The purpose of this thesis is to examine whether the teacher's background affect students' approach to mathematics teaching. Characteristically, in Sweden today is that mathematics is perceived as difficult subject and that the number of foreign teachers has increased. The study examines a phenomenon which the relationship between the teacher's language accent and substance difficulties.The method used for data collection is questionnaires, in order to investigate the phenomenon as the relationship between the teacher's accent and substance difficulties.The investigation has been carried out based on the students' point of view, both secondary and primary school pupils. What difficulties have arisen in teaching?  What is the biggest obstacle to achieve the goals of mathematics, to understand the teacher's language accent first in order to understand the subject, or that mathematics is difficult in itself to be understood as a substance.The result clearly shows that the teacher's accent does not affect teaching and students' view of mathematics as a subject.

The aim with this master thesis is to analyze a scientific material concerning the context between learning and child/student development, and factors which controls process of learning, to create an image with quality account and teaching in mathematics, which then can raise the mathematical knowledge among students.The phenomena which stand in focus for the investigation is: why there is a negative tendency for development of knowledge in mathematics, among the Swedish students that TIMSSs investigations showed in intercultural comparison within the years 1993, 1999, 2003 and 2007.The method is the ethnographical method, which is based on: analyzing scientific theories about learning child/student development, factors which controls process of learning, and factors which controls process of learning the most and qualitative empiric investigation with qualitatively analyzes the questionnaires, which is about factors which are controlling the process of learning and factors which are controlling the process of learning the most.Result of the theoretical and empiric analyzes shows that factors as school environment, attitude for subjects and teaching, controls and influence the learning. To end a unenthusiastic tendency as a negative development of mathematical knowledge among students that is shown in TIMSS investigation and to elevate the students' performance in mathematics, an elevated qualitative account and teaching in mathematics, by the factors named. Safe school environments as the intercultural meeting place, the teachers influence part to the students' subjects' attitude in mathematics and goal related grading criteria in teaching, is all required for e qualitative teaching in mathematics..

Outdoor recreation habits in metropolis and rural areasThis study aims to examine the perception of nature and outdoor recreation habits from an urban-rural prospective. The urbanization process continues in Sweden and the populations of the cities are growing continuously. Trends to build more compact and ?climate smart? reigns and with this a risk that green areas and areas where outdoor recreation can be practiced are situated further and further away from the urban population. Analyzing the responses from a survey made by the research program Friluftsliv i förändring 2007 we have examined if and which differences exists between urban and rural areas regarding their perception of nature, outdoor recreation habits and factors influencing the practice of outdoor recreation.

The purpose of this study was to interview different groups of people (preschool teatcher, parents and theire childen) involved in preschool about their view on outdoor activity and children´s motoric development, and how a preschool yard should be designed to promote childrens development.All parties regard outdoor activity as very important for the development of children. They also think that the outdoor environment today is good but that it could be improved by including some trees and hills. The yard should also contain soil, sand, clay and water. The children prefer grass on the ground over other substrates. This study also gives good indications to decision makers how to build new or to reconstruct pre-school yards in the future..

The purpose of this study has been to compare teachers' differing methods of teaching mathematics and their perspectives on the learning process in a municipal school to a Waldorf school. The study has examined which approach best promotes student engagement and learning in mathematics in the first three years of schooling. The study is based on four interviews. The informants? accounts are interpreted using theories from previous research.

The purpose of this qualitative study is to investigate how some teachers make use of the results of the national tests in mathematics to plan their teaching. The questions are how they plan their teaching in mathematics and if they use the results of the national tests to compare with their own teaching.   Five teachers in mathematics has been interviewed. I have used unstructured interviews with open-ended questions, and I have been able to ask follow-up questions based on their answers. The analysis of the survey is made from a systems theory approach.  The result of the survey shows that teachers make use of student performance to look at their own teaching of the current group of students. However, there is not enough time to rehearse and repair the deficiencies discovered in the national tests, which for some is perceived as a stress factor.

This is a final thesis for the Master?s Programme in Landscape Architecture at the Faculty of Landscape Planning, Horticulture and Agricultural Science. The subject of the thesis is the outdoor environment of children in Hebron.The thesis aim is to investigate children?s basic needs and desires in their outdoor environment, and how these can be met in the design of a site in Hebron. A starting point for thesis is that children?s environments in the city should not be separated from city life in general, so that children and adults can meet in the city outdoor environment.The ongoing political conflict between Israel and Palestine is presented in the thesis by describing its consequences for the city of Hebron and the lives of its residents, with a particular focus on the everyday lives of Hebron children.

Studies in the recent years have showed that the preschool playground is important for both the physical and emotional development of children. The Botkyrka local government has decided to improve their preschool playgrounds in order to take advantage of these studies. The administration of childcare and education in Botkyrka is arranging a network between the different preschools where they work together to improve their outdoor environments. The network is arranging workshops and seminars where people from the different preschools can come and gain inspiration for improvements of their own preschools. The administration of properties has created a document where they describe the changes that are supposed to be made to the different outdoor environments. Through the administration of properties and the person who is responsible for the outdoor environments I was introduced to their work with the preschool playgrounds.

Outdoor recreation habits in metropolis and rural areasThis study aims to examine the perception of nature and outdoor recreation habits from an urban-rural prospective. The urbanization process continues in Sweden and the populations of the cities are growing continuously. Trends to build more compact and ?climate smart? reigns and with this a risk that green areas and areas where outdoor recreation can be practiced are situated further and further away from the urban population. Analyzing the responses from a survey made by the research program Friluftsliv i förändring 2007 we have examined if and which differences exists between urban and rural areas regarding their perception of nature, outdoor recreation habits and factors influencing the practice of outdoor recreation.

The outdoor environment at Children's hospital, the University Hospital, Uppsala, is used by sick children at the Children's hospital, their families and the hospital staff. The staff at the Children's hospital wanted to render the site more attractive and available. This graduation thesis is a proposal about how the outdoor environment at the Children's hospital can be improved. The aim is to design an environment for the sick children, their families and the hospital staff that will serve as a place for relaxation and privacy, as well as for play and movement. In order to find support for the redesign of this site I read literature about theories concerning healing environments, healing gardens, children's play and designs for children.

Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka vilka möjligheter samt hinder pedagoger verksamma inom tre olikt profilerade förskolor ser med utomhuspedagogik och utomhusmatematik i förskolans verksamhet samt att lyfta fram likheter och skillnader i pedagogernas synsätt relaterat till förskoleprofilen.En kvalitativ forskningsansats har använts med intervju som metod. Sex pedagoger har intervjuats - två pedagoger på en Reggio Emilia - inspirerad förskola, två på en I ur och skur förskola samt två på två olika oprofilerade förskolor.Resultatet av studien bygger på vår tolkning av pedagogernas utsagor och visar att pedagogerna, oavsett profilering, ser övervägande fler möjligheter än hinder med utomhuspedagogiken och utomhusmatematiken. De möjligheter som framkommit i resultatet beskrivs med hjälp följande rubriker; konkret och sinnligt lärande, hälsa, socialt samspel, motorisk utveckling, eget ansvar, fysiska miljön, naturmaterial och pedagogens inställning. De hinder som resultatet pekar på är relaterade till faktorer som tid, personalbrist, material, väder och pedagogens inställning. Samtliga pedagoger ser möjligheter med den sinnliga inlärningen och den grovmotoriska träningen utomhus.

In this examination paper I?m using the qualitative method: phenomenographic analysis to present twenty educated and working pre-school teachers opinions about being outdoors in Swedish pre-school. The purpose is to describe the variation between different pre-school teachers? opinions, not to focus on wrong or right.    The paper starts with a review over the opinions presented by the literature on the subject.

The purpose of this study is to examine some after-school teachers? perceptions about the outdoor stay at the after-school care centre in the schoolyard and in the leisure- environment.Five semi-structured interviews were conducted with the after-school teachers at five after-school care centres in the Stockholm area.In the theoretical part presents the leisure- governance and ongoing research on outdoor learning, research on the school playground and kindergarten local environment affects children in their development and learning, and after-school teachers? professional identity.The theoretical foundation is based on the phenomenographic approach.The questions are:? What is outdoor education according to the after-school teachers?? According to after-school teachers, what educational opportunities are provided by the schoolyard and the local environment?? How do the after-school teachers use the schoolyard and local environment?The result shows that outdoor education can be a knowledge invigorating complement to the indoor teaching and a way for the after-school centre to supplement the compulsory schoolday. The play outdoors can help to increase children's social development, creativity and imagination. The after-school teachers used the schoolyard and local environment for various purposes which may be due to different circumstances, knowledge and experience to carry out educational activities outdoors. But it may also depend on whether the after-school teacher focuses on the regular school day or in the afternoon at the after-school care centre..

This thesis which is about working with mathematics teaching has no effect/impact on performance and understanding of pupils. The study is intended to gain insight on working in mathematics education which has an impact on performance and understanding of students who are ethnically Swedish and foreign ethnic. In order to compare the ethnic Swedish and foreign students of ethnic understanding, I judged from their performance on the tests taken in year three. The qualitative approach permeated the work, both interviews and observations which were included in the survey. The qualitative study was chosen to get an understanding of how mathematics teaching is conducted in two different areas.

One of our big public health problems in Sweden is that human beings are too inactive in outdoor settings. That is why stress related diseases increase and influence humans both mentally and physical. The physical activity is halved among many children when they start school and the older they become the less they enjoy school. It is also an increasing problem that children and youth in today's society have lack of worthwhile experiences in the nature. The aim of this study was therefore to examine how the experience of outdoor environment had importance for health and learning on upper secondary school pupils.