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There is growing interest in using crop residues, particularly cereal straw, to replace fossil fuels in heat and electricity production. The purpose of the present study was to assess and compare the environmental impacts of straw production in two European Union countries, Poland and Finland.

The selected environmental impacts were greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, biodiversity and soil physical quality. The latter was represented by the indicators of soil erosion and compaction. For biodiversity and erosion assessment, the authors used two methods that could be used with existing easily accessible data and thus did not require excessive fieldwork.

Compared to the fossil reference fuel, coal, straw production caused minimal GHG emissions in both of the subject countries. Biodiversity and erosion impacts were greater in Poland, while the potential risk of soil compaction caused by field traffic is greater in Finland.

The study provides insight into the impacts of bioenergy production on biodiversity and soil quality, of which there is currently limited knowledge.

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the development of medicine education by examining pupils’ perceptions of medicines and medicine use.

Fourth graders’ (n=51, aged 10-11) perceptions about medicines and their use were collected in one school through mixed-methods using a questionnaire, a drawing and discussions.

Listing several over-the-counter medicines, pupils most frequently perceived that medicines are meant for treating headaches, wounds or temporarily when they are sick or have some pain, and that medicines help to ease symptoms and speed recovery. Pupils mentioned getting information about medicines from the pharmacist, the internet, the physician, as well as from medical packages.

This study was carried out in one school context and is therefore not necessarily generalizable, it does, however, bring an awareness of concrete pedagogical needs to the debate on health education and was conducted using methods that, to some extent, can be transferred to any school setting.

These results show that medicine education should already be started in primary school, along with critical thinking skills related to use of the internet.

The development of medicine education may help improve the wellbeing of pupils.

The triangulation of data used in the paper are in the authors’ awareness unique in the context of medicine education. The results particularly highlight the role of the internet in medicine education, thus suggesting the importance of critical thinking.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the construction of master narratives related to age, gender and entrepreneurship in the context of entrepreneurship education (EE) in Finnish higher education (HE). This is important as master narratives create and limit our understanding of entrepreneurship.

The data comprises 30 student interviews generated in one multidisciplinary Finnish university. The data were analyzed using narrative positioning analysis to examine what kinds of master narratives are (re)constructed in relation to age and entrepreneurship by Finnish university students and how gender intertwines with age in the construction of entrepreneurship.

Three aged and gendered master narratives were identified: (1) youthful, masculine, startup/growth entrepreneurship; (2) middle-aged feminine, expert entrepreneurship and (3) modest, feminine, senior entrepreneurship. The paper makes visible aged and gendered master narratives and cultural norms related to entrepreneurship in the context of EE and HE. Authors argue that the youthful, masculine startup/growth entrepreneurship is the hegemonic master narrative in the context of EE in Finnish HE. Femininity is mostly excluded from this master narrative.

The paper contributes to critical literature on entrepreneurship as an aged as well as gendered phenomenon in the context of EE and HE. So far research on entrepreneurship as an aged and gendered phenomenon in EE and in the context of HE has been virtually non-existent. Moreover, the theoretical and methodological focus on master narratives in entrepreneurship and EE literature is novel. The master narratives identified in the study show that HE students are not addressed equally in relation to entrepreneurship, but aged and gendered hierarchies are sustained.

The purpose of this paper is to assess the socioscientific issue (SSI) method as a way of improving seventh graders’ nutrition know-how on dietary supplements (DS), and to describe how students experience learning nutritional issues through the SSI method.

Participants were seventh graders from three different classes (n=43). Health education intervention lasted 7 h and it embodied the three-staged model: the scenario, the inquiry and the decision-making stages. The study was qualitative in nature. The data were collected through a questionnaire before and after the intervention. The data were analyzed using summative content analysis.

Intervention tended to deepen students’ know-how on vitamins and rational use of DS. Students’ experiences of learning nutritional issues through the SSI method were generally positive. The scenario stage was considered current and authentic. The inquiry stage and decision-making stage helped in understanding the societal connections between the study task and the rational use of DS.

SSI method enhances students’ knowledge about the rational use of DS. E-learning environment gave students possibilities to work collaboratively. Especially, possibilities to discuss with peers and share own experiences supported learning.

To solve the need of dietary supplements (DS) is a complex nutritional issue for society and for individuals. Since consumption of special diets has increased among adolescents, the rational consumption of DS is relevant and interesting learning topic at secondary school.

The purpose of this paper is to examine to what extent Finnish university students endorse entrepreneurial intent and the ways in which they position themselves in relation to entrepreneurship according to their self-perceived abilities or “ability self”.

The study was conducted by means of an e-survey, and the participants comprised the sample of students (n =1,819) from two Finnish universities, representing diverse fields of study.

It was found that a great majority of the students showed a relatively low intent to become an entrepreneur. The perception of abilities, such as innovativeness and ambitiousness-competitiveness, was positively related with entrepreneurial intent, whereas the perception of academic abilities and “conventional” employee skills indicated inverse associations.

The findings suggest that in terms of self-perceived abilities, entrepreneurship in an academic context is perceived as a rather restricted category to which only a few specific individuals have access. Accordingly, there is a certain tension between the tenets of entrepreneurship and corresponding abilities, and the ethos of universities and related high-valued abilities such as theoreticality and criticality.

Although employability and entrepreneur intent have been widely studied, little is known about students’ identification with entrepreneurship according to their ability perceptions. The present study contributes to the existing body of knowledge on university students’ “internal employability” that involves students’ self-assurance and views of work-related relevance with regard to supposed abilities.

The purpose of this paper is to critically investigate how collective identity is constructed and regulated by board members and other active members of student entrepreneurship societies (ESs).

A discursive analysis focusing on collective identity construction and regulation based on focus group discussions in two student-led Finnish ESs affiliated with higher education institutions (HEIs).

ES members construct and regulate collective entrepreneurial identity based on a shared narrative of entrepreneurship and the affective state of positive energy and thinking, i.e. “positive buzz.” Being entrepreneurial was constructed as having the right kind of mentality to cope with uncertain and rapidly changing working life and to break free of old moulds of working. The shared narrative was coherent, and critical reflection on the values or risks of entrepreneurship was mainly silenced.

As ESs are a relatively new phenomenon future research could explore ESs in different cultural and regional contexts and compare the identity construction and regulation of ES student members and non-members.

Strong collective identity and sense of commitment to doing things together may mitigate the pressures of being entrepreneurial and taking charge of one’s life.

Educational practice and research could benefit from better understanding of the informal context in which entrepreneurship education takes place.

The paper contributes to the relatively new research stream on ESs as student-led entrepreneurial organizations in HEIs. The research demonstrates how ES members participate in constructing a collective and coherent identity that is regulated by shared values and a positive state of mind. This study extends the understanding of ESs from the functional perspective to viewing them as a social community. It contributes to the definition of ESs and the self-understanding of ES actors.

This paper investigates how academic teachers engage in identity work and make sense of entrepreneurship and academia in an entrepreneurship training programme.

By employing a sensemaking approach, the paper inductively analyses materials from a business idea development camp organised for academic teachers.

In collective sensemaking during the camp, non-academic facilitators strongly influenced the reflection-in-experience via normative ideas of entrepreneurship and their othering of entrepreneurship from academic work. In their post-camp individual essays, the academic teachers reflect-on-experience and draw parallels between entrepreneurship and academic work constructing sameness.

Longitudinal research is needed in identity work and sensemaking among academic teachers in relation to entrepreneurship.

Universities need to offer arenas for teachers and other faculty to support identity work and sensemaking.

This study generates new understanding of how academic teachers engage in identity work and make sense of entrepreneurship in training when interacting with others. It underscores the importance of time needed for reflection-on-action.

The purpose of the present study is to examine how perceived employability relates to job exhaustion, psychological symptoms and self‐rated job performance in involuntary and voluntary temporary employees compared to permanent employees.

The study is based on a cross‐sectional design using a sample of university teachers and researchers (n=1,014) from two Finnish universities. Of the sample, 40 percent (n=408) are permanent employees, 49 percent (n=495) involuntary and 11 percent (n=111) voluntary temporary employees. Most respondents (54 percent) have education above a Master's degree, the average age is 43 years, and 58 percent are women.

The results of general linear model analyses show that perceived employability promotes favorable outcomes among all respondents. However, the negative relationship between perceived employability and job exhaustion and psychological symptoms is stronger among voluntary than among involuntary temporary employees.

The study indicates that although perceived employability seems to be important to all employees, involuntary temporary employees benefit least from high perceived employability in terms of individual well‐being.