The art of teaching children the arts: music,dance and poetry with children aged 2–8 years old

In this article, the theoretical framework of developmental pedagogy is presented as a tool in studying and developing children’s knowing within the arts. The domains of art focused on are music, poetry and dance/aesthetic movement. Through empirical examples from a large‐scale research project, we illustrate the tools of developmental pedagogy and show how this perspective contributes to our understanding of children’s learning of music, dance and poetry. More specifically, we will analyse: (a) the important role of the teacher in children’s learning within the arts; (b) the importance of conversing when learning the arts; (c) what constitutes the knowledge, what we refer to as ‘learning objects’, to be appropriated within the three domains of art focused on; and (d) how to conceive of progression in children’s knowing within the arts.     

Higher education demand in spain: The influence of labour market signals and family background

Like many developed countries, Spain has experienceda growth in the demand for higher education over thelast twenty years, despite diverse economic cycles. Since this demand does not slow down in the mediumterm, the objective of this study is to analyse, fromstatistical labour force sources since 1987, twopotential influences: family characteristics andlabour market signals.The theoretical framework used here is the humancapital theory, which is tested through discretechoice models where the selection process of youngpeople through the education system is considered. Thechief results may be summarised as follows: firstly,family characteristics are important elements in thedemand for higher education, especially the mother'seducation attainment, which is even more determinantthan that of the father. Secondly, the labour marketsignals in Spain have an influence on the demand forhigher education: as a signal of both the opportunitycost of finding a job if not going to university andthe employment expectations for each releVanteducation level.     

Bone mass,bone mineral density and muscle mass in professional golfers

The aim of this study was to determine the effects of long-term professional golf participation on whole-body and regional bone mass and density. Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry was performed on 15 male professional golfers and 18 sedentary individuals, matched for sex, race, age (29+/-1 and 25+/-1 years, respectively), body mass (79+/-2 and 74+/-2 kg), height (1.78+/-0.01 and 1.77+/-0.02 m) and percent body fat (20+/-2 and 21+/-2%; mean +/- sx). We found that long-term professional golf participation is not associated with significant increments in regional or whole-body bone mass or density. Neither the lumbar spine nor the femoral neck showed any noticeable enhancement of bone mass in professional golfers compared with controls from the same population. The only effect of professional golf participation on regional body composition was a 9% increase in muscle mass in the dominant arm (P < 0.05).     

Exploring students' learning challenges in environmental education

There is growing recognition of the significance of learning within debates about sustainable development. Within the field of environmental education research, however, there has been insufficient attention given to questions of learners and learning. In the light of this situation, this paper reports findings from two studies (one in England, the other in Sweden) that focused specifically on learners' experiences of and responses to environmental curricula in secondary school and higher education. Three kinds of learning challenges that can be experienced by students on environmental education courses are outlined and discussed. The main purpose of the paper is to highlight the complexity of the learning experience within environmental education and to draw attention to the need for improved research‐based understandings of environmental learning processes.     

Leadership challenges of strategic research centres in relation to degree of institutionalisation

The purpose of this study was to describe and analyse leadership challenges in the organisation of strategic research centres, focusing on the relationship between organisation and the level of institutionalisation. Four main themes of leadership challenges were identified: (1) the changing university context, including relationships with top management and faculties; (2) research strategy, considering decisions about diversity or a focused perspective; (3) management, dealing with prioritising administrative work; (4) affiliation, the sense of belonging to a strategic research centre, comprising issues of leadership, trust, attitude towards recruitment and succession. We concluded that leadership and effective administration are vital for research collaboration, not only within small research groups as been shown in other studies, but also within large groups in university-based research centres.     

Children's thinking about diversity of belief in the early school years: judgments of relativism, tolerance, and disagreeing persons

Children's thinking about diversity of belief in 4 realms--morality, taste, facts, and ambiguous facts--was examined. Ninety-six participants (ages 5, 7, and 9) were interviewed about beliefs different from their own that were endorsed by characters with different status; their judgments of relativism, tolerance, and disagreeing persons were assessed. Five-year-olds made fewer relative and tolerant judgments than 7- and 9-year-olds. Nevertheless, participants of all ages organized their judgments according to the realm of diversity, thought that some beliefs are relative and some are nonrelative, and made tolerant judgments of some divergent beliefs (and their proponents) but not of others. The findings suggest that, in the early school years, children have multiple and well-differentiated perspectives on belief diversity.     

Young refugees’ and asylum seekers’ career choices: a qualitative investigation

International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance - A major challenge for refugees and asylum seekers is social and professional integration. Using constructivist and capability...     

Leading new,deeper forms of collaborative cultures: Questions and pathways

Journal of Educational Change - The pandemic has made deeper problems more transparent and has stimulated many to realize that there may be an opportunity over the next period to pursue much needed...