Authors

• Konu, Anne (University of Tampere. Faculty of Social Sciences. Health Sciences)

Keywords

health status, quality of education, school buildings, school bullying, school classes, school-age population, school-student relationship, schools, social interaction, teacher-student relationship, upper secondary schools, vocational education institutions, well-being (health)

Abstract

The data examined the well-being of Finnish students at upper secondary level institutions. The themes of the survey included school conditions, social relations, possibilities of self-actualisation and state of health. The questions were presented as attitudinal statements and multiple-choice questions. The statements were evaluated on a five-level scale ranging from "strongly agree" to "strongly disagree".

Questions charting conditions at the institution covered school facilities and activities. The respondents were asked, for instance, about satisfaction with the size, temperature and ventilation of classrooms, toilet facilities as well as the cleanliness and safety of school buildings and yard areas. They were also asked to evaluate if it was possible to work in peace in the classrooms, if the amount of schoolwork was appropriate, if rules and disciplinary actions at the institution were sensible, and if it was easy to get to visit the school nurse or counselor. Some statements examined social relations between students as well as between the students and teachers, along with the attitudes of the student's family toward studying. The respondents were asked, for example, if groupwork was successful, if fellow students offered help, if teachers were friendly, and if family members respected their studies and helped with homework. It was also charted whether the respondents had been bullied at the institution during the current semester and whether they had themselves bullied someone.

Some questions pertained to self-actualisation. These questions covered e.g. whether teachers listened to the respondents' opinions, if students' opinions were taken into consideration in the institution's decision-making, whether the respondents had found a suitable study method and took care of their study duties, if they were thanked for good work, if they felt that studying is important and whether they received help from teachers when needed. Questions concerning the respondents' general health examined if they had suffered from a variety of symptoms during the current study term (e.g. stomach pains, difficulty falling asleep or waking up at night, headaches, feeling sad, fears).

Background variables included gender, age and grade.