There is a lack of research on students' conceptions of giftedness and intelligence, despite recognition of their influence on real-life factors such as achievement and motivation. This paper presents a cross-sectional mixed methods study that investigated Finnish students' (age 6-16 years; N = 1282) implicit conceptions of giftedness and…

Due to COVID-19, 2020 was a strange and different school year for many students around the world. Based on a survey of primary school students (N = 2665) conducted in December 2020, this article examines students' well-being and stress levels one year after the first COVID-19 outbreak. It also examines how students emotionally relate to the…

Deliberate practice and having a growth mindset have been hypothesized to increase school performance. But previous studies are few, have been limited to very short interventions, and on average resulted in small effect sizes on school performance. This study compared the attitudes, performance, and behavior of 130 7th-grade students taking part…

This longitudinal study of 1,066 Finnish students examined bidirectional reciprocal relationships between changes in perceived supportive school climate and changes in self-reported truancy from the last year of primary school (Grade 6) to the last year of lower secondary school (Grade 9). The results of the random intercept cross-lagged panel…

One core aspect of learning a language is developing vocabulary, an endeavor that requires a structured and principled focus in the classroom. As the EFL textbook has a central position in the language learning classroom, it should have an important role to play in structuring vocabulary development. Yet, what guides decisions concerning the…

Loneliness has previously been linked to cognitive and attentional bias, and such biases may have a detrimental impact on perceived scholastic self-beliefs. Little is known about the relationship in school-aged adolescents. The current study examined the association between loneliness and scholastic self-beliefs in a nationally representative…

This paper analyses data from the Swedish sample of the international VASI (Views about scientific inquiry) study (Lederman et al. [2019]. An international collaborative investigation of beginning seventh grade students' understandings of scientific inquiry: Establishing a baseline. "Journal of Research in Science Teaching." Published…

While individual and family factors behind students' school absenteeism are well-researched, fewer studies have addressed school climate factors. This study investigated the association between school climate in Swedish schools and students' absenteeism. A multi-informant survey of school climate was conducted in 101 schools and analysed in…

Tracking pupils based on their abilities or other aptitudes is a common practice in many countries. In Finland, selective classes with a special emphasis have become popular. The societal and individual effects of tracking are a topic of ongoing educational discussion. Tracking has been seen to increase educational inequality, but still it has…

Instructional quality is a research topic that has received increased attention over the past decades. However, despite evidence for its importance to student learning, few studies are designed to examine patterns of prevalent instruction. The present study aimed to enhance the understanding of instructional quality in Swedish lower secondary…

This study explored the situational interest and emotional valence of 13-year-old students (N = 94) participating in a five-session science course. The relationship between students' situational interest and emotional valence and their individual interest was also studied. During each session, students participated in a collaborative learning…

This study examined the role of learning difficulties in academic emotions and achievement across the transition to lower secondary school among 848 Finnish adolescents. Reading difficulties (RD) and math difficulties (MD) were identified based on test scores in Grade 6 and 7. Students with difficulties were identified as having resolving,…

This study investigated the experience of and effect created by a team sport and coaching intervention upon the self-concept of male school students (age: 12-16; n = 129) from diverse backgrounds. A convergent parallel mixed-method design was used to compare and relate a questionnaire study and an interview study in a quasi-experimental design,…

Previous research has shown that there is a link between usage of strengths and various positive outcomes, such as finding meaning and happiness in life. In our present study, we aimed to find out how usage of strengths is connected to general happiness with school-related factors as mediating variables. 418 Finnish students aged 10-16 filled a…

Abundant research has pointed to the importance of non-cognitive skills for success in life. This paper describes the development and validation of the "UiL", designed to measure 19 non-cognitive skills that have been identified as being important for school children in Denmark. First, we describe the development of the scales, and then…