University policy has changed during the past few years resulting partly from the effects of globalisation and because of the growing objectives set for the higher education. Internationalisation along with the Bologna process, the growing demands of effectiveness, competition, innovativeness, accountability and market orientation characterise the European university of the 21st century. (Ball 2003; Slaugther & Leslie 1997; Clark 1998; Jauhiainen et. al 2009.) Many academics have analysed and studied these political changes. For example, British sociologist Stephen Ball (2003, 215) has used the term policy technologies to describe the new global values in educational policy: the market, managerialism and perfomativity. The new policy technologies represent a whole new paradigm where the supranational actors, such as OECD have a big role in spreading the new values and ways of action. (Ball 2003, 215-218, Kallo 2009.) According to Ball (2003, 220-222), these technologies not only introduce new ways of governance but they also have effects on common values, on the relations between staff groups and on their identities, positions and practices. In this paper, I will concentrate on analysing the case of Finland. In Finland, universities have met numerous new challenges in the past decades. Finnish university policy has got more influence from the supranational policy models especially since the 1990's, which have brought, among other matters, the new ways of governance and management (NPM) (Kivinen, Rinne & Ketonen 1993; Välimaa 2008). In addition, the new Finnish Universities Act (2009) changed the position of the universities and staff and brought new responsibilities, such as the increased economic autonomy.

My presentation focuses on university teaching and teachers in context, where the positions and values are changing and the various expectations directed at teaching come both from outside the university and from the scientific community. In previous research, the focus has been, among others, the contradiction between several different tasks, roles, positions and identities of teachers (Henkel 2005, Taylor 2008; Delanty 2008; Anderson 2006). For example, according to several studies, the relationship between research and teaching is often complex and teaching compared with research is usually seen as a less appreciated task by the academics (Anderson 2006; Ylijoki 1998). However, during the past few years teaching has also gained more and more attention which can be seen, among others in political strategies.  For example, the improved pedagogical skills of the teachers as well as quality and development of teaching have become important goals for universities.  (Negvi & Lindblom-Ylänne 2003, 26.)

My paper is based on my postgraduate study where I will focus on more detail to the expectations and challenges which the university teachers are facing in their everyday work. In this presentation, I will concentrate in the first research question of my study: What kinds of expectations are directed toward university teachers in the context of the new university policy?

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