How Education and Globalisation has been helping me develop professionally
I was one of those students who chose this programme with a view to learn more about education in a constantly changing world. After a year, I can feel a sophisticated professional growth in me along with a touch of personal development.
In Education and Globalisation, your experiences matter! That’s why the courses are designed in a way where we can gather knowledge from theories and then look at the practical levels to compare and/or contrast. It doesn’t mean that all the courses can include field trips, but a few do, for example, Nordic Education.
Despite the pandemic and closures, we were able to visit a school in Oulu and learned about their environments, their classrooms, some teaching approaches for different levels of students and so on. We also had the opportunity to ask from the administrator or teachers directly.
It might have been a mere field trip for some of the people, but it was fascinating enough for me to understand how a Finnish school works.
And being an Education and Globalisation student, I believe, it is important to learn to distinguish the practical notions of different education systems which ultimately helped me develop my insights and critical thinking.
The programme has a mandatory Internship course. We are informed about the course and possibilities from the beginning. However, the programme does not choose it for students, it gives everyone the freedom to choose the place for doing the internship. I believe it makes us more responsible for our own decisions and supports our way to take a step toward professional life. The learnings and experiences that we gather from the internships are a great resource to implement in the later stages of our lives. Even a ‘not so well’ experience can prepare us for a reality which can go beyond our expectations.
My programme arranges courses with students from Learning, Education and Technology and Intercultural Teacher Education programmes offered by the Faculty of Education and Psychology for international students. Moreover, it arranges student exchange programmes with other European universities so that we can open our minds to diverse perspectives.
The discussions and questions that come from students from such varied backgrounds help us create ‘dialogues’ and listen to what other people have to say. The classrooms also serve as a safe space where one can share their traumas, obstacles or hardships without being judged. This helps us remain respectful to each other even though we may carry totally opposite views of the world.
Education and Globalisation helped me learn to accept people’s distinct opinions and I am applying them to handle the challenges that may come along in my personal and professional growth.
About the author
Onnesha Morshed from Bangladesh, is a second year Master’s student in Education and Globalisation programme. She is trying to make the best use of talents and interests in Finland.