Interview of Pekka Haavisto

Pekka in his classroom holding a historical item.

Our series of interviews continues with the interview of history teacher Pekka Haavisto. The interview was conducted by Wayne Teller. Without further a due, let’s get going.

Is this your favorite job?

- Well it’s the best job among the jobs I have done.

What is the most interesting period of time in history for you?

- It’s hard to say because always when you introduce yourself to a new subject it becomes more interesting. Still, I would say the 19th and 20th century is the most interesting period of time for me because I have to teach it. The 20th century might be the most interesting for me.

What is the favorite period of time for pupils?

- I think that the pupils also like the 20th century, especially the wars. Some pupils ask in the 7th grade when we are going to talk about World War II. But maybe you should answer this question yourself.

What is the best thing in this job?

- People of course. That you’re working with interesting, funny and good pupils. When I come back to school after a holiday, for example, I don’t have to look at those faces for long until I already feel better.

How long have you worked as a teacher and how long have you worked in Pikkola?

- I have taught 12 years, although I am already 46 years old. I kind of woke up late to this job and started my studies in the university quite late. So I was a bit over 30 years old when I started teaching. In Pikkola I have worked for 10 years.

Is it easier and more comfortable to work in the new building as opposed to the old one here in Pikkola?

- Yes and no because I like to go to the teachers’ room during the breaks and now it’s further away than it was before. But that’s a small problem. But if we don’t count that, it’s nicer and more comfortable here. One thing is these new devices that probably are already in use in the old building too. Another thing is that the school feels like there’s more space because all the people aren’t in the same building. There are more good things to say about this than bad things. When we talked about which subjects are going to move to the new building we (history teachers) volunteered and I don’t regret that decision.

Some pupils (not me though) have complained about some of the school subjects being a waste of time. Of what use is history to the pupils, in your opinion?

- That’s probably one of my favourite questions which I’m happy to give an answer to. I could approach it a little differently and say that, when you think about many school subjects, most of them can be considered as tools. They’re taught because they enable you to do certain things. Languages, for example, are a tool that you use to read, talk and write. But at the end, I think that content is more important than the tools. History is one such content that you can discuss with the help of those tools. Many people around the world are interested in history, although I’m not sure if that motivates the students. Even more important is that history gives people knowledge and understanding of themselves and of this world. I think that history is a subject that helps you to understand life itself.

During your career, have you ever had to change your perception of history or change the way you teach it? After all, history too does change…

- This is also a very good question, and I must say I could’ve done a better job in this regard. I mean, I don’t always have the time to update my knowledge on everything as much as I should. Of course we also follow the study books quite a bit and every time the publishers bring out new editions, they’re updated with some new research. There have been a couple of times that I’ve had to change my view on some things, when new information has come available. Actually, last autumn I took part in a teaching conference that made me think about certain things. And I’ll probably change some things in my teaching when I’m going to teach that subject the next time.