Cognitive Style and Gender Differences in Drawing from Memory Versus Copying in 11‐year‐old Children

A total of 71 11‐year‐old children were asked to draw two pictures: one by copying and one from memory. The quality of each of their drawings was assessed on a five‐point scale by four adult judges rating independently. The cognitive style of each child was assessed by means of the Cognitive Styles Analysis. A significant effect of Verbal‐Imagery Style was observed in which Verbalisers were superior to Imagers in overall drawing performance. There was also a significant interaction between drawing task‐type and gender in which females were superior to males, particularly in drawing from memory. These findings were discussed in terms of the representation of information in memory.     

Buffer,coupling, and broker: Reflections on 60 years of the UGC

The main conclusion of this survey of the way in which the British University Grants Committee (UGC) has acted as an intermediary between government and universities is that the UGC secures the maximum degree of self-government possible at any given time. How great that “maximum” is depends essentially on the power and purposes of the two principals (government and universities) rather than on the limited powers of the go-between (the UGC). Whereas for the first 45 years of its existence the relations between the principals were such as to focus attention on the UGC as “buffer,” changes in those relations since 1963 have emphasised the fact that the UGC is also a “coupling” between state and higher education. The pressures of economic circumstance and government action have suppressed the “euphoria” that accompanied the expansionist fifties and sixties, but to kill the messenger would be inappropriate.     

Does science education need the history of science?

This essay argues that science education can gain from close engagement with the history of science both in the training of prospective vocational scientists and in educating the broader public about the nature of science. First it shows how historicizing science in the classroom can improve the pedagogical experience of science students and might even help them turn into more effective professional practitioners of science. Then it examines how historians of science can support the scientific education of the general public at a time when debates over "intelligent design" are raising major questions over the kind of science that ought to be available to children in their school curricula. It concludes by considering further work that might be undertaken to show how history of science could be of more general educational interest and utility, well beyond the closed academic domains in which historians of science typically operate.     

Information Technology in Initial Teacher Education: preconceptions of history and geography interns,with reflections of mentors and tutors

ABSTRACT

The results of a survey of experiences, feelings and preconceptions concerning information technology (IT) that University of Oxford history and geography interns bring to the one year secondary teacher training course are reported. A notable finding was the significantly greater importance attributed to the use of computers in subject teaching by geography interns compared with historians, and the relatively large numbers of the latter ascribing little or no importance to the use of computers in the teaching of history. Analysis of the qualitative data provided by this study provided a range of insights into the ways in which geography and history interns viewed information technology. There was a marked difference between the two groups not only in their feelings about IT but in the degree of sophistication with which they articulated IT issues. The geographers were more positive and were able to support their views with specific examples of software and applications. Their level of knowledge and understanding was often well developed. The historians, in contrast, rarely exhibited the same level of specificity. They viewed IT in a more generalised way. It was often assumed to be ‘a good thing’ and something that might be useful, but there was a marked degree of uncertainty. There was however a distinct group within the historians who exhibited a high degree of anxiety about IT and where views were expressed in very emotive terms. Reflections of a group of school mentors and university curriculum tutors on the findings are also described, and a number of issues and dilemmas for initial teacher education partnership schemes are identified.     

Alzheimer's Disease and Other Dementias: An Organizational Approach to Identifying and Addressing Practices and Learning Needs of Family Physicians

ABSTRACT

Caring for patients with dementia is complex and demanding. Since family physicians (FPs) provide much of this care, we examined their practices, learning needs, and barriers to care concerning Alzheimer's disease and other dementias. We surveyed 392 (approximately 50%) Nova Scotia FPs and conducted focus groups and interviews with: FPs; staff of long-term care facilities; health professionals in home care; patients and their caregivers; FPs with advanced geriatric training; geriatricians; and psychiatrists. Results suggest that many FPs do not perform assessment and management practices as frequently as they ideally should. However, systemic factors, not only inadequate knowledge, affect care.     

Dynamic pressure effect on horse and horse rider during riding

Horse riding predisposes to degenerative spinal injury to both rider and horse. This study evaluated the dynamic pressure exerted on horse and horse rider. The main comparison investigated was how the flocking (cushioning) material of a saddle affected the pressure exerted on both. Six horse riders and one horse were used to conduct this study. The Pliance^® horse saddle and seat pressure testing systems, designed by Novel_GmBH, were used for this study. Pressure recordings were carried out from a saddle fitted with wool then again following its conversion to air flocking. Both flocking materials were tested during a variety of different gait settings using two pressure mats to record the pressures firstly being exerted onto the horse and secondly onto the rider. This study was the first carried out to examine the pressure exerted on horse and rider. Results found that both the mean peak pressure (MPP) and mean pressure–time integral (PTI) exerted on the rider increased by as much as 21.9 and 22 %, respectively, following conversion to air flocking. In contrast, the air flocking saddle exerted a lower MPP and PTI on the horse by as much as 25.3 and 26.6 %, respectively. This study has shown that air flocking reduces the pressure exerted on the horse; however, it has also indicated that it increased the pressures exerted on the rider. As a result of our study, further research needs to be conducted to determine the most appropriate material to flock a saddle with.     

Power variation strategies for cycling time trials: a differential equation model

In cycling time trials, competitors aim to ride a course in the fastest possible time and the implementation of a pacing strategy is therefore essential. In this study, a differential equation model of a cyclist incorporating continuous changes in velocity is formulated and applied to a selection of theoretical courses and athletes. The model is augmented with a constraint corresponding to a mean work rate and various pacing strategies are considered. The inclusion of continuous accelerations experienced by the cyclist forms an essential component in a model for courses comprising many changes of gradient, and a steady-state approximation, which has previously been used to assess pacing strategies, is not suitable. In addition to formulating a result on the mathematically optimal solution of the model equations subject to the mean power constraint, it is also shown that substantial time savings can be realized by cyclists increasing their work rates on uphill sections and suitably reducing their work rates elsewhere. However, the amount of time saved is highly course- and athlete-dependent with the greatest gains arising on courses with the longest continuous ascents by cyclists of greatest mass.     

Assessing Direct Contributions of Morphological Awareness and Prosodic Sensitivity to Children’s Word Reading and Reading Comprehension

We examined the independent contributions of prosodic sensitivity and morphological awareness to word reading, text reading accuracy, and reading comprehension. We did so in a longitudinal study of English-speaking children (N = 70). At 5–7 years of age, children completed the metalinguistic measures along with control measures of phonological awareness and vocabulary. Children completed the reading measures 2 years later. Morphological awareness but not prosodic sensitivity made a significant independent contribution to word reading, text reading accuracy, and reading comprehension. The effects of morphological awareness on reading comprehension remained after controls for word reading. These results suggest that morphological awareness needs to be considered seriously in models of reading development and that prosodic sensitivity might have primarily indirect relations to reading outcomes.