Counseling between recognition,justice and difference: the significance of power asymmetries,communicative projects and unintended consequences in career counseling of immigrants in Sweden

This article consists of two parts. First we present an ongoing Swedish research project, “Counseling between recognition, justice and difference”. The aims of the project are presented, along with an outline of the political and professional questions that motivate it and the theories which inform it. In the second part, an account of one of the studies in the project is presented, which focuses on counseling conversations with recently arrived refugees in secondary education. The analysis of the conversations focuses on the communicative projects of the participants, the unintended consequences of their actions, and the impact of power asymmetries.     

Compulsory Higher Education Teacher Training in Sweden: Development of a national standards framework based on the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

Today visible proofs of excellence in teaching and learning are increasingly important aspects of institutional branding in higher education (HE). Teaching competence is brought forward as a central aspect of the quality of programmes. Still, the induction of new university teachers is managed in many different ways. Approaches may vary according to how teaching competence is perceived; as growing from practice only, requiring formal courses or, for instance, outlined in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) movement. In Sweden, the HE Ordinance from 2002 states that to get permanent positions, lecturers should have completed Compulsory HE Teacher Training (CHETT). The size and organisation of the courses were not regulated in the Ordinance and institutional practices varied. In a three-year project intended learning outcomes for CHETT was suggested. These outcomes are based on SoTL and linked to an estimated workload of 10 weeks. Based on a national survey in 2006, institutional responses to the proposals are analysed.

     

Influence of teachers and schools on students' civic outcomes in Latin America

The authors investigated to what extent teachers' practices and school characteristics can influence students' civic knowledge, civic attitudes, and future participation in Chile, Colombia, and Mexico and how this can be related to their specific curricular structures and educational content. It uses data from the International Civic and Citizenship Education Study. The results show that in Chile, Colombia, and Mexico, teacher practices and attitudes relate to the civic outcomes. Although teachers' practices and attitudes significantly predict students' civic knowledge, this relationship does not seem relevant for students' expected participation and students' attitudes toward diversity. Still, the democratic environment of the school is a relevant variable in the case of expected participation of students and their attitudes toward diversity, which shows a possible indirect influence of teachers through the school environment. The results are discussed in relation to the civic education curriculum in place in the countries analyzed.     

Development of implanted deaf children’s conversational skills

Previous studies of preverbal development have highlighted the recurrent difficulties experienced by deaf children in acquiring knowledge of the social rules and social skills pertaining to discourse. We expected cochlear implants in children with bilateral profound deafness to improve their use of verbal language, so that their communication skill profile resembled that of younger, hearing children. Using conversation samples taken from videos recorded every 6 months over a 2-year period, we monitored the development of communication skills in a group of 18 prelingually profoundly deaf children (mean implantation age, 3 years and 5 months). Results corroborated our hypothesis that the overall communication performances of children with cochlear implants improve, both quantitatively and qualitatively, as early as the first year post-implantation.     

Looking at the keyboard or the monitor: relationship with text production processes

In this paper we explored text production differences in an expository text production task between writers who looked mainly at the keyboard and writers who looked mainly at the monitor. Eye-tracking technology and keystroke-logging were combined to systematically describe and define these two groups in respect of the complex interplay between text production and the reading of one’s own emerging text. Findings showed that monitor gazers typed significantly faster and were more productive writers. They also read their own text more, and they frequently read in parallel with writing. Analysis of fixation durations suggests that more cognitive processing is in use during reading in parallel with writing than during reading in pauses. Keyboard gazers used the left and right cursor keys significantly more. We suggest that this is because they revised their texts in a much more serial mode than monitor gazers. Finally, analysis of the characteristics of the final texts showed no differences between the groups.     

Validity and reliability of the Very Short form of the Physical Self-Inventory among Turkish adolescents

The study aimed to test the validity and reliability of the Very Short form of the Physical Self-Inventory (PSI-VS) among a sample of 635 Turkish adolescents. These adolescents have completed the 12 original items of the PSI-VS, plus a positively worded reformulation of the single reverse-keyed item of the physical attractiveness subscale. A series of confirmatory factor analyses was used to examine the psychometric properties of the original and modified versions of the PSI-VS. Findings revealed superior psychometric properties with the modified version than with the original set of items. The modified version was thus subsequently used to examine its factor structure invariance across sexes, age groups and sport practice involvement. Results not only report that this version was fully invariant across, but also that latent means were significantly different across sexes and sport practice involvement. In sum, the Turkish modified version of the PSI-VS presents acceptable psychometric properties and may be used to repeatedly and/or intensively assess participants’ physical self-perceptions in the context of sport and exercise interventions.     

Do handball throws always exhibit a proximal-to-distal segmental sequence?

Previous studies on overarm throwing have described a proximal-to-distal segmental sequence. The proximal segments reached their maximal linear velocities before the distal ones. In handball, no study has demonstrated this sequence from the upper torso to the wrist, although a recent study did present a different organization. The aim of this study was to analyse the throwing arm segmental organization during handball throwing. We found that the maximal linear velocity of the shoulder occurred after the maximal linear velocity of the elbow. Moreover, the maximal angular velocity of the upper torso occurred later than that of the elbow. Hence, contrary to other disciplines, the rotation of the upper torso was not suddenly stopped just after the forward arm motion was initiated. These results may apply to handball in general or be specific to the population of handball players studied. It may be advisable in future studies to include international players.     

The translation of preschoolers’ physical activity guidelines into a daily step count target

This study aimed at translating the physical activity (PA) guideline (180 min of total PA per day) into a step count target in preschoolers. 535 Flemish preschoolers (mean age: 4.41 ± 0.58) wore an ActiGraph accelerometer (GT1M, GT3X and GT3X+) – with activated step count function – for four consecutive days. The step count target was calculated from the accelerometer output using a regression equation, applying four different cut-points for light-to-vigorous PA: Pate, Evenson, Reilly, and Van Cauwenberghe. The present analysis showed that 180 min of total PA per day is equivalent to the following step count targets: 5,274 steps/day using the Pate cut-point, 4,653 steps/day using the Evenson cut-point, 11,379 steps/day using the Reilly cut-point and 13,326 steps/day using the Van Cauwenberghe cut-point. Future studies should focus on achieving consensus on which cut-points to use in preschoolers before a definite step count target in preschoolers can be proposed. Until then, we propose to use a provisional step count target of 11,500 steps/day as this step count target is attainable, realistic and helpful in promoting preschoolers’ PA.