Whole-body control of anticipated and unanticipated sidestep manoeuvres in female and male team sport athletes

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of sex and planning time on spatial and temporal aspects of the whole-body centre of mass (CoM) mechanics during sidestepping performance. Seventeen female and 17 male collegiate team sport athletes completed seven anticipated and seven unanticipated sidestep trials during which three-dimensional CoM data were recorded. Female athletes had a reduced ability to reorient their CoM towards the desired direction of travel (lower medio-lateral and anterior-posterior CoM velocity) than their male counterparts, with reduced medial (closer to stance foot) and increased posterior positioning of CoM relative to the stance foot (p < 0.05). When planning time was limited, female and male athletes performed sidestepping with CoM further from the stance foot (more medial) and more anterior than in the anticipated condition (p < 0.05) at reduced medio-lateral velocities. Sex and condition control strategy differences were evident both in the preparatory phase and the stance phase. The current research draws attention to the foreseen benefits of training athletes, with particular emphasis on females, to direct CoM towards the desired direction of travel in the preparatory and stance phases within temporally constrained situations for improved performance.     

Nutritional, lifestyle, and weight control practices of professional jockeys

In this study, we describe diet and lifestyle practices of professional jockeys. Participants completed a 59-item nutrition, lifestyle, and health questionnaire (n = 21) and a 7-day estimated food diary (n = 18). Acute weight loss strategies included the use of saunas (86%), exercising to induce sweating (81%), and restricted energy intake (71%). Of the smokers (38%), 56% used smoking to control weight. Most (86%) jockeys reported attaining a 2-kg weight loss for racing (if required) 24-48 h before or on the designated race-day. Mean daily energy intake (1803 ± 564 kcal) was low and appeared to provide an insufficient availability of energy for sustainment of usual daily and metabolic processes. Carbohydrate intake (3.7 ± 1.3 g · kg?1) was below recommendations for athletes. A substantial proportion of jockeys failed to meet the estimated average requirement and lower threshold intake for a number of micronutrients. Jockeys consumed well below (0-2) the recommended five daily servings of fruit and vegetables set by the World Health Organization. Pressures of the jockey lifestyle and rigid weight limits appear to encourage unhealthy weight management practices in this group and may risk long term-health.     

TAG teachers: Only the creative need apply

Creativity is an asset to any teacher, but it is crucial for teachers of gifted and talented students. Inventive and productive creativity are necessary to efficiently and effectively develop or modify programs and curricula. Expressive creativity is present in instructional interactions with students, and creative problem solving skills are needed to enhance students’ creativity. Implications for supporting and enhancing teachers’ creativity are considered.     

Issues in teaching and learning for older adults in Hong Kong and Australia

ABSTRACT

There has not been ample recent research on teaching older adults. However, as described below, there is mounting research in how and why older adults want to learn. This brief discussion is derived from work undertaken for a workshop in Hong Kong on issues in teaching older adults. It combines recent research on learning and teaching in higher education as it applies to older adults. The paper addresses: learning and ageing, learning choices, an information processing view of learning, deep and surface learning, teaching and learning approaches, formal, non-formal and informal learning, teaching roles, evaluation, and technology. Some sections are exemplified with information from teaching older adults in Australia and Hong Kong     

The Development of Some Textbooks on the useful Arts c.1000‐c.1250

‘... I will formulate two hundred doubts supported for the sake of a trial...’ Paul of Venice, Quadratura. ^{1 1}‘Quoniam otium mors est hominis una viventis nec non ad multorum genera viciorum relapsus continuus, ideo ut inter mortuos vivam nec solito vel ceteris peior efficiar quatuor formabo dubia denariis quinque fulta temptativis’. Paulus Venetus, Quadratura (Venice: Bonetus Locatellus, 1493), Hain 12.521, no pagination. All references are to this edition. On Paul of Venice see Alan R. Perreiah, ‘A Biographical Introduction to Paul of Venice’, Augustiniana, XVII (1967), 450–461.      

Research on Divorce, Separation and Family Change: Messages for Practitioners

The JRF has supported a series of twelve research projects about the effects of divorce and separation. This paper highlights key messages and common themes that emerge for practitioners working with children and their families.     

Teacher planning in the development of collaborative cultures

The value of collaborative working practices in schools and other institutions has been studied by a number of researchers, eg Fullan (1991); Hargreaves (1994). Researchers generally agree that collaborative practice is an important factor in teacher development and school improvement.

The significance of planning in primary schools is widely acknowledged. However, limited research has been carried out into the planning of primary teachers in Britain and much of what is written and advocated as good practice has little evidential basis.

This article explores the symbiotic relationship between planning and collaboration. In particular, it discusses the significance of this relationship to the individual teacher and to the school as an institution.     

Putting journals out to tender: guidelines for societies and other sponsors

Many journals are sponsored by one body and published by another. These notes are intended to guide sponsors by outlining the stages, processes, and timetable involved in obtaining and comparing tenders. Sponsors are advised that detailed analysis and open communication are more likely to result in satisfactory long‐term publishing arrangements.     

Values and Imagination in Teaching: With a Special Focus on Social Studies

Both local and global issues are typically dealt with in the Social Studies curriculum, or in curriculum areas with other names but similar intents. In the literature about Social Studies the imagination has played little role, and consequently it hardly appears in texts designed to help teachers plan and implement Social Studies lessons. What is true of Social Studies is also largely reflected in general texts concerning planning teaching. Clearly many theorists and practitioners are concerned to engage students' imaginations in learning, even though they use terms other than 'imagination' in doing so. This article suggests that a more explicit attention to imagination can make our efforts to engage students in learning more effective. We provide, first, a working definition of imagination, then show how students' imaginations can be characterized in terms of the 'cognitive toolkits' they bring to learning. We look at such 'cognitive tools' as stories, images, humor, binary oppositions, a sense of mystery and how these can be used to engage students' imaginations in learning Social Studies and other content from kindergarten to about grade four. We then consider 'cognitive tools' commonly deployed by students from about grade four to grade nine, including a sense of reality, the extremes of experience and limits of reality, and associating with the heroic. We also provide examples of how using such tools could influence planning and teaching Social Studies topics.