Democracy,caring and competence: values perspectives in ECEC curricula in the Nordic countries

The aim of the study is to explore how Nordic Early Childhood Education and Care policies frame values education in preschools with a special focus on the values of democracy, caring and competence. The study is part of a larger Nordic project, Values education in Nordic preschools: Basis of education for tomorrow, the aim of which is to explore values education from various perspectives, policy levels, institutional levels and personal levels. The study applies Habermas’s theoretical ideas of communicative actions, lifeworld, and the system. Here the focus is on the system level, namely, values in national curriculum guidelines that serve as the basis of pedagogical practices in preschools in the Nordic countries. Thematic research analysis described by Braun and Clarke inspired the qualitative analysis of the documents. In addition, a quantitative language-based approach was applied to the study. Keywords related with democratic, caring and competence values were selected. The findings reveal different dimensions and meanings of the three value fields, such as democracy as being and/or becoming; care as fulfilment of basic needs and an ethical relationship; and competence values as learning for sociality and academic skills.     

Medical students’ educational strategies in an environment of prestige hierarchies of specialties and diseases

Abstract

Drawing on Bourdieu’s theory of practice, this paper aims to understand whether and how a reproduction of the status hierarchy of medical specialties and diagnoses occurs within a medical school in a North European context as well as students’ educational strategies given the hierarchy. We report data from a cross-sectional survey conducted on a sample of Danish medical students. The 289 respondents ranked diseases and specialities, based on how they believed most health personnel would rank them. In addition, 18 in-depth interviews with medical students were conducted. Comparing the ranking responses of early, mid and late phase students, the analysis tracks the gradual convergence and broad agreement around a hierarchy. The paper concludes that medical school is a highly competitive field of higher education, where distinction is invested in and reproduced by curricular knowledge. This distinction is reinforced within wider structural elements such as governmental educational policies.     

Preschool–home cooperation in change

The purpose of this study is to bring forth preschool teachers' and parents' views on both established and future forms of cooperation between the preschool and home. The empirical sample is based on both individual and focus‐group interviews. Results show that cooperation mainly revolves around the individual child. The form of cooperation that is the least established among both preschool teachers and parents tends to be the parent council. It is concluded that it is important for preschool teachers to provide varied and rich forms of cooperation, as different forms of cooperation appeal to different parents. With a wide range, there is a possibility to reach all parents.     

Facilitating democratic professional development: exploring the double role of being an academic action researcher

Abstract

This article focuses on the double role of the academic action researcher working as facilitator and researcher in democratic professional development projects. The inquiry is based on three partnership projects: ‘research circles’ in Sweden, ‘dialogue conferences’ in Norway and ‘tailored professional development’ in Finland. In a self-study and through the lens of practice architectures, we, as action researchers, explore how our practices are enabled and constrained in, as well as are enabling and constraining, professional development partnerships with teachers and educational leaders. A critical perspective is provided on how and what democratic practices evolve. The inquiry opens up understandings about how the academic action researcher’s practices entails multi-faceted ways of working to be able to accomplish different and somehow contradictory objectives, yet at the same time enacting democratic working methods. Furthermore, the act of recognition as a connecting aspect between prefiguring arrangements and evolving practices will be elaborated on to supplement perspectives offered by the theory of practice architectures.     

Facilitating change to a problem-based model

This paper discusses barriers which arise during the change process from a traditional educational system to a problem-based educational model. The characteristics of a problem-based learning model are presented in order to provide a framework for discussion of the scope of these issues. Then the findings of a research study, which examined an actual transition from a traditional model to a problem-based learning model, are introduced and discussed. In spite of an extensive staff development programme to introduce teachers to the new model, some unforseen issues arose. Some of these were to do with the nature of teaching in the new model, for example, the requirements of project supervision as the new form of teaching, which was quickly brought into focus by teachers involved in the transition. Other issues were to do with the retention, in this particular example of problem-based learning, of forms of teaching which appeared similar to traditional teaching, namely lectures. The findings suggested that it was very important to 'rethink' known teaching methods such as traditional lecturing, because teachers have to reselect the content of courses if the number of lectures is substantially reduced. Furthermore, the results of the study indicate that the importance of the change processes at the educational model level focus on the individual, culture and the organization. For faculty and academic developers this means that they have to facilitate all three levels which is a comprehensive challenge and requires a high level of competency.     

Understanding leading as travelling practices

In this paper, we propose the concept of leading as travelling practices in order to understand how enhanced pedagogical practices ‘catch on’ in educational sites. Drawing on parallel case studies in Australia, Sweden and Norway, we analyse how leading practices moved within and between settings, transforming the discursive, material and social conditions for teaching and learning. We examine the composition and ecological connections of these leading practices with professional learning and pedagogical practices in schools and pre-schools. We conclude that practice-informed lens can shed new light on the spread of practices, which foster the conditions necessary for transformed pedagogy.     

Features of an Emerging Practice and Professional Development in a Science Teacher Team Collaboration with a Researcher Team

This study concerns teaching and learning development in science through collaboration between science teachers and researchers. At the core was the ambition to integrate research outcomes of science education—here ‘didactic models’—with teaching practice, aligned with professional development. The phase where the collaboration moves from initial establishment towards a stable practice is investigated. The study aims to identifying features of formation and exploring consequences for the character of contact between research and teaching. Specific questions are “What may be identified as actions and arrangements impacting the quality and continuation of the emerging practice?” and “What and in what ways may support teacher growth?” The analysis draws on practice architectures as a theoretical framework and specifically investigates the initial meetings as a practice-node for a new practice, empirically drawing on documented reflections on science teaching, primarily from meetings and communication. The results take the form of an analytical-narrative account of meetings that focused planning, enactment and reflection on teaching regarding the human body. We identify enabling actions such as collaborative work with concrete material from the classroom and arrangements such as the regular meetings and that the collaborative group had a core of shared competence—in science teaching and learning. Constraining were actions such as introducing research results with weak connection to practical action in the school practice and arrangements such as differences between school and university practice architectures and the general ‘oppression’ of teachers’ classroom practice. The discussion includes reflections on researchers’ roles and on a research and practice base for school development.     

Prevalence of shoulder pain in Swedish flatwater kayakers and its relation to range of motion and scapula stability of the shoulder joint

Few studies have investigated the incidence of injuries in kayakers. The aim was to study the prevalence of shoulder pain in competitive flatwater kayakers and to evaluate any differences in range of motion or scapula stability of the shoulder joint among kayakers with or without the history of shoulder pain. Thirty-one kayakers were participated in the study, and a questionnaire including background data was used. Shoulder range of motion was measured with a goniometer, and the participants were observed for scapula dyskinesis in flexion and abduction. Of the participating kayakers, 54.8% (n = 17) had experienced shoulder pain. Kayakers who had experienced shoulder pain showed a significantly lower degree of internal rotational range of motion versus kayakers with no reported shoulder pain, with a mean degree of internal rotation in the right shoulder 49.3 vs 60.0 (P = 0.017) and the left shoulder 51.9 vs 66.0 (P = 0.000). Kayakers who had experienced shoulder pain were also observed with a scapular dyskinesis (n = 15 of 17 kayakers) to a significantly higher degree (P = 0.001) than kayakers with no reported shoulder pain. Findings suggest that screening for scapular dyskinesis and testing for rotational range of motion in the shoulder joint is essential in order to treat and maybe prevent shoulder pain in kayakers.     

Organization of staff development—strategies and experiences

This article describes a number of staff development organizations, along with their strategies and experiences. The organization of staff development varies greatly and is dependent on the interaction between the formal requirements of the university teaching qualifications, the institutions themselves and their course culture, the size and organization of the teaching units, and the institutions' management strategies and teaching methods. Based on examples from Denmark, Sweden and Belgium, the advantages and disadvantages of a number of these strategies are analysed in order to provide inspiration for future implementation of the various methods.