Mothers of children with mild neurological disabilities: Adaptational outcomes

The relations of stress and coping over time were investigated among mothers of children (N=36) with mild neurological disabilities and mothers of matched non-disabled (ND) children (N=36). Separate stress groups were formed with respect to changes in adaptational outcomes for the mothers of disabled and ND children. Mothers of disabled children with better adaptational outcomes had considered their self-esteem higher and used problem-focused coping and social support more often than mothers of disabled children with worse adaptational outcomes. Decrease of negative affects seemed to presuppose use of problem-focused coping more often mothers of disabled children than for those of ND children.This study has received financial support from the Emil Aaltonen Foundation, Tampere, Finland, and from the University of Lapland, Rovaniemi, Finland. Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Timo Virtanen, Institute of Migration, Piispankatu 3, SF-20500 Turku, Finland.     

The value of academics’ formal and informal interaction in developing life science education

ABSTRACT

Concerns have been expressed that the engagement shown by committed individuals is not fully utilized by their organizations while there is insufficient knowledge of which conditions facilitate teaching collaboration and lead to improvements in university education. Portfolios of 43 life science academics applying to enter to the University of Helsinki Teachers’ Academy were analyzed through content analysis. Five categories of interactive or collaborative practices emerged from the data: (1) Interacting with peers for personal development, (2) Sharing good teaching practices, (3) Teaching together, (4) Producing educational artefacts, (5) Developing education systematically. The practices occurred in both formal and informal settings, and both settings were present in all categories. In contrast with the formal practices, the informal practices were described in an enthusiastic way. The engagement shown by the scholarly teachers was mostly realized in informal settings. There is probably unrealized potential in the scholarly teachers’ teaching-related practices through which they could contribute to the development of teaching in academia. Formal communities related to teaching should be developed to promote deeper collaboration and to foster the participants’ feeling of personal commitment and ownership.     

Academics’ conceptions of assessment and their assessment practices

The present study focuses; firstly, on analysing academics’ conceptions of the purpose of assessment; secondly, on their assessment practices; and thirdly, on the relationship between their conceptions and practices. The data consisted of interviews with 28 pharmacy teachers. The analysis resulted in a continuum of categories of conceptions, from reproductive conceptions with an emphasis on measuring the reproduction of correct information, to more transformational conceptions with an emphasis on the development of students’ thinking and understanding. Although broad variation in assessment practices was recognised, teachers mostly described the use of traditional forms of assessment. Analysis of the relationship between conceptions and practices revealed high consistency between conceptions and practices.     

Effects of habitual physical activity on response to endurance training

We hypothesised that habitual physical activity (PA) together with progressive endurance training contributes to the differences in training response (Δ[V(·)]O(2max)) in healthy and physically active male participants. Twenty volunteers (age 30±3 years and [V(·)]O(2max) 54±7 ml·kg?1·min?1) participated in an eight-week training program which included four to six heart rate-guided exercise sessions weekly. PA data over the whole period were collected by an accelerometer-equipped wristwatch. Individual relative intensities of endurance training and PA were separately determined by adjusting to [V(·)]O(2max) reserve and calculated as mean daily duration (min) of training and PA at light, moderate, high and very high intensity levels. [V(·)]O(2max) increased 6.4±4.1% (p < 0.0001) during the training period. Δ[V(·)]O(2max) correlated with the amount of habitual PA that was mainly of light intensity (r = 0.53, p = 0.016), but not with the duration of moderate, high or very high intensity PA (p = ns for all). Age, body mass index, and daily amount of training at any intensity level of exercise were not related to Δ[V(·)]O(2max) (p = ns for all). In conclusion, a high amount of habitual PA together with prescribed endurance training was associated with good training response in physically active males.     

Factors explaining the learning of generic skills: a study of university students’ experiences

ABSTRACT

Although generic skills have received widespread attention from both policymakers and educationalists, little is known regarding how students acquire these skills, or how they should best be taught. Hence, the aim of this study was to identify what kinds of pedagogical practices are behind the learning of eight particular generic skills. The data were collected from university students (N =?163, n?=?123) via Internet questionnaires. The findings from regression analyses showed that teaching practices involving collaboration and interaction as well as features of a constructivist learning environment and integrative pedagogy predicted the learning of generic skills – such as decision-making skills, different forms of creativity, and problem-solving skills. In contrast, the traditional forms of university teaching – such as reading, lecturing, and working alone – were negatively associated to learning generic skills. Overall, this study offers detailed information about the pedagogical practices that nurture learning generic skills in university contexts.     

Developing social competence and other generic skills in teacher education: applying the model of integrative pedagogy

The purpose of the study was to examine how social competence and other generic skills can be developed in teacher education using a pedagogical model called Integrative Pedagogy. This model is based on the idea of integrating the four basic components of expertise: Theoretical knowledge, practical knowledge, self-regulative knowledge, and sociocultural knowledge. The subjects of the study were 95 student-teachers. The data were collected with questionnaires. In addition to social skills, the student-teachers reported learning of domain-specific skills, generic academic skills, skills for acting creatively in different situations and development of independence. We conclude that the model of Integrative Pedagogy is feasible in teacher education.     

University students’ and teachers’ conceptions of teaching and learning in the biosciences

In this study we compare university teachers’ and first-year students’ conceptions of teaching and learning at the Faculty of Environmental and Biological Sciences. The conceptions were analysed using data from open-ended questionnaires. The results showed that at the beginning of studies the gap between teachers’ and students’ conceptions of teaching and learning is substantial. This finding has important implications for the educational process. In order to enhance successful studying from the beginning of students’ university careers, it is important for teachers to become aware of the differences between students’ and teachers’ conceptions of learning.     

Constraints and Challenges on Learning and Construction of Identities at Work

This paper analyses and discusses different constraints on workplace learning, vocational development and formation of identity. We ask how the learning and development of vocational identities are related to the various learning constraints and restrictions present in the socio-cultural contexts of the workplace. The study utilizes 20 interviews of industrial designers and nursing staff in Finland. The data on the vocational students was collected with Internet questionnaires (N?=?1125) from these two fields; technology and transport, and social services and health care. The results indicated that constraints on learning and professional/vocational identity development at work were mainly social in nature among employees as well as students. Therefore, we suggest that the most necessary conditions for workers’ and students’ learning are related to the feeling of “weness” that arises from individuals’ active participation in the social community.