University of Lapland

About: University of Lapland is a education organization based out in Rovaniemi, Finland. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Arctic & Context (language use). The organization has 665 authors who have published 1870 publications receiving 39129 citations. The organization is also known as: University of Rovaniemi & Lapin yliopisto.

Genetic diversity in the Siberian jay Perisoreus infaustus in fragmented old‐growth forests of Fennoscandia

Abstract: The Siberian jay Perisoreus infaustus is a bird inhabiting old-growth coniferous taiga forests. It has recently declined in numbers in Finland mainly because of habitat fragmentation. Distant mtDNA lineages from Taimyrian Peninsula (subspecies P. i. monjerensis) and middle Yenisei valley (P. i. rogosovi) have diverged from Fennoseandian (P. i. infaustus) lineage ca 610000 yr ago. The estimated time to the most recent common ancestor for Fennoscandian population (78000 yr) coincides with the beginning of the Weichselian ice age. Within Fennoscandia, the observed distribution of pairwise genetic distances followed the expected distribution of an expanding population reflecting the postglacial history rather than the present day situation of the Siberian jay. Mitochondrial control region sequences showed that among 65 Fennoseandian individuals the most common baplotype (40%) was found in all but two populations. Genetic structuring (φST= 0.111) was clear within the Fennoseandian population. This may be attributable to low intrinsic natal dispersal. In an isolate of western Finland, nucleotide diversity was significantly lower than in P. i. infaustus populations of the continuous distribution area. We suggest that isolation by habitat fragmentation in modern landscapes may effectively reduce gene flow below the level occurring in natural conditions. Thus, Siberian jay isolates with limited number of individuals would be highly vulnerable to loss of genetic variation or even to extinction by demographic or environmental stochasticity.

How to Make the Neighbourhood School a School for All?: Finnish Teachers' Perceptions of Educational Reform Aiming towards Inclusion.

Abstract: A new special education strategy was launched in Finland by the Ministry of Education in 2007. The new Basic Act was enacted in 2010 and the new national core curriculum concerning three-tiered support for pupils in 2011. Since the 1990s, teachers across Finland have participated in developing Finnish basic education towards greater inclusion. The goal of this study was to enhance understanding of the implementation of the Finnish educational reforms. In this study, teachers' perceptions of good inclusive teaching arrangements were analysed and compared with the theories of inclusive education. There is still a lack of information available on the implementation of inclusive education practices, and especially about teachers' experiences of teaching in inclusive classrooms. In 2010, basic education teachers (N = 327) in Lapland, Finland, were asked to describe their experiences and perceptions of inclusive teaching arrangements. The results indicated that teaching practices have become more diverse, flexible and differentiated, enabling teaching of diverse groups. More and more teachers preferred teaching in teams and planning their work together, showing that changes in schools change the teacher's profession too. In this study, a framework for inclusive schools was constructed through implementing the indexes of inclusion created by Booth and Ainscow.

I am no longer alone - How do university students perceive the possibilities of social media?

Abstract: An increasing number of people have become users of social media, mostly looking for social contacts and networking. But what kind of social capital do social networking services (SNSs) provide? University students' (N = 90) experiences of and opinions on social media were studied through a semi-structured questionnaire. The following research questions were set for this study: (1) What kinds of benefits do university students perceive in the usage of social media? and (2) What kind of social capital does social media produce according to university students' opinions? Their answers were analysed with the qualitative content analysis method. The results revealed that SNSs can increase students' social capital in many ways, such as in the form of peer support groups and learning environments, and enhance bonding and communality in them. These possibilities should be better studied in educational contexts, as they can have a positive impact on students' well-being, engagement to studies and, thus, study success.

Insensitivity of Soil Microbial Activity to Temporal Variation in Soil N in Subarctic Tundra: Evidence from Responses to Large Migratory Grazers

Abstract: Large migratory grazers commonly influence soil processes in tundra ecosystems. However, the extent to which grazing effects are limited to intensive grazing periods associated with migration has not previously been investigated. We analyzed seasonal patterns in soil nitrogen (N), microbial respiration and extracellular enzyme activities (EEAs) in a lightly grazed tundra and a heavily grazed tundra that has been subjected to intensive grazing during reindeer (Rangifer tarandus L.) migration for the past 50 years. We hypothesized that due to the fertilizing effect of the reindeer, microbial respiration and EEAs related to microbial C acquisition should be higher in heavily grazed areas compared to lightly grazed areas and that the effects of grazing should be strongest during reindeer migration. Reindeer migration caused a dramatic peak in soil N availability, but in contrast to our predictions, the effect of grazing was more or less constant over the growing season and the seasonal patterns of microbial activities and microbial N were strikingly uniform between the lightly and heavily grazed areas. Microbial respiration and the EEAs of β-glucosidase, acid-phosphatase, and leucine-aminopeptidase were higher, whereas that of N-acetylglucosamidase was lower in the heavily grazed area. Experimental fertilization had no effect on EEAs related to C acquisition at either level of grazing intensity. Our findings suggest that soil microbial activities were independent of grazing-induced temporal variation in soil N availability. Instead, the effect of grazing on soil microbial activities appeared to be mediated by substrate availability for soil microorganisms. Following a shift in the dominant vegetation in response to grazing from dwarf shrubs to graminoids, the effect of grazing on soil processes is no longer sensitive to temporal grazing patterns; rather, grazers exert a consistent positive effect on the soil microbial potential for soil C decomposition.