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Straipsnyje nagrinėjamos 2-os klasės mokinių ir jų tėvų įsitikinimų apie lietuvių kalbos mokymąsi sąsajos su mokinių pasiekimais. Nustatyta, kad mokinių įsitikinimai apie savo gebėjimus, susidomėjimas lietuvių kalba, tėvų lūkesčiai bei 2-os klasės pasiekimai tarpusavyje siejasi teigiamais ryšiais. Kontroliuojant vaiko lytį, tėvų išsilavinimą bei 1-os klasės pasiekimus, geresnius pasiekimus 2-oje klasėje prognozuoja aukštesni tėvų lūkesčiai ir geresni vaikų savų gebėjimų vertinimai. Esminiai žodžiai: įsitikinimai apie gebėjimus, užduoties vertė, tėvų lūkesčiai, lietuvių kalbos pasiekimai. Previous studies have shown that as early as elementary school, children’s language skills are determined not only by cognitive factors, but also by their learning motivation. According to Expectancy-Value theory (Eccles et al., 1983), children’s motivation is a function of two motivational beliefs, that is, ability self-concept and subjective values, that are shaped by various social influences, such as their parents’ expectations. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the relationships between Lithuanian language achievement in second grade and students’ and their parents’ beliefs in Lithuanian language, that is, students’ ability beliefs, interest, and parents’ expectations. 536 Grade 2 children (285 boys and 251 girls) as well as 536 of their parents participated in the study. Children’s motivational beliefs about Lithuanian language were measured by Self-Concept of Ability scale (Viljaranta et al., 2016) and Task-Value Scale for Children (TVS-C; Aunola et al., 2006); parents’ expectations were measured by Parental Beliefs scale (Aunola et al., 2002); children’s first and second grade end-of-year marks in Lithuanian language were used as a measure of their Lithuanian language achievement. Results showed that children’s ability beliefs, interest, parents’ expectations, and Grade 2 achievement were positively related to each other. Lithuanian language achievement in Grade 2 was predicted by Grade 1 achievement, parents’ expectations, beliefs about one’s ability, child’s gender, and parents’ education level. Keywords: ability beliefs, task value, parents’ expectations, Lithuanian language achievement.

Studies of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have shown that this health emergency has affected especially young people. Supporting the well-being of children is thus particularly urgent. However, the high prevalence of ill-being among children requires novel approaches to providing help. Health care resources are limited, and many children did not receive support even before the pandemic. The current study presents a novel approach to delivering brief interventions for school-aged children. A mobile game based on acceptance and commitment therapy was used to increase psychological flexibility and well-being among 10 to 12-year-old schoolchildren. A sample of 106 students played the game in four weekly sessions as part of normal teaching practice in school. The effectiveness of the brief game intervention was examined as a universal intervention among the whole sample and among subgroups created on the basis of baseline psychological flexibility (i.e., based on the need for an intervention). The results show that higher psychological flexibility was associated with less emotional and behavioral problems, higher health-related quality of life, mood, and school satisfaction, and less loneliness (r = 0.46–0.63). While a significant effect was not detected in the whole sample, the subsample of children with initially high psychological inflexibility benefitted from participating in the intervention (Cohen's d = 0.35). These preliminary findings suggest that the brief game-based intervention can increase psychological flexibility among children when the need for an intervention is considered. Further research is necessary to examine the stability of improvements in psychological flexibility. peerReviewed

Patterns of physical activity in adulthood are often established during adolescence, making this an important period for promoting physical activity. To address this, the Sotkamo Physical Activity as Civil Skill Program 2010–2014 was implemented to increase Grade 5 to 9 students’ physical activity on a daily basis. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of program on students’ physical activity and enjoyment. Furthermore, the relationship between motivational climate and enjoyment, and the percentages of students who engaged in 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity on the daily basis were examined.

An awareness of school-related antecedents of children’s physiological stress at the beginning of school helps educators to prevent and mitigate children’s stress, the one of the major obstacles to their well-being and academic progress. We aimed to study the effect of reading skills and social competence on first-grade students’ salivary cortisol levels in natural settings. Based on previous results of the effects of everyday situations on children’s stress according to gender, we expected that both academic and social skills would affect girls’ physiological stress more, compared to boys. Our sample consisted of 277 students (7–8 years old, 50.2% girls). We used the highest salivary cortisol level of three morning samples and a cortisol level from the middle of the school day as physiological stress indicators. Reading skills were assessed by group-administered tests and social competence by teacher ratings. We found that lower reading comprehension skills and lower disruptiveness were related to higher cortisol levels for girls but not for boys. Higher empathy and lower disruptiveness moderated the effect of better reading comprehension on higher psychological stress in the middle of the school day only for girls. By recognizing the antecedents of children’s stress and supporting their academic and social skills, children’s, especially girls’, physiological self-regulation and coping skills in the primary grades will benefit.

In autumn 2021, Covid-19 still has effect on our daily living and our possibilities to conduct everyday life practices such as work and studies. Current realities of ‘new normality’, based on remote work and restrictions of social activities, for example, are grounded on the vast changes that occurred when the pandemic began. In this text we take a look back to the period of school closures in Finland, and their effect on families’ daily practices related to children’s well-being and school work. We explore the impacts of remote school to learning opportunities to find ways to utilize the new, good practices of remote school also in the future. At the same time, we emphasize the significance of support from home for children’s school achievement and accordingly, the need to find new ways to study school work more holistically. nonPeerReviewed

Background and Aims Neck and shoulder pain (NSP) is common in school age, but preventative factors have not been identified. The purpose was to study whether a fitness test could be used to predict the incidence of NSP and determine whether good physical fitness characters would be associated with lower NSP incidence in school-aged children at 2-year follow-up. Methods After the invitation to nine schools, 970 children (10–15 years old) agreed to participate. Flexibility, fundamental movement skills, musculoskeletal fitness, and cardiorespiratory fitness measurements included in Finnish Schools on the Move! monitoring system for physical functional capacity were measured at baseline in 2013. The NSP incidence was assessed by an online survey during school hours after 1 and 2 years. Logistic regression was used to analyze associations between physical fitness characteristics and NSP incidence. Results The mean prevalence of NSP was 26% at baseline. The NSP incidence was 15% in the first and 18% in the second follow-up year. Good physical fitness was not associated with lower NSP incidence in the 2-year follow-up. Successful lower back extension (odds ratio [OR] = 2.83) and good scores in curl-up (OR = 1.80) adjusted with age, gender, and body mass index, were associated with higher NSP incidence between T0 and T2. Throwing–catching combination (OR = 0.55) was associated with a lower NSP incidence in unadjusted analysis, but the association did not remain after adjustments. Conclusion Good physical fitness characteristics were not consistently associated with a lower NSP incidence in school-aged children in a 2-year follow-up. The role of general field-based physical fitness test as a screening tool for NSP incidence remains unconfirmed. More longitudinal studies are needed to detect the factors underlying NSP incidence in school-aged children. peerReviewed

Background Whole-of-school programs have demonstrated success in improving student physical activity levels, but few have progressed beyond efficacy testing to implementation at-scale. The purpose of our study was to evaluate the scale-up of the ‘Internet-based Professional Learning to help teachers promote Activity in Youth’ (iPLAY) intervention in primary schools using the RE-AIM framework. Methods We conducted a type 3 hybrid implementation-effectiveness study and collected data between April 2016 and June 2021, in New South Wales (NSW), Australia. RE-AIM was operationalised as: (i) Reach: Number and representativeness of students exposed to iPLAY; (ii) Effectiveness: Impact of iPLAY in a sub-sample of students (n = 5,959); (iii) Adoption: Number and representativeness of schools that received iPLAY; (iv) Implementation: Extent to which the three curricular and three non-curricular components of iPLAY were delivered as intended; (v) Maintenance: Extent to which iPLAY was sustained in schools. We conducted 43 semi-structured interviews with teachers (n = 14), leaders (n = 19), and principals (n = 10) from 18 schools (11 from urban and 7 from rural locations) to determine program maintenance. Results Reach: iPLAY reached ~ 31,000 students from a variety of socio-economic strata (35% of students were in the bottom quartile, almost half in the middle two quartiles, and 20% in the top quartile). Effectiveness: We observed small positive intervention effects for enjoyment of PE/sport (0.12 units, 95% CI: 0.05 to 0.20, d = 0.17), perceptions of need support from teachers (0.26 units, 95% CI: 0.16 to 0.53, d = 0.40), physical activity participation (0.28 units, 95% CI: 0.10 to 0.47, d = 0.14), and subjective well-being (0.82 units, 95% CI: 0.32 to 1.32, d = 0.12) at 24-months. Adoption: 115 schools received iPLAY. Implementation: Most schools implemented the curricular (59%) and non-curricular (55%) strategies as intended. Maintenance: Based on our qualitative data, changes in teacher practices and school culture resulting from iPLAY were sustained. Conclusions iPLAY had extensive reach and adoption in NSW primary schools. Most of the schools implemented iPLAY as intended and effectiveness data suggest the positive effects observed in our cluster RCT were sustained when the intervention was delivered at-scale. Trial registration ACTRN12621001132831.

This study examined moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) trends in physical education (PE) classes and beyond school hours in children's need satisfaction profiles over 3 years. Participants were 445 (girls 256, boys 189) Finnish schoolchildren ( Mage = 11.26 ± 0.32 years). Need satisfaction self-reports and accelerometer-based MVPA data were collected in 17 comprehensive schools over four assessment phases. Four latent profiles based on the need satisfaction trends over time were found: Profiles with Large Decrease, Small Decrease, Small Increase, and Large Increase. The children with the most prominent need satisfaction decreases showed a significant decline in out-of-school MVPA. All the children, irrespective of their need satisfaction profile, exhibited similar patterns of MVPA in PE over the 3-year follow-up. Developing need satisfactions and out-of-school MVPA of the children with the greatest need satisfaction decreases may require enhancements in need-supportive PE activities.

Check in–check out (CICO) is a widely used and studied behavioural intervention. Although CICO is an effective way to support pupils’ behaviour in a school context, not all pupils benefit from basic CICO. A single-case experimental study was designed to evaluate the effects of CICO Plus support (CICO Plus) for participants whose behaviour was determined to be non-responsive to basic CICO. CICO Plus was planned and implemented with four pupils identified by school CICO teams as needing additional behavioural support. Individual CICO Plus support was planned by multiprofessional teams working on each pupil’s case. The CICO Plus support was based on teaching social skills and behaviour at least three times a week in collaboration with families, schools and social and health care services. A concurrent multiple baseline design revealed increases in pupils’ appropriate behaviour in their targeted behavioural goals and decreases on pupils’ disruptive behaviour in school situations. Fidelity of the CICO Plus intervention and social validity among school personnel were also assessed. Results indicated that practical multiprofessional co-operation is essential to lay the groundwork for inclusive support for pupils at risk of severe problem behaviour. peerReviewed

Background Leadership is a valuable skill that can be taught in school, and which may have benefits within and beyond the classroom. Learning to Lead (L2L) is a student-led, primary school-based leadership program whereby older ‘peer leaders’ deliver a fundamental movement skills (FMS) program to younger ‘peers’ within their own school. Aim The aims of the study are to determine the efficacy of a peer-led FMS intervention on: (i) peer leaders’ (aged 10 to 12 years) leadership effectiveness (primary outcome), leadership self-efficacy, well-being, and time on-task in the classroom; (ii) peers’ (aged 8 to 10 years) physical activity levels, actual and perceived FMS competency, cardiorespiratory fitness, muscular power, and executive functioning; and (iii) teachers’ (referred to as ‘school champions’) work-related stress and well-being. Method L2L will be evaluated using a two-arm parallel group cluster randomised controlled trial. Twenty schools located within a two-hour drive of the University of Newcastle, Australia will be recruited. We will recruit 80 students (40 peer leaders and 40 peers) from each school (N = 1,600). L2L will be implemented in three phases: Phase 1 –school champions’ training via a professional learning workshop; Phase 2 –school champions’ delivery of leadership lessons to the peer leaders; and Phase 3 –peer leaders’ delivery of the FMS program to their younger peers. The FMS program, consisting of 12 x 30-minute lessons, will be delivered over the course of one school term (10 weeks). Study outcomes will be assessed at baseline (between mid-March to June, Terms 1 and 2), intervention end (mid-August to September, Term 3), and follow-up (November to mid-December, Term 4. This trial was prospectively registered on the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ANZCTR); registration number: ACTRN12621000376842.

I den här studien utforskades ifall det förekommer sociodemografiska skillnader i upplevelse av psykiska besvär, socialt stöd och känsla av ensamhet bland finlandssvenska ungdomar. Det undersöktes även ifall ungdomarnas upplevelse av psykiska besvär kan förklaras med familje-, kamrat- och klasskamratstöd samt känsla av ensamhet. Utöver det utforskades ifall samband mellan socialt stöd och psykiska besvär kan förklaras med känsla av ensamhet. Som datamaterial användes WHO:s skolelevstudie (WHO-Koululaistutkimus) från 2018 med ett deltagarantal på 599 svenskspråkiga elever från årskurs 5, 7 och 9 (Målder = 11,9/14,0/15,9; svarsprocent 38 %). Som statistiska analysmetoder användes Pearsons chi2-test, envägs variansanalys, oberoende t-test, Spearmans rangkorrelationsanalys, multipel linjär regressionsanalys och medierande analys. Resultaten visade att flickor upplevde psykiska besvär och känsla av ensamhet i högre grad än pojkar. Elever i årskurs 7 och 9 upplevde nervositet i signifikant högre grad än eleverna i årskurs 5. De med högre upplevd socioekonomiska status upplevde i lägre grad psykiska besvär. Det förekom inte signifikanta skillnader i fråga om psykiska besvär, socialt stöd eller känsla av ensamhet mellan finlandssvenska ungdomar bosatta i stadsort och på landsbygden. Familjestöd och klasskamratstöd förklarade psykiska besvär signifikant och negativt, vilket innebar att lägre grad av familje- och klasskamratstöd associerades med högre grad av psykiska besvär. Känsla av ensamhet förklarade psykiska besvär signifikant och positivt, det vill säga högre grad av ensamhetskänslor associerades med högre grad av psykiska besvär. Kamratstöd förutsade inte psykiska besvär signifikant. Enligt resultaten kunde även samband mellan socialt stöd i form av familje-, kamrat- och klasskamratstöd och psykiska besvär delvis förklaras med känsla av ensamhet. Studien bidrar med ny kunskap om finlandssvenska ungdomars välmående och kan uppmuntra till hälsofrämjande verksamhet. För att få en djupare förståelse om lägre nivåer av socialt stöd och upplevelse av ensamhet i grundskoleålder kan vara riskfaktorer för utveckling av mental ohälsa behövs mer forskning, speciellt i form av longitudinella studier.

The present study compares two methods for assessing peer influence: the longitudinal actor–partner interdependence model (L-APIM) and the longitudinal social network analysis (L-SNA) Model. The data were drawn from 1,995 (49% girls and 51% boys) third grade students ( Mage= 9.68 years). From this sample, L-APIM ( n = 206 indistinguishable dyads and n = 187 distinguishable dyads) and L-SNA ( n = 1,024 total network members) subsamples were created. Students completed peer nominations and objective assessments of mathematical reasoning in the spring of the third and fourth grades. Patterns of statistical significance differed across analyses. Stable distinguishable and indistinguishable L-APIM dyadic analyses identified reciprocated friend influence such that friends with similar levels of mathematical reasoning influenced one another and friends with higher math reasoning influenced friends with lower math reasoning. L-SNA models with an influence parameter (i.e., average reciprocated alter) comparable to that assessed in L-APIM analyses failed to detect influence effects. Influence effects did emerge, however, with the addition of another, different social network influence parameter (i.e., average alter influence effect). The diverging results may be attributed to differences in the sensitivity of the analyses, their ability to account for structural confounds with selection and influence, the samples included in the analyses, and the relative strength of influence in reciprocated best as opposed to other friendships.

The majority of previous research has examined school engagement as an overall student characteristic. The present study contributes to the field by examining variation in students' situation-specific engagement from one lesson to another and by investigating situational determinants of such variation. An intensive one-week lesson-to-lesson data collection was conducted in four lower secondary school classrooms. Students rated their situation-specific engagement at the end of each lesson with a mobile-based InSitu instrument. Data comprising a total of 57 students and 1328 ratings were analyzed with two-level hierarchical multivariate model (between students, and within students between lessons). The results indicated substantial within student variation in engagement between lessons which was predicted by school subjects. Students reported highest situational engagement and lowest disaffection in lessons of non-academic subjects. The findings extend prior literature by specifying factors affecting students’ situation-specific engagement and by unraveling effects due to variation within and between students. peerReviewed

This study examined the effect of students' externalizing problems on changes in values that they attach to math across the transition from primary to lower secondary school. Data pertaining to externalizing problems and to intrinsic, attainment, and utility values in math were gathered using the self-ratings of students in Grades 6 and 7. The analysis involved a comparison between students who reported persistent high externalizing problems before and after the transition (n = 63; 59% boys) and those who had low or non-existent externalizing problems before and after the transition (n = 1352; 50% boys). The results of a mixed-design analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) showed uniformly that students with high externalizing problems had lower intrinsic, attainment, and utility values in math than students with low or no externalizing problems. As the students progressed across the lower secondary transition, the attainment value in math showed a steeper decreasing trend in students with high levels of externalizing problems compared to the declining trajectory of students without such problems. We also found that the utility value decreased across transition, but the declining trend was steeper for students manifesting a high level of externalizing problems, particularly for boys. Overall, the results provide a better understanding of developmental trajectories of achievement values during the transition from primary to lower secondary school. Declining trends in achievement values are pronounced among students with a high level of externalizing problems, and boys with such problems are the most vulnerable group of students. peerReviewed

Background. Academic buoyancy refers to students’ ability to come through ordinary challenges they face in the academic context, and it can positively contribute to students’ beliefs and behaviours in learning situations. Although buoyancy has been found to be related to positive academic outcomes, previous studies have not examined how buoyancy influences academic emotions in learning situations and how these emotions further affect students’ learning-related expectations and behaviours. \ud Aims. This study investigated to what extent academic buoyancy predicts students’ failure expectations, avoidance behaviour, and task-oriented planning in learning situations, and to what extent academic emotions mediate the effect of academic buoyancy on these expectations and behaviours.\ud Sample. A total of 845 Finnish students in the sixth grade of primary school.\ud Methods. Self-report data for academic buoyancy and academic emotions in the autumn semester and learning-related expectations and behaviours in the spring semester were analysed using structural equation modelling, controlling for gender, grade point average, and previous levels of learning-related expectations and behaviours.\ud Results. The findings showed that high academic buoyancy indirectly predicted lower avoidance behaviour, fewer failure expectations, and higher task-oriented planning via academic emotions. High academic buoyancy was related to high enjoyment and hope as well as low boredom and hopelessness, which further predicted low failure expectations. High hope and low boredom also predicted low avoidance behaviour and high hope was associated with high task-oriented planning.\ud Conclusions. The findings suggest that academic buoyancy supports positive expectations and adaptive behaviours in learning situations through the regulation of emotions.

This longitudinal study of 562 students (from ages 10 to 13) investigated whether developmental changes in internalizing problems (emotional and peer problems) can be predicted by school grades in mathematics and language arts and whether these predictive relations are mediated by students' self-esteem. The data comprised of teacher-rated internalizing problems, grades in math and language arts, and student self-ratings of self-esteem. The latent change score modeling indicated that math grades positively predicted self-esteem. Furthermore, lower self-esteem was related to an increase in internalizing and emotional problems in the total sample, and to an increase in peer problems in boys. The indirect effect of poorer math grades, via lower self-esteem, on increases in internalizing and emotional problems was significant. The sample included an overrepresentation of children at risk of reading difficulty, but the tested models did not differ between at-risk and not-at-risk children. Overall, the findings revealed that low math grades contribute negatively to students' global self-esteem and predict an increase in internalizing problems in early adolescence. peerReviewed

This study examined the role of verbal counting skill as an early predictor of math performance and difficulties (at or below −1.5 standard deviation in basic math skills) in middle school. The role of fourth-grade level arithmetical skills (i.e., calculation fluency, multi-digit arithmetic i.e. procedural calculation, and word problem solving) as mediators was also investigated. The participants included 207 children in central Finland who were studied from kindergarten to the seventh grade. Path modeling showed that verbal counting in kindergarten is a strong predictor for basic math performance in seventh grade, explaining even 52% of the variance in these skills after controlling for the mothers’ education levels. This association between early verbal counting skill and basic math performance was partly mediated through fourth-grade procedural calculation and word problem solving skills. Furthermore, verbal counting had an unique predictive relation to middle school math performance above and beyond the basic arithmetical and problem solving skills in fourth grade. Poor kindergarten verbal counting skill was a significant indicator for later difficulties in mathematics. peerReviewed

The purpose of the present series of studies was to examine the counselling communication activities in schoolchildren`s oral health counselling and the organisational context of public oral health care. Four studies based on two datasets were carried out. The counselling follow-up audiotaped data (2002–2003) comprised 97 counselling encounters. Thirty-one 11–13-year-old schoolchildren (n = 31, 15 girls and 16 boys) were included in the counselling sessions that were conducted by four dental hygienists. The organisation data collection (n = 58) was carried out by using a semi-structured questionnaire in 2002. Methods of qualitative content analysis and statistical analysis were applied for the analysis of the data. The results revealed that the schoolchildren’s oral health counselling was dominantly constructed dental hygienist-centred information and advice giving. The dental hygienists were experienced in gathering information on the schoolchildren’s oral health habits. Determination of need for change of the schoolchildren’s oral hygiene habits was normatively and explicitly manifested. Whereas, regarding snacking habits, the dental hygienists often determined the schoolchildren’s need for change implicitly through the speech practices of assessment, advice giving and change-inducing questions. In these cases the schoolchildren’s need for change fairly often remained ambiguous. Counselling strategies regarding discussion about change processes and goal setting occurred fairly rarely. The studied organisation was observed to be role-dependent, goal-oriented and task-centred. Unidirectional chain of communication and responsibility for interaction were observed as the descriptive attributes of communication. The employees experienced that their position in the organisation was fairly secure. A good sense of one’s position in the organisation was positively associated with several essential experiences regarding organisational factors. The communication satisfaction in the organisation had a moderating effect between the individual level and the organisational level. According to this study, the emphasis should be placed on reciprocal communication; giving and receiving feedback in leadership relations as well as opportunities to exert influence in the organisation. Furthermore, steps should be taken to develop communication activities that encourage schoolchildren to participate in counselling conversation, and to create structures that allow schoolchildren to have a voice in counselling. To improve the current counselling practice, qualitative studies of counselling processes are needed Suun terveydenhuollon neuvontakeskustelut ovat yhä yksisuuntaista tiedon jakamista ja neuvojen antamista, toteaa Kirsti Kasila. Kasila tutki väitöskirjassaan koululaisten terveysneuvontakeskusteluiden vuorovaikutuksellista rakentumista suun terveydenhuollossa. Terveysneuvonnalle on tarvetta, sen osoittavat koululaisten suuhygieniatottumukset ja -taidot sekä napostelutottumukset. - Pelkkä tottumusten kartoittaminen ja neuvojen antaminen eivät ole riittäviä muutoksen aikaansaamiseksi, Kasila sanoo. Terveydenhuollon ammattilaiset pyysivät vain harvoin koululaisia itseään arvioimaan käyttäytymistään ja tuomaan esille omia näkemyksiä muutoksen tekemisestä. Muutokset terveystottumuksissa vaativat kuitenkin omakohtaista asioiden prosessointia.Suun terveydenhuollon ammattilaisten tietoisuutta ja koulutusta yksilö- ja käyttäytymislähtöisistä neuvonnan puhekäytännöistä tulisi kehittää. Myös koululaisilta vaaditaan uusia keskustelullisia taitoja ja uudenlaista asennoitumista neuvontaan. Passiivinen tiedon vastaanottajan rooli ei riitä, kun koululaisten toivotaan osallistuvan keskusteluun ja omaa terveyttä koskevaan päätöksentekoon. Enemmän keskustelua käyttäytymismuutoksestaKoululaiset ovat keskustelujen kannalta erittäin haastava heterogeeninen ryhmä. Keskustelullisen ilmapiirin ylläpitäminen neuvonnassa ei aina ole helppoa. Koululaisten vastaukset ammattilaisten kysymyksiin voivat olla hyvin lyhyitä, joskus epämääräisiä ja ristiriitaisiakin. Kasila tuo esille rakenteellisia ja kielellisiä tekijöitä, joiden kautta koululaisia voidaan kutsua osallistumaan keskusteluun. - Ottamalla koululaisten terveystiedoissa ja -käyttäytymisessä esiintyvät ristiriitaisuudet keskustelun ja ihmettelyn aiheeksi, neuvontakeskustelusta voi syntyä yhteistä ongelman tai arvoituksen ratkaisua, eikä pelkästään asiantuntijajohtoista ongelmaa määrittävää ja neuvoja antavaa keskustelua, Kasila kuvaa. - Tottumusten kartoittamisen jälkeen olisi tärkeää yhdessä koululaisen kanssa arvioida kerättyä tietoa ja sen jälkeen selkeästi ja konkreettisesti määrittää mahdolliset muutostarpeet, Kasila suosittelee. Tällöin keskustelu kohdentuu käyttäytymismuutoksen tarkasteluun. Suun terveydenhuollon organisaation normit, tavoitteet, toimintatavat ja resurssit muodostavat toimintaympäristön, jonka puitteissa terveysneuvontatyö tapahtuu.Kasilan väitöstutkimus koostuu neljästä osajulkaisusta, joissa käytettiin kahta eri aineistoa. Neuvontatutkimuksen seuranta-aineisto (2002–2003) sisälsi yhteensä 97 terveysneuvontatilannetta. Neljän suuhygienistin toteuttamiin neuvontoihin osallistui 31 koululaista, jotka olivat iältään 11–13-vuotiaita. Organisaatiotutkimuksen aineisto (n=58) kerättiin vuonna 2002.

Tässä tutkimuksessa tarkasteltiin, kuinka paljon ja kenen aloitteesta vanhemmat osallistuvat kuudesluokkalaisten lastensa kotitehtävien tekemiseen sekä missä määrin vanhempien osallistuminen riippuu lapsen taitotasosta ja sukupuolesta. Tämän lisäksi tutkittiin, onko äidin omilla oppimisen pulmilla ja lapsen opiskelussa kohtaamilla vaikeuksilla yhteyttä osallistumiseen ja äidin kotitehtävätilanteissa kokemiin positiivisiin ja negatiivisiin tunteisiin. Tutkimus on osa TIKAPUU – Alakoulusta yläkouluun -tutkimushanketta. Tämän tutkimuksen aineisto koostuu kuudennen luokan oppilaille (n = 607) tehtyihin lukemisen ja matematiikan testeihin sekä kyselylomakkeeseen. Vanhempien aineisto (n = 494) perustuu kuudesluokkalaisten oppilaiden vanhemmille esitettyyn kyselyyn. Tulosten mukaan vanhemmat raportoivat osallistuvansa kotitehtävien tekemiseen eniten auttamalla lasta kokeisiin valmistautumisessa. Eri oppiaineista vanhemmat kertoivat osallistuvansa eniten vieraiden kielten kotitehtävien tekemiseen ja vähiten lukemiseen ja kirjoittamiseen liittyvien kotitehtävien tekemiseen auttamalla ja valvomalla kotitehtävien tekemistä. Myös lapsen taitotaso oli yhteydessä vanhemman osallistumisen määrään. Lopuksi havaittiin, että äideillä, jotka kertoivat itsellään olleen oppimisen pulmia ja joiden lapsilla oli niitä myös, oli enemmän negatiivisia tunteita kotitehtävätilanteissa ja he osallistuivat kotitehtävien tekemiseen useammin kuin äidit, joilla itsellään tai joiden lapsilla ei ole ollut vaikeuksia oppimisessa. Tutkimuksen perusteella näyttää siltä, että iso osa kuudesluokkalaisten oppilaiden vanhemmista on mukana lastensa koulunkäynnissä auttamalla kotitehtävissä ja kokeisiin valmistautumisessa sekä valvomalla kotitehtävien tekemistä. peerReviewed

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This study investigates children’s social and moral practices as they appear in everyday classroom peer interaction. Its focus is on the relations between children’s interaction and moral understandings in situ. Juxtaposing the most archetypal ways of addressing and investigating morality in mainstream educational psychology, this study approaches morality is as it handled and man- aged as part of everyday intersubjective interaction. Ethnomethodological approaches alongside with sociocultural views of thinking are employed as theoretical and analytical frameworks to delineate how children as moral agents use language and other semiotic resources to accomplish their local organization of morality. The data consisted of 26 hours of videotaped and transcribed classroom peer interaction in Finnish primary schools. Three communicative areas in which moral practices become plainly visible were chosen as basis for the analysis: 1) counting rhyme rulemaking, 2) dispute threatening and 3) accusing practices. The significance of this study is fourfold, as it not only provides empirical, detailed accounts of children’s morality and participation in classroom peer group activities, but also offers unique theoretical, methodological and also practical approaches to operationalize children’s morality. The dissertation consists of three sub-studies and an extended summary. The first sub- study examines how children exploit their understanding of morality by using a range of meaning-making resources in the context of a classroom counting rhyme. It shows that children are capable of knowing why some issues might be prohibited, and also of dealing with and playing with these issues. This account of children’s sophisticated employment of moral agency calls attention to raising teachers’ awareness and appreciation of children’s capability to contribute to their own moral learning. The second sub-study investigates children’s threats in a classroom dispute and frame shifts between pretence and real. The study contributes to understanding of different moral orders in real and pretend frames, and points out that when insults occur in the real life frame they disrupt the established moral order. The findings suggest implications for how and when teachers should intervene in children’s disputes. The third sub-study explores children’s accusations in the classroom. It shows how children use local classroom rules and teacher authority as resources and warrants to invoke multi-layered moral orders and identities, and to hold individuals accountable through accusations about their behaviour. The study highlights an important aspect of social organization regarding the social exclusion of peers. It also proposes that the use of classroom rules and teacher authority in the absence of the teacher is a common practice. Overall, this study shows how the moral realm in school is multi-layered, multimodally mediated, interactively negotiated and multi-voiced, and it maintains that moral development must be understood in, and cannot be separated from, the social context and relations. Traditionally, morality in school has been seen as teacher transmitting values and rules to children, but this study suggests that, as an ‘unofficial’ counterpart, children’s peer interaction in the classroom is an important contributor to children’s moral and social competencies. Theories of children’s morality should more directly include children’s everyday interaction, the role of peers, and the voices of children and generalized others. It also encourages practitioners and researchers to acknowledge children as active agents in constructing moral realms in the school life and out- of-school activities, and to empower children’s decision making.

Tutkimuksen tarkoituksena oli kuvata sisäkorvaistutetta käyttävien oppilaiden (jatkossa SI-oppilaiden) sosiaalista asemaa lähikouluissa luokilla 1–4. Tutkimuksen tavoitteena oli selvittää, oliko SI-oppilaille muodostunut ystävyyssuhteita ja vastavuoroisen torjunnan suhteita muiden luokkalaisten kanssa ja olivatko he osana kaveriryhmiä. Lisäksi tutkittiin, muuttuiko heidän sosiaalinen asemansa luokilla 1–4. Tutkimuksen kohteena oli kuusi lähikoulun luokkaa, joissa opiskeli SI-oppilas. Tutkimus tehtiin sosiometrisellä menetelmällä, jossa luokkien oppilaat valitsivat kolme mieluisinta ja kolme vähiten mieluista leikkitoveria. Tulokset analysoitiin muodostamalla nimeämisten perusteella sosiogrammeja. Lisäksi SI-oppilaille laskettiin standardoidut z-pistemäärät neljään kategoriaan: suosio, epäsuosio, sosiaalinen suosio ja sosiaalinen näkyvyys. Tutkimuksessa ilmeni, että lähes puolet (45,8 %) kaikista SI-oppilaiden sosiaalisen aseman statuksista oli torjutun statuksia. SI-oppilaiden sosiaalinen asema vaihteli eri vuosiluokilla, ja erityisesti kolmannella luokalla se usein heikkeni. Kuitenkin yli puolet SI-oppilaista kuului johonkin kaveriryhmään vähintään yhdellä vuosiluokalla ja lähes kaikilla heistä oli ystävyyssuhteita. Tutkimustulosten mukaan SI-oppilaat olivat lähikoulussaan heikommassa sosiaalisessa asemassa kuin heidän kuulevat vertaisensa. Sosiaaliseen asemaan vaikuttavat kuitenkin useat asiat, esimerkiksi persoonallisuus, ja niitä olisi kiinnostavaa selvittää jatkotutkimuksena. peerReviewed

In this article, we examine the experience of harassment, discrimination and racism of students in 9th grade (aged 15–16) in eight Finnish schools in 2015. The research material comprises semi‑structured interviews with 112 young people in Turku and the Helsinki region. Although harassment, discrimination, and racism are seldom openly outspoken, our analysis show that youth portray multiple forms of them in the interviews, often associated with downplaying and silencing. Young people make ethnicity‑bounded distinctions and categorisations that have their effect on the sense of belongingness. At the worst, these experiences may lead to the underestimation of one’s own abilities to study successfully and find a job in the future. In this article, we examine the experience of harassment, discrimination and racism of students in 9th grade (aged 15–16) in eight Finnish schools in 2015. The research material comprises semi‑structured interviews with 112 young people in Turku and the Helsinki region. Although harassment, discrimination, and racism are seldom openly outspoken, our analysis show that youth portray multiple forms of them in the interviews, often associated with downplaying and silencing. Young people make ethnicity‑bounded distinctions and categorisations that have their effect on the sense of belongingness. At the worst, these experiences may lead to the underestimation of one’s own abilities to study successfully and find a job in the future.

This study examines interpersonality and audience awareness of initial greetings and leave-taking formulae in 1,041 e-mails (523 Finnish, 518 Swedish) written by Finnish (n = 222) and Swedish (n = 174) language learners in basic education, secondary education and at university level in Finland. The results reveal that there are certain communicative differences between the two groups. The e-mails contain different levels of formality: Swedish learners use more initial greetings and their messages are slightly more coherent than those of Finnish learners. The initial greeting hei/hej is commonly used in different contexts, regardless of the language. Learners’ audience awareness is indicated by addressing the recipient by their proper name. The largest variation has been found in leave-taking formulae in both groups. We observed that greetings and leave-taking become more complex and increasingly similar to the target language at a higher level of profciency. peerReviewed