“If there’s trust, it’s easier” : Somali guardians’ views on home-school cooperation in Finnish basic education in Helsinki Metropolitan Area
Cheong, Kyuyoung; Mohamed, Saamia (2025-06-05)
K. Cheong; S. Mohamed
05.06.2025
© 2025, Kyuyoung Cheong, Saamia Mohamed. Tämä Kohde on tekijänoikeuden ja/tai lähioikeuksien suojaama. Voit käyttää Kohdetta käyttöösi sovellettavan tekijänoikeutta ja lähioikeuksia koskevan lainsäädännön sallimilla tavoilla. Muunlaista käyttöä varten tarvitset oikeudenhaltijoiden luvan.
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:oulu-202506054160
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:oulu-202506054160
Tiivistelmä
Home-school cooperation (HSC) is a crucial aspect of the Finnish basic education and is seen as a means of positively impacting the pupils’ wellbeing as well as promoting and supporting the entire school. Interactions in HSC can be understood through the socio-ecological systems theory (1979) as well as Epstein’s Overlapping Spheres of Influence Theory (1986). Somali parents are more prone to having difficulties in navigating the schooling system due to lack of key aspects of cultural capital. The objective of this thesis is to explore the views of Somali parents in homeschool cooperation in order to bridge the gap in research and gain knowledge on how to improve HSC for all parties involved.
This is qualitative research, using thematic analysis. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with five participants individually to collect data. The participants of the interviews were guardians with Somali background who are residing in Helsinki Metropolitan Area.
The findings suggest that despite the reasons being rather individual, all participants recognised HSC as highly significant and actively participated in it. Participants believed that a successful HSC is possible when they respect each other and mutually initiate communication, with the guardians primarily acting as supporters for child and teachers, the teachers as the main provider or education, and other school staff and guardian networks as the ones who fill in the gaps in communication with teachers alone. Participant’s views can be used to help implement these success factors through systematic changes and new practices in the Finnish schooling system.
This research has followed all ethical procedures including informed consent and ensuring anonymity as well as confidentiality. No sensitive information was used for the research. Both researchers worked on the interpretations of the findings to strengthen the reliability of the study. Limitations of the study include lack of participant variability and possible errors in translations.
This is qualitative research, using thematic analysis. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with five participants individually to collect data. The participants of the interviews were guardians with Somali background who are residing in Helsinki Metropolitan Area.
The findings suggest that despite the reasons being rather individual, all participants recognised HSC as highly significant and actively participated in it. Participants believed that a successful HSC is possible when they respect each other and mutually initiate communication, with the guardians primarily acting as supporters for child and teachers, the teachers as the main provider or education, and other school staff and guardian networks as the ones who fill in the gaps in communication with teachers alone. Participant’s views can be used to help implement these success factors through systematic changes and new practices in the Finnish schooling system.
This research has followed all ethical procedures including informed consent and ensuring anonymity as well as confidentiality. No sensitive information was used for the research. Both researchers worked on the interpretations of the findings to strengthen the reliability of the study. Limitations of the study include lack of participant variability and possible errors in translations.
Kokoelmat
- Avoin saatavuus [38618]