Ann-Helen Odberg

Ann-Helen Odberg serves as a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Sports, Nutrition and Natural Sciences within the Faculty of Teacher Education, Culture and Sports at The University of Western Norway. Her academic role centers on physical education teacher training with specialized focus on water safety and outdoor learning methodologies.

Odberg's research critically examines swimming education implementation in Norwegian primary schools, particularly the collaboration models between schools and external actors (swimming clubs, voluntary organizations). Her work identifies key challenges in municipal decision-making, teacher competence gaps, and responsibility frameworks for lifesaving training. The Glokal outdoor school project demonstrates her leadership in Nordic teacher education cooperation, applying glocalization theory to outdoor learning practices across climate and cultural contexts.

Analysis of her 65+ publications (2010-2024) reveals three dominant trends: progression frameworks for swimming skill development, digital resource integration (e.g., swömmedyktig.no portal), and outdoor curriculum innovation to address Norway's drowning statistics. Her research consistently emphasizes practical implementation barriers and policy-practice alignment in water safety education.

Scientific Awards:

• No awards documented in provided materials

Odberg leads the active project Swimminglyfit.no and participates in three major research groups: Formation - nature, body, movement (24 participants), Blue-green structures (13 participants), and PHYSICAL EXERCISE (7 participants). These initiatives focus on outdoor learning environments, sustainable physical activity infrastructure, and water safety resource development. While specific grant details are unreported, her project involvement indicates sustained research funding in physical education innovation. No student supervision records appear in the provided text.

Her laboratory and team affiliations center on the Formation research group, which investigates nature-based pedagogical practices, and the Swimminglyfit.no project team developing national water competence resources. These collaborations bridge university researchers, municipal educators, and community organizations to address real-world physical education challenges.