Mr. Vilppola says that this perspective is reasonable, as by means of individual assessment it is – for the time being – best guaranteed that the students who cannot adjust to the normal classroom teaching are eventually provided with the educational support that they truly need in order to learn efficiently. However, the transfer of a pupil from a general comprehensive school into a special school always requires thorough negotiations and the final approval of the parents and guardians of the students, the school officials and social workers, as well as the school psychologists who usually carry out the necessary tests. Once the decision is made and the pupils can begin their studies in their new learning environment, a more comprehensive analysis of their personal ways of learning, skills and educational objectives is made, the so-called Individual Education Plan (IEP).

At the Heinätori School, where 181 children and young people from all over Oulu are studying at the moment in classes consisting of 8-10 students, this IEP is done twice every year. Doing the IEP regularly allows the follow-up of the students’ performance by the staff, which consists of 30 special class teachers, subject teachers and 17 special needs assistants. The personnel employs a curriculum that furthers individualised teaching, and the school’s motto could be – as Mr. Vilppola puts it – “Everyone is good at something”. The staff at the Heinätori School are especially dedicated to organising activities that enhance the participation of pupils. A good example are the so-called workshops, in which the students carry out various group tasks. The advantage of this kind of studying is that the pupils are actively involved in their learning and the setting-up of their educational objectives. They are also able to find out and develop their talents and, if needed, receive help from peers, teachers and assistants. Furthermore, by achieving the aims of their group tasks the students gain experience of success and their self-confidence is raised.

The pupils attending the Heinätori School are also encouraged to acquire individual skills through other kinds of activities that require common effort. For instance, just recently the floorball-team was in a tournament with all of Oulu’s schools. They walked away with trophy! This was the cause of great joy to the players and the whole Heinätori school community. Mr. Vilppola stresses that, in order to ensure the learning efficiency of the students, it is necessary that the entire personnel, including the cleaners, cooks and caretakers, takes responsibility for the education of the pupils. To make this shared educational responsibility possible, a team-work model is used and constantly developed at the school. Moreover, the teachers and assistants co-operate closely with the parents and guardians of the pupils and even stay in touch with the pupils once they continue studying in general comprehensive or vocational schools.

All in all, special education is working well at the Heinätori School. When asked about the possibility of establishing so-called inclusive schools in Oulu and elsewhere in Finland, Mr. Vilppola mentions that it surely is a favourable idea to have such schools where all kinds of children and young people are able to study together. However, he also states that – in spite of speaking highly of inclusive schools on the level of educational policy – one should focus realistically on the improvement of ways of teaching and learning at schools in general. In Mr. Vilppola’s eyes, this has to be done by looking especially at teaching and learning from the point of view of students, and by taking into consideration their individual differences. Now, this is certainly a challenging task and demands considerable time as well as more financial and staff resources than are currently available. According to Mr. Vilppola, this would require increasing the teachers’ understanding of special education in university teacher education programmes. Finally, and most importantly, he points out that a change of attitudes towards pupils that need special educational support would have to take place both among professionals in the field of education and in society on the whole.

general comprehensive school = yleinen peruskoulu
guardian = huoltaja
Individual Education Plan (IEP) = henkilökohtainen opetuksen järjestämistä koskeva suunnitelma (HOJKS)
individualised teaching = yksilöllinen opetus
school for all = yhteinen koulu kaikille
school psychologist = koulupsykologi
school social worker = koulukuraattori
special class teacher = erityisluokanopettaja
special education = erityisopetus
special education teacher = erityisopettaja
special needs assistant = koulunkäyntiavustaja
special school = erityiskoulu
subject = oppiaine
subject teacher = aineenopettaja
team-work model = tiimityöskentelyyn perustava toimintamalli
The Central Educational Agency of the City of Oulu = Oulun kaupungin opetusvirasto
workshop = työpaja
general comprehensive school = yleinen peruskoulu


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