilize those skills for the benefit of their own polytechnic later. Additionally, a polytechnic that is involved in the production loop, can use the study materials produced by other polytechnics, and adapt and supplement them for their own purposes.

However, concrete results may not always be achieved in the short run, but in the long run. Polytechnics that are involved in the VirtuaaliAMK network have such know-how, which can surely be turned into economic advantage later. Additionally, when a polytechnic sets its study modules available on the portal, it gets free advertising. Various VirtuaaliAMK projects have also added the collaboration between teachers and business life, which in turn, has given the students the opportunity to get in touch with the business life through various projects and assignments already in student days.

References

• The Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council (2006)

Audits of Quality Assurance Systems of Finnish Higher Education Institutions – Audit Manual for 2005-2007. Publications of The Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council 4:2006.

• Heinonen, O-P. (1997)

Finland: Restructuring Higher Education. Prospects, vol. XXVII, no.4, December 1997.

• Ministry of Education (2000)

Information Strategy for Education and Research 2000 – 2004. Implementation Plan.

• Ministry of Education (2007a)

Ammattikorkeakoulujen verkostohankkeet. Opetusministeriön julkaisuja 2007:1.

• Ministry of Education (2007b)

Universities 2006 – Annual Report. Ministry of Education publications 2007:19.

• Ministry of Education (2007c)

Suomen virtuaaliyliopistoverkostojen arviointi. Opetusministeriön työryhmämuistioita ja selvityksiä 2007:28.

• Ministry of Education (2008a)

Koulutus ja tutkimus 2007-2012 – kehittämissuunnitelma. Opetusministeriön julkaisuja 2008:9.

• Ministry of Education (2008b)

Korkeakoulujen rakenteellisen kehittämisen suuntaviivat vuosille 2008 – 2011.

• BOLDIC – Finland Report. Open and Distance Learning in Finland, PDF - 15 pages

• Responding to the Vision of the Information Society: First Steps Towards a National Virtual University. A Policy Discussion Paper (PDF) by Terence Karran and Juha Pohjonen, Finland, 2005 (PDF, 124 pages, English) ISBN 951-42-5587-9

• The Finnish Virtual University: Lessons and Knowledge Exchange Opportunities to Inform Pan-Canadian Plans, by Joanne Curry, Canada, 2001, PDF, 42 pages, English, ISBN 951-22-6610-5

• NML-NIB im internationalen Kontext Länderbericht: Finnland (PDF - EN) by FNM-Austria

Relevant websites

• European Commission
• The Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council (FINHEEC)
• Finnish Ministry of Education (MINEDU)
• Finnish Online University of Applied Sciences (VirtuaaliAMK)
• Finnish Virtual University
• Refereepalvelu.fi (at this stage only available in Finnish)
• Statistics Finland
• Virtual Finland

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