Changes in the stature,body mass and age of English professional rugby players: A 10-year review

Abstract

The aim of the study was to evaluate changes in the stature, body mass, age and number of players by playing position in the first team squads of English Premiership rugby union teams from 2002 to 2011. Medical personnel at each club reported the individual data for every first team squad player. The average annual number of players included in the study was 485.2 players per season (standard deviation: 58.0). The mean stature of players in all positions increased in the period 2002 to 2011 but statistically significant trends (P < 0.01) were only observed at fly half and prop. While the mean body mass of players increased in most positions only fly half and back row players showed statistically significant (P < 0.01) upward trends. Apart from second row forwards, the average age of players in all positions decreased but this trend was only significant (P < 0.01) at prop. The numbers of registered players in every position increased but these trends were only significant (P < 0.01) at prop. English Premiership professional rugby players are generally getting taller, heavier and younger but statistically significant changes were limited to fly halves (taller and heavier), props (taller and younger) and back row forwards (heavier).     

Effect of stance position on kick performance in taekwondo

Abstract

In taekwondo, the stance position can potentially affect kick performance. The aim of this study was to analyse mechanical variables in the roundhouse kick in taekwondo according to three stance positions (0°, 45°, 90°). Nine experienced taekwondo athletes performed consecutive kicking trials in a random order according to these three relative positions of the feet on the ground. Measurements for the mechanical analysis were performed using two 3D force plates and an eight-camera motion capture system. The taekwondo athletes’ reaction and execution times were shorter when starting from the 0° and 45° stance positions than from the 90° position (P < 0.05). Moreover, the ground reaction force was negatively correlated with execution time and positively with velocity of thigh and shank. Our results suggest that the stance position affects the execution technique of taekwondo athletes’ kicks. It is suggested that athletes should not adopt the 90° stance position because it will not enable them to achieve the best performance in the roundhouse kick.     

The place of forest school within English primary schools: senior leader perspectives

Focussing on the place of Forest School in English primary schools, we explore the perspectives of school leaders. We use Biesta's model of educational purpose as a critical lens to consider possible justifications for the inclusion of Forest School in the curriculum. Four distinct accounts, based on an analysis of in-depth interviews, illustrate a range of participant responses: risk, intervention, respite and the right thing. One of these, we contend, represents a tentative step towards a form of resistance on the part of a school leader in the face of current pressures to follow a diminished set of educational purposes.     

Emotional and Cognitive Coping in Relationship Dissolution

Dissolution of a romantic relationship can adversely affect functioning among college students and represents one primary reason for seeking campus counseling. This study examined the associations among common coping strategies and distress following relationship dissolution. Avoidance and repetitive negative thinking (RNT) were significantly associated with distress, and gender was found to moderate the relationship between RNT and distress. Findings suggest that college counselors should consider emotional coping strategies following relationship dissolutions.     

Metaphor as a Tool for Evaluation

This paper analyses the use of metaphor as a tool for evaluation through the case study of a cohort of students on the first year of a Diploma in Social Work/Diploma in Higher Education, a professional social work training programme. It concludes that such a use can generate energy and images containing clear messages which are less constrained than those which arise from some more traditional evaluative techniques. The considerable restraints imposed on the use of metaphor in the case study are evaluated. Several suggestions are made for developing its use into personal and academic assessment and into group and individual supervision.     

Building Learning Communities in Schools: The Next Generation or the Impossible Dream?

Although educational change continues to be a topic of considerable interest in research, scholarship, policy, and practice, it remains a problematic issue. Many metaphors for generating sustainable change have been advocated from time to time. One such metaphor currently enjoying some popularity is that of a learning organization or a learning community. This paper describes the influences that emerged in one attempt to build a learning community in an elementary school. Influences clustered into four constellations of issues: individual, group, organizational, and contextual. While many of the influences supported the teachers' attempts to generate effective organizational learning, others interfered with the process. At the end of the study, the staff believed that they had created an authentic learning community on staff, but over time the processes diminished and eventually, as more of the original participants left the school, disappeared. The cultural and political realities of life in schools suggest that the development of a learning community among teachers is decidedly difficult. Although the metaphor holds promise for generating sustainable improvement and renewal in teaching and learning, its ultimate success is questionable.     

WISC,WISC-R,S-B L&M,WRAT: Relationships and trends among children ages six to ten referred for psychological evaluation

Thirty children ages 6-10 were selected who had been referred for psychological evaluation from the public schools. WISC-R was significantly lower than WISC FS IQs and similar to S-B L&M IQs (1972). Each scale predicts reading, spelling, and achievement in a significant manner. The use of the WISC-R over the WISC will rosult in greater numbers of children being classified as retarded.     

Rorschach variables and their relationship to WISC-R IQ among children referred

Eighty-eight children ages six to seventeen referred for psychological evaluation had been administered the Rorschach test (Exner system) and the WISC-R, among other tests, for diagnostic purposes. The data were analyzed in order to determine relationships between Rorschach variables and WISC-R IQ levels. Significant relationships were found between groups for the variables FM + m and ep, after which prediction formulas were developed for estimates and use of verbal terminology associated with IQ levels.