POISED-quarterly is an online research seminar series hosted by the Political Philosophies and Sociologies of Education (POISED) -research group, based at Tampere University, Finland. The seminar gathers together critical societal research both internationally and from Finland, creating a forum for academic discussion on topical themes in education. Currently it is co-chaired by Tuomas Tervasmäki and Jan Varpanen.
2026–2027 Crises in Education
The theme for academic year 2025–2026 is “Trouble in education”. Writing in 1960’s, the political thinker Hannah Arendt gave her essay the title Crisis in Education. For her, the crisis was that the older generation – so educators in a very broad sense – had relinquished their responsibility for introducing newcomers to the world. Despite the very different contexts, the themes of responsibility and crisis are no less important for educational thought today. The educator is responsible both for the world they inhabit and for the child that arrives in that world. What does this double responsibility entail in the era of polycrisis? What do the crises of our time ask from education?
The seminar series explores education in relation to phenomena that can be and have been considered to be in crisis in the contemporary world: ecology, democracy, belonging, and equity. The word crisis is derived from krinein, an ancient Greek legal practice of making just decisions in situations where no law could be directly applied to the case. Ecological questions, questions about belonging, dis/ability, democratic practices, and equity and equality as educational ideals are phenomena which call for responsible and just decisions, without lending themselves to direct applications of laws – educational or otherwise. The four installations of the seminar series speak to the resulting educational complexities from a critical societal perspective.
Each session consists of an expert presentation, followed by comments from a discussant and an open discussion with the audience.
10.12.2026 at 15.00-16.00: University Lecturer Heidi Huilla (University of Eastern Finland): Urban, school and teacher segregation in Finland
Discussant: Postdoctoral Researcher Tuomas Tervasmäki (Tampere University)
4.2.2027 at 15.00-16.00: Senior Lecturer Stefan Bengtsson (Uppsala University): Education at the end of times
Discussant: Doctoral Researcher Anette Mansikka-aho (Tampere University)
1.4.2027 at 15.00-16.00: Associate Professor Johanna Ennser-Kananen (University of Jyväskylä): Belonging, knowing, and relating to place
Discussant: Professor Antti Saari (Tampere University)
13.5.2027 at 15.00-16.00: Professor Anna-Maija Niemi (University of Eastern Finland): Responsibilities for inclusion: various perspectives on belonging
Discussant: Doctoral Researcher Liila Holmberg (Tampere University)
Sessions will be held in Zoom and can be accessed via this link. They are open to everyone – so mark your calendars and join in the discussion!
2025–2026 Trouble in Education
The theme for academic year 2025–2026 was “Trouble in education”. The seminar explored issues or perspectives that deal somehow with trouble(s) in education or present a view that is itself troubling, turning something previously familiar into unfamiliar or problematised. Each session consists of an expert presentation followed by an open discussion. Video-recordings of the lectures are available via links below:
3.10.2025 Matthew Clarke (University of Aberdeen) & Margaret Lo (Independent Scholar): The virtue of creativity in teaching: A psychosocial approach, chair Tuomas Tervasmäki
20.11.2025 Anni Piiroinen (University of Jyväskylä): Anger as a parasite in the pedagogical relation, chair Johanna Kallio
5.2.2026 Karin Murris (University of Oulu): Child(hood), childing and death, chair Jan Varpanen
9.4.2026 Heikki Kinnari (University of Helsinki): Rage against the ability-capital machine – Cognitive capitalism, lifelong learning and acts of resistance, chair Tuomas Tervasmäki
