Helping students understand their learning styles: Effects on study self‐efficacy,preference for group work,and group climate

Small tutorial groups in higher education are often composed without regard to students’ gender or broad knowledge background, for example, yet research indicates that composing groups on the basis of gender and prior qualifications may have significant effects on assessment outcomes. Previous studies have also investigated the effects of composing groups on the basis of learning style preference and found no effects. The effect of combining group composition with training in learning styles is unclear, however. In this study we report on the effects of workshop training in learning styles on balanced group members’ study self‐efficacy, preference for group work, group climate, and assessment performance. Although we found no effects, students reported greater self‐awareness of their own learning and acceptance of others’ styles. We conclude that in collaborative learning environments, training may need to go beyond facilitating growth in students’ self‐awareness to include a focus on how to apply this understanding to improving group function and helping others to learn.     

Recommendations for the use of e‐tools for improvements around assignment marking quality

This article reports on selected aspects of a larger study on the use of electronic tools in the context of the management and marking of assignments. The study comprised a literature review, interviews and a review of e‐tools. The article briefly summarises the findings from the literature on what comprises quality in assignment marking. The focus then shifts towards the analysis of the interviews on e‐tool use for assignments that were conducted with 90 lecturers across five higher education institutions in New Zealand, selected purposively for engagement in this area. The article shows how these lecturers are using e‐tools to support the management and marking of assignments. Special emphasis is given on grounding the e‐tool use in educational theories on assignment marking. An important issue with high quality assignment marking is the time required. The article shows how e‐tools are used to increase efficiency, with the time freed‐up being invested into quality improvements, again supported by e‐tools.     

To use Films in Learning

“In the beginning there was the word.” Speech the means ofcommunication, creates the foundation for all human relationships with one another. Verbalismus and the abstract formation of an idea were expressions for overvaluation of speech. Natural scientists showed, from translations of ancient works, that this was something to watch for or a process already completed: further investigation through personal experiment orobservation test are unnecessary.     

THE DEVELOPMENT OF HEALTHSTAGES: A UNIQUE UNIVERSITY AND NOT-FOR-PROFIT COLLABORATION TO ENHANCE SUCCESSFUL AGING

HealthStages is a health promotion program of OASIS, a national arts and humanities, health, and volunteer organization for older adults. It was developed by a unique not-for-profit organization and university collaboration using state-of-the art curricula and current research to enhance successful aging. Rowe and Kahn's (1997) model of successful aging provided the overall framework for the project, and Prochaska and DiClemente (1983) Stages of Change component of the Transtheoretical Model of Behavior Change guided our curriculum development, research questions, and program evaluation. HealthStages uses evaluations of individual courses to assess participant expectations, new areas of interest, and appropriateness of courses. Outcome measures assess participants' changes as a result of particular courses within the program. Using a longitudinal survey design, a sample of HealthStages participants is compared to a random sample of older adults not involved in the program, comparisons are made on their health, health behavior, healthcare utilization, activity, and functioning over time. HealthStages is a comprehensive health promotion program designed to provide courses in a variety of topic areas at differing levels of readiness to change and to measure changes over time. The unique collaboration offers benefits to OASIS and its members as well as to faculty and students of Washington University.     

The child’s emotional management in school competition: under-seven football / La gestión emocional del niño en la competición escolar: el fútbol prebenjamín

Abstract

Football is one of the most common extracurricular activities among schoolchildren. Illusions and expectations are poured into a competitive sport that complements their formal education at school. The controversy over competition in schoolchildren aged six and seven opens up a debate on the lessons that are constructed. This study explores the emotional management that children develop in order to participate in sports activities in relation to the lessons promoted by the school. This article presents an ethnographic study grounded upon participant observation, with 101 schoolchildren in the first and second years of primary school during one academic year in 207 sessions, and semi-structured interviews with 21 teachers. After analysing the narratives, the results reveal previous expectations and stresses, a level of activation adequate for the competitive demands of the environment, the development of the ability to be competent in a stressful situation, the emotional capitalization of knowing how to win and lose, the impact of social recognition on adaptative construction of self-esteem, and the management of episodes of stress.     

Age and sex differences in motor performance of pre‐school Nigerian children

Differences in motor performance according to chronological age and gender of 341 young Nigerian children (ages 3 to 5) were examined. Motor test items designed by Morris et al. (1981) were administered to the subjects. Analysis of variance was used to determine significant differences in the motor performance of the groups. In the whole sample, more age differences than sex differences in performance were noted. Except for the balancing and running performances of the girls, a fairly linear trend of improvement with age was observed in the motor performances of the groups. At each age level the boys consistently performed better than the girls in four of the six motor tests (catching, standing long jump, tennis ball throw and speed run). Generally, the 4‐ and 5‐year‐old children performed homogeneously, with a great disparity in performance noted for the 3‐year‐old children. The results of this study confirm that age and sex differences in motor performance occur at early childhood. Prospective studies should seek to control the extraneous factors which influence motor development and account for the observed differences in motor performance of pre‐school children.     

Scientific Communication in the Developing World in an Open Access Mode: The SciELO Model

[Abstract） This paper introduces the Scientific Electronic Library Online （SciELO） program and its three main objectives. Then the paper presents the methodology of open access to scientific information by the SciELO. At last, it shows the perspectives of open access in developing countries.