Measurement of three-dimensional hand kinematics during swimming with a motion capture system: a feasibility study

Current trends in swimming biomechanics are focused on accurate measurements. Nowadays, reliable calibration methods have been proposed to reach an accuracy of about 1 mm on rigid structure. But the question remains about the final accuracy for three-dimensional hand kinematics measurement during the underwater phase of front crawl swimming. Furthermore, most research is based on manual tracking with two or more cameras. In this paper we propose a protocol to acquire three-dimensional hand kinematics when swimming in a specific pool with a motion analysis system behind windows. Results highlight the benefits of using such a system in terms of accuracy and feasibility: the time allowed for post-processing is ten times lower and the quantified improved accuracy is better than with manual tracking.     

Consultation,negotiation and compromise: the relationship between SENCos,parents and pupils with SEN

One outcome of the UK Government's commitment to inclusive educational policies was an increase in the number of pupils with special educational needs (SEN) being taught in mainstream schools. From the perspective of SENCos, this article analyses whether parents and pupils are able and willing to influence the development of SEN provision and distribution of SEN resources, both of which aim to ensure that pupils have more meaningful experiences of mainstream education. The findings of the study cast light on the power and influence of parents when it comes to SEN provision and resources, the importance of consulting parents and the ways in which parents empower SENCos to make decisions on behalf of themselves and their children. The importance of negotiating and attempting to seek a compromise with pupils was another key issue identified in the article. Ultimately, however, the power to decide where resources go and what is done with them appears to reside with SENCos.     

Teachers as Carers: A Case Study of a Secondary School's Pastoral Process

This paper describes the review and evaluation of the house/pastoral system at the Anglican Church Grammar School. The main findings were: an overwhelming acceptance of the house system; a high level of caring and commitment; and a desire to offer new challenges and support to permeate the whole educational process. There was also an almost total disregard for and antagonism towards the tutorial system. Based on interviews with staff, a representative staff working party agreed the changes that needed to be undertaken and improvements were made. The approach to the evaluation is an example of collaboration.     

The Quality of Message Ideas,Thinking and Interaction in an Asynchronous CMC Environment

One of the major shifts in education today under the influence of information and communication technologies is that there is an increased tendency toward the use of computer-mediated communications (CMC). CMC has developed an assortment of methods from simple e-mail to wireless instant messages and synchronous and asynchronous discussions. A large portion of the research in this area focuses on the pedagogical aspects of CMC particularly on the use, strategies, effectiveness and the integration of the new technologies for teaching and learning. Some studies investigate different perspectives of interaction like keeping track of asynchronous discussion, quality of participation, interaction and collaborative or group learning. This paper reports findings from the study that examines the quality of message ideas, thinking and interaction in an asynchronous CMC environment in a teacher training institution. The authors suggest some practical strategies in the implementation of asynchronous discussions in CMC environment. La qualité des messages d’idées, de la pensée et de l’interaction dans un environnement CMC asynchrone. Un des changements majeurs dans l’éducation aujourd’hui sous l’influence de l’information et des technologies de la communication est une tendance accrue À l’usage des communications par ordinateur (Computer-mediated Communications CMC). CMC a permis le développement de tout un assortiment de méthodes depuis de simples e-mail jusqu’À des messages sans fil instantanés et des discussions synchrones et asynchrones. Une grande partie de la recherche en ce domaine est centrée sur les aspects pédagogiques des CMC en particulier sur l’emploi, les stratégies, l’efficacité et l’intégration des nouvelles technologies pour l’enseignement et l’apprentissage. Certains études examinent les perspectives différentes de l’interaction. Telles que garder la trace des discussions asynchrones, la qualité de la participation interaction et l’apprentissage en coopération ou en groupe. L’article rapporte les résultats de l’étude qui examine la qualité des messages d’idées, la pensée et l’interaction dans un environnement de CMC asynchrone dans un établissement de formation des enseignants. Les auteurs suggérent des stratégies pratiques dans l’introduction de discussions asynchrones dans un environnement CMC. Die Qualität der übermittlung von Ideen, Denken und Interaktion in einem asynchronen CMC Umfeld Eine der wichtigsten Umstellungen der heutigen Ausbildung ist die unter dem Einfluss von Informations- und Kommunikationstechnologien verstärkte Tendenz, rechnergestützte Kommunikation (computer-mediated communications:CMC)

zu benutzen. CMC hat ein ganzes Arsenal von Methoden entwickelt, von der einfachen E-Mail bis zu drahtlosen Nachrichten und synchron oder asynchron geführten Diskussionen. Die Forschung in diesem Bereich konzentriert sich hauptsächlich auf die pädagogischen Aspekte von CMC, besonders auf die Nutzung, die Strategien, den Wirkungsgrad und die Möglichkeiten der Einbindung der Neuen Technologien zum Lehren und Lernen. Einige Arbeiten erforschen die verschiedenen Perspektiven

der Interaktion wie das Verfolgen von asynchronen Diskussionen, die Qualität der Beteiligung, der Interaktion und Zusammenarbeit oder dem Lernen in Gruppen. In diesem Beitrag wird über Ergebnisse der Studie zur Untersuchung der Qualität der übermittlung von Ideen, Gedanken und Interaktionen in einem asynchron arbeitenden rechnergestützten

System (CMC) einer Lehrerfortbildungseinrichtung berichtet. Die Autoren erläutern praktische Strategien zur Einbindung asynchroner Diskussionen in eine CMC-Umgebung.     

Book Reviews

Serial Publications: Guidelines for Good Practice in Publishing Printed and Electronic Journals, 2nd edition, by Diane Brown, Elaine Stott and Anthony Watkinson Association of Learned and Professional Society Publishers 2003, £27 (members), £30 (non‐members), 108 pp., paperback. ISBN 0‐907341‐22‐5. Available from http://www.alpsp.org/pub3.htm The Case for Institutional Repositories: A SPARC Position Paper prepared by Raym Crow, SPARC Senior Consultant Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition, Washington DC. Release 1.0, 2002. Available at: www.arl.org/sparc The Case for Institutional Repositories: A SPARC Position Paper prepared by Raym Crow, SPARC Senior Consultant Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition, Washington, DC. Release 1.0, 2002. Available at: www.arl.org/sparc Internet Law: Text and Materials by Chris Reed Butterworths Tolley, 2000, £24.95, paperback. ISBN 0406981418 Intellectual Property Law by Lionel Bently and Brad Sherman Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2001, £32.99 (paperback), 1136 pp. ISBN 0‐19‐876343‐3 Clearing the Way: Copyright Clearance in UK Libraries by Elizabeth Gadd LISU Occasional Paper no. 31, Library & Information Statistics Unit (LISU), Department of Information Science, Loughborough University. ISBN 1 901786 51 X Electronic Journals and User Behaviour: Learning for the Future from the SuperJournal Project by David Pullinger and Christine Baldwin Deedot Press, 2002, £14.95. ISBN 0‐954‐2924‐0‐5 Electronic Ecology: A Case Study of Electronic Journals in Context by Karla L. Hahn Association of Research Libraries, 79 pp., 2001, $45. ISBN 0‐918006‐46‐1 The Transition from Paper: Where Are We Going and How Will We Get There edited by R. Stephen Berry and Anne Simon Moffat American Academy of Arts and Sciences, published online (2001): www.amacad.org/publications/trans.htm The Transition from Paper: Where Are We Going and How Will We Get There edited by R. Stephen Berry and Anne Simon Moffat American Academy of Arts and Sciences, published online (2001): www.amacad.org/publications/trans.htm E‐Serials, Publishers, Libraries, Users and Standards, 2nd edn, edited by Wayne Jones The Haworth Press Inc., 2003, 294 pp. paperback ISBN 0789012294     

Brownjohn,Hughes, Pirrie,and Rosen: What Rhymes with Oral Writing?

This article looks at the work of four writers who have had considerable influence on the teaching of poetry writing to primary school children. Each writer is considered in terms of their merits as a contributor to wider questions about writing, and in comparative terms with each other. Links are made between these writers' explicit and implicit philosophies and approaches. Finally, the article considers how far discussions about voice and form within children's writing are necessarily exclusive of each other.     

Leveraging Sunken Investments in Communications Infrastructure: A Policy Perspective From the United States

Bridging the digital divide between information and technology haves and have-nots has waned from the top of the national policy agenda in the United States during a time in which the sunken investments of the 1990s need to be leveraged. A national information network now exists yet this infrastructure--largely hardware--needs to be continually modernized and parlayed with commitments to building human capacity, developing relevant content, and scaling socially beneficial technology applications, such as telemedicine, in order to optimize these initial multi-billion-dollar outlays. This article makes the case that sidestepping public-private initiatives aimed at accelerating digital opportunity is imprudent, given the mounting empirical evidence highlighting the payoffs of information and communications technologies, when properly integrated and applied, especially in enhancing the life chances of underserved Americans. Policy next steps should advance the goals of expanding universal service initiatives, including hastening broadband deployment to homes and learning institutions, and deepening programs which leverage the utility of the existing infrastructure, such as expanding human-capital development, producing relevant content, and innovating socially beneficial technology applications.     

Contingency in innovation and the role of national systems: taxol and taxotère in the USA and France

A very rich collection of archival material is used to compare two anticancer drugs commercialised by multinationals collaborating with public sector research, one in the USA and one in France. The framework of national innovation systems is used to compare the innovative environments for each development (different institutional structures, research programmes, financing, industry-academic-government relationships, environmental concern, and intellectual property regimes). The empirical work was able to bring out the nuances and subtleties of each environment, the way in which innovation took place in practice, and some striking differences from what stereotypical accounts of innovation in each country would have suggested.