As a professor of Finnish, Jyrki Kalliokoski’s teaching is concentrated on two areas: Finnish as a second language and Finnish language and culture, which is a subject aimed at international students. In his research, he explores second language use, language learning and multilingualism to find out how communication works between people with different linguistic backgrounds.

Kalliokoski is interested in the diversity of linguistic resources as well as the way in which they are learnt and the fluency of interaction, rather than the errors and misunderstandings of language learners.

Whose language is Finnish, who has the right to decide what kind of language is correct and incorrect, and who is an expert in these things? We tend to think that the answer to these questions is self-evident. However, changes in the structure of Finnish society and its increasingly multilingual population compel us to see things from a fresh perspective. Although when Finns speak English and use the language with confidence trusting in their language skills they tend question the authority of ‘native’ speakers of English, these same Finns are very sensitive to mistakes in the speech and writing of those who have learnt Finnish as adults.

We need information on how people who are multilingual, and who work in demanding expert positions, assess their own language use and the norms of the language. We also lack information on the normative expectations placed on their written texts and speech turns.

Kalliokoski is currently studying how people who have learnt Finnish in adulthood function as professionals and members of the workplace community. A central method is to analyse their narratives about their work, their use of Finnish, linguistic choices and the language attitudes they face. The data is interview based.