Recruiting and retaining licensed teachers and principals in small schools in disadvantaged or remote areas, has been considered a challenge. In many of the western countries the main focus during the last decade has been on building bigger schools and enabling school consolidations. However, due to geographical and historical reasons, small schools still have an important role in many countries and places (Anderson, et al 2010; Korpinen 2010; Sigsworth & Solstad 2001). In many areas the schools are not small by choice, but by necessity, because of the low enrolment of pupils (Clarke & Stevens 2009; Karlberg-Granlund 2009). In Finland about 45 per cent of the schools have less than 100 pupils (Finnish National Board of Education 2010).

With a commitment to equity and equality, educational development strategies should help all schools to improve (Solstad 1997). Research indicates that there is an apparent need of professional programmes that identifies and meets the teachers’ and principals’ needs of professional development and support in small schools. For many new teachers the challenges and opportunities of these working environments are a surprise. Professional isolation and declining economical resources for school development and in-service training, can also be a hindrance for the continual professional development of experienced teachers, which may affect their well-being and perseverance. Teachers finding a balance between the demands and aims of the work and the personal, professional and structural resources, is the key to managing at work in the long-term (Karlberg-Granlund 2009).

The aim of this research and development project is to identify and meet the professional needs of teachers and teaching principals working in small schools in both rural and urban settings in the Swedish-speaking regions in Finland, by creating and managing an in-service course in close collaboration with the participants. The project is associated with the in-service course “The teacher in the small school” (“Läraren i den lilla skolan”, at Åbo Akademi University, Center for Lifelong Learning), which is financed by The Finnish National Board of Education, during four terms in the years 2010–2012. By empowering and supporting teachers to collaborate and manage their own tools for cooperation and support, new understanding of the life and work of teachers in small school contexts, as well as new collegial networks – both socio-technical (virtual) and practical (regional and local) – hopefully will be created.

The research questions are: What professional needs do teachers and principals in small schools have and how could these needs be met? Which are the possibilities and barriers for collegial support and networking between teachers and principals in small schools? What is the researcher’s/course leader’s role? Which are the main outcomes and results of the in-service course, and which strategies do these outcomes imply for the future?

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