Research Aims and Scope

AMBLE is a multidisciplinary research group that aims to address the role of physical activity and motor behavior in the design of educational experiences that foster learning and development in a lifespan perspective. With a combination of psychological, biological and educational approaches, the focus of research is to understand underlying processes that drive individual and collective learning experiences, which in turn can inform the development of evidence-based practical applications in education. To this end, the AMBLE research group apply ecological frameworks as the basis for a rich variety of quantitative and qualitative research designs. This aim is operationalized in four interconnected focus areas.

Focus Areas:

• development of new and innovative research methodology, with interdisciplinary applicability for research, education and pedagogy
• life-span development and learning in aquatic environments, with special emphasis on the role of teacher education and primary/lower secondary school
• the significance of Motor Competence and Bodily Learning in Education
• public Health and Life Management across the lifespan, with focus on the contribution of teacher education and primary/lower secondary school in well-being, meaningfulness and health promotion

Research Strategy

International Strategies and Calls for Actions

AMBLE is focused on two Sustainable Development Goals from UN:

• Goal 3: Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all and all ages.
• Goal 4: Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. AMBLE is devoted to conducting research on the contribution of health, physical activity and motor behavior toward education in general, and in primary/secondary school and teacher education specifically. 

With a special focus on learning and development in aquatic environments, AMBLEs activity responds to a call for action from WHO (2023) for a global investment case in drowning prevention. In this call, teaching school-age children basic swimming skills is considered a primary measure.

National Governmental Strategies and Calls for Actions

There is a call from the Norwegian government to focus research efforts on Health and Trust & Community as thematic priorities. In AMBLE, we consider that these topics need to be addressed together in the educational system, and that long-term goals of research are to understand how physical activity and motor behavior can be utilized as driving forces in creating educational contexts that are both promoting health, diversity, and participation for all.

The Norwegian government has also issued a call for a more practical and applied approach in primary and lower secondary school, to facilitate better learning, motivation and well-being. An integrated part of this call is to strengthen the practical and aesthetic subjects. The research activity in AMBER is aligned with this focus.

NTNU Teacher Education

Aligned with core strategies at the SU-Faculty, AMBER research group conduct research that addresses key societal challenges nationally and internationally (e.g., drowning prevention, and decline in motor competence, health promotion). AMBER is devoted to conducting research on the contribution of physical activity and motor behavior toward education in general, and in primary/secondary school and teacher education specifically. This research is of high relevance for Department of Teacher Education, as the strategic plan asserts that research should be practice- and profession-oriented. The aim of the work is to develop new knowledge about the underlying processes that drive individual and collective learning experiences, in which can inform research-based approaches in teaching and learning in school and other educational contexts. The research group also works actively toward establishing and promoting collaboration with educational stakeholders, including teachers, schools, municipalities and organizations with high actuality in the educational system.

Projects:

• A Multifactorial and Ecological Approach to Understand Assessment, Grading and Achievement in Physical Education
• Autonomous motivation in physical education among younger children
• Discovery Learning and Motor Skill Acquisition in Team Handball
• Implementation of competence on adapted physical activity/physical exercise for students with disabilities
• Miljøet som pedagog
• The Developmental Journey Toward Aquatic Literacy in Children: A Longitudinal Study in a Physical Education Context

PhD projects:

• Meaningful Physical Education in the Context of Outdoor Swimming in Lower Secondary School (scheduled for completion in 2026)
• Associations Between Pupil-Related Factors and Achievement in Physical Education (2024)
• Assessing Swimming Competence among Children in Physical Education, and Exploring Skill Transfer in Various Aquatic Environments (2024)

Overview of all publications in Cristin

Activities

15 September 2025: Physical Education Research Symposium (PDF)

• Water Competence: dosent Egil Galaaen Gjølme (leader), Department of Teacher education, NTNU Trondheim, Norway 
• Sport and Human Movement Science (SaHMS). Professor Tore Kristian Aune (leader), Faculty of Education and Arts, Nord University, Levanger, Norway