Middle school education is fundamental to the lives of millions of adolescents. It is a time of great opportunity for stimulating cognitive, emotional, and psychosocial growth and development. At the same time, the middle school environment can exacerbate the problems that some students face. To this end, decisions by school administrators to promote nutritional health that positively influence the eating behaviors of students on campus are crucial to the learning environment. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship of school principals and the nutritional environment of middle grade schools through an analysis of the affective, social, and educational factors that may contribute to dietary behavior among students. The research methodology for this study consisted of both quantitative and qualitative analysis. The quantitative population included all middle grade school principals (N = 40) in Kern County, California. Of that number, 68 percent of the principals responded to the survey. The qualitative interview sample (n = 8) consisted of principals selected from the survey population. An analysis of the findings indicated that the nutritional environment of the middle grade school depends on the quality of leadership employed by the principal. Approximately ninety percent of the principals surveyed felt they had inadequate training in nutritional health to integrate nutrition into the curriculum. Sixty-two percent believe they have minimal input into decisions regarding the sale of convenience foods and beverages on their individual campuses. Therefore, their leadership responsibility in the promotion of nutritional health among students does not go beyond that of an overseer. While most principals believe that school leadership and the promotion of nutritional health are interrelated, many principals allow the sale of convenience foods and beverages on their campuses. Clearly, there is inconsistency between what is believed and what is overtly practiced. The results from this study will enable stakeholders of middle grade school education to modify administrative policies and practices in nutrition health promotion.

This thesis investigates the impact of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) education on middle school students (grades 4-6), focusing on how it enhances motivation, engagement and problem-solving abilities. Utilizing a systematic literature review the research examines the integration of technological innovations like Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) into STEAM education alongside the evolving role of teachers in this interdisciplinary approach. Findings indicate that STEAM positively influences student creativity and self-esteem particularly enhancing figurative creativity. The integration of arts into STEM subjects not only enriches learning experiences but also fosters a comprehensive understanding of both artistic and scientific disciplines. However challenges in implementing advanced technologies in classrooms such as resource constraints and the need for enhanced teacher training are identified as significant barriers. The study concludes that while STEAM education offers a transformative approach to learning, bridging traditional academic divides its full potential is yet to be realized due to practical and infrastructural limitations. The thesis suggests the necessity of further research focused on empirical data regarding STEAM's impact on middle school education and strategies for effective technology integration in diverse educational contexts. / Denna uppsats undersöker effekten av STEAM-utbildning (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics - vetenskap, teknik, ingenjörskonst, konst och matematik) på elever i mellanstadiet (årskurs 4-6), med fokus på hur det förbättrar motivation, engagemang och problemlösningsförmåga. Genom att använda en systematisk litteraturöversikt undersöks integrationen av teknologiska innovationer som virtuell verklighet (VR), förstärkt verklighet (AR) och artificiell intelligens (AI) i STEAM-utbildning tillsammans med lärarnas utvecklande roll i detta tvärvetenskapliga tillvägagångssätt. Resultaten visar att STEAM positivt påverkar elevens kreativitet och självkänsla, särskilt när det gäller att förbättra figurativ kreativitet. Integrationen av konst i STEM-ämnen berikar inte bara lärandeupplevelser utan främjar också en omfattande förståelse av både konstnärliga och vetenskapliga discipliner. Dock identifieras utmaningar med att implementera avancerade teknologier i klassrum, såsom resursbegränsningar och behovet av förbättrad lärarutbildning, som betydande hinder. Kunskapsöversikten drar slutsatsen att även om STEAM-utbildning erbjuder ett transformativt tillvägagångssätt för lärande som överbryggar traditionella akademiska klyftor, är dess fulla potential ännu inte förverkligad på grund av praktiska och infrastrukturella begränsningar. Kunskapsöversikten föreslår nödvändigheten av ytterligare forskning inriktad på empiriska data angående STEAM:s påverkan på utbildning i mellanstadiet och strategier för effektiv teknikintegration i olika utbildningssammanhang.

No description available.

The purpose of this study is to investigate how assessment processes in secondary school Physical Education and Health (PEH) are manifested in PEH teachers’ concrete grading based on the new Swedish curriculum from 2011. Three major questions are formulated: Which difficulties and possibilities do PEH teachers experience during assessment based on the new curriculum? How do they motivate their grades? Which dilemmas do they describe in connection with their grading? The curriculum theories by Bernstein and Swedish theorist Linde were chosen as theoretical framework. Furthermore, a hermeneutic perspective was applied in order to interpret and analyse the results from video recorded interviews. The results show that the new curriculum and syllabus are described as more structured and more interconnected than the previous ones. The new grading scale, the explicit syllabus and the fact that teachers have to offer a wider spectrum of activities are described as strengths. Grades are meticulously documented since this is a way to justify the grades both for the pupils and their parents. Almost all participating teachers in the study use matrices to document their assessments. Theoretical knowledge has gradually become more important in PEH, for example Health is mainly assessed based on theoretical assignments. However, the constant assessment has become so comprehensive that the PEH teachers fear that the joy of being active will decline. The difficulties experienced in relation to the new curriculum are, to a large extent, focused on the new grading scale and the description of what is required to obtain a certain grade. Teachers are hesitant as to the meaning of expressions like “to a certain degree”, “relatively well” and “well”. They feel insecure in their assessment, for example how to handle the proportions between different capabilities. It is obvious that further in-service training is necessary in order to obtain more equivalent grades. The requirements for each step of the grading scale must be clarified.

No description available.

Today, many school districts are mandating tests to measure student performance and to hold individual schools and school systems accountable for that performance in order to meet the standards set forth in the No Child Left Behind Act (2001) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (2004). The focus of this study was to examine the relationship among cognitive ability as measured by the Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT) and measures of achievement, specifically, standardized achievement scores on the New Jersey Assessment of Skills and Knowledge (NJ ASK) and school grades. The current study investigated archival data of 452 seventh grade students enrolled in a large, suburban public school district during the 2007-2008 school year. Scores on the CogAT and NJ ASK were collected from grades 3, 5, and 7. Final grades in the subject areas of Reading, Writing, Math, Social Studies and Science were collected from report cards from the end of seventh grade of the 2007-2008 school year. Pearson correlations found significant relationships between: (1) cognitive ability and standardized achievement scores in grades 3, 5, and 7, (2) third grade cognitive ability and grade seven grades, and (3) third grade standardized achievement scores and grade seven grades. Further, out of the five cluster scores on the grade 3 CogAT and NJ ASK, the NJ ASK Language Arts score was the best predictor of grades in Reading and Writing and the NJ ASK Mathematics score was the best predictor of grades in Math, Science, and Social Studies. Finally, third grade NJ ASK Language Arts, NJ ASK Mathematics and CogAT Verbal scores were the best predictors of special education classification in grade 7, accounting for a combined 22% of the variance. Limitations to the study and implications for future research and practice are discussed. / School Psychology

Den här studien ämnar ta reda på ifall den matematiska begreppsförståelsen hos elever på gymnasiet har en påverkan på deras matematikkunskaper. Detta genom att jämföra elevernas betyg med deras resultat i en enkät designad för ändamålet. Ytterligare undersöks vilka begrepp eleverna har bättre eller sämre kännedom om, ifall det finns variationer mellan pojkar och flickor, och om det finns skillnader baserat på om de går första eller tredje året på gymnasiet. För att göra undersökningen på ett rättvist sätt har begreppen tagits ur kurslitteratur från högstadiet. Dessa har sedan omvandlats till en enkät där frågorna konstruerats med begreppsförmågan i fokus. Detta för att i största möjliga mån utesluta övriga matematiska förmågor. Enkätundersökningen genomfördes med 118 gymnasieelever i en svensk gymnasieskola på två högskoleförberedande program, 68 elever från årskurs 1 med Matematik 1c och 50 elever från årskurs 3 med Matematik 4c. Slutligen visar resultaten att det finns ett samband mellan betyg och begreppsförståelse. I jämförelsen mellan pojkar och flickor är resultaten nära likvärdiga. När det kommer till förändringen mellan år 1 och 3 finns en viss skillnad, där de i årskurs 1 presterat något högre resultat än de i årskurs 3. De matematiska begrepp som eleverna hade svårast för var de inom talmängder och sannolikhet. / This study aims to determine whether the mathematical conceptual understanding of high school students affects their mathematical knowledge. This is done by comparing the students' grades with their results from a survey designed for this purpose. Additionally, the study examines which concepts students have better or worse knowledge of, whether there are variations between boys and girls, and if there are differences based on whether they are in their first or third year of high school. To conduct the investigation fairly, the concepts were taken from middle school course literature. These were then converted into a survey where the questions were constructed with a focus on conceptual understanding. This is to exclude other mathematical skills as much as possible. The survey was conducted with 118 high school students at a Swedish high school in two college preparatory programs, 68 students from year 1 taking Mathematics 1c and 50 students from year 3 taking Mathematics 4c. Finally, the results show that there is a connection between grades and conceptual understanding. In the comparison between boys and girls, the results are nearly equivalent. Regarding the change between year 1 and year 3, there is a slight difference, with the year 1 students performing slightly better than the year 3 students. The mathematical concepts that students found most challenging were those related to sets of numbers and probability.

This master thesis explored washing with water grades and lipase as environmentally friendly alternatives to conventional detergents containing surfactants. On hydrophilic surfaces, purified water can remove fat through roll-up mechanism, initiated by electrostatic repulsion forces. On hydrophobic surfaces, purified water alone cannot remove fat as there are no electrostatic repulsion forces. However, addition of lipase might promote degreasing through solubilization. Lipases are only activated when encountering an oil-water interface. Once activated, lipases can hydrolyze carboxylic ester bonds in fats. The aim of this project was to evaluate if addition of lipase from Rhizopus niveus (RNL) to water grades (such as ultrapure water, DIRO, and tap water) can enhance their cleaning efficiency to remove fat-based stains from hydrophilic and hydrophobic surfaces. An interesting phenomenon was observed in contact angle measurements. On hydrophilic surface, some solutions with high RNL concentration caused the oil droplet to divide into several droplets. The involved mechanisms are yet unknown. Gravimetric analysis showed a significant increase in cleaning efficiency in most samples (except tap water) after addition of RNL. Also, the effect of interfacial changes became significant. Multiple cycle washing, with repeated interfacial changes and high rate of fat removal, was more efficient than single cycle washing. In the quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation (QCM-D) measurements, RNL had a significant effect on the frequency and dissipation data. Observed changes when washing with RNL, suggest that apart from the cleaning promoted by interfacial changes, also enzymatic cleaning was occurring. Unfortunately, the calculated cleaning efficiencies reveal that addition of RNL did not increase the cleaning efficiency in this specific washing test. To obtain extensive understanding of RNL’s behavior and activity in water grades, as well as the effect of RNL on different surfaces (without or with fats involved), further experiments are necessary.

This study observed the effects of different school forms on the political interest of its students. The purpose of investigating the political interest based on school form is to see if there are any outstanding differences between private and public schools regarding political interest. The reason for this investigation was the falling grades and the diminishing political interest observed in prior studies used for this assignment as well as a reform in the school system called “Skolreformen” in Swedish that has been in effect for over 20 years at this point. Data was collected via a survey where students in four different high schools, both in the public and private, answered questions about their political interest, current study situation, view on the future and other questions related to school and political interest. A quantitative method was used, where the answers of the survey were cross tabulated to correlate different operative indicators and build a narrative to be analyzed. Quantitative correlation analysis was used to analyze the narrative. The study concluded that the political interest is overall low in both school forms. No major differences were noted between school forms, the view of the future affects political interests in a greater regard than what was expected.

Ordspråk har fyllt många olika kommunikativa syften utifrån ett historiskt perspektiv, och vi stöter på dem bland annat i skönlitterära verk, sagor, fabler och sägner. Förr i tiden mötte elever sagor och fabler i svenskundervisningen på ett helt annat sätt än vad de gör idag som då lärde elever om etik, moral och konsekvens. Studiens syfte är att bidra med kunskap om årskurs 6 elevers förståelse för ordspråkens betydelse, för att synliggöra dess potential i värdegrundsarbetet i svenskundervisningen. Syftet omsätts i frågeställningar som berör elevers förståelse om ordspråk samt resonemang utifrån egna erfarenheter om ordspråk som behandlar värdegrundkontexten. Studiens teoretiska utgångspunkter är den sociokulturella teorin och den sociala inlärningsteorin. För att uppnå syftet har kvantitativa och kvalitativa metoder använts. Den kvantitativa är enkäter och den kvalitativa är gruppintervjuer. Intervjuerna transkriberades och sammanställdes utifrån en tematisk analysmetod. Resultatet visar att eleverna har övergripande god kännedom utifrån enkätsvaren om de ordspråk som inkluderats i studien. Under intervjuerna resonerade eleverna runt sanning, inkludering, vänskap och utanförskap utifrån egna erfarenheter och tankar med tillhörande exempel. Slutsatsen är att det finns stor potential i värdegrundsarbetet och i svenskämnet. I värdegrundsuppdraget kan ordspråk fungera som ett träningsverktyg, i att träna elevers sociala och emotionella kompetens i ett sociokulturellt sammanhang. Lärare kan få indikationer om var en elev befinner sig i sin kognitiva utveckling, och bearbeta aktuell klassrumsproblematik. Utifrån kunskapsuppdraget bör undervisning bygga på bland annat en balans mellan pedagogik,  kultur och värderingar. Ordspråkens potential i kunskapsuppdraget med utgångspunkt i svenskämnet fyller olika funktioner där läsförståelse, kommunikation, textförståelse, läsa mellan raderna och en elevs läskunnighet främjas. / Proverbs have fulfilled many different communicative purposes from a historical perspective, and we come across them, among other things, in works of fiction, fairy tales, fables and legends. In the past, students encountered fairy tales and fables in Swedish education in a completely different way than they do today, which then taught students about ethics, morality and consistency. The purpose of the study is to contribute knowledge about grade 6 students' understanding of the meaning of proverbs, in order to make visible its potential in the value-based work in Swedish education. The purpose is translated into questions that concern students' understanding of proverbs and reasoning based on their own experiences of proverbs that deal with the value-based context. The study's theoretical starting points are the sociocultural theory and the social learning theory. To achieve the aim, quantitative and qualitative methods have been used. The quantitative is surveys and the qualitative is group interviews. The interviews were transcribed and compiled based on a thematic analysis method. The results show that the students have an overall good knowledge based on the survey answers of the proverbs included in the study. During the interviews, the students reasoned around truth, inclusion, friendship and exclusion based on their own experiences and thoughts with associated examples. The conclusion is that there is great potential in the value-based work and in the Swedish subject. In the core value assignment, proverbs can function as a training tool, in training students' social and emotional competence in a sociocultural context. Teachers can get indications of where a student is in their cognitive development, and process current classroom issues. Based on the knowledge mission, teaching should be based on, among other things, a balance between pedagogy, culture and values. The potential of proverbs in the knowledge assignment based on the Swedish subject fulfills various functions where reading comprehension, communication, text comprehension, reading between the lines and a student's literacy are promoted.