OGRE: Three-Dimensional Program Visualization for Novice Programmers

As demonstrated in our earlier paper (Milne and Rowe, 2002), students learning object-oriented programming find topics related to the computer's handling of memory the most difficult to understand. Our results indicated that a visualization of a running object-oriented program, with particular emphasis on the display of how objects are related to each other in memory, would help students to learn these topics.Here we describe OGRE (Object-oriented GRaphical Environment) – a program visualization tool that has been developed to specifically address these memory related issues by providing three-dimensional, interactive visualizations that aid higher-level understanding of a program's execution in memory. OGRE has been evaluated with positive results that show significant improvements in students' understanding of C++'s memory-related topics.     

Understanding student engagement in online learning environments: the role of reflexivity

It is important to develop understanding of what underpins the engagement of students in online learning environments. This article reports on a multiple case study that explored student engagement in a set of postgraduate degrees offered on a fully online basis. The study was based on a theorization of student engagement as the exercise of intentional human action, .or agency. It identified ways in which tasks and social relations in the online learning environments triggered reflexivity on the part of students, with ‘reflexivity’ understood to mean the ordinary mental capacity to consider oneself in relation to one’s social setting. A different relationship between reflexivity and student engagement was in view than that identified by Margaret Archer with regard to reflexivity and social mobility. Rather than displaying one dominant mode of reflexivity, the students considered in the study were seen to draw on a range of modes. The engagement of these students in their learning was also seen to depend on the manner in which they engaged in reflexivity centred on the pursuit of shared goals, that is in collective reflexivity. Specific practices were seen to trigger constructive forms of collective reflexivity, while fractured and restricted forms of collective reflexivity were linked to student disengagement in relation to joint tasks. As well as adverting to the importance of collective reflexivity to learning, the study highlights scope for dissonance between the modes of reflexivity and practices favoured by an online learning environment and the reflexive profile of the student.     

A Game for Christmas? The Argylls,Saxons and Football on the Western Front,December 1914

Historians know that any mention of football and World War I will involve discussions of the Christmas truces of 1914 and the mythical football match between British and German troops. Many British soldiers denied that any truce had occurred let alone a football match. However, while there is indisputable evidence of truces, triangulating proof of football has been elusive. In this paper, a case study of the British 2/Argylls and the German 133/Saxons is developed. The underlying reasons behind the truce are discussed and why some combatants, in the short break from trying to kill each other, probably played football, even though certainly not as the formal match of popular imagination. It is argued that the truce was a result of unique circumstances and was not an overwhelmingly inspirational moment for the majority of troops involved; they all returned to the fighting. Most participants on both sides of the truce probably regarded it as an unexpected holiday and some availed themselves of the opportunity to play their favourite game. The paper concludes by examining recent commemorative events of Christmas 1914 and how they may have contributed to the myth of ‘The Football Match’.     

The changing shape characteristics associated with success in world-class sprinters

The aims of this study were to identify whether relative shape and size characteristics of world-class sprinters have changed over time, and whether any anthropometric parameters characterize the most successful world-class sprinters. The results suggest that body mass index, reflecting greater muscle mass rather than greater adiposity, is an important factor associated with success in both male and female world-class sprinters over time. However, in female athletes the reciprocal ponderal index (RPI) has emerged as a more important indicator of success over several decades, with taller, more linear sprinters achieving greater success, as measured by sprint speed. In male sprinters it is only in the most recent decade that RPI has emerged as an important predictor of success. We speculate that the prominence of the RPI and an ectomophic somatotype being typical of the most successful world-class sprinters might be explained, in part, by the influence of stride length on sprint speed. In conclusion, these results suggest that coaches, selectors, and sports scientists should consider body shape when selecting potential athletes for sprint events, encouraging more linear athletes with a high RPI.     

What can technology offer? Notes on technical developments for the non‐technical

The internet is assuming an all‐pervasive presence on television, radio, telephones and in the papers. Yet in what ways can value be added to existing content? What does the internet really offer in terms of technology and content management? It is suggested that publishers can use the internet to their advantage through the repurposing of content.     

Creating a Solution-Focused Counselling Team

The present paper outlines the process through which a local authority Psychological Service developed a team of educational psychologists able to provide intensive, short-term counselling to children and their families. The rationale, the operational procedures and current evaluations are provided. It is hoped that this article will inform and assist other Psychological Services to develop similar approaches.