Motivation in school, « I know you can do it».

Bacheloroppgave, grunnskolelærerutdanning, 2017.Norsk: Prestasjon i skolen henger tett sammen med motivasjon (Manger, 2013, s. 133). Noen elever er mere motiverte enn andre til å jobbe med skolearbeidet. Temaet for denne oppgaven er motivasjon og hovedfokuset ligger på hva lærerne vektlegger for å motivere elevene sine. Oppgaven bygger på kvalitativ forskning med observasjon og intervju av et utvalg informanter. Årsaken til dette valget var at jeg ønsket å komme tettere på informantene for å få en dypere forståelse og bedre innsikt i temaet. Informantene ble hentet ut fra en skole på Østlandet. Det viser seg at lærerne legger stor vekt på mestring, positiv forsterkning, samarbeid og tydelige mål til elevene for å motivere de til skolearbeidet.English: Achievement in school is interrelated with motivation (Manger, 2013, s. 133). Some students are more motivated than others when it comes to schoolwork. In this project the theme is motivation, and the main focus is on what teachers emphasize to motivate their students. This assignment is based on qualitative research using observation and interviews. The reason I chose this method is because I wanted to be closer to the informants and get a deeper understanding of the theme. The informants were chosen from a school in Østlandet. My result shows that the teachers emphasize mastery, positive reinforcement, collaboration and setting goals to motivate their students

Life skills in school

Mastergradsoppgave i tilpasset opplæring, Høgskolen i Innlandet, 2019.Norsk: Formålet med denne oppgaven er å få lærere og rektorers meninger og erfaringer om hva de vektlegger for å fremme livsmestring hos elevene. Samtidig setter jeg blikket mot de nye læreplanene som kommer inn i skolene fra høsten 2020, der folkehelse og livsmestring er et av tre tverrfaglige temaer det skal arbeides med i alle fag. Jeg ønsket å få skolenes tanker om dette og hvordan det kan komme til å endre måten de jobber på. Utgangspunktet er følgende problemstilling: Hva vektlegger skolen for å fremme livsmestring hos elevene? I tillegg har jeg benyttet meg av følgende forskningsspørsmål for ytterligere å belyse problemstillingen: 1, Hvordan erfarer lærere og rektorer arbeidet med livsmestring i skolen? 2, Vil innføring av begrepet livsmestring endre måten de jobber på? Denne studien er kvalitativ, der det er gjennomført fire individuelle halvstrukturerte intervjuer med to lærere og to rektorer. Datamaterialet bygger på en fenomenologisk og hermeneutisk tilnærming. Funnene blir analysert i lys av oppgavens teoretiske ramme og drøftet i kapittel 5. Teorien som blir lagt vekt på er Bandura sin teori om forventning om mestring, Honneth sin teori om anerkjennelse, relasjoner samt teori om skolen som en arena. Funnene fra datamaterialet viser at informantene ser på relasjoner, anerkjennelse, mestring, trygghet og selvfølelse som viktig i arbeidet med å fremme elevenes livsmestring. Dette er faktorer som informantene mener alle barn og unge bør oppleve og erfare. Informantene stiller seg positivt til at livsmestring kommer inn som nytt tverrfaglig tema. Funn viser at skolene bør jobbe for å skape en samarbeidskultur for læring og utvikling, der det jobbes for å skape en felles forståelse i organisasjonen. På den måten blir arbeidet med innføringen av nye planer enklere for alle og skolene jobber mot samme mål. I tillegg til dette er skolene avhengige av en tydelig og klar ledelse. Om de nye endringene ville endre måten de jobbet på var det delte meninger om, tre av informantene opplyste om at de håpet og trodde at det kom til å gjøre det, men at de var usikre på i hvilken grad. En av informantene mente at det ikke ville endre seg, dette ble begrunnet med at den skolen hadde i mange år jobbet for å fremme elevenes livsmestring. De skulle likevel sette seg godt inn i læreplanverket for å drøfte om det var noe de burde gjøre annerledes.English: The purpose of this study is to obtain educators`opinions and experiences about which factors contribute to fostering of life skills among pupils. Additionally, the study focuses on the new curricula that will be introduct in autumn 2020, in which public health and life skills are one of three interdisciplinary topics to included in all school subjects. I wanted to investigate educators`perspectives on this and how it might change their approach. To study this elements I look at answering the following questions: What do the educators consider in fostering life skills? I have used the following research questions to further investigate the the issue: 1, How do the teachers and prinsipals experience the work with life skills in school? 2, Will the introduction of the concept of life skills change the way they work? This is a qualitative study of four individual semi-structured interviews with two teachers and two principals. The collected data is analysed and discussed using a phenomenological and hermeneutic approach with the theoretical framework presented in chapter 2 as the background. The theoretical framework is based on Banduras self-efficacy theory, Honneths theory of recognition, relationships as well as theory of school as an arena. The findings from the data show that the informants consider relationships, recognition, coping, security and self-esteem as contributing factors in fostering pupil`s life skills. These are factors that the informants believe all children and young people should experience. The informants share a positive outlook on life skills as a new interdisciplinary topic. Findings show that schools should work to create a culture of collaboration for learning and development, where work is being done to create a common understanding in the organization. In this way, the work on introducing new plans is easier for everyone and the schools work towards the same goal. In addition to this, the schools are dependent on a clear leadership to show the way. The findings show differing opinions on whether the latest reform would change their approach; three of the informants indicated that they hoped and believed this would be the case, but they were unsure to what degree. One of the informants believed that the reform would not change their approach, justified by an already existing school culture for fostering life skills. They would, however, discuss whether their approach might change in light of the latest reform

Socioeconomic disparities in early language development in two Norwegian samples

Socioeconomic disparities in early language are widespread and have long-lasting effects. The aim of this study is to investigate when social gaps in language problems arise and how they change across the first years of schooling. We address this question in two large longitudinal Norwegian datasets: the Behavior Outlook Norwegian Developmental Study (BONDS) and the Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Cohort Study (MoBa). Despite some slight differences across the two samples, we found that children from higher social backgrounds are less likely to have language difficulties starting from age 18 months and up to age 8 (grade 2). Moreover, while early language problems are strongly predictive of later language, maternal education makes an additional contribution to explaining language difficulties at the beginning of school life. Social inequality in language development arises early, even in a country like Norway, with low unemployment and one of the most egalitarian societies in Europe.info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio

Association of prenatal exposure to benzodiazepines and child internalizing problems: A sibling-controlled cohort study

Background: During pregnancy, many women experience sleep problems and anxiety that require treatment. The long-term safety for the child of maternal benzodiazepine (BZD) and z-hypnotic use during pregnancy remains controversial. Method We conducted a cohort and a sibling control study using data from the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study. Data on use of BZD and z-hypnotics, internalizing and externalizing outcomes, and covariates were collected from mothers at gestational weeks 17 and 30 and when children were 0.5, 1.5, and 3 years of age. The total sample consisted of 71,996 children (19,297 siblings) at 1.5 years and 55,081 children (13,779 siblings) at 3 years. Short-term use was defined as use in one pregnancy period only. Long-term use was defined as use in two or more pregnancy periods. Linear full cohort random-effect and sibling-matched fixed-effect regression models were used to compare internalizing and externalizing behavior in children prenatally exposed compared to those unexposed in the full cohort of pregnancies accounting for family clusters, as well as within sibling clusters comparing pregnancies with discordant exposures. Propensity score (PS) adjustment included variables on indication for use (sleep problems, symptoms of anxiety and depression) and other potential confounding factors. Results: Long-term prenatal exposure to BZD or z-hypnotics was associated with increased internalizing behavior in crude cohort analyses and at age 1.5 years after PS adjustment in sibling-matched fixed-effect models [β 0.60, 95% confidence interval 0.17–0.95]. Analyses on specific drug groups showed that prenatal exposure to BZD-anxiolytics was associated with increased internalizing problems at both 1.5 years [β 0.25, 0.01–0.49] and 3 years [β 0.26, 0.002–0.52] while exposure to z-hypnotics was not associated with any adverse outcomes after adjustment. Conclusion: The findings suggest a moderate association between BZD-anxiolytic exposure and child internalizing problems that is not likely due to stable familial confounding factors

Communication Impairments in Early Term and Late Preterm Children: A Prospective Cohort Study following Children to Age 36 Months

OBJECTIVE To investigate the risk of communication impairments at age 18 and 36 months in children born early term (gestational weeks 37-38) and late preterm (gestational weeks 34-36). STUDY DESIGN A total of 39 423 children and their mothers participated in the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study. The sample included 7109 children (18%) born early term and 1673 (4.2%) born late preterm. Information on gestational age and prenatal and postnatal risk factors was obtained from the Medical Birth Registry of Norway. Information on communication impairments was assessed using standardized questionnaires filled out by the mothers. Stepwise logistic regression analysis was applied to explore the associations between early term/late preterm birth and communication impairments at age 18 and 36 months. RESULTS Compared with children born at term, children born early term and late preterm had an increased risk of communication impairments at age 18 and 36 months. In early term, the aOR was 1.27 (95% CI, 1.12-1.44) at 18 months for communication impairments and 1.22 (95% CI, 1.07-1.39) at 36 months for expressive language impairments. In late preterm, the aOR was 1.74 (95% CI, 1.41-2.14) at 18 months and 1.37 (95% CI, 1.09-1.73) at 36 months. CONCLUSION Not only children born late preterm, but also those born early term, are at increased risk for communication impairments. Given the large number of children potentially affected, this may result in significant health care costs

Associations between language difficulties, peer victimization, and bully perpetration from 3 through 8 years of age : results From a population-based study

Background and Purpose: Schoolchildren with language difficulties experience more peer victimization compared to their typically developing (TD) peers. Whether these children also bully their peers (bully perpetration) more than TD children is unclear. Furthermore, little is known about peer victimization and bully perpetration among preschool children with language difficulties and how it may be related to different paths of language difficulties. This study aimed to investigate associations between language difficulties, peer victimization, and bully perpetration from preschool to school age as well as the risk of peer victimization and bully perpetration for children with different developmental paths of language difficulties and mild language difficulties compared to TD children. Method: The sample was drawn from the Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Cohort Study. Participants with completed questionnaires at 3, 5, and 8 years of age (n = 22,628) were included. Paths between latent variables of language skills at 3, 5, and 8 years of age, peer victimization at 5 and 8 years of age, and bully perpetration at 8 years of age were examined with structural equation modeling. Logistic regression was used to investigate peer victimization and bully perpetration for predefined paths of language difficulties. Results: Poor language skills at 3 and 5 years of age were associated with peer victimization at 5 years of age. Poor language skills at 5 and 8 years of age were associated with peer victimization and bully perpetration at 8 years of age. The association between poor language skills at 5 years of age and bully perpetration at 8 years of age was stronger for girls. Persistent paths of language difficulties at 3, 5, and 8 years of age showed the highest risk of peer victimization and bully perpetration. Conclusions: Language difficulties are associated with peer victimization and bully perpetration. The risk of peer victimization and bully perpetration differs according to different developmental paths of language difficulties from preschool to school age

Emotional reactivity in infants with congenital heart defects: findings from a large case-cohort study in Norway

AIM: Advances in medical treatment in recent years have led to dramatically improved survival rates of children with severe congenital heart defects (CHD). However, very little is known about the psychological consequences for these children, particularly during and after the early period of invasive treatment. In this study, we investigated the extent to which the severity of the CHD affects the child's emotional reactivity at 6 months of age. METHOD: We linked prospective data from the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study, conducted by the Norwegian Institute of Public Health with a nationwide medical CHD registry and identified 212 infants with CHD in a cohort of 61 299 infants. Mothers reported on their child's emotional reactivity at age 6 months by means of a standardized questionnaire. RESULTS: Infants with severe to moderate CHD had 60% higher odds for severe emotional reactivity (cut-off at the 85 percentile) compared with healthy infants, after controlling for important maternal and child confounders. CONCLUSION: Our study is the first to show elevated emotional reactivity in children with moderate to severe CHD, suggesting a need for special parental attention to soothe their distress. Follow-up studies will show whether this emotional reactivity is transient or an early marker of continuing emotional or behavioural problems

Prenatal Exposure to Acetaminophen and Risk of ADHD

OBJECTIVES: To estimate the association between maternal use of acetaminophen during pregnancy and of paternal use before pregnancy with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in offspring while adjusting for familial risk for ADHD and indications of acetaminophen use. METHODS: Diagnoses were obtained from the Norwegian Patient Registry for 112 973 offspring from the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study, including 2246 with ADHD. We estimated hazard ratios (HRs) for an ADHD diagnosis by using Cox proportional hazard models. RESULTS: After adjusting for maternal use of acetaminophen before pregnancy, familial risk for ADHD, and indications of acetaminophen use, we observed a modest association between any prenatal maternal use of acetaminophen in 1 (HR = 1.07; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.96–1.19), 2 (HR = 1.22; 95% CI 1.07–1.38), and 3 trimesters (HR = 1.27; 95% CI 0.99–1.63). The HR for more than 29 days of maternal acetaminophen use was 2.20 (95% CI 1.50–3.24). Use for &amp;lt;8 days was negatively associated with ADHD (HR = 0.90; 95% CI 0.81–1.00). Acetaminophen use for fever and infections for 22 to 28 days was associated with ADHD (HR = 6.15; 95% CI 1.71–22.05). Paternal and maternal use of acetaminophen were similarly associated with ADHD. CONCLUSIONS: Short-term maternal use of acetaminophen during pregnancy was negatively associated with ADHD in offspring. Long-term maternal use of acetaminophen during pregnancy was substantially associated with ADHD even after adjusting for indications of use, familial risk of ADHD, and other potential confounders. </jats:sec

Cohort Profile: COVIDMENT: COVID-19 cohorts on mental health across six nations

Why were the cohorts set up? With more than 218 million cases and 4.5 million deaths worldwide (Worldometers, 31 August 2021), the COVID-19 pandemic has had an unprecedented influence on the global economy and population health. As a potent global disaster, it is likely to significantly affect the incidence of adverse mental health symptoms and psychiatric disorders, particularly in vulnerable and highly affected populations. The World Health Organization and leading scientific journals have alerted concerning the potential adverse mental health impact of COVID-19 and emphasized the need for multinational research in this area, which additionally provides new insights into disease mechanisms

Analgesic exposure in pregnant rats affects fetal germ cell development with inter-generational reproductive consequences

Analgesics which affect prostaglandin (PG) pathways are used by most pregnant women. As germ cells (GC) undergo developmental and epigenetic changes in fetal life and are PG targets, we investigated if exposure of pregnant rats to analgesics (indomethacin or acetaminophen) affected GC development and reproductive function in resulting offspring (F1) or in the F2 generation. Exposure to either analgesic reduced F1 fetal GC number in both sexes and altered the tempo of fetal GC development sex-dependently, with delayed meiotic entry in oogonia but accelerated GC differentiation in males. These effects persisted in adult F1 females as reduced ovarian and litter size, whereas F1 males recovered normal GC numbers and fertility by adulthood. F2 offspring deriving from an analgesic-exposed F1 parent also exhibited sex-specific changes. F2 males exhibited normal reproductive development whereas F2 females had smaller ovaries and reduced follicle numbers during puberty/adulthood; as similar changes were found for F2 offspring of analgesic-exposed F1 fathers or mothers, we interpret this as potentially indicating an analgesic-induced change to GC in F1. Assuming our results are translatable to humans, they raise concerns that analgesic use in pregnancy could potentially affect fertility of resulting daughters and grand-daughters