Academics’ experiences of understanding of their subject matter and the relationship of this to their experiences of teaching and learning

In this paper we focus on the issue of how academic staff experience the understanding of their subject matter and the relationship of this understanding to their experience of teaching. In recent years there has been a substantial amount of research into how academic staff conceive of teaching and learning, how they approach their teaching, and how their approaches to teaching relate to how their students approach their learning. In our present project this research is being extended by looking at the way 31 academics from four broad fields of study experience their understanding of their subject matter and how this relates to the way they experience their teaching. Using a phenomenographic approach we show that academics who experience their subject matter in atomistic and less integrated ways experience their teaching in more information transmission and teacher-focused ways, while those with a more integrated and holistic experience of understanding their subject experience their teaching in more conceptual change and student-focused ways.in final form: 9 September 2004     

Measuring the Expertise of Paediatric Rehabilitation Therapists

This article describes the development of a classification system to measure the expertise levels of practicing paediatric rehabilitation therapists. Seventy‐five therapists from five disciplines (physical, occupational, speech‐language, behaviour, and recreational therapy) were involved, along with 170 peers, and 188 parents of children with disabilities. A cluster analysis of 10 indicators of expertise (derived from a battery of self‐completed, peer‐completed, and parent‐completed measures) indicated three levels of therapist expertise—novice, intermediate, and expert. Expertise level was related to various aspects of experience but not to therapy discipline. The classification system will be useful for the education and professional development of paediatric therapists, and for research on expertise in paediatric rehabilitation.     

Wear compliance,sedentary behaviour and activity in free-living children from hip-and wrist-mounted ActiGraph GT3X+ accelerometers

The GT3X+ worn at the wrist promotes greater compliance than at the hip. Minutes in SB and PA calculated from raw accelerations at the hip and wrist provide contrasting estimates and cannot be directly compared.

Wear-time for the wrist (15.6 to 17.4 h.d^?1) was greater than the hip (15.2 to 16.8 h.d^?1) across several wear-time criteria (all P < 0.05). Moderate-strong associations were found between time spent in SB (r = 0.39), LPA (r = 0.33), MPA (r = 0.99), VPA (r = 0.82) and MVPA (r = 0.81) between the two device placements (All P < 0.001). The wrist device detected more minutes in LPA, MPA, VPA and MVPA whereas the hip detected more SB (all P = 0.001). Estimates of time in SB and all activity outcomes from the wrist and hip lacked equivalence.

One hundred and eighty-eight 9–12-year-old children wore a wrist- and hip-mounted accelerometer for 7 days. Data were available for 160 (hip) and 161 (wrist) participants. Time spent in SB and PA was calculated using GGIR.

This study examined the compliance of children wearing wrist- and hip-mounted ActiGraph GT3X+ accelerometers and compared estimates of sedentary behaviour (SB) and physical activity (PA) between devices.     

A comparison of Hungarian and English teachers' conceptions of mathematics and its teaching

This paper reports on a statistical study of English and Hungarian teachers' conceptions of mathematics and its teaching. A questionnaire was developed and distributed to teachers of mathematics in 200 English and40 Hungarian schools teaching children in the 11–14 age range. Factor analyses identified four conceptions of mathematics and five of mathematics teaching. These were compared with those yielded by an earlier study involving the same English teachers and found to be consistent indicating the existence of similar conceptions in different educational systems. Differences and similarities in the strengths with which those conceptions are held were suggestive of both global and national conceptual traditions. The significant similarity to emerge concerned teachers from both countries sharing, with similar strengths, a general conception of mathematics teaching incorporating the teaching of mathematical skills, a variety of classroom approaches including investigations and problem-solving, and a recognition that mathematics provides an essential lifetool. Multi-dimensional scaling indicated that English teachers have their perspectives informed by two underlying, and possibly conflicting, traditions– pedagogic relevance and mathematical utility. The Hungarians appeared concerned only with notions of pedagogic relevance – those practices perceived to facilitate effective learning of a subject which is untainted by utilitarian perspectives. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Teachers talk about inclusion… but can they implement it in their classroom? Exploring teachers’ views on inclusion in a Scottish secondary school

Although there is much research regarding the inclusion of pupils with additional support needs (ASN) in mainstream secondary education, there is little research specifically exploring the perspectives of staff who support and teach this population. This small-scale exploratory study in a Scottish secondary school investigated staff perspectives, aiming to provide unique insights and personal accounts of issues pertaining to inclusion. The findings suggest that there is a need to increase the skills of staff in order for them to be suitably equipped, competent and confident to meet all pupils’ needs.     

Improving outcomes for young children: can we narrow the gap?

This article explores the considerable developments in both early years policy and in the provision of services for young children in England since 1997, noting the role that such services have had in informing the broader Every child matters agenda. Many challenges remain, however, not least the numbers of children and families who still live in poverty and the continuing gap between those children who do well and those who do not. In examining how this gap can be narrowed, through intervention and support during the early years, the work of the Narrowing the Gap project is described, a project that continues with the Centre for Excellence and Outcomes in Children’s Services (C4EO). Whilst high‐quality early years services provide a very positive start in life for young children, reducing inequality remains the key priority.     

A Developmental Comparison of the Out‐of‐school Recreation and Leisure Activity Participation of Boys and Girls With and Without Physical Disabilities

Similarities and differences were examined in the out‐of‐school recreation and leisure activity participation of 422 children with physical disabilities and 354 children without disabilities. The roles of age (six to eight years, nine to 11 years, and 12–14 years), gender, and disability status were examined with respect to the diversity, intensity, location, companionship, and enjoyment of participation in five types of activities, controlling for family income. The findings indicate that dimensions and types of activity participation are differentially influenced by age, gender, and disability. Age cohort comparisons indicated that children without disabilities experienced a widening social world characterised by more intense social participation, greater participation with non‐family members, and stable levels of enjoyment across the age groups. In contrast, children with disabilities in the various age groups were similar in their intensity of social participation and the nature of their companionship, with 12–14 year olds reporting less enjoyment of social activities than those aged six to eight years or nine to 11 years. The findings support the utility of a developmental and contextual perspective in understanding children’s patterns of participation. The information can be used by service providers and managers interested in creating centre‐based or community‐based recreational opportunities, and in providing information to parents about how to encourage children’s recreation and leisure participation.