1918 civil war in Finland and vocational school education

Authors

• Jari Laukia Haaga-Helia ammattikorkeakoulu, Ammatillinen opettajakorkeakoulu. School of Vocational Teacher Education.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.33350/ka.74591

Keywords:

Vocational school education, Private industry vocational school, Civil war in Finland

Abstract

First modern vocational schools in Finland were established in the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. The aim and objective of these schools was to educate young, labor- class children into good citizens and workers. The Finnish civil war in 1918 brought difficult times also for vocational schools. The amount of students decreased, and some of the schools were closed. However, very soon after the war vocational schools started to operate normally and the amount of students increased rapidly. In public vocational schools, official authorities advised to handle political issues regarding civil war neutrally. In spite of the bitter war, political education was not emphasized in public vocational schools. Situation was different in private vocational schools run by big industries. Big companies had established vocational schools of their own. Many of these schools were established especially in the end of 1920s. The aim and objective of these schools was to educate politically reliable skilled workers for key positions in the industry. These workers could keep industrial processes in operation also during political strikes, which were common in the end of 1920s and in the beginning of 1930s. In the end of 1930s the role of political education was not so important anymore. More public vocational schools were established and the emphasis of the education was focused more on the working skills rather than political ideas.