Coaches' attitudes towards placebo interventions in sport

Placebo-induced performance enhancement is a new controversial issue in competitive sports. Coaches have control over the use of placebos, but their practices and attitudes were barely studied to date. In this survey 96 coaches from regional, national and international levels were asked about their practices and attitudes concerning placebo use in sports. Results revealed that 90% of the respondents were aware of placebo effects. Many (44%) coaches admitted to administering a placebo to their athletes. Those working at international level have administered placebos more often than the others (P = .02). Two thirds of the coaches agreed to the wider use of placebos in sport. Respondents who have used placebos in the past reported improved athletic performance. They also agreed more to the wider use of placebos than the coaches who previously did not use a placebo (P = .001). Team sport coaches use more often placebos than coaches working with individual athletes (P = .05). Only 10% of the sample thought that their athletes would refuse a hypothetical performance enhancer supplied by them. After a successful placebo intervention, only 15% of the coaches would administer it again without consulting the athlete. Overall, the coaches are optimistic about placebo use in sports. Close to half of them, especially those coaching at higher levels of competition, may use it regularly while achieving positive results.     

A Review of the Concept of Visual Literacy

Many people from very diverse disciplines have attempted to define the concept of Visual Literacy (VL), but with little general consensus so far. This is probably due to the fact that those representing the different disciplines and paradigms are each wanting to interpret Visual Literacy in a way that reflects and flatters their contribution or way of thinking. As a consequence, a theoretical concept with seemingly little practical value has been created, but cannot be used productively until an agreed definition is established.
It is self evident that if a concept does not have a broadly accepted definition, if the theory behind it is confusing, and if its viability on practical terms is a matter of continuing controversy, then the only reasonable way to cope with it is to abandon it. Nevertheless, with the exception of very few and of minor importance cases, no serious attempt has ever been made towards discarding VL altogether.     

Utility and Reliability of an App for the System for Observing Play and Recreation in Communities (iSOPARC®)

The app for the System for Observing Play and Recreation in Communities (iSOPARC®) was developed to enhance System for Observing Play and Recreation in Communities data collection and management. The study aim was to examine the usability and inter-rater reliability of iSOPARC®. Trained observers collected data in 16 park areas in two Latin America cities (Curitiba, Brazil; Bogotá, Colombia) using both the original System for Observing Play and Recreation in Communities (mechanical counter) and new iSOPARC® (electronic counter) methods. A total of 8,707 park users (3,958 females and 4,749 males) were observed. Reliabilities among observers were determined using the intraclass correlation coefficient and relative overall agreement (%) in three ways: (a) mechanical versus mechanical, (b) mechanical versus electronic, and (c) electronic versus electronic. When both used mechanical counters comparisons overall agreement was over 78% (intraclass correlation coefficient = .982; p < .001) for variables in all analysis. When one used a mechanical counter and the other used electronic (iSOPARC®) comparisons overall agreement was higher for age (84%; p < .001) than for physical activity (83%; p < .001) variables and average intraclass correlation coefficient was .965. Using both used iSOPARC® comparisons overall agreement was 81% to physical activity and 83% to age group. Results suggest iSOPARC® can be used reliably for examining variables previously validated in System for Observing Play and Recreation in Communities.     

Comparison of the force-, velocity-, and power-time curves recorded with a force plate and a linear velocity transducer

This study aimed to correlate, compare, and determine the reliability of force, velocity, and power values collected with a force plate (FP) and a linear transducer during loaded jumps. Twenty-three swimmers performed an incremental loading test at 25, 50, 75, and 100% of their own body weight on a FP. A linear velocity transducer (LVT) was attached to the bar to assess the peak and the mean values of force, velocity, and power. Both the peak variables (r = 0.94 – 0.99 for peak force, r = 0.83 – 0.91 for peak velocity, and r = 0.90–0.94 for peak power; p < 0.001) and the mean variables (r = 0.96–0.99 for mean force, r = 0.87–0.89 for mean velocity, and r = 0.93–0.96 for mean power; p < 0.001) were strongly correlated between both measurement tools. Differences in the shape of the force-, velocity-, and power-time curves were observed. The LVT data showed a steeper increase in these variables at the beginning of the movement, while the FP recorded larger values in the latter part. Peak values were more reliable than mean values. These results suggest that the LVT is a valid tool for the assessment of loaded squat jump.     

Interdisciplinary therapy changes superoxide dismutase activity and adiponectin in obese adolescents: a randomised controlled trial

The objective of this study is to evaluate the effect of interdisciplinary therapy in the parameters of the oxidative stress and the anti-inflammatory responses of obese adolescents. We selected 57 participants, who were randomly divided into 2 groups: interdisciplinary therapy group and a control group. After 6 months of intervention, 17 participants of the interdisciplinary therapy group and 8 of the control group returned for re-evaluation. The interdisciplinary therapy group participated in a treatment with 4 weekly sessions of exercise, a weekly group therapy session and a weekly nutritional education session. Blood parameters of oxidative stress and anti-inflammatory response were evaluated. The results demonstrated that there were significant increases in the interdisciplinary therapy group for superoxide dismutase activity (6.56 ± 3.22 to 11.40 ± 7.49) and ferric-reducing antioxidant potential concentration (532.91 ± 106.48 to 573.25 ± 112.57), although adiponectin levels did not reduce (40.9 ± 29.34 to 49.05 ± 41.22). A significant decrease in nitrite levels was also found (14.23 ± 8.48 to 11.45 ± 6.05). In the control group, significant reduction was found in adiponectin (31.56 ± 18.88 to 18.01 ± 11.66). This study suggests that interdisciplinary therapy for 6 months was effective in improving the anti-inflammatory responses and the antioxidant defences in obese adolescents.     

Teachers in retreat: The teacher as a dialogical self and the risks of an excessive formalization of its role

The aim of this paper is to explore the identity of the teacher as a dialectical being that is in permanent construction, to identify some obstacles teachers might find in this process while operating in an institutional framework, and the effects these could have upon the teacher and the goals she pursues with her students. By ruling out the idea of identity as an autonomous self that can be constructed with no ties with its context, we propose that identity is dialogical and is built through the relationships we establish with others. This fact situates the relationship between the student and the teacher at the center of pedagogical practices and allows us to establish the ideas of teacher presence and integrity as central elements for the moral development of students. In this context, we identify the excessive institutionalization of the role of the teacher as a cause for the reduction of identity and a defensive retreat to the possible outcomes of being judged by strictly formal criteria, which in turn can hinder the relation between student and teacher and risks possible negative consequences in the moral growth of both.     

What is Intended,What is Realized,and What is Learned? Teaching and Learning Biology in the Primary School Classroom

Within the framework of variation theory, 7- to 12-year-old students’ ways of understanding cellular respiration and photosynthesis were investigated against the background of their teachers’ teaching. Eighteen students were selected by the teachers and interviewed by the researcher. Lessons were observed and video recorded, and stimulated-recall interviews with the teachers were conducted. The students’ understanding of the function of oxygen and sugar in plants was described in four categories. The study concludes that young students can develop complex understanding if opportunities to learn are presented. The opportunities depended mainly on the language used by the teachers, such as metaphors, pointing out critical aspects of the object of learning. The study has implications for the relationship between teachers’ competence and students’ learning.     

Promoting educational reforms in weak states: the case of radical policy discontinuity in Peru

The present article explores the making of education policies in weak states, particularly in the context of developing nations and in view of the increasing influence of international organisations, such as the World Bank, in definition of education reform agendas. The discussion seeks to contribute to the theory of weak states by highlighting the importance of political processes of interest articulation and mobilisation, and by suggesting that state weakness can vary internally from one policy to another. It does so with reference to education and to a study of radical discontinuity in Peruvian education policies.     

Assessment of metacognitive skills by means of instruction to think aloud and reflect when prompted. Does the verbalisation method affect learning?

Recent research on metacognition points out the crucial role of on-line methods when endeavouring to conduct valid assessments of metacognitive skills. Presently, different on-line methods are used, however, it is still a question of research whether and how they affect students’ learning behaviour and learning outcome. Thus, the aim of this study is to quasi-experimentally analyse the effects of two on-line verbalisation methods on learning performance. By means of the thinking-aloud method, students in one experimental group (n = 24) were instructed to read and think aloud during learning. With the reflection when prompted method, students of another experimental group (n = 24) were prompted at each navigational step to reflect on the reasons why they chose specific information. Students in the control group (n = 22) learned without being instructed to verbalise. All three groups were treated identically except for the different use of verbalisation assessment methods. The students’ task was to learn the concepts and principles of operant conditioning presented in a hypermedium within 30 min. The students’ learning sessions were videotaped and learning performance was obtained immediately afterwards. Based on Ericsson and Simon’s (Protocol analysis: Verbal reports as data, MIT, Cambridge, 1993) model, no performance differences between the thinking aloud and the control group were hypothesised. However, prompting students for metacognitive reflection should affect learning performance positively, which is confirmed by the results only in tendency for transfer performance. Implications for on-line assessment methods of metacognitive skill will be discussed.