Poliisikoulutus muuttui korkeakoulututkinnoksi: Opinnäytetyön ohjaaminen ja opinnäyteprosessin tuottamat työelämätaidot tutkinnonuudistuksen alkuvaiheessa
Keywords:
police training, Police University College, generic skills, thesis, tutoringAbstract
Refereed article
The job description of the police officer has transformed due to changes in the society and related new expert requirements; this new reality has, additionally, placed demands on the educational system calling for a re-evaluation and a structural change. Consequently, the police degree became a bachelor level degree in 2014 and now includes a 15 credit point thesis. This article aims to review the thesis process through the pilot thesis project that took place between 2011 and 2013, particularly, from a mentoring perspective. The data consists of the involved mentors’ interviews. According to the data, at the eve of the educational reform the police training culture is still typified by a fairly strong hierarchical structure. Among the future challenges identified was the augmentation of student responsibility and self-direction during both the thesis process and the studies on the whole. Furthermore, the teachers’ focus was mostly on the students’ timely progress and the final product, instead of the thesis process which had less emphasis. Although, the teachers acknowledged the potential for the thesis to develop some generic work life skills for example, the pilot project left room for improvement in this regard. In order for the thesis process to truly and significantly promote professional growth, its potential should be better acknowledged. It also requires a more systematic analysis of the process and a change in both the teacher’s role and in the teaching culture.
