Step marks to become a PE teaching class teacher in the primary school

The main task of this teacher educational study is to explore the relationships between the pre-teacher-education socialization environments and class teacher students beliefs of quality physical education and their perceived strengths in teaching physical education in the primary school. This study focuses on gender, success in physical education, leisure physical activity, schooling and work experience in sports or teaching as socialization environments. To answer the research questions, five peer reviewed studies were published in scientific journals between years 2011 and 2015. The articles together with this synopsis form the doctoral thesis. The data were collected using an online questionnaire presented to the class teacher students at the beginning of their first year studies in physical education. The resulting 412 participants comprised 341 (83 %) female and 71 (17 %) male students and covered 88 % of the first year class teacher students at the University of Helsinki, Finland during the academic years 2006 2009. The data were categorized according to the qualitative and quantitative contents of the answers. Cross tabulation and binary logistic regression were the main statistical analyzes. The results indicate that the pre-education acculturative socialization environments are related to different emphases on the beliefs of good physical education and especially on the perceived strengths in teaching physical education. The physically advanced socialization environments tended to be related to subject-focused perceived strengths. On the contrary, the physically more modest social environments appeared more often to be connected to pupil-focused perceived strengths. Parallel, but weaker relationships between socialization environments and conceptions of good physical education were found. Teacher educators need to pay attention to these different approaches as challenges to development the teacher education studies. More research is needed to explore how the acculturative socialization environments affect teacher education and the work of teachers during the different phases of their professional career.Opettajankoulutuksen alueeseen lukeutuvan tutkimuksen päätehtävänä on tarkastella koulutusta edeltäviä sosialisaatioympäristöjä ja niiden yhteyksiä opiskelijoiden käsityksiin alakoulun hyvästä liikunnanopetuksesta ja omista vahvuuksista opettaa liikuntaa. Sosialisaatioympäristöiksi rajattiin koululiikunta, vapaa-ajan liikuntaharrastus, liikunta-alan koulutus ja työkokemus sekä sukupuoleen perustuvat käytänteet. Tutkimuskysymyksiin haettiin vastauksia viidellä, vuosina 2011 2015 julkaistulla vertaisarvioidulla tutkimuksella, jotka yhteenveto-osuuden kanssa muodostavat tämän artikkeliväitöskirjan. Tutkimusaineisto kerättiin verkkokyselylomakkeella, johon vastasi 412 Helsingin yliopiston luokanopettajakoulutuksen lukuvuosina 2006 2009 aloittanutta opiskelijaa. Kyselyt toteutettiin ennen ensimmäisen liikunnan opintojakson alkamista. Vastanneiden osuus oli yhteensä 88 % kaikista luokanopettajakoulutuksen yhteisvalinnan kautta valituista opiskelijoista. Vastanneista oli naisia 341 (83 %) ja miehiä 71 (17 %). Tutkimusaineisto luokiteltiin vastausten laadullisen tai määrällisen sisällön perusteella. Määrällisen tarkastelun keskeisimpinä menetelminä käytettiin ristiintaulukointia ja binaarista logistista regressioanalyysiä. Keskeisimpänä tuloksena aineistosta muodostui kokonaiskuva, että varsinkin sosialisaatioympäristöjen yhteydet koettuihin vahvuuksiin painottuivat kahdella tavalla. Enemmän liikuntasuuntautuneet sosialisaatioympäristöt näyttivät yhdistyvän useammin oppiaineeseen kuin oppilaisiin suuntautuviin koettuihin vahvuuksiin. Vähemmän liikuntasuuntautuneet sosialisaatioympäristöt näyttivät puolestaan yhdistyvän useammin oppilaisiin suuntautuviin koettuihin vahvuuksiin. Vastaavasta kaksisuuntaisuudesta näkyi heikompia viitteitä myös käsityksissä alakoulun hyvästä liikunnanopetuksesta. Tulosten perusteella voidaan todeta opettajankoulutusta edeltävien akkulturatiivisten liikunnan sosialisaatioympäristöjen olevan yhteydessä erilaisiin painotuksiin käsityksissä omista vahvuuksista ja hyvästä koululiikunnasta. Käsitysten erilaiset painotukset ovat erilaisia tulokulmia koulutukseen ja ne tulee huomioida opettajankoulutuksen kehittämishaasteina. Niiden yhteydet opetuksellisiin painotuksiin opettajan uran eri vaiheissa jäävät jatkotutkimusten selvitettäviksi

Experience of Involvement : a Retrospective Case Study of Supporting the Continuation of Sports Club Participation in Adolescence

Purpose and problem statement: Sports clubs have a positive impact on many children and adolescents, yet teenagers are increasingly quitting their sports club participation when they reach adolescence. The drop-out phenomenon has been widely studied. Conversely, the factors supporting the continuation of the sports club participation have been examined less. Our research question was: How is the experience of involvement related to continuing to participate in sports club activities? In this study, the concept of sports club participation means training in a football team. Involvement, for its part, consists of belongingness, inclusion, and togetherness. Approach: Eight female footballers were interviewed in this retrospective case study. Guided by the theoretical background, the classification body of the four components of involvement; communality, creating space for youth voice, participating in a sport that suits oneself, and environmental factors, was formed. The interview material was transcribed and placed in the categories of involvement components according to the content analysis. Consequently, the resulting subcategories were formed and discussed. Results: The main results of the research suggest that according to the interviewees, communality was built at both the club and the team level and within each adolescent’s positive social relationships. Creating space for youth voice included the dialogue between the club and the player, the coach and the player and the player's role in the team. The factors that made a sport suit oneself were the holistic consideration of the adolescent’s life, the experiences of finding one’s own place in the sport and the meaningfulness of the sport. The environmental factors were linked to the club’s structures, and both the location and the costs of the sport. Due to the limited nature of the research data, the results of the study cannot be generalised but can be considered to be indicative. Conclusions: Based on the study, involvement could provide a diverse approach to the development of sports clubs. By identifying the factors leading to meaningful sport, and by adapting participation according to the components of involvement, it is possible to motivate adolescents to continue their sports club participation longer, develop the sense of belonging and hence their well-being. Further studies should examine the component of creating space for youth voice in sports clubs, as it has been less studiedPeer reviewe

Designing resilient military logistics with additive manufacturing

Purpose In this study, the authors explore how novel and relevant technologies can change the overall design of systems, and which factors influence the design of resilient systems in particular. After evaluating the effects of these factors, the authors describe the potential role of AM-supported maintenance operations in military logistics and draw broader conclusions regarding designing for resilience. Design/methodology/approach The authors build a simulation model of the AM-supported maintenance capability of a mechanised battalion to analyse factors affecting its resilience. AM production capacity specifically refers to metal printing and was verified by data generated from 3D printing of the actual APC parts. Findings The current AM speed is not able to increase resilience at the depot level, so at present, increasing the spare parts inventory is a better way to improve resilience. However, with future improvements in speed the AM may become feasible in battlefield maintenance. Practical implications AM holds great promise in increasing resilience of especially the spare part logistics. At present technology, it is not yet fully realised in the case. Originality/value The authors suggest a concrete system performance measure, where reaching a concrete limit, system resilience is lost. The authors present arguments for a definition of resilience where pre-disruption activities are not part of resilience. The authors maintain that simulation, with its ability to include detail, is well-suited in design-for-resilience because supply chains are context dependent and disruptions unexpected

The Relationships between Pre-Service Primary Teachers’ Teaching and Instructing/Coaching Orientations, and Their Perceived Strengths in Teaching Physical Education at the Primary Level

This study explored if the orientations towards instructing/coaching in physical activities (PA) and teaching physical education (PE) affect the perceived strengths in teaching PE at the primary level (PSTPEs). The orientations were considered as socializing factors into teaching PE. In this study, the perceived strengths were divided into discipline- and pupil-focused strengths. Online questionnaire was used to collect the data from 386 first year pre-service primary teachers before their first PE course of formal teacher education, to expose the acculturative influences of the orientations. Cross tabulation and logistic regression were used to analyze the relationships. The main results suggested that pre-service primary teachers with an instructing/coaching orientation perceived discipline-focused strengths (sportiness and teaching skills) as their assets in teaching PE contrasted by the finding that those with teaching orientation and without instruction/coaching orientation more likely perceived the pupil-focused empathy as their main asset. Even though, the associations were not strong, they exposed interesting directions of effects of acculturative socialization into teaching in terms of perceived strengths. This study adds to the existing research on teaching PE information of the acculturative formation of discipline- and pupil-focused PSTPEs through instruction/coaching and teaching orientations. In order to develop the effectiveness of formal teacher education, we suggest widening and deepening the research of acculturative formation of the perceived strengths and particularly their practical influences on formal teacher training and later on their behavior while teaching PE.Peer reviewe

Socialization Into Teaching Physical Education – Acculturative Formation Of Perceived Strengths

We studied if and how gender, the histories of physical activity (PA) and success in physical education (PE) are related to pre-service class teachers’ (PCTs) perceived strengths in teaching PE (PSTPEs). Various backgrounds were considered to be environments of teacher socialization. The six data based categories of PSTPEs used in this study were: sportiness, teaching skills, positive attitude, encouragement, empathy and set no stress. The data from 386 first year Finnish PCTs were collected before their formal PE studies. Cross tabulation and binary logistic analyses were executed to expose the relationships and effects. The main findings of this study showed that pre-service teachers with more team oriented physical activity histories enter the formal teacher education perceiving to possess disciplinefocused teaching skills as their asset. On the contrary, the respondents with more individually oriented PA backgrounds perceived pupil- focused set no stress as their strength. Suggestive findings, that physically active, successful and team oriented pre-service teachers perceive more discipline-focused strengths (especially sportiness) while their colleagues with opposite histories perceived pupil-focused strengths (especially empathy) were also discussed. This study adds the existing data to information of the effects of acculturative formation of perceived strengths before the influence of formal teacher education studies in PE.Peer reviewe

The Relationship Between Pre-Service Class Teacher's Various Backgrounds and Conceptions of Good Physical Education

Peer reviewe

Lasten ajankäyttö ja vähintään kohtuukuormitteinen fyysinen aktiivisuus varhaiskasvatuksessa

Background: The role of early childhood education and care (ECEC) is crucial in the implementation of the physical activity recommendations during long ECEC days. Young children should engage in 180 minutes of physical activity spread throughout the day, including 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). To attain the goal more information is needed on children’s time use and PA in children’s activities. Aim: The purposes of this quantitative observational study were twofold: (a) to examine children’s time use and (b) to describe which children’s activities best generate physical activity, specifically MVPA, in ECEC. Setting: Altogether, 2,879 Finnish children, aged 1- to 6-years, participated in this study. Methods: The data of 57,881 observations were analysed using cross-tabulation and a z-test. Results: Daily routines (e.g. eating, dressing, napping and transition), task or seatwork and material play accounted for almost 70% of children’s sedentary behaviour and less than 10% of MVPA. The best MVPA generators were physical activities (that generated 57.4% of all MVPA in boys vs. 62.8% in girls, respectively), rule play (11% in boys vs. 6.7% in girls), and role play (10.1% in boys vs. 9.9% in girls), as well as action not allowed (3.3% in boys vs 1.2% in girls). Conclusions: Educators should integrate physical activities, rule play and role play more in ECEC day to support the realization of the recommendations.Peer reviewe

Liikunnan lukutaidon tukeminen : Tapaustutkimus luokanopettajaopiskelijoiden käsityksistä

Physical literacy precedes and influences the physically active lifestyle, which is a key element of physical education. Especially, primary school physical education has an important task in the formation of the physically active lifestyle because it reaches all age cohorts. Classroom teachers are mainly in charge of implementing the curriculum in the primary schools. Thus, it is important to know more about their perceptions on physical literacy. Our research question was: How do classroom teacher students perceive the ways of supporting physical literacy? The data of this case study consists of four semi-structured interviews, which were analysed using content analysis. The concept of physical literacy, developed by Whitehead (1993), was used to categorize the data. Furthermore, the answers in the categories were combined in themes that the result of responses to the research question. As a key result of this study, it was found that classroom student teachers perceive the ways of supporting physical literacy as follows: 1) Motivation can be supported by atmosphere, teaching methods, contents and learning environments; (2) Physical competence and self-confidence is supported by experiences of success, developmentally appropriate physical activities and motor skills and 3) Knowledge and understanding can be supported by creating meanings and adjusted objectives, evaluation and individualization. Our results suggest that future classroom teachers have a quite broad understanding of supporting physical literacy, which is in line with their broad educational duties that differ from those of subject teachers. The results of our research are especially useful for classroom teachers. An approach that emphasizes personal potential can be one solution to challenges of immobility. In the future, it is important to study what kind of pedagogical practices based on physical literacy could lead to the development of teaching in physical education in primary schools.Physical literacy precedes and influences the physically active lifestyle, which is a key element of physical education. Especially, primary school physical education has an important task in the formation of the physically active lifestyle because it reaches all age cohorts. Classroom teachers are mainly in charge of implementing the curriculum in the primary schools. Thus, it is important to know more about their perceptions on physical literacy. Our research question was: How do classroom teacher students perceive the ways of supporting physical literacy? The data of this case study consists of four semi-structured interviews, which were analysed using content analysis. The concept of physical literacy, developed by Whitehead (1993), was used to categorize the data. Furthermore, the answers in the categories were combined in themes that the result of responses to the research question. As a key result of this study, it was found that classroom student teachers perceive the ways of supporting physical literacy as follows: 1) Motivation can be supported by atmosphere, teaching methods, contents and learning environments; (2) Physical competence and self-confidence is supported by experiences of success, developmentally appropriate physical activities and motor skills and 3) Knowledge and understanding can be supported by creating meanings and adjusted objectives, evaluation and individualization. Our results suggest that future classroom teachers have a quite broad understanding of supporting physical literacy, which is in line with their broad educational duties that differ from those of subject teachers. The results of our research are especially useful for classroom teachers. An approach that emphasizes personal potential can be one solution to challenges of immobility. In the future, it is important to study what kind of pedagogical practices based on physical literacy could lead to the development of teaching in physical education in primary schools.Peer reviewe