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The First Steps longitudinal study examines student learning, motivation, and problem behaviour in different interpersonal contexts, such as school, home and peer groups. It comprises a rich database of assessments of students’ reading and math performance, motivation and engagement, social skills, peer relations, as well as well-being. The follow-up started in 2006. Children have been studied from kindergarten until the end of comprehensive school in 2016. At the moment, the School Path -study is focusing on their educational decisions, dropping out of school, and well-being during secondary education (in vocational and upper secondary schools).

The population-based sample of children (born in 2000) from four municipalities involved more than 2,000 children from preschool to Grade 4, and approximately 1,800 children with their parents and teachers in in Grades 6, 7 and 9. After Grade 9, the sample also includes all classmates of these 2,000 earlier involved students. This means about 5,500 students altogether. This research has gained a lot of attention in Finland and abroad. Because of the large data and frequent data points, it is in many ways a unique study.

At each measurement point in comprehensive school, parents have filled in questionnaires on their parenting styles, well-being, and background information, as well as on their children’s behaviour and motivation, beliefs, and concerns regarding their child, as well as homework and literacy practices in the home. Similarly, at each of these measurement points, children’s teachers have filled in questionnaires concerning their teaching style, stress, pedagogical goals and practices, and classroom background information on, for example, support for children’s special needs. Teachers have also provided ratings on individual students (a subsample of 650 children of the original sample) concerning student motivation, problem behaviours, teacher–child relationship, and partnership with parents. A subsample of the teachers have participated in classroom observations (live observations or audio and video recordings) which have been coded using the CLASS and ECCOM instruments concerning teacher practices and classroom quality. In secondary education students will be answering questionnaires on their educational decisions and aspirations, well-being and school burn-out. Also, information about their educational path will be gathered from educational archives.

The study has been conducted as a collaboration between the Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥, the University of Turku and the University of Eastern Finland.

Collaborators

Niilo Mäki Institute: Juha-Matti Latvala
University of Tallinn, Estonia:  Eve Kikas, Piret Soodla
University of Oxford, UK: Lars-Erik Malmberg, Kathy Sylva
University of Virginia, US: Bridget Hamre, Robert Pianta
University of Michigan, US: Frederick Morrison
Utrecht University: Paul Leseman
University of Alberta, US: Rauno Parrila, George Georgiou
Florida Atlantic University, US: Brett Laursen
Hong Kong Institute of Education: Xiao Zhang

Keywords

Longitudinal follow-up and transitions
Learning and motivation
Risk for reading disability 
Classroom quality and interaction
Teacher-child relationship
Parenting
Partnership