COVID-19 has had a devastating impact on people worldwide. We conducted an international survey (n = 3646) examining the degree to which people's appraisals and coping activities around the pandemic predicted their health and well-being. We obtained subsamples from 12 countries-Bangladesh, Bulgaria, China, Colombia, India, Israel, the Netherlands, Norway, Peru, Portugal, Turkey and the United States. For each, we assessed appraisals and coping strategies as well as indicators of physical and mental health and well-being. Results indicated that, despite mean-level societal differences in outcomes, the pattern of appraisals and coping strategies predicting health and well-being was consistent across countries. Use of disengagement coping (particularly behavioural disengagement and self-isolation) was associated with relatively negative outcomes. In contrast, optimistic appraisals (particularly of high accommodation-focused coping potential and the ability to meet one's physical needs), use of problem-focused coping strategies (especially problem-solving) and accommodative coping strategies (especially positive reappraisal and self-encouragement) were associated with relatively positive outcomes. Our study highlights the critical importance of considering accommodative coping in stress and coping research. It also provides important information on how people have been dealing with the pandemic, the predictors of well-being under pandemic conditions and the generality of such relations.
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This study analyze data from three national contexts in which teachers worked with the same teaching materials and inquiry classroom activities, investigating teachers’ use of strategies to promote interaction and scaffolding when participating in a professional development program. The data material is collected from three case studies from the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden, respectively. Each case is from a teaching unit about green plants and seed sprouting. In one lesson in this unit, students were involved in planning an experiment with sprouting seeds, and this (similar) lesson was videotaped in three national settings. The main research question is, as follows: How do primary teachers use questions to scaffold conceptual understanding and language use in inquiry science activities? The data analysis shows that teachers ask different kind of questions such as open, closed, influencing and orienting questions. The open, orienting questions induce students to generate their own ideas, while closed orienting and influencing questions often scaffold language and content-specific meaning-making. However, both open, closed, orienting and influencing questions can scaffold student language and conceptual understanding. Often, teacher questions scaffold both language content-specific meaning-making at the same time. The study shows the subtle mechanisms through which teachers can use questions to scaffold student science literacy and thereby including them in classroom interaction.
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Worldwide, pupils with migrant backgrounds do not participate in school STEM subjects as successfully as their peers. Migrant pupils’ subject-specific language proficiency lags behind, which hinders participation and learning. Primary teachers experience difficulty in teaching STEM as well as promoting required language development. This study investigates how a professional development program (PDP) focusing on inclusive STEM teaching can promote teacher learning of language-promoting strategies (promoting interaction, scaffolding language and using multilingual resources). Participants were five case study teachers in multilingual schools in the Netherlands (N = 2), Sweden (N = 1) and Norway (N = 2), who taught in primary classrooms with migrant pupils. The PDP focused on three STEM units (sound, maintenance, plant growth) and language-promoting strategies. To trace teachers’ learning, three interviews were conducted with each of the five teachers (one after each unit). The teachers also filled in digital logs (one after each unit). The interviews showed positive changes in teachers’ awareness, beliefs and attitudes towards language-supporting strategies. However, changes in practice and intentions for practice were reported to a lesser extent. This study shows that a PDP can be an effective starting point for teacher learning regarding inclusive STEM teaching. It also illuminates possible enablers (e.g., fostering language awareness) or hinderers (e.g., teachers’ limited STEM knowledge) to be considered in future PDP design.
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The primary objective of the project is to identify policies for the transformation of the Norwegian tourism sector to become resilient to climate change and carbon risks; to maintain and develop its economic benefits; and to significantly reduce its emissions-intensity per unit of economic output. Collaborative partnersStiftinga Vestlandforsking, Stiftelsen Handelshoyskolen, Stat Sentralbyra, Norges Handelshoyskole, Stiftelsen Nordlandsforskning, Fjord Norge, Hurtigruten, Neroyfjorden Verdsarvpark, Uni Waterloo, Uni Queensland, Desinasjon Voss, Stift Geirangerfjorden Verdsarv, Hogskulen Pa Vestlandet.
Client: Norwegian Research Council, subcontracted by Vestlandsforsking (Western Norway Research Institute) The overarching aim of the project is to enable the nature based tourism industry in Norway a sustainable adaptation to climate change. The sub-objectives are to: (1) assess climate change consequences for weather conditions critical to the nature based tourism industry; (2) assess climate change consequences for selected ecosystem services and physical infrastructure critical to the nature based tourism industry; (3) develop climate change adaptation strategies for the involved user-partners; and (4) develop climate services that can support the tourism industry in comprehending impacts of climate change and developing adaptation strategies and measures. CSTT will develop a serious simulation -based game for destinations in Norway that will help destination management to explore policy measures to adapt to climate change, and to climate mitigation policies. The game will be played at a stakeholder workshop, conducting the simulation game in one game playing sessions per case (all research partners listed above take part).
Client: The Research Council of Norway, subcontracted through Vestlandsforsking (West-Norway Research Institute) Product: The SUSNORD model (system dynamics model of all Norwegian inbound, outbound and domestic tourism), a stakeholder ‘serious gaming’ workshop based on SUSNORD and scenarios for sustainable (low-carbon emission) Norwegian tourism by 2025
