Pedaforum 2022: two days, 130 performances and 600 participants

Haaga-Helia was honoured to be the first university of applied sciences to independently arrange the largest higher education seminar of the year in Finland from 24 to 25 August 2022.

Pedaforum 2022, Minna Hiillos
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The Pedaforum 2022 was held during a two-year break at the Helsinki Fair Centre and Haaga-Helia's Pasila Campus. During the two seminar days, more than 130 presentations on higher education and related research were heard.

Face-to-face discussion and exchange of opinions once again inspired researchers and teachers. The event brought together more than 600 participants.

"Due to a couple of years of working remotely caused by the pandemic, Pedaforum in 2022 has attracted a lot of interest from researchers and teachers. We received a lot of abstract and session suggestions. Most of the participants have participated in forum events on site in Pasila, Helsinki," says Jari Laukia, Director of the Haaga-Helia School of Vocational Teacher Education

School of Vocational Teacher Education has been primarily responsible for organising the seminar this year in Haaga-Helia.

The future and its challenges

The event started at the Helsinki Fair Centre on Wednesday 23 August. Haaga-Helia's principal Minna Hiillos' opening speech. The first keynote speech by Professor Alf Rehn of the University of Southern Denmark was also heard this morning.

Rehn, a globally renowned thought leader in innovation, trends and creativity, spoke at Pedaforum under the title "Teaching non-existent – the endless changing nature of the future and innovation and its challenges."

On Thursday 24 August, the first keynote speaker was Professor Irene Sheridan of Munster University of Technology (MTU) in Ireland. The speech was about lifelong learning: 'Cooperating with employers to recognise and support lifelong learning – the challenge for Universities'.

Irene Sheridan is the founder and director of the extended campus of Munster University of Technology (MTU) and director of the University's Enterprise Engagement and Experiential Learning research group.

Principal Lecturer Taru Konst, an expert in education and education development at Turku University of Applied Sciences, discussed the problem of sustainable higher education and higher education pedagogy in his keynote speech.

Konst has long-term experience in the development and research of teaching, especially innovation pedagogy. His latest publications are the work "Sustainable Development in Higher Education".

Higher education pedagogy in change

The special theme of the event, "Higher Education Pedagogy 2030", became concrete in the approximately 130 presentations heard over two days.

"Current questions for the future are reflected in abstract themes. Changes in the environment, working life and education policy are reflected in the activities of higher education institutions. The number of students has increased. Students' educational and work experience has become more diverse. Various objectives are set for research in higher education institutions, emphasises Jari Lauk, who has been putting together Pedaforum abstracts into a single publication.

In the publication Pedaforum 2022, abstracts from all the seminars have been compiled of the abstracts related to the presentations. Laukia describes the publication as a vivid and diverse summary of future-looking studies of higher education pedagogy.

In addition to impressive keynote speeches and sessions, the days included exploring Haaga-Helia's LAB environments. The first day of the event also culminated in an evening party held in Pikku-Finlandia.

Pedaforum was first organised as early as 1996. The next seminar will be held in Tampere in autumn 2023. The days will then be called The Days of Higher Education Pedagogy.

Read more about Pedaforum: pedaforum.fi