**4. Finnish subject teacher education and curriculum integration**

Teacher education has a decisive role to play in developing teachers' *integrative pedagogical knowledge*. In this last section, the challenges identified by applying Shulman's categories of teachers' knowledge are discussed in the framework of subject teacher education with the objective of generating suggestions for how teacher education in universities could be developed to equip teachers with information, the abilities, and the will to implement CI as described in the new Finnish core curriculum.

the purpose of CI. Today, when CI is expected of schools, its purpose needs to be clearly acknowledged by teachers in order to enhance motivation to carry out the necessary reforms and plan integrated teaching in a goal-directed way. In teacher education, the purpose of CI has to be made explicit to inspire student teachers to develop their professional knowledge

Teachers' Knowledge of Curriculum Integration: A Current Challenge for Finnish Subject Teachers

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In subject teacher education programs in Finland, student teachers in different subjects study with instructors who are specialized in pedagogical content knowledge/didactics of certain subjects. Yet, in schools, teachers of all subjects form a community. It would be valuable for student teachers to gain experience in collaborating with student teachers in other subjects during the course of their university education. In some forms of CI, crosssubject collaboration is inevitable, and the experience with other teachers' subjects makes co-teaching and collaborative planning in CI more manageable. CI emphasizes the communal aspect of schoolwork. Bresler ([11], p. 36) describes it with a musical metaphor as "a shift from solo performance to a chamber work." Thus, co-teaching and collaborative planning have to be perceived from the perspective of CI. The outcome of experience in collaboration might not only be a better understanding of other subjects and their cultures, but also a better understanding of one's own disciplines and subjects and their presuppositions and

It is known that novice teachers in Finland are more interested in CI than are experienced teachers, but lack the courage and skills to implement it [33]. A teacher education program can be designed so that every student teacher has to take part in planning and implementing at least one integrated study module with other student teachers. Once the process is completed from beginning to end, the whole idea of CI is likely to be better comprehended. Because student teachers do not necessarily have any prior experience of CI, it would be difficult to expect them to apply it successfully in practice if it was not part of a teacher education

Perhaps the strongest challenge in developing teacher education from the perspective of CI is the strong tradition of subject-divided pedagogies and teachers' fixed positions as subject teachers. Another challenge from a teacher's perspective is created when all the "innovations," such as use of the latest technology, enhancing co-teaching and CI, are implemented at the same time [38]. In some visions the future teaching staff will consist of generalist and specialist teachers working together in new cooperation-based schools [33]. A good starting point is not only developing subject pedagogy, but also developing a pedagogy for CI. There is a long tradition of general and subject didactics in Finland, but there is no such a thing as a didactics of CI, although some experiments have been carried out in departments of teacher education [33, 39]. Here we can see the missing paradigm of today: the development of *integrative pedagogical knowledge* that would include at a minimum (1) knowledge of CI as a possibility for constructing a curriculum, (2) knowledge of concepts bridging different subjects, (3) knowledge of the purposes of CI, and (4) knowledge of collaborative teaching by subject teachers. Today, when the new Finnish core curriculum is requiring every school to implement CI, there is reason to research and teach it systematically in departments of teacher

to include CI.

commitments [36].

program [37].

education.

The analysis of Shulman's categories revealed aspects to be considered when subject teacher education is developed from the perspective of CI. Primarily, student teachers have to be aware of CI as one alternative for structuring the curriculum. This means knowledge of general curriculum theory, including CI. It is important for student teachers to know that a curriculum is historically constructed and that subject division is only one form of its actualization. This information is crucial when teachers are constructing local curricula based on the core curriculum.

Another required form of curriculum knowledge concerns the content of the current curriculum. To apply CI successfully, student teachers need to have at least preliminary knowledge of contents of subjects they are not teaching themselves. Without this kind of knowledge, it is difficult to plan teaching that connects various subjects. It is a prerequisite for individual teachers to be able to build conceptual bridges between their subjects and other subjects. In addition, broad curriculum knowledge promotes collaboration when teachers can identify the intersections of subjects. These intersections can serve as a basis for integrative themes.

According to Shulman, a sound level of content knowledge is required for developing pedagogical content knowledge. However, subject teachers cannot be an expert in all subjects. It is a challenge for every teacher to master even a preliminary understanding of all subjects. One approach is to design instructional materials that would assist in building conceptual bridges between subjects. Furthermore, building a better content knowledge base for CI could be an objective for teacher education, although it has been suggested that student teachers should first develop subject-based knowledge before getting into CI [33, 34].

Because in Finland prospective subject teachers study their subjects outside departments of teacher education, the question of content knowledge concerns university studies in general. Since Shulman sees content and pedagogical knowledge as intertwined, he states that teacher education is the responsibility of the entire university [3]. Combining interdisciplinary courses and teacher education programs can improve students' understanding of the links between disciplines. In this way, CI is woven into the development of interdisciplinary studies in universities. Universities with teacher education programs can take into account the need to develop teachers' integrative knowledge by designing interdisciplinary study modules, although the difficulties and feasibility of using (inter)disciplinary knowledge directly for teaching purposes have been discussed above [25, 26].

A subject-based curriculum is the usual way of arranging schoolwork in Finland. When a change is proposed to the status quo, it must be well reasoned in order to make the objectives visible and understandable. Teacher education in Finland emphasizes pedagogical thinking [35], which requires teachers to understand the objectives of the curriculum. Shulman saw knowledge of educational purposes as being one of the most important categories of teachers' knowledge. As seen in the quotation above, the Finnish core curriculum briefly describes the purpose of CI. Today, when CI is expected of schools, its purpose needs to be clearly acknowledged by teachers in order to enhance motivation to carry out the necessary reforms and plan integrated teaching in a goal-directed way. In teacher education, the purpose of CI has to be made explicit to inspire student teachers to develop their professional knowledge to include CI.

the objective of generating suggestions for how teacher education in universities could be developed to equip teachers with information, the abilities, and the will to implement CI as

The analysis of Shulman's categories revealed aspects to be considered when subject teacher education is developed from the perspective of CI. Primarily, student teachers have to be aware of CI as one alternative for structuring the curriculum. This means knowledge of general curriculum theory, including CI. It is important for student teachers to know that a curriculum is historically constructed and that subject division is only one form of its actualization. This information is crucial when teachers are constructing local curricula based on the core

Another required form of curriculum knowledge concerns the content of the current curriculum. To apply CI successfully, student teachers need to have at least preliminary knowledge of contents of subjects they are not teaching themselves. Without this kind of knowledge, it is difficult to plan teaching that connects various subjects. It is a prerequisite for individual teachers to be able to build conceptual bridges between their subjects and other subjects. In addition, broad curriculum knowledge promotes collaboration when teachers can identify the intersections of subjects. These intersections can serve as a basis

According to Shulman, a sound level of content knowledge is required for developing pedagogical content knowledge. However, subject teachers cannot be an expert in all subjects. It is a challenge for every teacher to master even a preliminary understanding of all subjects. One approach is to design instructional materials that would assist in building conceptual bridges between subjects. Furthermore, building a better content knowledge base for CI could be an objective for teacher education, although it has been suggested that student teachers should

Because in Finland prospective subject teachers study their subjects outside departments of teacher education, the question of content knowledge concerns university studies in general. Since Shulman sees content and pedagogical knowledge as intertwined, he states that teacher education is the responsibility of the entire university [3]. Combining interdisciplinary courses and teacher education programs can improve students' understanding of the links between disciplines. In this way, CI is woven into the development of interdisciplinary studies in universities. Universities with teacher education programs can take into account the need to develop teachers' integrative knowledge by designing interdisciplinary study modules, although the difficulties and feasibility of using (inter)disciplinary knowledge directly

A subject-based curriculum is the usual way of arranging schoolwork in Finland. When a change is proposed to the status quo, it must be well reasoned in order to make the objectives visible and understandable. Teacher education in Finland emphasizes pedagogical thinking [35], which requires teachers to understand the objectives of the curriculum. Shulman saw knowledge of educational purposes as being one of the most important categories of teachers' knowledge. As seen in the quotation above, the Finnish core curriculum briefly describes

first develop subject-based knowledge before getting into CI [33, 34].

for teaching purposes have been discussed above [25, 26].

described in the new Finnish core curriculum.

128 Contemporary Pedagogies in Teacher Education and Development

curriculum.

for integrative themes.

In subject teacher education programs in Finland, student teachers in different subjects study with instructors who are specialized in pedagogical content knowledge/didactics of certain subjects. Yet, in schools, teachers of all subjects form a community. It would be valuable for student teachers to gain experience in collaborating with student teachers in other subjects during the course of their university education. In some forms of CI, crosssubject collaboration is inevitable, and the experience with other teachers' subjects makes co-teaching and collaborative planning in CI more manageable. CI emphasizes the communal aspect of schoolwork. Bresler ([11], p. 36) describes it with a musical metaphor as "a shift from solo performance to a chamber work." Thus, co-teaching and collaborative planning have to be perceived from the perspective of CI. The outcome of experience in collaboration might not only be a better understanding of other subjects and their cultures, but also a better understanding of one's own disciplines and subjects and their presuppositions and commitments [36].

It is known that novice teachers in Finland are more interested in CI than are experienced teachers, but lack the courage and skills to implement it [33]. A teacher education program can be designed so that every student teacher has to take part in planning and implementing at least one integrated study module with other student teachers. Once the process is completed from beginning to end, the whole idea of CI is likely to be better comprehended. Because student teachers do not necessarily have any prior experience of CI, it would be difficult to expect them to apply it successfully in practice if it was not part of a teacher education program [37].

Perhaps the strongest challenge in developing teacher education from the perspective of CI is the strong tradition of subject-divided pedagogies and teachers' fixed positions as subject teachers. Another challenge from a teacher's perspective is created when all the "innovations," such as use of the latest technology, enhancing co-teaching and CI, are implemented at the same time [38]. In some visions the future teaching staff will consist of generalist and specialist teachers working together in new cooperation-based schools [33]. A good starting point is not only developing subject pedagogy, but also developing a pedagogy for CI. There is a long tradition of general and subject didactics in Finland, but there is no such a thing as a didactics of CI, although some experiments have been carried out in departments of teacher education [33, 39]. Here we can see the missing paradigm of today: the development of *integrative pedagogical knowledge* that would include at a minimum (1) knowledge of CI as a possibility for constructing a curriculum, (2) knowledge of concepts bridging different subjects, (3) knowledge of the purposes of CI, and (4) knowledge of collaborative teaching by subject teachers. Today, when the new Finnish core curriculum is requiring every school to implement CI, there is reason to research and teach it systematically in departments of teacher education.
