Das Pädagogische Konzept Maria Montessoris: Die Permanente Diskussion

This article emphasises the internal consistency of Maria Montessori's work by identifying her main educational ideas and clarifying the interrelationships between the individual experimental schools and her writings. An elucidation of the vital part played by the anthropological basis of Maria Montessori's work shows that her entire efforts were directed towards illuminating childhood as the foundation of human development. Within this framework her relationship to Rousseau on the one hand, and to educational reform trends on the other is brought out. It is in this connection that her relations with the World Education Fellowship in general and with Decroly in particular find their significance.     

Zeitökonomische Aspekte der Nachfrage nach Vereinsleichtathletik im europäischen Vergleich

In a joint project involving European association staff and sports scientists, basic structural data were collected on British, Swedish, Spanish and German athletics clubs to be used for analysis of hypotheses concerning conditions of participation in sports clubs, particularly by children and adolescents. The results showed clear differences in organizational level as well as membership and activity structures in comparisons between European countries and within Germany. The findings revealed the differential functions and significance of sports clubs in the context of the respective institutions and cultures.     

A plea for mixed methods approaches in research on teaching in physical education

Research on teaching in Physical Education (RT-PE) comprises a great deal of complex phenomena. These can be understood at a more profound level by using mixed methods research approaches (MMR). Hence, the aim of this paper is to analyze potentials and limitations of mixed methods research in RT-PE, also trying to generate an additional value for MMR.     

What’s the value of an acceptance letter? Using admissions data to estimate the return to college

This paper exploits discontinuities and randomness in the college admissions in Sweden in 1982, to estimate the economic return to college in the 1990s. At the time, college admissions were highly selective and applicants were ranked with respect to their formal merits. Admissions were given to those ranked higher than some threshold value. At the margin, applicants were sometimes randomly assigned to college. Exploiting this Regression-Discontinuity design, individuals who were admitted in 1982 are estimated to have about 0.20 years longer college education in 1996. However, the earnings effects for applicants at the margin of admission are insignificant. Controlling for the college admission determinants, the OLS-estimates of the return to college is 1.4 percent in 1991–96. The IV-estimates are not significantly different from the OLS counterparts.     

Psychological factors behind incidental information acquisition

This paper discusses incidental information acquisition in the light of psychological aspects. A theoretical introduction is followed by an account of three research projects where incidental information acquisition was related to personality traits, approaches to studying, and emotions. The respondents were grades 6–12, master's thesis, and mature library and information science (LIS) students representing an age range of 12–53 years. An energetic personality, high motivation, and positive emotionality were shown to enhance likelihood for incidental acquisition, while low motivation, stress, and insecurity reduced receptivity.