Correlating Spatial Ability With Anatomy Assessment Performance: A Meta-Analysis

Interest in spatial ability has grown over the past few decades following the emergence of correlational evidence associating spatial aptitude with educational performance in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. The research field at large and the anatomy education literature on this topic are mixed. In an attempt to generate consensus, a meta-analysis was performed to objectively summarize the effects of spatial ability on anatomy assessment performance across multiple studies and populations. Relevant studies published within the past 50 years (1969–2019) were retrieved from eight databases. Study eligibility screening was followed by a full-text review and data extraction. Use of the Mental Rotations Test (MRT) was required for study inclusion. Out of 2,450 screened records, 15 studies were meta-analyzed. Seventy-three percent of studies (11 of 15) were from the United States and Canada, and the majority (9 of 15) studied professional students. Across 15 studies and 1,245 participants, spatial ability was weakly associated with anatomy performance (r_pooled = 0.240; CI at 95% = 0.09, 0.38; P = 0.002). Performance on spatial and relationship-based assessments (i.e., practical assessments and drawing tasks) was correlated with spatial ability, while performance on assessments utilizing non-spatial multiple-choice items was not correlated with spatial ability. A significant sex difference was also observed, wherein males outperformed females on spatial ability tasks. Given the role of spatial reasoning in learning anatomy, educators are encouraged to consider curriculum delivery modifications and a comprehensive assessment strategy so as not to disadvantage individuals with low spatial ability.     

What goes up must come down: Consequences of jump strategy modification on dance leap take-off biomechanics

ABSTRACT

Chronic foot and ankle injuries are common in dancers; understanding how lower extremity loading changes in response to altered task goals can be beneficial for rehabilitation and injury prevention strategies. The purpose of this study was to examine mechanical demands during jump take-offs when the task goal was modified to focus on either increasing jump distance or increasing jump height. It was hypothesized that a jump strategy focused on height would result in decreased energetic demands on the foot and ankle joints. Thirty healthy, experienced female dancers performed saut de chat leaps while travelling as far as possible (FAR) or jumping as high as possible (UP). Ground reaction force (GRF) impulses and peak sagittal plane net joint moments and sagittal plane mechanical energy expenditure (MEE) of the metatarsophalangeal (MTP), ankle, knee, and hip joints were calculated. During take-off, vertical and horizontal braking GRF impulses were greater and horizontal propulsive GRF impulse was lower in the UP condition. MEE at the MTP, ankle, and hip joints was lower in UP, and MEE at the knee was higher in UP. These results suggest that a strategy focused on height may be helpful in unloading the ankle and MTP joints during dance leaps.     

Does authentic assessment assure academic integrity? Evidence from contract cheating data

ABSTRACT

Contract cheating occurs when a student outsources their assessment to a third party, regardless of the third party’s relationship with the student, or whether money is exchanged. In higher education, there is a widespread belief that assessment design is a solution to the problem of contract cheating and that authentic assessment tasks are particularly effective. This research analysed two datasets – 221 assignment orders placed on academic custom writing websites and 198 assessment tasks in which contract cheating was detected – to investigate if authentic assessment can assure academic integrity. The authenticity of assessments was determined using five factors derived from the literature: frequency, fidelity, complexity, real-world impact and feed forward. Our analysis found that assessment tasks with no, some, or all of the five authenticity factors are routinely outsourced by students.     

The BASES expert statement on emotion regulation in sport

Emotions experienced before and during sports competition have been found to influence sports performance. Emotion regulation is defined as the automatic or deliberate use of strategies to initiate, maintain, modify or display emotions (Gross & Thompson, 2007) and is proposed to occur when a discrepancy exists between current and desired emotions. Two distinct motivations to regulate emotion - hedonic and instrumental (in short, for pleasure or for purpose) - have been proposed (Tamir, 2009). The instrumental approach might provide a more fruitful area of investigation for sports researchers as some athletes hold beliefs that supposedly pleasant emotions such as happiness and calmness associate with poor performance and supposedly unpleasant emotions such as anxiety and anger associate with good performance (Hanin, 2010). Athletes are more likely to try to regulate an emotion if they believe that doing so will facilitate performance. Strategies that encourage re-appraisal of factors that trigger emotions are proposed to be preferable. In this British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences (BASES) expert statement, a summary of the key theoretical issues are offered leading to evidence-based recommendations for practitioners and researchers.     

Correlates of school-day physical activity in preschool students

This study examined the relationship among sex, body mass index, motor skill competence (MSC), perceived physical competence (PPC), and school-day physical activity in preschool students (N = 34). Physical activity was assessed by steps accumulated during the school day, while MSC and PPC were assessed with the Test of Gross Motor Development-2nd edition (Ulrich, 2000) and the Pictorial Scale of Perceived Competence and Social Acceptance (Harter & Pike, 1984). Regression analyses revealed that preschool students' locomotor ability accounted for 21 % (p = .007) of the variance associated with school-day physical activity. The findings support an association between participants' ability to locomote and be physically active. The findings warrant future investigations to examine the relationship between locomotor skills and physical activity behaviors.     

数学真理的问题

在当前数学实践中,数学知识(如果有这样的知识的话)是通过在定义和公理的基础上证明定理来获得的.问题在于该怎样理解证明中所得到的东西是如何构成知识的,具体而言,即是要给出一个关于数学真理和数学知识的统一的解释,该解释能够揭示两者的内在联系.此处的困难是,根据贝纳塞拉夫的为人熟知的论证,由于塔斯基语义学认为真与对象的联系(通过单称词项或通过量词)是不可消去的,因此在数学中无法将塔斯基语义学与完整的认识论相结合:数学知识要么是通过证明得到的,这种情况下数学知识与数学对象是无关的,因此我们就无法解释数学真理;要么数学对象是数学真理的构件,从而数学知识不是通过证明得到的,这种情况下我们就无从理解数学知识.接着,本文通过一系列阶段,将这些困难一直追溯到最基本的逻辑观念,即将之看作形式的和纯粹解释性的:如果数学是从概念出发仅仅使用逻辑的推理实践,依照康德,那么数学应该是分析的,也即,仅仅是解释性的,根本就不是通常意义上的知识.我认为,这对数学真理是真正困难的问题.本文概括了四种回应,其中仅有一个有希望解决我们的困难,也即皮尔斯和弗雷格的回应.根据他们的方案,逻辑是科学,因此是实验性的和可错的;符号语言是有内容的,尽管并不涉及与任何对象的关联;证明是构成性的,因此是富于产出的过程.通过充分发展这些观点,我们将有可能最终解决数学真理的问题.     

Promises and Challenges for the Use of Adapted Primary Literature in Science Curricula: Commentary

The papers in this collection provide compelling arguments that the use of Adapted Primary Literature (APL) in science education holds great promise for enriching inquiry science instruction at the secondary level. The integration of this genre of written text into science curricula illustrates the ways in which reasoning in reading and reasoning in science are tightly connected. I discuss three major themes that arise from a reading of the papers in this set: (1) the concept of authenticity as an adherence to scientific reasoning and practice within science education, and the ways in which APL is a welcome complication to simpler notions of “authentic” experiences for learners, (2) issues around the use of tools such as APL in science curriculum design and implementation, including the need to consider discipline-specific science reading strategies and ways to support teachers in their use of APL, and (3) the possible implications for extending the concept of APL into younger (primary age) and older (college age) classrooms than those examined in these papers.     

Awareness within local authorities in England of autism spectrum diagnoses of looked-after children

Educational outcomes for looked-after children on the autism spectrum are significantly poorer than for autistic children not being looked-after by their local authority (those ‘in care’), and poorer than for most other groups of children with special educational needs who are looked-after in England. Such poor outcomes have led to calls for specific attention to be paid to the needs of autistic looked-after children within the care of local authorities. There is also evidence that the numbers of autistic children being looked-after by local authorities could be under-represented in official figures. This study sought to find the current numbers of autistic looked-after children formally recorded across local authorities in England, and whether their needs are given special attention via strategic planning and oversight, using freedom of information (FoI) requests sent to all local authorities in England. From the 147 (97%) local authorities who responded, approximately 3% of looked-after children in England are recorded as having an autism spectrum diagnosis, although this is still very likely to be an underestimation. The majority of local authorities do not routinely monitor or report on the diagnostic status of autistic looked-after children at a strategic level. Implications for research and practice are discussed.