In search of the ethos of the adult upper secondary school

Authors

• Ari Sivenius Itä-Suomen yliopisto
• Risto Ikonen Itä-Suomen yliopisto

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to delineate, interpret, and describe the ethos of the Finnish upper secondary school for adults. Three different approaches, the official, historical, and practical, are used as hermeneutic tools in order to make visible the hidden layers of institutional ethos. The first approach deals with the official stratum which gives the basic determinants for action, and which are documented in laws, official papers and regulations. The second approach uses historical knowledge to interpret and understand the developmental history of seemingly unproblematic every-day routines. Main sources of information are articles published in Finnish journals. The third approach provides insight into present-time teachers' views and beliefs with the help of interviews. In the light of these three viewpoints, it is evident that even though teachers should in principle follow the guidelines given in official documents, in fact they are repeating traditional ways of action. Therefore, the ethos of upper secondary school of adults is charachterized by slight discrepancies between official regulations and every-day practices. As a consequence, the ethos of this particular institution can not be understood without historical knowledge.