A Critical Mapping of Practice‐Based Research as Evidenced by Swedish Architectural Theses

This article presents an investigation that was funded by the Swedish Institute into the role of creative practice in architectural research as evidenced in Swedish doctoral theses. The sample was mapped and analysed in terms of clusters of interest, approaches, cultures of knowledge and uses of creative practice. This allowed the identification of the ontological, epistemological and methodological attitudes of the researchers, and hence a glimpse of their implicit worldview. The authors claim that the relationship between worldview and research actions in emerging areas of research such as architecture is often under‐scrutinised, resulting in a disjunction between aims and strategies for action. Architectural research in which creative practices make an essential contribution to the aims, might represent something new in academic research. The investigators therefore focused on identifying cases in which creative practice was – or was claimed to be – integrated in an essential way into the research process. There were two principal conclusions. The first was that the mere presence of practice was not necessarily an indicator of so‐called arts‐based research. The second was that cases of arts‐based research that could be regarded as a new paradigm – as opposed to a variant of existing paradigms – are less common than is claimed by the researchers themselves. As a result, this article makes a contribution to the debate on whether so‐called practice‐based research should be regarded as a distinct new paradigm.     

Exemplary in teaching outside school: a case study of Open School in Denmark

Learning Environments Research - Changes in learning environments are pivotal when schools and local organizations embark on educational partnerships. Local organisations offer specialized...     

The Process of Choosing What to Study: A Longitudinal Study of Upper Secondary Students' Identity Work When Choosing Higher Education

This paper presents the first results from a longitudinal qualitative study following 38 Danish students' choice of higher education. By using a narrative psychological framework it is shown how the choice of higher education is embedded in various dilemmas, making it difficult for the students to make meaningful choices. They believe the choice should be unique and individual and that it should correspond with who they are and wish to become. However, the analysis shows that choosing what to study after upper-secondary school is a complex ongoing and social process, rather than an isolated individual event. Implications of these results are discussed and the educational system is urged to provide room for and facilitate students' production of choice narratives.     

Children's self-perceived bodily competencies and associations with motor skills,body mass index,teachers' evaluations,and parents' concerns

Abstract

The associations between physical competence, self-perceived bodily competence, parental concern for their children's motor skill development, and teachers' evaluation of their bodily competence were assessed in 646 six- to seven-year-olds. Physical competence was assessed by the German motor ability test “Körperkoordinationstest für Kinder”, while the children's, their parents', and their teachers' evaluations were obtained through questionnaires. Parental concern, teacher evaluation, and a high body mass index were the strongest predictors of low physical competence (motor skill quotient <85). Teachers' evaluation of bodily competence was associated with low self-perceived bodily competence in the children even after adjustment for motor skill quotient, with an odds ratio of 2.3 (P < 0.05) between the lowest and highest of the three levels after correction for motor skill competence. Results indicate that teachers' evaluation of children's motor skills should be considered a key factor when tracking and assessing physical competencies among youth.     

Effect of playing tactics on achieving score-box possessions in a random series of team possessions from Norwegian professional soccer matches

Abstract

Methods of analysis that include an assessment of opponent interactions are thought to provide a more valid means of team match performance. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of playing tactics on achieving score-box possession by assessing opponent interactions in Norwegian elite soccer matches. We analysed a random series of 1703 team possessions from 163 of 182 (90%) matches played in the professional men's league during the 2004 season. Multidimensional qualitative data obtained from ten ordered categorical variables were used. Offensive tactics were more effective in producing score-box possessions when playing against an imbalanced defence (28.5%) than against a balanced defence (6.5%) (P < 0.001). Multiple logistic regression found that, for the main variable “team possession type”, counterattacks were more effective than elaborate attacks when playing against an imbalanced defence (odds ratio: 2.69; 95% confidence interval: 1.64 to 4.43) but not against a balanced defence (odds ratio: 1.14; 95% confidence interval: 0.47 to 2.76). Assessment of opponent interactions is critical to evaluate the effectiveness of offensive playing tactics on producing score-box possessions, and improves the validity of team match-performance analysis in soccer.     

Soccer and Zumba as health-promoting activities among female hospital employees: a 40-weeks cluster randomised intervention study

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the physiological effects of soccer and Zumba among female hospital employees during a 40-week intervention period. Hospital employees (n = 118) were cluster-randomised to either a soccer group (n = 41), a Zumba group (n = 38) or a control group (n = 39). Both training groups were encouraged to perform 1-h training sessions twice a week outside working hours throughout the 40 weeks. Maximal oxygen uptake (VO₂ max), blood pressure and body composition were measured and blood samples collected before and after the intervention period. Using intention-to-treat analyses, the Zumba group improved VO₂ max compared to the control group (2.2 mL · kg^?1 · min^?1, 95% CI, 0.9, 3.5, P = 0.001), with no significant increase in the soccer group (1.1 mL · kg^?1 · min^?1, 95% CI, ?0.2, 2.4, P = 0.08). Both intervention groups reduced total body fat mass and fat percentage compared to the control group (P < 0.01). In the soccer group, but not the Zumba group, a significant difference in lower limb bone mineral density and bone mineral content was observed in comparison to the control group (P < 0.01). Furthermore, the soccer group, but not the Zumba group, had increased plasma osteocalcin (6.6 µg · L^?1, 95% CI, 2.2, 11.0, P < 0.01) and decreased plasma leptin (?6.6 µg · L^?1, 95% CI, ?12.5, ?0.7, P < 0.05) compared to the control group. The present study suggests that workplace-initiated soccer and Zumba training comprising 1–2 sessions per week outside working hours may promote physiological health among female hospital employees.     

Local government allocation of cultural services

In the present paper, we analyse the allocation process for cultural services in Norwegian municipalities. The cultural sector at this administrative level is decomposed into the following eight subcategories: children’s and youth activities, libraries, cinemas, museums, arts dissemination, cultural heritage, cultural schools, and other cultural services. By means of budget shares for these eight cultural services and a residual sector consisting of all other municipal services, we estimate a system of demand relations which are interdependently linked to each other by a budget restriction. Our analyses are based on data from 409 out of 429 Norwegian municipalities during the period 2002–2010. In the empirical analyses, we mainly focus on the effects of income variation for the cultural services. We estimate effects of free income, matching grants to each sector, and user fees and other sector-specific income for each sector. We also estimate crowding-out effects for the cultural sectors of demographic variables indicating higher demand for services such as education, childcare, and health services. Our results confirm previous results. There are interesting differences within the group of cultural services, and these are partly related to different levels of national standardisation and regulation among the cultural services.     

National Devolution in Swedish Higher Education -- A Quest for New Local Leadership. The Case of Leadership Development at Göteborg University

In 1993 a new national form for governance was introduced in Swedish higher education. The new regime, best described in terms of deregulation and decentralisation, among other things, required a new individually based leadership at universities.The paper describes the development of one particular 10-day interfaculty leadership training course for heads of departments, directors of study and other local managers, its content and methods and some implications for strategic management in higher education institutions.Four such implications are covered: constructing a new social identity as leaders, getting leadership acceptance in an individualistic academic-freedom culture, training academic leaders in accordance with professional values, and dealing with accountability in a collegial decision-making environment.     

Inclusion: Dimensions of inclusion in education

The understanding of inclusion in education has transcended the assumption that inclusion is about students with special needs. It concerns the inclusion of all children. With systems theory as a framework, the article argues that in order to handle inclusion as a phenomenon that concerns all children, we need an operational definition of inclusion differentiated according to three dimensions. The first dimension covers different levels of inclusion. The second dimension concerns different types of social communities in and out of school, from which a child may be included or excluded. The class is one such type of social community, but equally important is membership in the self-organised community of children in the school-yard, the bilateral relationships with other children and/or teachers, etc. The third dimension concerns different degrees of being included in and/or excluded from the different communities. The point is that a child is not either completely included or excluded, but that he/she is included in or excluded from the different communities in different degrees. A comprehensive matrix definition is presented combining the three dimensions, which matches the present understanding of inclusion in education.     

Tracking of Gross Motor Coordination From Childhood Into Adolescence

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to analyze tracking and stability of motor coordination in children from age 6 years to ages 9 and 13 years. Method: Data were from the Copenhagen School Child Intervention Study. Motor coordination (MC) was measured using the körperkoordinationstest für Kinder (KTK) test. The crude performance score on every item was converted into a standardized “score” based on the original German reference study, which was used to generate a total standardized motor coordination (MQ) score. The MQ scores, which represented children's level of gross MC, were classified as low (MQ score < 85), normal (MQ score = 85–115), or high (MQ score>115). Pearson correlation was used to calculate the tracking coefficients of each KTK element and MQ score, and weighted kappa was used to analyze maintenance in MC classification groups. Mixed-effects logistic regression analyses were performed to examine the odds of remaining in the low MC group over time based on body mass index (BMI), weight, and height tertiles. Results: Tracking coefficients among the MQ score and each KTK element at different ages were moderate (r>.35). Children in the highest BMI and weight tertiles had a 5.44 and 5.15 times greater chance to be in the lower MC classification group during the 7-year follow-up, respectively, in comparison with children in their lowest tertiles. Conclusion: MC tracked moderately through childhood to early adolescence. Because heavier children had a greater chance to be in the lower MC group at older ages, intervention may be useful at earlier ages for those with lower MC and disadvantageous weight status.