Directors and Writers

Eric Sherman's Directing the Film: Film Directors on Their Art (Boston: Little, Brown, 1976---$15.00)

Donald Spoto's The Art of Alfred Hitchcock: Fifty Years of His Motion Pictures (New York: Hopkinson and Blake, 1976---$13.00/8.95)

Kemp R. Niver's D.W. Griffith: His Biograph Films in Perspective (Historical Films, P.O. Box 46505, Los Angeles, Calif. 90046---$12.00)

Stephen Pendo's Raymond Chandler on Screen: His Novels into Film (Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1976---$10.00)

Ronald Lloyd's American Film Directors: The World as They See It (New York: New Viewpoints/Franklin Watts, 1976---price not given, paper)

Maureen Lambray's The American Film Directors (New York: Whirlwind/Pathe Press, 1976---$22.50)

Bob Thomas' Walt Disney: An American Original (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1976---$9.95)

Richard Koszarski's Hollywood Directors, 1914-1940 (New York: Oxford University Press, 1976---$13.95/3.95)

Philip Cecchettini and Don Whittemore's Passport to Hollywood: Film Immigramts (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1976---413.50)

Beatriz Reyes Nevares' The Mexican Cinema: Interviews with Thirteen Directors (Albuquerque, N.M.: University of New Mexico Press, 1976---$9.95/4.50)

Francisco Aranda's Luis Bunuel: A Critical Biography (New York: Da Capo Press, 1976---44.95, paper)

Glenn B. Infield's Leni Riefenstahl: The Fallen Film Goddess (New York: Crowell, 1976---$9.95)

Stuart Rosenthal's The Cinema of Federico Fellini (Cranbury, N.J.: A.S. Barnes, 1976---$9.95)

Edward Murray's Fellini the Artist (New York: Ungar, 1976---$10.00)     

LEARNING THE SOCIAL WAY: ENHANCING LEARNING IN A TRADITIONAL SETTING

This article explores the link between pedagogical approaches to learning and the redevelopment of existing spaces. It focuses upon trends in social learning and the need for libraries to respond to these in positive and proactive ways, placing the learner at the centre of developments. Not all universities and their libraries are in a position to extensively renovate or rebuild; the case study here provides an in-depth exploration of a ‘minor’ redevelopment that has had a major impact on learners. It concludes with considerations for the library and information profession in terms of their role in the development and management of learning spaces.     

Text‐message abbreviations and language skills in high school and university students

This study investigated the use of text‐message abbreviations (textisms) in Australian adolescents and young adults, and relations between textism use and literacy abilities. Fifty‐two high school students aged 13–15 years, and 53 undergraduates aged 18–24 years, all users of predictive texting, translated conventional English sentences into textese using two methods: writing messages down and typing them into mobile phones. Participants produced a variety of textisms, and in both translation methods, adolescents and young adults used textisms in nearly identical ways. This was true for the proportion and types of textisms used, textism categories produced and consistency with which textisms were spelled. The use of textisms was negatively correlated with scores for reading, nonword reading, spelling and morphological awareness, but some of these relationships were accounted for by participants' usual text‐messaging frequency. For these age groups, concerns that frequent texting may mask or even contribute to poor linguistic skills cannot be dismissed.     

Early changes in Achilles tendon behaviour in vivo following downhill backwards walking

Downhill backwards walking causes repeated, cyclical loading of the muscle–tendon unit. The effect this type of repeated loading has on the mechanical behaviour of the Achilles tendon is presently unknown. This study aimed to investigate the biomechanical response of the Achilles tendon aponeurosis complex following a downhill backwards walking protocol. Twenty active males (age: 22.3 ± 3.0 years; mass: 74.7 ± 5.6 kg; height: 1.8 ± 0.7 m) performed 60 min of downhill (8.5°), backwards walking on a treadmill at ?0.67 m · s^?1. Data were collected before, immediately post, and 24-, 48- and 168-h post-downhill backwards walking. Achilles tendon aponeurosis elongation, strain and stiffness were measured using ultrasonography. Muscle force decreased immediately post-downhill backward walking (P = 0.019). There were increases in Achilles tendon aponeurosis stiffness at 24-h post-downhill backward walking (307 ± 179.6 N · mm^?1, P = 0.004), and decreases in Achilles tendon aponeurosis strain during maximum voluntary contraction at 24 (3.8 ± 1.7%, P = 0.008) and 48 h (3.9 ± 1.8%, P = 0.002) post. Repeated cyclical loading of downhill backwards walking affects the behaviour of the muscle–tendon unit, most likely by altering muscle compliance, and these changes result in tendon stiffness increases.     

Using educational theory and research to refine agricultural extension: affordances and barriers for farmers’ learning and practice change

Purpose: To examine the factors that support and hinder farmers’ learning and to investigate the impact of an innovative learning program on farmers’ practice change.

Design/methodology/approach: Individual interviews and focus group discussions were held with 24 farmers over 20 months. Observations were made of these farmers as they participated with eight agricultural and social scientists in a range of innovative experiences to learn about chicory and plantain establishment and management. These learning experiences were designed around evidence-informed educational pedagogies. Data sets were analyzed using NVivo to determine common themes of affordances and barriers to learning and actual practice changes.

Findings: The affordances for learning and practice change include belonging to a learning community, enhancing self-efficacy, engaging with scientists, seeing relative advantage, reinforcing and validating learning, supporting system’s integration and developing an identity as learners. Barriers to learning and practice change include issues of: trialability, complexity, compatibility and risk.

Practical implications: The importance of basing new models of extension around evidence-informed pedagogies known through educational research to promote learning and practice change.

Theoretical implications: Sociocultural theory and self-efficacy theories of learning are critical to the success of effective agricultural extension programs.

Originality: To date, little empirical research about the affordances and barriers for pastoral farmers’ learning has been based on contemporary educational research.     

The impact of ICT initiatives in Scottish schools: cultural issues

At the beginning of a series of ICT initiatives in Scottish schools by the Scottish Executive and again, two years later, a survey of teachers and pupils provided evidence of the impact that these strategic investments had made on the classroom. The findings indicate that while there are innovative and enthusiastic teachers taking advantage of the opportunities afforded, a number of practical and cultural obstacles remained. While practical shortcomings, such as access to suitable hardware and software, might be fairly readily overcome if the financial will were there, the culture and practices of the school may prove more stubborn. The focus in this paper is on the views, hopes and expectations of the primary and secondary teachers who participated in the surveys and how they will influence the implementation of the ICT initiatives.

Au commencement d'une série d'initiatives de recherche sur l'utilisation de l'informatique dans les établissements scolaires écossais à l'initiative du ‘Scottish Executive‘, et, encore deux années plus tard, des sondages ont été réalisé au près des enseignants et des étudiants. Ces sondages ont montré l’impact que ces investissements financiers pour l’informatique ont fait dans les salles de classe. Les conclusions indiquent que bien qu'il y ait un nombre de professeurs innovateurs et enthousiastes qui profitent pleinement de ces chances, il reste pour certains autres des obstacles pratiques et culturels. Les obstacles pratiques, par exemple, l'accès à des logiciels et à des softwares appropriés, pourraient être assez facilement surmontés si des financements étaient disponibles. Par contre, les obstacles culturels et les détails pratiques dans certaines écoles pourraient être plus difficiles à surmonter. Cet article parle des opinions, des espoirs et des espérances des enseignants qui ont participé à ces sondages et de la façon dont ils influenceront la réalisation de ces initiatives par rapport à l'informatique.

Al principio de una serie de iniciativas de informática en escuelas escocesas por parte del gobierno autonómico escocés y una vez más, dos años después, una encuesta de maestros y alumnos proporcionó evidencia del impacto que estas inversiones estratégicas habían producido en el aula escolar. Los resultados indican que mientras los maestros más innovadores y entusiastas sacan provecho de las oportunidades ofrecidas, aún existen un número de obstáculos prácticos y culturales. Mientras que los problemas prácticos, tales como el acceso a software y hardware adecuados, pueden solucionarse en cierto modo con la ayuda económica adecuada, los aspectos culturales y prácticos de las escuelas pueden resultar más difíciles de solucionar. El enfoque de este ensayo está en las opiniones, esperanzas y expectativas de los profesores de primaria y secundaria que participaron en las encuestas, y en cómo van a influenciar la puesta en práctica de estas iniciativas informáticas.

Am Anfang einer Reihe von ICT Initiativen in schottischen Schulen durch die Scottish Executive (Scottische Regierung) und noch einmal 2 Jahre später erbrachten Untersuchungen von Lehern und Schülern den Nachweis der Bedeutung, die diese strategischen Investitionen in den Klassenräumen gemacht hatten. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass trotz innovativer und enthusiastischer Pädagogen, die die bereitgestellten Möglichkeiten vorteilhaft nutzten, eine Anzal von praktischen und kulturellen Hindernissen bestehen blieb. Während praktische Unzulänglichkeiten, wie die Bereitstellung geeigneter hard‐und software, relativ schnell überwunden werden können, wenn der finanzielle Wille vorhanden ist, erwiesen sich kulturelle Hindernisse und die Schulpraxis an sich als schwieriger zu verändern. Der Fokus dieses Papiers liegt auf den Ansichten, Hoffnungen und Ertwartungen der Primarstufen‐ und Sekundarstufenlehrer, die an den Untersuchungen teilnahmen und wie diese die Implementierung der ICT Initiativen beeinflussen.