This thesis is concerned with the nature of the peer group experience and friendship patterns amongst a sample of 3rd, 4th and 5th year secondary school pupils. The thesis has four parts and a General Introduction in which the need for more sociological research in the area of the peer group and friendship is asserted. Certain themes are developed in relation to the peer group and friendship, and arguments for the research established. In the final part of the General Introduction consideration is given to the nature of the sociology of youth in relation to social class and age grading in society. Part One has three Chapters. The first deals with recent research into the peer group, most of which is American in origin with the exception of certain ethnographic studies which have been published in this country over the last few years. In Chapter Two research into friendship is considered with Chapter Three providing a critical evaluation of the research presented. A general schema is provided, drawing on the literature review which provides the basis for the development of research methods and the subsequent research programme. Part Two establishes the basis for the thesis research and has one chapter. Four objectives are explored. The first concerns the importance of friendship to young people, the second with levels of friendship, the third with deriving definitions of friendship. The final objective examines the effects of age and sex on friendship and is compared with the findings from four significant studies undertaken in this area. Sociometry is considered in relation to "mapping" a group, a self esteem inventory is developed and the Higher Schools Personality Questionnaire evaluated with a view to measuring a number of personality traits. In Chapter Five of Part Three a research design for quantitative and qualitative research is presented. The data are presented in Chapters Six and Seven. 371 young people completed a questionnaire into their friendship and peer relations and two peer groups were intensively involved in group discussion in an endeavour to provide more detailed information on friendship and peer activities. The final part, Chapter Eight, is devoted to a detailed consideration of the findings from the research in the light of the established objectives. An appraisal is undertaken of the extent to which new knowledge has been provided in the social sciences regarding the peer group and friendship.

Introduction A broad understanding of adolescent sexual behaviour is crucial: sexual experience and risky sexual behaviour are prevalent among adolescents. Many studies have been done and opinions have been given about adolescent behaviour regarding contraception and safe sexual practices. There seems to be sufficient knowledge, but passing it on to adolescents is inadequate. The aim of this study was to identify the factors that influence the use of contraceptive methods amongst 16 year old adolescents attending high schools in George, South Africa. Method This was a descriptive, cross-sectional study. Consent from parents/guardians and assent from study participants were obtained. Three high schools in George were randomly selected. All 16 year old learners attending these 3 schools, which assented and consented, were invited to voluntarily complete a self-administered questionnaire, specifically developed for this study. Results One hundred and eighty four 16-year old adolescents voluntarily took part. The male: female ratio was fairly equal. The average age of sexual debut was 15 years, with 42% using contraception at the time of the study. 33% of the sexually active respondents were not using contraception. Knowledge about contraception was reasonably good, with school, home and friends playing pivotal roles. Condoms were perceived to be to easiest available by the sexually active and non-active respondents, whereas injectable contraception was perceived easily available by the sexually active participants, but not by the sexually inactive participants. Contraception is being used mostly by instruction from parents, but peer pressure plays a role here too, as indicated by 20% of the respondents. The most popular reasons for not using contraception whilst being sexually active include: Sensation loss with condoms and partner pressure. Conclusion 16 year old adolescents attending high schools in George do not differ much from their peers nationally and internationally. Their sexual debut is slightly earlier; therefore their contraception use debut is also earlier. Their knowledge regarding contraceptive methods is acceptable, showing that previous educational programmes are bearing fruit and still need to continue. Friend/peer factors play an important role in the decision making of the respondents. This has been shown in their knowledge gain, access to and reasoning behind the use or non-use of contraception. These should be considered in new strategies aiming to improve the educational programmes.

<p>Syftet med denna uppsats är att ta reda på vilka attityder elever i grundskolans senare år har gentemot den praktiska undervisningen i de naturorienterande ämnena sett ur ett genusperspektiv.</p><p>För att studera elevernas attityder har enskilda semistrukturerade intervjuer valts som metod. Semistrukturerade intervjuer ger intervjuaren möjlighet att följa upp respondenternas svar med olika följdfrågor, som kan varieras relativt fritt vilket bidrar till att intervjuaren kan bilda sig en uppfattning om respondenternas attityder.</p><p>De attityder gällande praktisk undervisning i de naturorienterande ämnena som påträffats var främst positiva och samtliga respondenter var eniga om att den praktiska undervisningen hjälper till att öka förståelsen. Undersökningen visade att flickorna föredrog biologi eftersom detta inte ansågs vara lika svårt som fysik och kemi, medan pojkarna i undersökningen fann mer intresse i fysik och teknik. Meningarna huruvida den praktiska undervisningen examineras gick isär.</p><p>Slutsatsen som kan dras från uppsatsens undersökning blir således att pedagoger bör försöka att utveckla en praktisk undervisning som passar alla dagens ungdomar, oavsett kön, samt att tydliggöra syftet och målet innan det praktiska arbetet inleds.</p> / <p>The aim of this dissertation is to study the attitudes that exist among secondary-school pupils, to practical education in natural science, through a gender perspective.</p><p>Semi-structured interviews were chosen as method of studying the pupils’ attitudes. A semi- structured interview gives the interviewer a possibility to follow up the answers given by the respondent with varied attendant questions. For the interviewer this contributes to develop an insight of the attitudes.</p><p>The interviews reveal that most of the pupils have a positive attitude towards practical education in natural science and all of the respondents agreed on the fact that practical education helps to improve their understanding. The research showed that girls prefer biology since they find it less difficult than physics and chemistry, while boys on the other hand prefer physics and technology. There is a disagreement among the respondents on whether or not examinations exist in practical education.</p><p>The conclusion of the dissertation is that pedagogues need to develop a practical education suited for all youths irrespective of gender, as well as stating the aim and purpose before the practical education starts.</p>

The diploma thesis identifies the level of physical abilities of pupils of the first grade of elementary school in relation to the specialization of the teacher of physical education. To test the level of mobility, I chose the proven Unifittest test battery (6-60). I chose the pupils and teachers from four different primary schools in Prague and the surrounding area participated in the testing. By testing, I find and compare the physical abilities of pupils under the guidance of teachers with different specializations. I try to found out whether pupils' results are reflected by the fact that PE lessons are not led by teachers specialization in physical education. I also compare the content of physical education classes in their broader focus. To find this part of the research, I used the questionnaire method. I process and validate my hypotheses with Unifittest (6-60) and my questionnaire. The results of my work show that the level of physical abilities of pupils at primary school level is higher for pupils led by a teacher with PE specialization. Using questionnaires, I have verified that also the qualitative level of PE lessons and the interest of pupils in sports and physical activity are demonstrably higher for pupils led by a physical education expert.

Syftet med denna uppsats är att ta reda på vilka attityder elever i grundskolans senare år har gentemot den praktiska undervisningen i de naturorienterande ämnena sett ur ett genusperspektiv. För att studera elevernas attityder har enskilda semistrukturerade intervjuer valts som metod. Semistrukturerade intervjuer ger intervjuaren möjlighet att följa upp respondenternas svar med olika följdfrågor, som kan varieras relativt fritt vilket bidrar till att intervjuaren kan bilda sig en uppfattning om respondenternas attityder. De attityder gällande praktisk undervisning i de naturorienterande ämnena som påträffats var främst positiva och samtliga respondenter var eniga om att den praktiska undervisningen hjälper till att öka förståelsen. Undersökningen visade att flickorna föredrog biologi eftersom detta inte ansågs vara lika svårt som fysik och kemi, medan pojkarna i undersökningen fann mer intresse i fysik och teknik. Meningarna huruvida den praktiska undervisningen examineras gick isär. Slutsatsen som kan dras från uppsatsens undersökning blir således att pedagoger bör försöka att utveckla en praktisk undervisning som passar alla dagens ungdomar, oavsett kön, samt att tydliggöra syftet och målet innan det praktiska arbetet inleds. / The aim of this dissertation is to study the attitudes that exist among secondary-school pupils, to practical education in natural science, through a gender perspective. Semi-structured interviews were chosen as method of studying the pupils’ attitudes. A semi- structured interview gives the interviewer a possibility to follow up the answers given by the respondent with varied attendant questions. For the interviewer this contributes to develop an insight of the attitudes. The interviews reveal that most of the pupils have a positive attitude towards practical education in natural science and all of the respondents agreed on the fact that practical education helps to improve their understanding. The research showed that girls prefer biology since they find it less difficult than physics and chemistry, while boys on the other hand prefer physics and technology. There is a disagreement among the respondents on whether or not examinations exist in practical education. The conclusion of the dissertation is that pedagogues need to develop a practical education suited for all youths irrespective of gender, as well as stating the aim and purpose before the practical education starts.

Sammanfattning Föreliggande fenomenografiska studie har som syfte haft att undersöka elevers uppfattningar av fenomenen utbildning och arbete och hur de kopplar det till sin framtid. Studien har genomförts som enskilda intervjuer med sex elever vid gymnasiets Introduktionsprogram individuellt alternativ våren 2013. Efter analysarbetet av intervjuerna har Malows behovs- och motivationsteori kopplats till beskrivningskategorierna. Vid intervjuutsagorna framträder att utbildning uppfattas som något för framtida behov, mot ett yrke där betygen är biljetten in. Vad gäller utbildning i grundskolan kan tre beskrivningskategorierna urskiljas. Betygen uppfattas som det mest centrala, därefter behovs- och motivationsfaktorer som identifierats som relationer till lärare och kamrater samt till inlärningsmiljön- med fokus på hur undervisningen organiseras. Eleverna erfar att utbildningen på Introduktionsprogrammet jämställs med grundskolan men med större fokus på betyg. Arbete uppfattas som ett utbildningsresultat där de personliga behoven tillfredsställs vad gäller självständighet och oberoende genom egen försörjning men också de personliga behoven av social gemenskap och självförverkligande uppfattades som betydelsefulla aspekter av ett arbete. Efter att ha analyserat intervjuerna erfars mig elevernas oerfarenhet att reflektera över sina erfarenheter, vilket är viktigt i ett samhälle där man skall göra egna val och kunna se dess konsekvenser. Nyckelord: Gymnasieelever, introduktionsprogrammet, utbildning, arbete, fenomenografi. / Abstract The purpose of this phenomenografic study has been to examine the thoughts of six pupils in Upper Secondary school, Individual alternative, concerning the phenomenon education, work and their future. Maslow´s theory of needs and motivation was the background of the analysis. The result of this study is that what pupils find most significant in education is the marks. Education is something for the future, and the marks are the tickets to vocational training. Studies in Primary school also focus on the marks. Education in Primary school is also apprehended to Needs and motivation where the relationship to teachers and classmates is important. Also the environment of teaching was in focus. The pupils experience Primary school and Upper Secondary school as being the same but with a larger focus on the marks in Upper Secondary school. Work is apprehended as a result of education where the personal needs such as independence, social community and self-fulfillment are important aspects of one´s work. After my work with the analysis, my thoughts are that the pupils are inexperienced in verbalizing their thoughts. It is important in a society built on individual choice to be aware of the consequences of one´s choices. Keywords: Upper Secondary school pupils, Introduction Program, education, work, phenomenografy.

This essay examines upper secondary school pupils as well as the Swedish National Agency for Educations views on the education in subject of religion. How they describe its purpose, what content the topic should address, how the education should be implemented and what influence the pupils should have over their own studies. This to examine how the views of pupils and the Swedish National Agency of Education correlate and to analyze how it possibly can affect the pupil’s motivation. The survey is conducted by semi-forging tured interviews and text analysis in order to ascertain the pupils and the Swedish National Agency of Educations opinions on the issues. The results are then analyzed by various motivational theories that have played a vital role in the Swedish school and that have been found relevant to the study. The survey shows that the pupils and the Swedish National Agency of Education are relatively unanimous about how they regard studies on the subject of religion but that there are differences. It appears that the education the pupils have receive, despite the unity of these pupils and the Swedish National Agency of Education, not always seem to comply with the requirements of the Agency's governing documents. It also appears that the pupil’s motivation is affected by how the National Agency and the pupils' objectives, goals and beliefs correlate. When those are alignment or when the school takes account of pupils' expectations and their own goals the education seems more adequate to the pupils.

The aim of the thesis is to reveal the relationship between lower secondary school pupils in cities Semily and Prague and regular physical activity, depending on the interests of their parents. Specific objectives included the determination of the relationship of students to physical activities, finding their parents' relationship to these activities and the subsequent determination of the cross-correlation of these two relationships. After gathering and subsequent analysis of the relevant sources a questionnaire has been compiled. The questionnaire survey was conducted at selected lower secondary schools in cities Semily and Prague. After subsequent data collection a comparison of schools in both regions was conducted. Research has shown that in terms of regular physical activity pupils in Prague are more active than those in Semily. In Prague 73 % of pupils regularly perform physical activities, while in Semily it is 56 %. Another output is information that 79 % of parents in Semily are (or were in the past) regularly physically active. In Prague the figure is 82 %. The main finding of the thesis is a very strong link between physical activity of pupils and physical activity of their parents. 93 % of physically active students in Semily have parents who are also physically active, in Prague it...

M.Ed. / Research teams from the Department of Educational Sciences of the Rand Afrikaans University (RSA) and the Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Social Ecology of the Ben Gurion University (Israel) have joined hands in a research project. Knowledge, experience and expertise were pooled in an endeavour to expose the causes leading to the dropout phenomenon amongst adolescents worldwide, and more specifically within their own countries. The development of prevention programmes to address the problem will be introduced in follow-up studies with a goal of reducing the number of school dropouts. The aim of this study is to compare disadvantaged standard seven at-risk and not at-risk pupils in order to determine whether or not school climate could be considered an influencing factor in early school leaving. The method of the research is twofold. A literature study constitutes the first part in which terminology, concepts, definitions, causes and consequences of dropout are discussed. The emphasis is placed on school climate in general and the relation between school climate and academic achievement in particular. This was followed by an empirical investigation to determine whether there are significant differences between at-risk and not at-risk standard seven pupils with regard to their perception of school climate. These pupils were identified by their teachers and their replies measured in a questionnaire. The empirical investigation involved standard seven pupils affiliated to five high schools in the Pretoria-Witwatersrand-Vereeniging area. In total, 734 pupils answered the questionnaire. The information was processed at the Statistical Consultation Service of the Rand Afrikaans University.

En god taluppfattning krävs för att elever i skolan ska kunna tillgodose sig matematikundervisningen. Taluppfattning hänvisar till elevers kunskaper om tals relationer, betydelse och storlek samt de begrepp som har en direkt anslutning. Litteraturstudien syftar till att sammanställa vad forskning belyser om grundskolelevers taluppfattning samt vilka aspekter av undervisning och utveckling av taluppfattning i grundskolan som föreligger. Material som framförts och analyserats i studien är taget från Skolverket, studentlitteratur, undersökningar samt nationella och internationella studier inhämtade från databassökningar. För lärare finns Skolverkets centrala innehåll att förhålla sig till i matematikundervisningen. Där framställs ett helt ämnesområde om Taluppfattning och tals användning och kommentarmaterialet betonar vikten av god taluppfattning för en vidare matematikutveckling. Trots detta visar undersökningar att svenska elever hamnar under genomsnittet när det kommer till kunskap om taluppfattning. Resultatet i litteraturstudien var i det stora hela framfört på ett varierande sätt, men samtliga studier indikeraratt en god taluppfattning är avgörande för elevers vidare matematiska utveckling. Vad gäller begreppet taluppfattning beskrivs det på olika sätt, då det saknas en särskild förklaring för det. Taluppfattning är nämligen avgörande inom ett flertal kategoriseringar och ämnesuppdelningar inom ämnet matematik