Promoting the Quality of Teacher-Toddler Interactions: A Randomized Controlled Trial of “Thrive by Three” In-Service Professional Development in 187 Norwegian Toddler Classrooms

The effectiveness of the Thrive by Three intervention, a 10-month, multicomponent, in-service professional development model to promote the quality of caregiver-toddler interactions (i.e., process quality), was tested utilizing a clustered randomized controlled design. Eighty childcare centers with 187 toddler classrooms in Norway were randomly assigned to either the Thrive by Three intervention group (n=87) or a usual-activity wait list control group (n=100). Interactional quality was assessed with the Toddler version of the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS-Toddler) at three timepoints: pre-, mid-, and post-intervention. There were significant group differences in change in quality during the intervention period in both CLASS domains, Emotional and Behavioral Support (EBS), and Engaged Support for Learning (ESL), with greater overall differences in the ESL domain. Quality increased in the intervention groups, but quality decreased in the control group from baseline to post-intervention. There were significant group differences in quality at baseline. The Thrive by Three intervention had a positive effect on teacher-toddler interactions in both the EBS and ESL domains. Results need to be replicated preferably in more diverse samples.Clinical Trial Registration:ClinicalTrials.gov #NCT03879733.

English Teachers’ Understanding of Thailand Basic Education Core Curriculum

This qualitative study aimed at exploring English teachers’ understanding of the Basic Education Core Curriculum in Thailand and to investigate the contributing factors. The selected research with triangulation design was used to analyze the data, which was obtained from 66 English teachers. The drawings and questionnaire data showed that most teachers possessed ‘impeding understanding’, which may interfere with the development of a localized school curriculum. No clear trend was found in the present study on how teachers’ professional experiences, teachers’ qualifications, professional development activities, and involvement in curriculum development may contribute to teachers’ comprehension, as suggested in previous studies. The findings on teachers’ lack of understanding of the Core Curriculum after ten years of its implementation indicate the pressing needs to carefully design the implementation of the new national curriculum the Ministry of Education is developing. Effective communication processes and continual in-service professional development activities are recommended. Further investigation on how to effectively provide in-service professional development activities in Thai schools to promote teachers’ understanding of a new educational policy will be needed.

Sports Injury Risks and Opportunity Costs: The Conspicuous Landscape of Handball among Tertiary Teachers’ Colleges in Zimbabwe

This study explored injury risks associated with sport participation among handball players in Zimbabwean Tertiary Institutions between 2016 and 2019. The study employed a descriptive, prospective cohort design anchored on quantitative methodology and informed by Positivism Philosophy. The population comprised technocrats (coaches, fitness trainers, physiotherapists, psychologists and players) from selected Zimbabwe Teachers’ Colleges Sports Association handball teams. Stratified random sampling was used to select the respondents. Questionnaire was used as data collection tool and IBM SPSS Statistic Version 23 was used for data analysis. Findings revealed critical knowledge-service gaps on sports medicine professionals regarding lack of players’ informational sources on pre-participation medical health-checks as evidence-based practices for addressing activity limitations and risks upon return-to-sport. Ego-oriented administration characteristic of pain-injury paradox environment prevailed with pre-mature ending of players’ rehabilitation routes. Well formulated guideline-inclined preventive injury risk management protocols resonating player-centered medicine approaches that could effectively abate epidemiologic opportunity injury risks and costs were non-existent. Furthermore, regularized in-service professional development clinics lacked. Players’ objective injury records, profiles and pre-participation medical examination health-checks should be considered as critical informational sources for fully resolving physiological defects prior to return-to competitive contexts. Formulation of guideline-inclined preventive injury risk management protocols entrenching player-centered medicine practices could effectively trim down epidemiologic opportunity injury risks and costs and improve the critical base for players’ odds of participation. Regularized in-service professional development trainings for sports medicine professionals through symposiums should inexorably be an esteemed epitomic pedestal delved towards improving their expert base levels in view of contemporary preventive and injury risk management dynamics in sports.

Educational Impact Evaluation of Professional Development of In-Service Teachers: The Case of the Dialogic Pedagogical Gatherings at Valencia “On Giants’ Shoulders”

There is a broad consensus on the impact of teacher quality on students’ outcomes. However, the debate on how to evaluate the impact of teacher training on student improvement remains open. The evaluation of the impact of in-service teacher training, organized in a network for different schools, has been analyzed very little to date. Our research displays an innovative approach in this regard, through an In-Service Professional Development Program based upon scientific evidence and dialogic principles: The Pedagogical Gatherings “On Giant’s Shoulders”. We conducted a multilevel communicative study to analyze its impact upon students’ achievement and schools’ outcomes whose teachers taking part of the Gatherings. Our contribution provides an advancement in the analysis of educational impact in teacher training. We provide indicators to identify those training programs that improve educational outcomes, according to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal number 4: quality education for all.

The social service Reconceptualisation Movement in Brazil from 1960 to 1970

The aim of the current article is to present results of three studies about the so-called Reconceptualisation Movement in Brazil, based on the historical rescue of significant and exemplifying expressions used in the country from 1960 to 1970. The analysed studies have focused on investigating the economic and social significance of the military dictatorship to Brazilian society. They aimed at unveiling the historical background, sociopolitical bases and theoretical-methodological references guiding social service professional projects in the country at that time. The herein conducted analysis was based on documentary and bibliographic sources, collections, and testimonials to identify the strengths of projects that were in compliance with, and in opposition to, each other due to the tense theoretical and ideological dispute for hegemony in the Brazilian social service renewal process.

FACTORS AFFECTING THE TRAINING OF THE PERSONAL STAFF OF THE RUSSIAN GUARD UNITS

At present, the education of personnel of the Federal National Guard Troops Service in line with their professional activities plays an important role in maintaining the high combat readiness of the troops of the Russian Guard, as well as in successful completing service and combat missions for their intended purpose at a stated time. The paper studies the factors influencing the formation and development of professional attributes of personnel of the Federal National Guard Troops Service within the service and fighting activity. Based on the analysis of scientific literature, the author specifies three groups of factors influencing the training of servicemen and the staff of the Federal National Guard Troops Service: service-professional, environmental, and personal. The service-professional factors involve military (professional) training activities, performance of duties of combat service (on military duty), moral and psychological support, and other areas of service and combat activities. The environmental factors include the information environment, military personnel, family, friends, acquaintances, military rituals, wearing military uniforms, and military symbols. Personal factors reflect the intrapersonal level of mental activity of servicemen (employees) and imply motivation for self-improvement, the own activity of a person, and professional reflection. The author studied the opinions of officers regarding the importance of specified factors. The result showed the importance of all three groups of factors influencing the training of the RF National Guard personnel. According to the obtained data, the author concludes on the necessity to optimize the training process of the Russian Guard personnel by covering all areas of military professional activity.

Defining corruption and fraud in professional sport

The first step in systemic addressing the problem of corruption is the comprehension of its scale and nature. This paper explores the extent of fraud and corruption in professional sport. In addition to exploring the forms of legal response, one should mention the improper coverage of the issues of counteracting corruption in professional sport. Fraud and, specifically, corruption in sport is difficult to assess. Most of all-Russian and regional sports federations, physical culture and sports associations tend not to recognise the existence of corruption or fraud in particular sports, or claim that fraud and corruption are under control. Purpose of the study: to explore the extent of corruption and fraud in professional sport. We present a systematic review of literature that explores corruption and fraud, identifying the factors of corruption and fraud in professional sport. To search for relevant studies, the published literature was identified as based on Scimagojr, ResearchGate, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar, Sage Open, in search of relevant studies. Results and novelty: Some sports federations recognise that corruption and fraud are detrimental to fair play and integrity of the professional sport. It is a good practice to develop guidelines for sportsmen in relation to a particular professional sport, which outlines the deeds recognised as corruption and fraud, sets the procedure for their registration, assessment and measures to mitigate and counteract such threats. We have outlined the specifics of motivation for corruption and fraud in professional sport, which differs from the ways of corruption in other segments (like health, education, public service). Professional sports are not characterised by such traditional stimuli for corruption and fraud as poor working conditions and low wages, due to the fact that professional sportsmen are highly paid and their work conditions and social guarantees are much better than those of most ordinary people.