Teachers’ journeys towards critical use of ICT

Teachers have a central role in developing new learning models in schools. This paper describes a study that explored teachers’ confidence and competence in using Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) as they participated in an ICT development project conducted by an Australian education system in 12 primary schools. The project aimed to develop ICT integrated teaching practices by providing in‐class equipment and teacher professional development in ICT use, curriculum development and teaching strategies. The study used qualitative data from teacher records of Professional Development and Action Learning to identify three of four stages proposed to describe teachers’ ICT learning. Teachers moved from gaining basic ICT skills, to conducting ICT‐focused lessons and eventually appropriate ICT integration. Teachers who progressed to the third stage were able to exploit additional learning opportunities and begin to make fundamental changes to their pedagogy, but needed more time to reach the final stage of challenging existing pedagogical structures.     

Holographic perspective

Although the principle of holography was conceived as long ago as 1947, interest was limited until the advent of the laser in 1960 made possible the off-axis holography widely used today. Since then holography has found many applications and become so well known outside the laboratory as to be a recognized art form. Within the last few years considerable progress has also been made in acoustic holography.     

Game location and aggression in rugby league

The present study examined the relationship between aggression and game location in rugby league. We videotaped a random sample of 21 professional rugby league games played in the 2000 Super League season. Trained observers recorded the frequency of aggressive behaviours. Consistent with previous research, which used territoriality theories as a basis for prediction, we hypothesized that the home team would behave more aggressively than the away team. The results showed no significant difference in the frequency of aggressive behaviours exhibited by the home and away teams. However, the away teams engaged in substantially more aggressive behaviours in games they lost compared with games they won. No significant differences in the pattern of aggressive behaviours for home and away teams emerged as a function of game time (i.e. first or second half) or game situation (i.e. when teams were winning, losing or drawing). The findings suggest that while home and away teams do not display different levels of aggression, the cost of behaving aggressively (in terms of game outcome) may be greater for the away team.     

BASES Position Statement on Guidelines for Resistance Exercise in Young People

Abstract

Despite the performance concerns of dehydration in other sports, there are currently no data on the effects of rapid weight-loss on the physical and cognitive performance of jockeys in a sport-specific context. In a randomised crossover design, eight Great Britain (GB) male licensed jockeys were assessed for chest strength, leg strength, simulated riding performance (assessed by maximum pushing frequency on a mechanical riding simulator during the final two furlongs of a simulated 2 mile race) and simple reaction time after performing 45 min of exercise, during which euhydration was maintained (Control trial) or induced 2% dehydration (Rapid Weight-Loss trial). Reductions in both chest (–13.8 ± 3.03% vs. 0.62 ± 1.04%) and leg strength (–4.8 ± 4.8% vs. –0.56 ± 2.5%) were greater in Rapid Weight-Loss compared with Control (P < 0.01 and P = 0.04, respectively). Similarly, reductions in simulated riding performance were also greater (P = 0.05) in Rapid Weight-Loss (–2.8 ± 4.0%) compared with Control (–0.07 ± 1.5%), whereas there were no significant changes (P = 0.14) in simple reaction time. We conclude that a 2% reduction in body mass, as achieved by 45 min of moderate-intensity exercise undertaken in a sweatsuit (a common method of inducing acute dehydration by jockeys), significantly impairs maximum pushing frequency during a simulated race. In addition, the observed reductions in strength may also increase the occupational hazards associated with race riding.     

Differential effectiveness of alternative middle-school science sequences for students of different ethnicities

Learning Environments Research - For a sample of 367 middle-school students in the USA, learning environment criteria were used to evaluate two alternative science curriculum sequences...     

Lesson study for accessible science: Building expertise to improve practice in inclusive science classrooms

The Lesson Study for Accessible Science (LSAS) project created middle school teams comprised of both science and special education teachers who engaged in collaborative work to improve instruction in inclusive classrooms. The intervention is based on Lesson Study, a professional development approach that originated in Japan, which supports the systematic examination of practice and student understanding. Using an experimental design, teams of teachers were randomly assigned to the LSAS intervention or to a wait‐list comparison group. The results of this study suggest that science and special educators in the LSAS intervention were able to generate more accommodations for students with learning disabilities, and they increased their ability to set an instructional context and adapt an instructional plan to meet science learning goals for all students in an inclusive classroom. They did not, however, show significant increases in their knowledge of science content or learning disabilities. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 49: 1012–1034, 2012     

The relationship among achievement goals,standardized test scores,and elementary students’ focus in school

The study examined whether an academic, social, or both an academic and social focus might relate with achievement goals and academic achievement. Participants were 412 urban elementary school students. Results suggest that students with an academic focus toward school have more mastery‐approach and less mastery‐avoid achievement goals. Academic achievement (standardized test scores) did not relate with boys’ or girls’ focus toward school. These findings suggest that academic motivation, but not achievement, correspond with self‐perceptions of school as being a place to learn or school as a place for social interactions.