Institutional Interpretations of the Relationship between Sport-Related Disciplines and Their Reference Disciplines: The Case of Sociology of Sport

The sociology of sport literature is now sufficiently broad to allow a general analysis of research patterns in this field. To facilitate the identification of these vectors of expansion, sources referenced in articles published in Sociology of Sport Journal and Journal of Sport and Social Issues between 2003 and 2011 are examined in terms of sources referenced. Highly cited sources often used together in the same sources can be combined through bibliometric methods in clusters of similar influential publications, which together can be used to map the field. The resulting clusters show that a dominant pattern in these clusters is the preeminent role played by authors like Foucault, Bourdieu, and Connell. To help explain the preeminence of these authors’ work, a hypothesis is proposed, which interprets it with the help of institutional theory as an effort of a field to find legitimacy by developing research from reference academic disciplines that concerns sport or is closely linked to it (e.g., through the concept of corporeality).     

Anna Zofia Krygowska

The article is a biography of A. Z. Krygowska (1904–1988) covering her school years, university studies and professional work as a teacher, teacher trainer, and scientist. The author emphasizes the great influence of A. Z. Krygowska's teaching experience on her interest and scientific work in the didactics of mathematics. Her most important achievements in the theory and practice of the teaching of mathematics are also presented.     

The development of elementary teacher identities as teachers of science

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this qualitative study was to investigate the contributions of pre-service teachers’ memories of science and science education, combined with their experiences in a STEM-focused teacher preparation programme, to their developing identities as elementary school teachers of science. Data collected over three years include a series of interviews and observations of science teaching during elementary teacher preparation and the first year of teaching. Grounded within a theoretical framework of identity and using a case-study research design, we examined experiences that contributed to the participants’ identity development, focusing on key themes from teacher interviews: memories of science and science instruction, STEM-focused teacher preparation programme, field experiences, first year of teaching, and views of effective science instruction. Findings indicate the importance of exposure to reform strategies during teacher preparation and are summarised in main assertions and discussed along with implications for teacher preparation and research.     

Betwixt and Between: Working Through the Aesthetic in Philosophy of Education: George F. Kneller Lecture,Conference of the American Educational Studies Association Savannah,Georgia, October 30, 2008

At a time when both philosophy of education and the arts are under threat within education, this article inquires into interdisciplinarity as one way of approaching the disciplines of philosophy of education and aesthetics. The article offers a retrospective autobiographical intellectual history and phenomenology of the author's own learning and scholarship within Higher Education in three main areas—philosophy of literature education, women's studies, and philosophy of music education, areas paralleling the three periods of her academic career. One sub-theme of this narrative about the balancing act of working in literature and music through philosophy of education is the author's ongoing resistance to professionalization or disciplinary academic control—of literature, philosophy, and music—while being a critical student of educational theory and practice in these areas—philosophy, literature and music within philosophy of education—of thus being “betwixt and between.” Two other themes comprising the article's subtext are “praxis” and “embodiment.” The double entendre of the phrase “working through” entails, first, using the arts of literature and music to practise philosophy of education; and secondly, embracing the psychological, ethical, and spiritual introspection that comes with critical engagement of the arts and its discourses. In short, the article aims to reprise some burning philosophical educational questions that have preoccupied its author over the years, questions deemed especially pertinent to the current increasingly diverse membership in the discipline of educational studies.     

The future of higher education

Higher education is no longer suited to contemporary needs. Not only is it socially inequitable, the once-and-for-all education of youth as a preliminary to employment is of decreasing value in an era of rapid scientific and technological change. Merely expanding the system is socially wasteful and results in an undersirable prolongation of formal education and dependence on family and state. A gradual but radical overhaul of the fabric of higher education is needed which will bring to an end its exalted position on the educational ladder. It must open its doors to working people of all ages and classes, and achieve an interweaving of work and learning. If this is to be attained, however, three conditions should be fulfilled: the opportunity to combine work and study must be open to all; the occupational structure must be modified to make it possible in every profession to study one's way to the top; and secondary education, no longer a direct link to the universities, must have a stronger occupational and scientific orientation. The greatest gain of this revitalization will be in the increased involvement of the younger generation in the community at large, which holds out the promise of achieving the great objective of a nation embracing both young and old, workers and intelligentsia alike.     

What Happens to Policies When Assuming Institutions? A Short Story About Romania’s Never-Ending Educational Reform

Over the past decades, educational reform has been one of the centerpieces of transition in Central and Eastern Europe. A huge degree of variability among countries exists, from sudden liberalization to securing the status quo previous to revolutionary political change. Reforms have ranged from institutional to instrumental changes. We argue that policies may lead to undesirable outcomes, when they assume a certain institutional framework. We then describe the evolution of Romania’s educational system, focusing on a case study of an implemented large-scale policy program: the Rural Education Project for Romania. We thus argue that by assuming institutional change such attempts are bound to fail because the existing status quo adapts actions to existing practices, thus leading to unexpected outcomes.     

COMMUNICATING ACROSS CULTURES AND DISCIPLINES: THE BUCHAREST READING GROUP AS EMBODIED SOCIAL KNOWING

This article reports on a pedagogical experiment conducted by three American Soros Foundation‐sponsored professors and several Romanian sociology students who formed a reading circle. Its purpose was to encourage an exchange of ideas among students and teachers in an informal setting. Beginning in 1994, its first topic of discussion was Sex, Love, and Death in Postmodern Literature. During the following year, the topic was Public and Private Space in Society, and for the current (1996‐1997) academic year, it is Communication: Embodied Action in Culture. Partially presented in an interview format, this article serves as an interim evaluation of this type of teaching‐learning experience and also of the possibilities of academic mobility.     

Comparison of hyaluronic acid in patients with rheumatoid arthritis,systemic sclerosis and systemic lupus erythematosus

IntroductionThe aim of the present study was to determine and compare the concentration of hyaluronic acid (HA) in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), systemic sclerosis (SSc) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and its correlation with parameters of disease activity and duration. The hypothesis was that HA should be increased in rheumatic diseases. We also expected that HA could be a marker of disease activity and inflammation in some of these diseases.Materials and methodsThe study group comprised 149 patients with RA, SSc and SLE hospitalized in the Department of Rheumatology and Internal Diseases, Medical University of Bialystok (Bialystok, Poland) and 30 healthy controls. The concentrations of HA, C-reactive protein (CRP) and rheumatoid factor (RF) were measured using Architect ci8200; haemoglobin, platelets on Sysmex XS-800i; and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) on Sediplus S 2000 analysers. Statistical analysis was performed using Statistica 13.3 PL.ResultsHyaluronic acid was increased in RA, SLE and SSc when compared to controls (P < 0.001, P = 0.011, and P = 0.015, respectively). There were no differences in HA between rheumatic diseases (P = 0.840). Hyaluronic acid positively correlated with SLE activity (P = 0.025). In RA, HA positively correlated with ESR (P = 0.028) and CRP (P = 0.009). However, HA was not found to correlate with the duration of rheumatic diseases.ConclusionsHyaluronic acid concentration undergoes changes in rheumatic diseases with no difference between RA, SLE and SSc. In RA, HA concentration can be a marker of inflammation, while in SLE patients an indicator of disease activity.