Roughly 60% of first-year community college students attending a community college in Idaho need to take remedial courses. Such a high percentage of first-year community college students in remedial courses indicates that students are not being properly prepared for collegiate studies. The purpose of this study was to understand college readiness through the perception of first-year community college students who were taking remedial courses. The framework for this study builds on Conley's multidimensional model of college readiness. Data from 10 semi structured interviews conducted with community college students taking remedial courses provided information about the opinions and ideas about college readiness, in addition to evaluations regarding what was missing in their K-12 education to prepare them for collegiate studies. Through open-ended data coding, interrelated themes were analyzed, and the interpreted meaning was shared through a qualitative narrative. The findings from this study suggest that college readiness is more than academic knowledge and understanding. The K-12 education system shall help students to focus on specific skills such as time management and note taking and to seek out their passions and goals. The findings also suggest that the K-12 education system within the United States needs to be restructured to incorporate a system that encourages and supports student success through more individualized learning that places focus on student passions. When students are given the opportunity to seek after their passions, they gain more interest and motivation to learn and build a strong sense of self-efficacy.

This thesis takes its point of departure in the research field of intergenerational touch in Physical Education (PE). Previous research in the field have mainly been conducted from a teacher’s perspective and has shown that teachers of PE have become more cautious about using physical contact in recent years. The reasons for this more cautious attitude concerning physical contact is above all, the risk f being falsely suspected of sexual harassment. Previous research has, in a general way, also shown that physical contact in PE is a gendered issue with heteronormative points of departure The overall aim of this thesis is to investigate intergenerational touch in PE from a student perspective. More specifically the aims are to investigate physical contact between teachers and students in PE from a student perspective (paper I), and to investigate which discursive resources students draw on to conceptualize physical contact between teacher and student in PE in relation to heteronormativity (paper II). Six focus group interviews using photo elicitation have been conducted with students at an upper secondary school in Sweden. In paper I it is the concept of the didactic contract that is the theoretical starting point. The results show that, generally, the students support physical contact as a pedagogical tool if the physical contact has a good purpose according to the students. An implicit didactic contract is formed when student and teacher agree on when, how or why physical contact is used as a pedagogical tool. In paper II, the theoretical inspiration comes from Foucault and his work with discourses. The results show that the students’ talk is colored by the heteronormative discourse in society. This is especially expressed when young female students talk about male PE teachers. Heteronormativity is taken for granted and is not really challenged. Students generally support physical contact as a pedagogical tool in PE, however it is a very complex issue and puts high demands on PE teachers’ professionalism.

No description available.

In Swedish upper-secondary school, economics is part of the content of the social studies subject. Learning about concepts relevant to economics is a significant part of that. This study investigates how upper-secondary school students experience their economics education about concepts and measure their self-assessed and actual conceptual knowledge. Conceptual theory serves as the theoretical framework. Research indicates that upper-secondary school teachers and students struggle with the subject. Students from various parts of the world also show a lack of overall knowledge within economics. The material consists of questionnaires from 60 students spread across different cities in Sweden. The result reveals that a substantial amount of the students finds the economic subject as very difficult although interesting. A sizable part of the students mentions that their teachers have been a big part of their learning process. However, the result reports that a significant number of students displays inadequate conceptual knowledge. Furthermore, the students self-assessed and actual conceptual knowledge does not align with each other. Possible solutions include adding more economics elements to the curriculum or improve teacher’s economics training.

Skolan har en unik möjlighet att skapa bra förutsättningar för eleverna och deras fysiska aktiviteter. Trots detta visar Skolinspektionens granskning från 2018 att var femte elev i årskurs 7-9 inte deltar regelbundet i ämnet idrott och hälsa. Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka elevers deltagande i idrott och hälsa. Det vi vill undersöka är orsaker till varför elever vill respektive inte vill delta i ämnet. Som hjälp till detta utgår vi från våra frågeställningar “Varför deltar eller deltar inte elever i ämnet idrott och hälsa?” och “Hur erfar eleverna deltagandet i ämnet idrott och hälsa?”. Studien genomfördes med en kvalitativ metod med intervjuer med 16 elever, sju pojkar och nio flickor. Under intervjuerna antecknades elevernas svar och efteråt transkriberades och analyserades de med en tematisk analys enligt Braun och Clarke för att sedan analysera utifrån den teoretiska modellen KASAM i förhållande till vårt resultat. Det resultat som identifierats i denna studie är att de flesta elever deltar i ämnet idrott och hälsa och att den ledande orsaken till att elever deltar är glädjen för att röra på sig och umgås med sina kompisar. Läraren har en stor betydelse för hur eleverna uppfattar ämnet och en lärare med god relationskompetens som får sina elever att känna sig sedda bidrar till en trygg och meningsfull lärandemiljö. De elever som inte deltar kontinuerligt i undervisningen eller inte deltar aktivt anser sig ofta inte ha de färdigheter som de andra eleverna har, vilket skapar en osäkerhet. Med detta resultat dras slutsatsen att elever deltar i idrott och hälsa då de tycker att det är roligt och att lärarens roll är viktig för hur ämnet uppfattas.

This study describes upper secondary school students' perception of the One-To-One digitization with a focus on the subject of social studies. The work also reports on whether there is any socioeconomic difference between students' perception of the OTO digitalization. The purpose is to create an understanding among the Swedish teaching staff about what students consider to be positive and negative about digitization. This is so that teachers can use this knowledge in their didactic and methodical planning to improve today's school results. The study was carried out with a mixed mode survey that was sent out to 210 students. The didactic triangle, the American didactic triangle, the extended didactic triangle and the “opportunity model” have been used as theory to analyze the results. The result shows that high school students in the subject of social studies think that digital aids are good and here to stay. However, the results also show that the students believe that the digital aids are negative for their school results due to the various disruptions digitization gives access to. The study does not show any notable differences from a socioeconomic perspective. The students appreciate the digitization but also emphasize the problems with the various disturbances as a negative aspect.

En stillasittande trend har växt fram i samhället. Barn idag deltar i mindre utsträckning i fysisk aktivitet än generationerna innan, vilket framför allt påverkar hälsa och välbefinnande. Skolan har därför en viktig roll att spela för att vända denna klart ökande trend. Den här studien syftade till att identifiera faktorer för motivation och motstånd till fysisk aktivitet under skoldagen, samtidigt som en förståelse för den roll som skolan spelar för att främja elevernas deltagande utforskades. Informanterna i den här studien gick alla i fjärdeklass i en grundskola belägen i norra Sverige. För att lyfta elevperspektivet, deras erfarenheter och upplevelser av fysisk aktivitet i skolan, användes semistrukturerade intervjuer för att samla in data. Genom nyttjandet den tematiska analysen kunde totalt åtta teman identifieras i studien, vilka behandlar de aspekter som eleverna framhåller kring motivation och motstånd till deltagande i de fysiska aktiviteter som skolan erbjuder. Likt en del av den tidigare forskningen drar den här studien slutsatsen att elevperspektivet är av stort värde för att främja och utveckla deltagandet i fysisk aktivitet under skoldagen. / A sedentary trend has emerged in society, children today participate in less physical activity then the generations before which most prominently effects health and well being. Schools therefor have an important part to play in reversing this clearly increasing trend. The aim of this study focused on identifying factors for motivation and resistance towards physical activity during the school day, while also forming an understanding of the school’s role in promoting students’ participation. The informants of this study all attended their 4th year in an elementary school located in the north of Sweden. To give prominence to the student perspective, including their thoughts and understanding of the physical activity in school, this study used semi structured interviews to gather data. Through a thematic analysis, the study identified a total of eight themes of what students’ states causes motivation and resistance towards participating in the physical activities which the school offer. In line with some of the previous research this study concluded that the student perspective is of high value in order to promote and evolve their participation in different physical activities during the school day.

Civic teachers in Swedish upper secondary schools are facing a more challenging job than ever due to the current polarized political climate. They are expected to teach about controversial issues whilst keeping the classroom at peace and at the same time allowing each student the opportunity to express their opinion. This research overview strives to explore how teachers teach and deal with controversial topics in civic studies. How can teachers work with controversial issues in the classroom? And what does previous research say about this work? In order to answer these questions a literature search has been done and previous research and empirical material has been analyzed. The findings show different approaches, such as denying the controversy or presenting different perspectives of the controversy, when teaching controversial topics in the classrooms. The results of this research review also presents different perspectives from both teachers and students on the subject, teachers’ dilemma as well as pedagogical tools that can be beneficial for students’ development. The findings also show that there is no clear answer or manual that teachers can follow or be guided by when teaching about and dealing with controversial issues. However, depending on one's goal of the lesson, one can strategically use a certain approach in order to try and reach a certain outcome.

No description available.

The purpose of this investigation was to study what students in in the first year of the social science program in high school think about the guidance they had access to during their time at primary school. This is to ensure that it the guidance students are entitled to and contribute to the development of the business. The survey was conducted at two different high schools in southern Sweden. A total of 57 students participated in the survey. The results show that 46 and 29 percent of students at the two schools did not feel they had the information they needed for their upper secondary school The results proving what previous research reached that students selection process can lead to stress and uncertainty associated with the choice to high school. The results of the present study showed that girls in particular have high standards for themselves and experience stress and anxiety associated with their selection to a greater extent than boys. The results also show that the majority of students do meet a counselor but the availability and quality of the counseling varied between schools. When the liability is delegated to the municipal level in terms of the organization of guidance activities are controlled quality and access to how much principals choose to prioritize activities. The study shows that students had access to similar counseling programs such as field trips, work experience, open houses and individual guidance and that the majority is happy with their choice. The results also show that students are asking for more activities related to education and employment. From a gender perspective, more girls than boys claimed that they felt unease and experienced difficulties selecting, confirming what the agency's report states.