Physical Education Curriculum Reform in Finland

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Physical Education Curriculum Reform in Finland
Article in Quest -Illinois- National Association for Physical Education in Higher Education- · October 2014
DOI: 10.1080/00336297.2014.948688
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Physical Education Curriculum Reform in Finland
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Journal: Quest
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Manuscript ID: Draft
Manuscript Type: Article
Keywords: physical education

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Human Kinetics, 1607 N Market St, Champaign, IL 61825

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2 Physical Education Curriculum Reform in Finland
3 SAMI R. YLI-PIIPARI
4 Abstract
5 The Finnish education system has received worldwide attention due to the top academic
6 performance of Finnish school students. Physical education, as an integral part of the Finnish
7 education curriculum, potentially contributes to the overall success. The purpose of this article is
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8 to summarize Finnish physical education reform during the past decades and review and critique
9 recent literature that has examined the effectiveness of Finnish physical education programs.
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10 This review concludes that physical education has a solid foundation in Finnish schools and it
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11 enjoys strong support in Finnish society. Although physical education contact time has
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12 diminished across four decades, the current basic education reform has begun to allocate more
13 time and funding for elementary and middle school physical education. The literature review,
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14 however, revealed limited evidence on the effectiveness of physical education programs. In the
15 future, robust studies are needed to provide evidence of the effectiveness of physical education.
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16 It is likely, that with rigorous research evidence, the current efforts to allocate more time for
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17 physical education should be more easily justified and supported.
18 Keywords Curriculum reform, review study, elementary and middle schools
19 Health and Sport Sciences, University of Memphis, Memphis, 38152 Tennessee.

20 Address correspondence to Sami Yli-Piipari, Doctor of Sport Pedagogy, Health and Sport
21 Sciences, University of Memphis, 210 Fieldhouse, Memphis, TN 38152. E-mail:
22 srylppri@memphis.edu
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28 Introduction
29 Recently, the Finnish educational system has been attracting positive attention and global
30 interest. This is largely due to the fact that in the Programme of International Student Assessment
31 (PISA), a worldwide study of the scholastic performance of 15-year-old students in reading,
32 science, and mathematics of the last decade, the Finnish educational system has topped the
33 charts, while the U.S. educational system has been middling, at best. Finnish students’
34 performances have ranked at or near the top in all three competencies in every PISA survey since
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35 2000, neck-and-neck with super-achieving students from South Korea, Singapore, and more
36 recently, Shanghai, China. (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development [OECD],
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37 2010a; 2010b). Finland's success is especially intriguing because compared to the stereotype of
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38 the East Asian model of long hours of cramming and rote memorization, Finnish schools have
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39 shorter school days, assign less homework and more recess, and engage children in more creative
40 play (Sahlberg, 2011).

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41 Physical education (PE) has been an institution in Finnish schools since the mid-19th
42 century and has been a mandated subject content across Finnish basic education. In general, PE
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43 is a phase of education that aims to contribute to an individual’s development of physical,

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44 cognitive, and psychosocial competencies. A quality PE program provides children and
45 adolescents with weekly physical activity (PA), knowledge base, skills, and motivation to
46 participate in a variety of PAs as an ongoing part of a healthy lifestyle. As a mandated content
47 area (Basic Education Act 628, 1998), PE is the only structured opportunity to ensure that all
48 children can engage in moderate-to-vigorous PA. As an integral part of the Finnish basic
49 education system, it is believed that PE has contributed to the successful education of young
50 people (Huisman, 2004). This article examines the hypothesis that school PE enhances students’
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51 cognitive, social, and psychomotor development and, therefore, provides important benefits.
52 Thus, the aim of this article is twofold: (a) to summarize school-based PE curriculum reform
53 during the past four decades in Finland and (b) to review recent literature to determine the
54 effectiveness of the current Finnish PE programs.
55 A Short History of Educational Reform in Finland
56 Finland, a member of the European Union, has been going through a fundamental
57 educational transformation during the past four decades, converting from a poor agrarian society
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58 with limited education to one of the most highly educated countries in the world (Routti & Ylä-
59 Anttila, 2006). Finland is a rather young nation as it established its independence from the Soviet
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60 Union in 1917 (OECD, 2010b). During World War II, the sovereignty of the nation was
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61 threatened and Finland fought hard to preserve its independence (OECD, 2010b). The postwar
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62 education system was unequal and more reflective of the needs of a rural, agricultural society
63 than of an industrial society. Only about a quarter of young Finns in 1950 had access to the
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64 grammar school path, and two-thirds of the grammar schools were privately governed. Most
65 young Finns left school after six years of basic education, with only those living in towns or
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66 larger municipalities having access to a middle school education (OECD, 2010b). During the
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67 postwar era, urbanization together with a need for quality education initiated the movement that
68 slowly led to new basic education legislation in 1968. The transition from a scattered school
69 organization to the single top-down comprehensive school system was challenging and,
70 consequently, the transition slow and careful (OECD, 2010b). The implementation of the Basic
71 School Curriculum Framework began in 1972 in northern Finland and in five years it moved
72 gradually to the more populated municipalities in the south. The implementation of the new
73 education system was not easy and it was accompanied with a very substantial debate about core
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74 values and beliefs (OECD, 2010b). All along, the educational policy objective has been focused
75 on equity; today it is supported by a homogeneous cultural and social agreement (Finnish
76 society, in general, supports the educational policies and the current schooling system). All
77 schools are assigned to a municipal education system similar to school districts in the U.S. in an
78 effort to form an efficient delivery system of quality education. For instance, local municipalities
79 cover all students’ costs for their basic education, including books, supplies, meals, and even
80 medical and dental checkups (Sahlberg, 2011).

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81 The responsible institution behind the national core curriculum is the National Board of
82 Education of Finland, which is a part of the Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture. The
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83 National Board of Education of Finland coordinates the continuous curriculum revision process
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84 moderated by different stakeholders, such as scholars, teachers, and administrators (Brown

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85 Ruzzi, 2005). The Finnish basic curriculum has been revised regularly with the revision process
86 being active and continuous (OECD, 2010b). A curriculum revision in 1970 aimed to provide
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87 equal opportunity to all Finnish children (OECD, 2010b). The second revision in 1985
88 highlighted teachers’ professionalism and local municipalities’ autonomy to implement a

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89 curriculum that reinforces the strengths of the schools (OECD, 2010). In addition, the 1985
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90 curriculum revision engaged local teachers in the curriculum planning process. The Framework
91 of Curriculum in 1994 provided guidelines for curriculum development, stating that the mission
92 of each school was to be local and school-based. Evaluation guidelines were reformed in 1999,
93 and nationwide objectives of basic education and lesson time allocations were mandated in 2001
94 (e.g., mandating physical and health education to be two separate subjects) (OECD, 2010b). The
95 current content and lesson time allocations are from the latest curriculum revision that was
96 completed in 2004 (OECD, 2010b).
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97 Due to the recent success in PISA, the Finnish education system has received worldwide
98 attention. This interest has generated research efforts that attempt to identify and summarize the
99 educational policy factors that may have led to flattering results in an international achievement-
100 based testing. Sahlberg (2011) has highlighted the following five central factors from the
101 findings that contributed to the academic achievements of Finnish school students: (a) a six-year
102 quality elementary school experience as a cornerstone for education; (b) requirement for a
103 masters’ degree qualification for all basic school teachers (including PE teachers); (c) well-
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104 equipped public schools with small class sizes (elementary schools traditionally have fewer than
105 300 pupils per school and average elementary classes sizes are 19 students [OECD, 2012] - ); (d)
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106 small, tight-knit professional communities with teachers’ willingness to engage in professional
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107 development; and (e) almost all children are enrolled in identical public schools regardless of
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108 their families’ economic status (less than 4% of Finnish students are enrolled in mostly religion-
109 based, private comprehensive schools).

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110 The Finnish educational system is in many respects similar to systems in most other
111 European countries and in the U.S. In Finland, children start their compulsory comprehensive
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112 school in the year they reach seven years of age (on average, one year later than children in most
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113 of the states in the U.S) (Basic Education Act 628, 1998). A comprehensive school divides into a
114 lower level (elementary school grades 1–6) and an upper level (middle school grades 7–9). Up to
115 the age of 15 years (grade 9), all Finnish adolescents receive similar basic education (Basic
116 Education Act 628, 1998). In Finnish elementary schools, children study different school
117 subjects with their homeroom teacher, whereas in middle school subject-specific classes with
118 specialist teachers are widely used. After completing nine years in compulsory basic education,
119 students can continue their education in either a high school or vocational school, both of which
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120 are noncompulsory, tuition-free institutions. High school, with its intensive college preparatory
121 courses, is the most direct route to university. In contract vocational school, with its lower or
122 higher diploma, prepares students to enter directly into working life. Lower level vocational
123 studies take 2–5 years, high schools studies 3–4 years, and higher level vocational studies 3–5
124 years (OECD, 2010b).
125 A Short History of Physical Education in Finland
126 Throughout these changes, PE has been, and continues to be a compulsory part of the
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127 national school curriculum in Finland. Developments at the core national curriculum reflect the
128 changes in the PE curriculum as well. School PE is available for essentially all Finnish
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129 elementary and middle school students, with more than 99% of students successfully completing
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130 compulsory basic education (Official Statistics of Finland, 2012). In addition, it is noted that
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131 every student enrolled in Finnish high schools is participating in weekly PE, whereas in the U.S.
132 only 52% of high school students attend weekly PE (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
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133 2011).
134 In Finnish comprehensive education, PE, art, music, and crafts together form a cross-
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135 curricular theme that aims to educate a holistic individual, to prepare students to learn, and to
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136 provide necessary enrichment and PA for individual growth. Finland has experienced a similar
137 transformation in school-based PE as other Western countries (Bailey et al., 2009). In 1843,
138 during the time when Finland was an autonomous grand duchy of Russia, for the first time,
139 school PE was included as a part of school curriculum (Heikinaro-Johansson & Telama, 2005).
140 School PE had an objective to prevent the looming decay of the physical fitness of the nations’
141 youth (Ilmanen, 1982). Soon after declaring independence from Russia in 1917, sovereign
142 Finland added a military objective to the school PE curriculum. This period of time lasted almost
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143 three decades, until slowly vanishing after World War II (Meinander, 1992). The post-war
144 transformation from an agrarian society to an urban society further improved the role of school
145 PE toward the enhancement of fitness and health, along with the prevention of sedentary habits
146 (Heikinaro-Johansson & Telama, 2005). Following a national revision processes from the 1970s
147 to the 21st century delineated PE objectives to support the knowledge, skills, and attitudes that
148 facilitate a physically active lifestyle, working ability, health, and cooperation (Finnish National
149 Board of Education, 1985). In addition, revisions were made in 1994 to support the enjoyment
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150 and positive experiences of PE, enhancement of self-esteem, and healthy lifestyles (Finnish
151 National Board of Education, 1994). To reinforce general health-related objectives, health
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152 education was integrated with PE in the 1994 basic curriculum revision process. Currently, based
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153 on the last curriculum revision in 2004, school PE has become content that is expected, through a
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154 balanced and coherent range of physical activities, to contribute to the optimal development of
155 an individual’s potential including growth and development in physical and psychosocial
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156 competencies (Finnish National Board of Education, 2004).
157 The Current State of Physical Education in Finland

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158 Aims and Objectives

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159 Finnish PE has a general, lifelong educational objective to promote students’ physical,
160 psychological, social, and ethical growth and well-being, and to guide them toward lifelong PA
161 (Finnish National Board of Education, 2004, 2007). Specifically, school PE aims to enhance
162 students’ competency in motor skills and movement patterns, promote a physically active life-
163 style and physical fitness, promote responsible personal and social behavior, promote appropriate
164 values, and promote enjoyment of, and self-expression in, PA. At the basic education level
165 (grades 1–9), the main emphasis is on learning a wide variety of motor skills. In high school
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166 (grades 10–12), the curriculum emphasizes adopting a healthy and physically active lifestyle and
167 acquiring an understanding of how PA positively affects students’ physical, psychological, and
168 social well-being (Finnish National Board of Education, 2003). In vocational schools, the main
169 goal of PE is for students to promote their own healthy and active lifestyles by planning and
170 implementing their own personal PA programs (Finnish National Board of Education, 2001).
171 It is noticeable that the Finnish national curriculum leaves content decisions on activity
172 selections and delivery to individual teachers and schools. In general, Finnish schools have not
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173 followed the global accountability movement, such as test-based accountability, that assumes
174 that making schools and teachers more accountable for their performances is the key to
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175 improving student learning (Sahlberg, 2011). As a consequence of decentralized education

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176 management and increased school autonomy, local education authorities and political leaders are
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177 held accountable for their policy decisions (Sahlberg, 2011). This has promoted a reciprocal
178 accountability system where schools are increasingly accountable for learning outcomes and
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179 education authorities are expected to support schools to achieve expected outcomes. In Finland,
180 the general perception is that flexible accountability has had a major positive impact on teaching
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181 and, hence, on student learning. Assessment of student learning is based on teacher-made tests,
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182 rather than external standardized tests. This is evident also in PE. It is not unusual for PE
183 teachers to view, for instance, fitness-tests as opportunities for learning rather than assessing
184 student achievement.
185 Single-Gender Middle School Physical Education
186 In Finland, schools have the option to organize PE in either coeducation or single-gender
187 groups. In elementary school, grades 1–4, girls and boys typically participate in coeducational
188 PE, whereas in grades 5–9, single-gender classes are the norm. In addition, single-gender classes
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189 are normally organized so that male teachers teach boys and female teachers teach girls (Berg &
190 Lahelma, 2010). Although the national curriculum states the same PE objectives for girls and
191 boys, 5th–9th grade curricula note that “PE instruction must make allowances for the differing
192 needs of boys and girls at this stage of development, as well as the pupils’ differentials in growth
193 and development generally” (Finnish National Board of Education, 2004, p. 18).
194 Content
195 The Finnish national core curriculum in PE is rather short on content. It comprises
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196 running and throwing activities in different forms; gymnastics with and without equipment and
197 apparatuses; music, expression, and dance; ball games; orienteering; winter sports; and
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198 swimming and lifesaving skills. In addition, the curriculum includes some content that supports
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199 operational capacity and muscle fitness (Finnish National Board of Education, 2004). The
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200 Finnish PE curriculum has been found to be similar to that in other Western countries; however,
201 the main variation concerns the inclusion of activities representative of Nordic culture, such as
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202 skiing, skating, orienteering, swimming, and outdoor education (Annerstedt, 2008).
203 Compulsory PE is typically organized around multi-activity programs in a series of units

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204 (Heikinaro-Johansson & Telama, 2005). This practice follows rather well the objectives of the
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205 core curriculum. Results from Palomäki and Heikinaro-Johansson (2011) revealed the
206 dominance of popular ball games, such as floor ball, Finnish baseball, basketball, and soccer.
207 Previous studies documented statistically significant gender variation in the content of PE
208 programs (Huisman, 2004; Palomäki & Heikinaro-Johansson, 2011). Girls are typically taught
209 more aerobics, gymnastics, fitness training (circuit training), dance, and music activities (e.g.
210 skating, track and field, orienteering, and relaxing techniques) than boys. In addition, boys’
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211 program include more soccer, floor ball, tennis/racket ball/table tennis, ultimate frisbee, hand
212 ball, skiing, and ice-related games, such as ice hockey, than girls.
213 Time Allocation
214 Time allocation for PE has fallen markedly in Finland in recent years (Heikinaro-
215 Johansson & Telama, 2005). Presently, comprehensive school students have two 45-minute
216 classes of obligatory PE weekly. Elementary school programs may add a third PE lesson to their
217 curriculum. At the middle school level, an individual student has a possibility to add more PE
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218 units (a unit is 38 hours) from a set of elective units that are developed according to local school
219 curriculum (Basic Education Act 628, 1998). Throughout middle school, boys and girls complete
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220 PE classes in gender-separate groups. Furthermore, high school education includes two
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221 compulsory PE units that involve a total of 76 hours of student participation. Students may also
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222 decide to complete a maximum of three additional elective units within their three academic
223 years of upper secondary school. In vocational school, students have one compulsory unit (i.e.,
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224 27 hours of participation—3 weekly hours across 9 weeks) and can complete a maximum of four
225 elective units in PE over a three-year period (Finnish National Board of Education, 2001).
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226 Assessment and Evaluation

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227 Student assessment in comprehensive schools is intended to promote student learning,
228 allow teachers to evaluate how well students have met the objectives for growth and learning,
229 and help students to form a realistic image of their learning and development in the future
230 (Finnish National Board of Education, 2004). Teachers are given a wide range of responsibility
231 for student learning and assessment, as well as flexibility in exercising that responsibility. In
232 comprehensive schools, each student’s progress is reported at the end of a school year. The
233 report covers the student’s conduct, schoolwork, knowledge and skills in different subject areas.
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234 In the first seven years, the assessment report can be either a written description of the student’s
235 progress or a numerical grade (Finnish National Board of Education, 2007). After grade seven,
236 the report must include a grade that is accompanied by written comments. To increase equity
237 across schools, the Finnish National Board of Education (2004) has mandated competence
238 standards for every content area. It is expected that students should be able to master the content
239 and score an 8 (an appropriate competence level) on the assessments at the end of the school
240 year. The assessments in PE focus on various sport skills, motivation, social skills, and
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241 knowledge and behavior of fair play. In addition, a student should understand the relationships
242 between PA and health (Finnish National Board of Education, 2004). Previously it has been
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243 reported that the average PE grade received (9th grade) in 2003 was 8.2 for boys and 8.3 for girls
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244 and in 2011, 8.3 for both girls and boys. In 2003, 83% of girls and 78% of boys achieved the PE
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245 objectives in excellent, very good, or good standings. In 2010, the percentages were 82% for girls
246 and 81% for boys (Huisman, 2004; Palomäki & Heikinaro-Johansson, 2011).
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247 Schools and local authorities are required by legislation to be reviewed by external
248 evaluators to review the quality of education provided to children. In addition to the local
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249 evaluation, a national-level evaluation is also in place, set by the Educational Evaluation Council
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250 (Basic Education Act 628, 1998). The council’s role is to evaluate the national education system
251 by gathering and analyzing information useful in supporting students’ learning and teachers’
252 work, but is not focused on rating the performance of different schools (OECD, 2010b; Simola,
253 Rinne, Varjo, Pitkänen, & Kauko, 2009). The council advocates transparency and accountability
254 in its activities and publishes its findings on evaluations without schools being identified or
255 ranked in the reports. It would be up to individual schools and education providers to decide how
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256 to publicize their respective evaluation results (for a comprehensive description of the Finnish
257 evaluation policies, see Simola et al., 2009).
258 Review of Evidence on Effectiveness of Finnish Physical Education Programs
259 When trying to understand any educational system, one needs to recognize the objectives
260 of educational policy first, and then analyze scientific evidence on whether these objectives are
261 being met. What follows is an attempt to analyze and evaluate available research evidence in
262 relation to meeting the cognitive, social, and psychomotor objectives of the Finnish school PE
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263 curriculum. Specifically, features of Finnish PE students’ dispositions, such as attitudes and
264 motivation toward PE and social-emotional skills in PE, were evaluated. In addition, the research
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265 findings in students’ total daily PA, fitness levels, and motor skills were also reviewed (Note 1).
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266 Student Attitudes and Motivation

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267 Research has shown adolescents’ attitudes toward school PE to be positive in Finnish
268 comprehensive schools (Heikinaro-Johansson, Varstala, & Lyyra, 2008; Huisman, 2004;
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269 Nupponen, & Telama, 1998; Palomäki & Heikinaro-Johansson, 2011; Varstala, Telama, &
270 Heikinaro-Johansson, 1987). Varstala et al. (1987) reported that 88% of Finnish students liked
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271 PE. In addition, it was found that elementary school students liked PE more than middle school
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272 students (Nupponen, & Telama, 1998). More recent evidence is available from the Finnish
273 National Board of Education, in its reports of PE learning performance evaluation studies in
274 2003 and 2010. The studies were conducted with nationally representative samples (111 schools
275 and 5,446 adolescents [Huisman, 2004]; 51 schools and 1,616 adolescents [Palomäki &
276 Heikinaro-Johansson, 2011]) and evaluated the attitudes of 15-year-old Finnish adolescents
277 when students were in their final year in a comprehensive school. The studies reported that in
278 2003, 44% of girls and 27% of boys had a very good or good attitude toward PE, while in 2010,
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279 45% of girls and 25% of boys had positive attitudes toward PE (Huisman, 2004; Palomäki &
280 Heikinaro-Johansson, 2011). But in 2003, 47% of the girls and 56% of the boys did not have a
281 positive or negative attitude toward PE, whereas in 2010 50% of the girls and 59% of boys have
282 a neutral opinion about school PE. Finally, in 2003, a small percentage of girls (7%) and boys
283 (17%) had a negative or very negative attitude toward PE; in 2010, the percentage rates were 8%
284 for girls and 16% for boys. Interestingly, 47% of girls and 59% of boys (2003) and 49% of girls
285 and 69% of boys (2010) indicated that they would like to have at least one more obligatory PE
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286 class each week (Huisman, 2004; Palomäki & Heikinaro-Johansson, 2011).
287 Several studies have examined motivation-related variables in Finnish school PE

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288 (Hagger, Chatzisarantis, Culverhouse, & Biddle, 2003; Jaakkola, 2002; Soini, 2006; Yli-Piipari,
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289 Jaakkola, & Liukkonen, 2010; Yli-Piipari, Leskinen, Jaakkola, & Liukkonen, 2012). Soini
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290 (2006) showed that Finnish 9th grade students (n = 4,397) enjoyed PE, with enjoyment for boys
291 in PE being statistically higher than girls. More recently, a longitudinal study by Yli-Piipari,
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292 Barkoukis, Jaakkola, and Liukkonen (2013) showed that PE enjoyment for adolescents (n = 812)
293 declined across middle school years (7th grade = 3.76; 8th = grade 3.66; 9th = grade 3.52; scale
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294 range from 1 to 5. In addition, based on the same longitudinal data, adolescents who had high
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295 values toward school PE were able to hold these values steady during the middle school years
296 (scale ranging from 1 to 5; 7th grade = 4.23; 8th = grade 4.13; 9th = grade 4.14; (Yli-Piipari et
297 al., 2010). However, no cross-cultural data are available to compare Finnish adolescents’ PE
298 enjoyment and values with the dispositions of students from the other cultures.
299 Evolving from the self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan, 1985), a study examined high
300 school students’ (n = 909) perception of PE teacher’s autonomy-support and perception of their
301 own autonomy in PE across four nations, namely Great Britain, Estonia, Finland, and Hungary
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302 (Hagger et al., 2009). The study showed that Finnish students reported higher perceptions of both
303 teacher autonomy-support and their own autonomy than did students in other three countries. In
304 addition, Soini (2006) showed boys in 9th grade perceive their autonomy in PE to be higher than
305 girls.
306 Social-Emotional Learning
307 Facilitating social growth and development of an individual is an important objective of
308 Finnish PE. In Finnish PE teacher education, skills that nurture students’ positive socio-
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309 emotional growth are highly regarded as tools for effective teaching and self-reflection. Only one
310 study has examined the implementation of a socio-emotional skill program in teaching middle
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311 school students (Kuusela, 2005). In her study, Kuusela (2005) designed and tested a PE unit to
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312 increase 8th grade girls’ social and emotional skills across 50 contact lessons integrated in
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313 regular PE lessons. The teacher used active listening, ‟I” messages, and ecosystemic methods to
314 interact with the students and the problem situations (Gordon, 1974). Results showed the unit to
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315 be effective in practice and applicable as part of a PE program as students felt motivated to
316 practice the skills and regarded them as useful and practical. In addition, a majority of the
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317 students enjoyed the course and felt that their social and emotional skills had improved during
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318 the unit.
319 Physical Activity of School-Aged Youth
320 Finland has a long history in examining children’s and adolescents’ PA. However, no
321 studies examining in-class PA during PE classes, utilizing the aforementioned search strategy
322 (see Note 1), have been published. Although numerous cross-sectional population and
323 longitudinal studies have provided this evidence using self-report methods, to date there are no
324 population studies utilizing objective measures, such as accelerometers or pedometers (Ministry
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325 of Education and Culture, 2010). Nevertheless, self-report studies have shown Finnish students
326 to be more active than those in other Western nations. Since 1982, the World Health
327 Organization has been collecting collaborative cross-national data on health behaviors of 11-to-
328 15-year-old children and adolescents. The Health Behavior in School-aged Children (HBSC)
329 study comprising 41 nations across Europe and North America reported that Finnish 11 year olds
330 are more physically active than the U.S. 11 year olds, but PA engagement have been shown to be
331 opposite in 15 year olds (Currie et al., 2008). Boys have been found to be more physically active
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332 than girls in both Finland and the U.S. Furthermore, research has reported that only 23% of 15-
333 to-16-year-old Finnish boys and 10% of 15-to-16-year-old Finnish girls met the national
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334 guidelines of 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous PA per day (Tammelin, Ekelund, Remes, &
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335 Näyhä, 2007). Results from the HBSC study are presented in Table 1.
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336 Table 1 goes here
337 Although numerous studies have documented that PA participation declines during
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338 adolescence (for a review, see Dumith, Gigante, Domingues, & Kohl, 2011), studies in Finland
339 have shown conflicting results (Huisman, 2004; Laakso, Telama, Nupponen, Rimpelä, & Pere,
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340 2008; Nupponen, Laakso, Rimpelä, Pere, & Telama, 2010; Palomäki & Heikinaro-Johansson,
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341 2011; Yli-Piipari et al., 2012). As a part of a nation-level longitudinal research program, the
342 Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns study (Telama, Yang, Laakso, & Viikari, 1997) examined
343 9-, 12-, 15-, and 18-year-old children and adolescents in 1980 (n = 2,309). Follow-up data were
344 collected in 1983, 1986, and 1989. Thus, the data documented activity patterns of the participants
345 from 9 to 27 years of age. PA was measured by means of a short questionnaire that included
346 items on the frequency and intensity of leisure-time PA, participation in sport club training,
347 participation in sport competitions, and the respondents’ habitual ways of spending their leisure-
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348 time. A sum index of PA was computed with these five variables (Telama et al., 1997). The
349 results showed a remarkable decline after the age of 12 in the frequency of PA and sport
350 participation, in particular.
351 More recently, studies examining self-report PA have showed Finnish 15-year-old
352 adolescents to be more active in 2010 compared to 2003 (Huisman 2004; Palomäki & Heikinaro-
353 Johansson, 2011). The studies reported a 6% and a 10% increase in girls’ participation (very
354 physically active four or more times per week) in organized and non-organized sports,
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355 respectively. For boys, there was only 10% increase in the non-organized sport activity.
356 The findings of the comprehensive Finnish Adolescent Health and Lifestyle Survey
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357 utilizing the nationwide sample showed that 12-to-18-year-old adolescents’ participation rates in
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358 MVPA increased during the study period from 1979 to 2005 (Nupponen et al., 2010). The
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359 increase was not continuous, but showed an upward trend during the years 2001–2005. Drawn
360 from the same data set, Laakso et al. (2008) reported that out-of-school PA for Finnish youth
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361 increased from 1991 to 2007. Adolescents who participated in unorganized PA at least once a
362 week for boys 43% in 1991 and 48% in 2007 among boys, and 29% in 1991 and 42% in 2007
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363 among girls.

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364 In a recent study, Yli-Piipari et al. (2012) followed 12 year olds (n = 812) for 3 years
365 during their transition from elementary to middle school in Finland. PA was assessed by using
366 the HBSC PA scale measuring weekly frequency of 60 minutes of daily MVPA engagement.
367 The study supported the findings of the of the HBSC study showing that MVPA participation is
368 inversely related to age. In addition, the study extended previous findings showing that MVPA
369 declined across grades 6–9 with the steepest decline occurring during the transition from grade 6
370 to 7.
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371 Fitness of School-Aged Youth
372 Several studies have been reported examining fitness levels of Finnish children and
373 adolescents (Huotari, Nupponen, Laakso, & Kujala, 2010a, 2010b; Laakso, Nupposen, &
374 Telaman, 1997; Nupponen, 1979; Nupponen, 1981). Some earlier studies have shown physical
375 fitness of Finnish youth to be at an acceptable level (Laakso et al., 1997). More recently, Huotari
376 et al. (2010a, 2010b), utilizing the earlier work of Nupponen (1979, 1981), investigated two
377 stratified samples across 1976 and 2001, and reported interesting findings on secular trends of
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378 Finnish youth. The 1976 sample comprised 2,796 adolescents (9–21 years old) and the sample
379 from 2001 comprised 1,041 adolescents (11–18 years old). The same set of fitness tests were
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380 conducted in both studies (25 years apart), which consisted of a standing long jump (cm), 30
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381 second sit-ups, and a 4-x-10-meter agility shuttle run. In addition, aerobic fitness performance
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382 was measured in running tests, 2,000-meter for boys and 1,500-meter for girls, and upper body
383 muscular fitness in was tested using the flexed arm hang for girls and pull-ups for boys. The
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384 study showed that both boys and girls had lower aerobic fitness performance in 2001 than their
385 counterparts in the 1976 sample. The increase in long-distance running time from 1976 to 2001
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386 was 10% for boys and 6% for girls. In addition, the study showed that 13-to-16-year-old
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387 adolescents had slightly higher muscular fitness performance in 2001 compared to 1976. The
388 results showed a positive trend in the agility shuttle run and sit-up tests in both boys and girls. In
389 contrast, among boys, upper body strength was lower, while in the standing broad jump there
390 was no change in performance over time for boys, and only a slight positive trend for girls.
391 Motor Skills of School-Aged Youth
392 Nupponen, Soini, and Telma (1999) created the Finnish Fitness Test Package, which is
393 based on the Eurofit (1988) battery, and is administered once or twice a year in elementary and
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394 middle school PE. In addition, Nupponen et al. created a norm-based assessment criterion for
395 Finnish school-aged youth to test aerobic and muscular fitness, flexibility, and motor skills. Also
396 included is the coordination test of Haag and Haag (2001). Utilizing the Finnish Fitness Test
397 Packages, the 2003 and 2010 PE learning performance evaluations examined the change in
398 adolescents’ aerobic and muscular fitness, flexibility, and motor skills (Huisman, 2004; Palomäki
399 & Heikinaro-Johansson, 2011). The results showed a significant statistical decrease in
400 coordination track and slight improvements in the results of a dribbling skill test for girls.
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401 Palomäki and Heikinaro-Johansson (2011) summarized the findings, stating that the most
402 worrying sign was that decreases in motor skill performance continued over time.
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403 In 2007, a one-year intervention project was implemented to study relationships between
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404 middle-school students’ fundamental movement skills, self-report PA, and motivation toward PE
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405 (Kalaja, 2012). The study comprised 446 Finnish grade 7 students. The intervention design was
406 quasi-experimental, including experimental (n = 199 students) and control (n = 247 students)
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407 groups, assessed across four measurement points (baseline through retention). The intervention
408 aimed to increase adolescents’ fundamental motor skills by implementing a 25-minute training
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409 session in the beginning of the weekly PE lesson (one to two times per week). The program,
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410 designed by the researcher and the PE teachers, focused on developing one dimension of
411 fundamental motor skills at a time. Fundamental movement skills were measured by a test
412 package consisting of static and dynamic balance, leaping, shuttle running, rope-jumping,
413 accuracy throwing and dribbling. After the intervention, there were statistically significant
414 differences between the experimental and control groups in static and dynamic balance. The
415 experimental group showed more statistically significant development across four measurement
416 points in these variables compared to the control group on the balancing skills but nonsignificant
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417 differences for locomotor and manipulative skills. Interestingly, during the intervention, the
418 experimental group’s decrease in self-report PA was more moderate than the decrease of control
419 group (time and experimental condition interaction.
420 Evidence Summary
421 The reviewed findings indicate that the evidence of the effectiveness of Finnish PE
422 programs on students’ cognitive, social, and psychomotor development is scarce. Whereas
423 numerous research efforts have been conducted and reported on PA, motor skills, and fitness,
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424 studies specifically examining the role of school or PE in children’s and adolescents’
425 physiological outcomes have been sparse. In addition, there are no studies examining the explicit
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426 relationships between school PE and student social-cognitive outcomes.

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427 It can, however, be stated that school PE is well regarded among Finnish elementary and
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428 middle school students. This evidence has been established across several studies and across a
429 long period of time (Heikinaro-Johansson et al., 2008; Huisman, 2004; Palomäki & Heikinaro-
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430 Johansson, 2011; Varstala et al., 1987). In addition, some evidence (generated by only one study)
431 indicated that compared to some other European PE programs Finnish adolescents tend to
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432 perceive their PE classes as more autonomy-supportive (Hagger et al., 2009). Similarly, the
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433 reviewed evidence on the impact of Finnish PE on adolescents’ psychomotor development is
434 scant. In fact, there are no studies that directly examine the effects of school PE, such as different
435 curricula, instructional models, teaching styles in school students’ PA, fitness, or motor skills.
436 The lack of evidence, together with so many other factors (not related to school PE programs)
437 that influence individuals’ PA and fitness levels, makes it impossible to determine whether
438 school PE contributes to a nation’s health. It is interesting that most of the reviewed studies
439 showed that adolescents’ PA in Finland declined at a faster rate than in other Western countries
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440 (HBSC study; Currie et al., 2008). However, there are no research findings to evaluate whether
441 increased PE time has or could have tempered the naturally declining PA levels. Similarly,
442 although the reviewed evidence indicates that Finnish adolescents’ aerobic fitness has declined
443 and muscular fitness has slightly increased from 1991 to 2001, the role of school PE in this
444 development is yet to be determined. In addition, it is naïve to expect that two to three weekly PE
445 lessons could contribute significantly to students’ PA or fitness. However, skills, knowledge, and
446 attitudes learned in PE could potentially act as a springboard for adolescents’ involvement in
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447 sport and physical activities throughout life. The central finding of this review is that there is a
448 great need to determine the best possible PE to facilitate students’ growth. The final section of
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449 this article provides specific suggestions for future research endeavors in PE not only pertaining
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450 to Finland, but to the U.S. as well.

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451 Twenty-First Century Physical Education
452 Toward 2020: Physical Education Curriculum in Finland

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453 In 2009, an expert group was formed to develop Finnish basic education and to
454 strengthen its objectives in a consistent way by taking into consideration the present strengths of
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455 basic education and the development needs for the future (Ministry of Education and Culture,
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456 2010). This group, Basic Education 2020, formulated a proposal for the distribution of lesson
457 hours and the general national objectives for the new basic education reform, completed by 2016
458 (Ministry of Education and Culture, 2010). The proposal emphasizes vital citizen skills for the
459 21st century that have been classified into five groups: thinking skills, ways of working and
460 interaction, crafts and expressive skills, participation and initiative, and self-awareness and
461 personal responsibility. In June 2012, the Finnish Minister of Education signed a decree to
462 reform basic education to include educational objectives, lesson-hour distribution, a National
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463 Core Curriculum, and local curricula to be completed by the beginning of school year 2016
464 (Basic Education Decree 422, 2012). As a starting point, the decree allocated more time and
465 funding for PE, arts, craft education, and civic/citizenship education (Basic Education Decree
466 422, 2012). The preparation of the curricula is interactive. All education providers can follow the
467 preparation and give feedback at the different phases. They are also encouraged to involve
468 students and their parents in the process (Basic Education Decree 422, 2012). Based on this
469 Basic Education Decree, schools should aim to increase students’ support and cooperation with
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470 homes and to increase student autonomy to enhance motivation and individual growth to meet
471 the new objectives (Basic Education Decree 422, 2012). In addition, teaching and learning
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472 should facilitate students’ health and well-being.

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473 From a PE teacher’s point of view, these changes are promising, although inadequate.
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474 The new Basic Education Decree 422 increases PE time by adding an annual weekly lesson for
475 two years during grades 1-9. It is yet to be confirmed how this one additional PE lesson per
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476 week for elementary and middle school levels will be used, but the rationale for the increase is to
477 improve the health and wellbeing of children and adolescents. Therefore, it is likely that
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478 increased resources will be used for health-enhancing PE.

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479 In addition, together with the new National Core Curriculum, schools and physical
480 educators are required to implement a new criterion-referenced MOVE!® assessment and
481 feedback program to evaluate students’ fitness levels and to motivate students to participate in
482 health-enhancing PA. This program will be integrated in Finnish 5th- and 8th-grade curricula, as
483 well as in yearly school health monitoring; it also generates fitness assessment data to inform
484 students, parents, and health administrators alike. The fitness tests of MOVE! ® bear similarities
485 with FITNESSGRAM® tests evaluating students’ aerobic capacity, body composition, and
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486 muscular strength, endurance, and flexibility. This assessment and feedback program will be
487 implemented across the Finnish comprehensive school system and it is attainable for more than
488 96% of a Finnish student cohort. It is yet to be seen or tested if this new system will enhance the
489 health, PA, and motivation of youth, and whether it will facilitate communicating fitness testing
490 results to students, parents, and health administrators. This new program can be seen as an
491 indicator that the role of schooling system is not only to educate the mind of a student, but also to
492 provide tools and motivation to engage health-enhancing PA.

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493 Over the past decades, physical educators have witnessed marginalization of PE across
494 the Western world (Hardman & Marshall, 2009; Pühse, & Gerber, 2005). Considering the
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495 challenges and outright threats to school PE in many countries, the changes pertaining to the
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496 Finnish national curriculum are promising. Although negative prophecies of the future of PE
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497 have been presented (Kirk, 2010), the future of Finnish school PE is viewed by the author in a
498 more positive light. Based on recent developments, it can be argued that PE has a solid
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499 foundation in Finnish schools enjoying considerable support in Finnish society. This is not
500 because educational policies in Finland are more PE-friendly than U.S. policies, for instance, but
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501 because since the 1970s one of the most central purposes of schooling has been the holistic
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502 development of a student (Aho, Pitkänen, & Sahlberg, 2006). Thus, school PE is not important
503 because it is just a tool to “let off steam,” but because it is an important piece in an academic
504 education system that helps the nation to achieve the objectives of the 21st century.
505 Future Research
506 School PE has an important educational mission to educate the whole individual. This
507 literature review, however, shows limited evidence of the effectiveness of the Finnish PE
508 programs in relation to examined outcomes. Although a respectable amount of evidence in PA
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509 participation and fitness levels of Finnish youth has been reported, the findings of this review
510 indicates that the effects of PE on health and fitness outcomes are not well understood (e.g., Pate,
511 O'Neill, & McIver, 2011). In fact, based on this review, it is argues that no credible evidence
512 directly linking school PE (policies, curricula, teaching styles, or strategies) and cognitive,
513 social, and psychomotor student outcomes is currently available. Thus, there is a clear need for
514 scholars to conduct robust research to better examine the effectiveness of school PE. Studies
515 should assess teaching practices and curricula to identify disparities in PE quality and quantity,
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516 and document favorable and unfavorable trends. In addition, studies that employ a strong
517 theoretical framework and a rigorous research design would be beneficial to address these issues.
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518 Research in this area should seek four goals.

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519 Goal 1. It is logical to assume that allocating more time to PE across all grade levels
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520 helps students to reach the daily PA recommendations. Daily PE in elementary and middle
521 schools is needed for fitness-enhancing benefits for all students, including those who are the
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522 most inactive. However, financial resources for education and PE are limited; therefore, studies
523 to determine the most beneficial, health-enhancing, weekly dose of PE is needed. This
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524 suggestion is by no means new or novel, or only pertinent to Finnish PE. Previously, several
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525 distinguished U.S. scholars recommended that school PE should focus on enhancing population
526 health (e.g., Sallis et al., 2012). It is likely, that the current efforts to allocate more time for PE
527 should be more readily appreciated by the different stakeholders when supported by rigorous
528 scientific evidence. Thus, strengthening research on this topic will be productive in terms of
529 promoting and supporting PE-friendly school policies in Finland.
530 Goal 2. The findings of this review indicate that Finnish students are highly motivated
531 toward PE. What we do not know is how PE curriculum relates to this motivation and to
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532 participation of adolescents in out-of-school PA. It would be worthwhile to explore whether
533 different types of curricula (e.g., a multi-activity or a concept-based curriculum) contribute
534 differently to changing the motivation of adolescents toward PE and PA participation (Ennis,
535 2011). Sound theoretical models should be utilized when examining these effects. For instance,
536 Chen and Hancock (2006) have proposed a theoretical model for PE researchers to study the
537 dynamic impact of personal, PE curriculum, and community variables on adolescent PA.
538 Goal 3. Internationally, previous PE intervention studies have shown desirable short term
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539 benefits in regard to in-class PA of adolescents (for a review, see Dudley, Okely, Pearson, &
540 Cotton, 2011). But previous interventions have shown little effect on sustaining a physically
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541 active lifestyle in later years (Kahn, Ramsey, & Brownson, 2002; McKenzie et al., 2003). Thus,
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542 future studies should be conducted to determine the most beneficial teaching practices in PE to
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543 initiate the most positive responses in learners and increase their willingness to be active during
544 out-of-school time. One possible theoretical framework to examine the role of teacher instruction
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545 in student PA participation could be the Trans-Contextual Model (TCM; Hagger et al., 2003).
546 Research based on TCM has shown autonomy-supportive instruction in PE to predict student
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547 autonomy not only in PE, but also in an out-of-school context and actual participation in PA (for
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548 a review, see Hagger & Chatizarantis, 2012).
549 Goal 4. Finally, future studies should determine how existing and emerging technology
550 could assist students to reach learning objectives. Current advances in health-technology, such as
551 motion sensors and smartphone applications could help PE teachers not only to engage students
552 in health-enhancing PA, but also and perhaps more importantly, educate and motivate students
553 toward life-long PA. For instance, wireless and real-life data transmission technologies allow
554 students to monitor their PA levels, track working-out at target heart rate, or evaluate burned
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555 calories during different activities. This technology could help teachers to provide immediate and
556 accurate feedback on areas such as energy expenditure and intensity during PE classes. In
557 addition, technology not only provides better possibilities to assess student performance in a
558 more efficient manner, but also provides information to students and parents alike. These
559 emerging technologies are also valuable tools in regards of future research endeavors.
560
561
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562 Note 1
563 The literature search was conducted using Medline, ISI Web of Knowledge, ERIC, Scholar One,
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564 and ARTO to identify observational and intervention studies in the area of physical education.
565 Additional studies were identified using the reference lists of research and review papers. The
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566 search was restricted to peer-reviewed and data-driven articles and PhD level study reports.
567
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568
569 References
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Table 1.
Cross-national Reports of Finnish and the U.S. Adolescents Engagement in Daily Moderate-to-
Vigorous Physical Activity
Age Group Finnish Students The U.S. Students HBSC Average

Girls (%) Boys (%) Girls (%) Boys (%) Girls (%) Boys (%)
11-year-olds 37 48 26 33 22 30
13-year-olds 15 24 21 35 15 25
15-year-olds 9 15 14 34 12 20
Note 1. Based on the 2006 Health Behavior in School-aged Children Study.
Note 2. Adolescents responded on a one-item and an eight-point response scale (0–7 days of the week) question:
Fo
“Over the past 7 days, on how many days were you physically active for a total of at least 60 minutes per day?”
r Pe
er
Re
vi
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Keywords: physical education

Human Kinetics, 1607 N Market St, Champaign, IL 61825

2 Physical Education Curriculum Reform in Finland

17 physical education should be more easily justified and supported.

18 Keywords Curriculum reform, review study, elementary and middle schools

19 Health and Sport Sciences, University of Memphis, Memphis, 38152 Tennessee.

31 (PISA), a worldwide study of the scholastic performance of 15-year-old students in reading,

40 play (Sahlberg, 2011).

43 is a phase of education that aims to contribute to an individual’s development of physical,

44 cognitive, and psychosocial competencies. A quality PE program provides children and

46 participate in a variety of PAs as an ongoing part of a healthy lifestyle. As a mandated content

54 effectiveness of the current Finnish PE programs.

55 A Short History of Educational Reform in Finland

75 on equity; today it is supported by a homogeneous cultural and social agreement (Finnish

80 medical and dental checkups (Sahlberg, 2011).

84 moderated by different stakeholders, such as scholars, teachers, and administrators (Brown

88 highlighted teachers’ professionalism and local municipalities’ autonomy to implement a

96 completed in 2004 (OECD, 2010b).

109 based, private comprehensive schools).

124 years (OECD, 2010b).

125 A Short History of Physical Education in Finland

156 competencies (Finnish National Board of Education, 2004).

157 The Current State of Physical Education in Finland

158 Aims and Objectives

175 improving student learning (Sahlberg, 2011). As a consequence of decentralized education

184 student achievement.

185 Single-Gender Middle School Physical Education

203 Compulsory PE is typically organized around multi-activity programs in a series of units

213 Time Allocation

226 Assessment and Evaluation

227 Student assessment in comprehensive schools is intended to promote student learning,

257 evaluation policies, see Simola et al., 2009).

258 Review of Evidence on Effectiveness of Finnish Physical Education Programs

266 Student Attitudes and Motivation

287 Several studies have examined motivation-related variables in Finnish school PE

306 Social-Emotional Learning

307 Facilitating social growth and development of an individual is an important objective of

318 the unit.

319 Physical Activity of School-Aged Youth

336 Table 1 goes here

350 participation, in particular.

363 among girls.

371 Fitness of School-Aged Youth

391 Motor Skills of School-Aged Youth

419 group (time and experimental condition interaction.

420 Evidence Summary

426 relationships between school PE and student social-cognitive outcomes.

433 reviewed evidence on the impact of Finnish PE on adolescents’ psychomotor development is

450 to Finland, but to the U.S. as well.

451 Twenty-First Century Physical Education

452 Toward 2020: Physical Education Curriculum in Finland

472 should facilitate students’ health and well-being.

478 increased resources will be used for health-enhancing PE.