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Investment, the entry of foreign firms depends of a large extent on the country’s goodwill, which is reflected in various ratings. This representation of the situation is approximate, as it does not estimate the differences between the values of the indicators with adjacent grades. This can be avoided by dividing countries into homogeneous groups. It is appropriate to do so on the basis of non-linear grouping rather than linear grouping. It is based on the transformation of data into a dimensionless scale and linear grouping. In the case, its homogeneity increases thanks to the levelling of the most distinctive values and the alignment of the statistical characteristics of the groups. The aim of the article is to propose in principle, a new approach to the ranking of countries on the basis of their level of economic development. It was found that the nonlinear decision of countries into homogenous groups and compared to the linear grouping more accurately reflect the current situation.

The aim of the research is to classify the European Union (EU) countries based on the progress in the economic performance of agriculture. The originality of the paper stems from the fact that a new set of indicators (in relative form) was used to identify the clusters. The following indicators are used to assess the economic performance of the EU agricultural sector (by cluster analysis) for two periods (2015–2017 and 2018–2020): total labor force input, real income of factors in agriculture per annual work unit, total agricultural output, gross value added of the agricultural industry, and animal output. The study confirmed that EU countries, according to changes in agricultural performance, differ significantly. They were grouped into four relatively homogeneous clusters according to their similarity, with a clear geographical dispersion for both analyzed periods. Identifying development disparities between EU countries can be useful in future redesigns of the Common Agricultural Policy measures in terms of increased support to certain members.

The study presented in this article investigates how the curriculum is implemented and transformed by teachers in mixed-age and age-homogeneous groups, the most common age-constellations in the Swedish preschool. The data was collected through groups interviews with preschool teachers. The interviews were transcribed and analysed with the support of thematic analysis and connected to a sociocultural perspective on learning. The findings show that the teachers in the different age formations use both the same and different teaching strategies, which means that the curriculum is implemented and transformed in different ways. The teaching and learning events in the age-homogenous groups appear to be more structured and planned, whereas in the mixed-aged groups the teaching is more spontaneous and embedded in the everyday activities.

Regional competitiveness is considered a key factor of development. In this work, with the aim of analysing the main drivers of the competitiveness, a Regression Tree analysis has been performed for the Eurostat Regional Competitiveness Index (RCI) as response variable by taking the 74 basic indicators used in the 2019 RCI edition as explanatory variables. Being a non-parametric method, suitable for the analysis of large data sets via a recursive partitioning procedure, the Regression Tree allowed to identify (a) the 12 most influential indicators, out of the initial 74, for the overall 2019 RCI, and (b) a classification of the 268 European regions into 15 homogeneous groups. Interestingly, the groups are ranked by their predicted RCI values which correspond to the mean observed RCI values within the groups themselves. The almost perfect correlation between the Eurostat RCI and the predicted RCI within groups confirms the key role of the 12 selected indicators as determinants of the 2019 RCI. These evidences could help policy makers to address their strategies towards focused objectives in line with the specific needs of the territories, characterized by an intrinsic heterogeneity and complexity.

We investigate the mental health of multicultural families (CFs) in South Korea, identify risk factors, and propose interventions to improve mental health. Adults over 19 years of age were analyzed using the Community Health Survey 2019 in South Korea, consisting of 228,952 individuals including 3,524 from multi-CFs. We employed chi-squared tests and multiple logistic regression to compare mental health between multi- and mono-CFs, exploring the influence of various factors. Multi-CFs had significantly higher levels of stress recognition (P-value = 0.010) and experiences of extreme sadness or despair (P-value = 0.002) than mono-CFs. In multi-CFs, younger group, households with lower income and people with unhealthy behaviors regarding walking or sleeping were at risk of mental health. Socially isolated families, relative to the families participating in active social gatherings, had about a 1.36 times higher risk of stress, 2 times higher experiences of extreme sadness or despair and 5.32 times higher depressive symptoms. Multi-CFs are vulnerable to mental health problems, and even within multi-CFs, groups with relatively low socioeconomic status should be prioritized since problems are more significant among them. Activated social networks can help multi-CFs integrate into society and promote mental health.

Group teaching is rapidly spreading across the world, but little research has been conducted to investigate its impact on students’ musical abilities in comparison to inclusion in group tuition contexts. This article investigates how music teachers from the classical orchestra instrumental tradition discuss group tuition. Three focus group interviews were conducted with participants from one Art and Music School in Sweden. The results show a tension field between progression and inclusion as well as different views on the definition of these concepts. These differing views on teaching quality imply a balancing act for the different agents within the profession.

This interdisciplinary study aimed to explore the relationship between university students’ participation in community development activities and their collaboration in the classroom. The students concerned form part of an ethnic diversity program in the Ecuadorian capital city Quito. Findings demonstrate the potential for collaborative assignments to exacerbate conditions of inequality, and the belief that experiences and skills gained during participation in community development are transferable to group learning activities. Finally, like other factors impeding effective collaboration, conditions of inequality highlight the necessity for strategies to manage collaborative learning groups within the classroom.

Background: This article casts the analytical spotlight on the practice of within-class homogeneous (same) ability grouping where learners are placed in small groups for instruction based on their perceived performances, reading levels and interest. Very few studies have focused on within-class ability grouping, especially in a South African context, where this homogeneous style within-class grouping is the dominant practice in Grade 1 classrooms, despite literature’s cautions against its continuous use. Aim: This article aims to address the following questions: what are the manifestations of the practice of within-class homogeneous ability grouping, and how does it account for learner achievement levels in Grade 1 classrooms? Setting: A total of 12 Grade 1 learners, in relation to their teachers and their principals, from three selected public schools in the Western Cape, were interviewed and observed within a classroom setting. Bourdieu’s work is used to explain the interiority and exteriority of social relations, how practice gets internalised and embodied on the inside, and manifested in various ways on the outside. Methods: This empirical exploration used the qualitative-interpretive paradigm and followed a multiple case study approach where 6-year-old Grade 1 learners were observed and analysed. Results: The results show differential treatment of groups and the labelling of learners, which gets internalised constituting particular learner dispositions and resulting in learner agency. Furthermore, it shows how learner agency is being informed and constituted in ways that affect their educational outcomes in profound ways. Conclusion: The author argues that by placing children in groups based on their perceived ability results in the children gaining differential learner experiences and ultimately attaining differential learner achievement levels. In other words, it creates differential environments within the same classroom enabling some to outshine while disabling others.

We present research on the attitudes of seniors and juniors doing a major in English toward different grouping strategies for cooperative learning at Can Tho University, Can Tho city, Vietnam. The collected data is analyzed by a means of quantitative approach. The findings not only facilitate the further understanding of English majors’ opinions on different grouping strategies, but also provide teachers and lecturers who employ cooperative learning as one of their teaching strategies with useful clues on which group formation they should use. More importantly, we hope to give an insight to the characteristics of different grouping strategies, in order to find out the group forming method(s) that simultaneously boosts group dynamics, students’ satisfaction, and academic achievements.

Rather than assessing its causal effect on educational attainment, the authors of this article aim to use the concept of cultural capital to define a huge, complex and interconnected collection of educational and school strategies adopted by students and families and to examine the way that these strategies are related to school inequalities. Data analysed come from the 2009 Italian survey for the Program for International Student Assessment run by the OECD. A Latent Class Regression Analysis has been applied to categorize four groups of individuals who share specific cultural habits, educational dispositions and choices, and social status; in short, the four groups differentiate individuals with a different endowment of the intangible asset, cultural capital. Moreover, using the socio-economic status as a covariate we link the latent class membership probability with individuals' social standing and, consequently school choices.