Grading in Portuguese secondary school physical education: assessment parameters,gender differences and associations with academic achievement

ABSTRACT

Background: Assessment is crucial for the quality of teaching and learning in physical education (PE). Currently little is known about the students’ level of achievement in PE and about the parameters used for calculating the PE grades. Although there is evidence that boys are more active outside school than girls and participate more in organized sports, few studies have examined possible differences between genders in PE achievement. Furthermore, despite the current interest in the relationship between motor competencies and cognitive functioning, limited research has examined if PE grades are associated with academic achievement.

Purpose: Considering the lack of information on the current level of students’ success in PE, the main aim of this study is to examine the PE grades of Portuguese students in secondary school. Specifically, this study analysis the level of students’ achievement in PE, the relation of PE grades with other school subjects’ grades, compares the PE grades between boys and girls, and presents the PE summative assessment parameters used in schools.

Method: Participants were 1936 students (57% girls) from the 10th, 11th and 12th grades (16.8?±?1.3 years old) attending eleven Portuguese secondary schools. Information was gathered on their grades in PE and in the other school subjects at the end of the school year. Information on the specific assessment parameters used in each school was also collected.

Results: The average grades in PE were 14.9?±?2.3 points (20-point scale). Only ～1% of students with a final PE grade had a negative performance (<10 points). PE grades were relatively higher than in most of the other school-subjects and for most students (68.7%) the PE classification raised their overall average grade. The level of correlation between grades in PE and in other school subjects was statistically significant (r's?=?.13 to .29, p?<?.05) although lower than that between grades in the other school subjects (r's?=?.44 to .84, p?<?.01). There were significant differences between girls’ and boys’ grades in PE (14.3?±?2.3 and 15.9?±?2.1 points, respectively). The school assessment parameters prioritize physical performance over participation and attitude.

Conclusion: The Portuguese students’ level of achievement in PE seems to be very satisfactory. However, as boys have higher grades than girls it is urgent to find appropriate strategies to tackle this problem. The associations found between PE grades and academic achievement could have relevant repercussions considering the current debate about the status of PE and about the relationship between motor and cognitive competencies. It is also relevant that the schools’ summative assessment parameters are based mainly on skill mastery and not on effort and participation. This study provided a brief glance into some aspects of the assessment of PE in Portugal and is it is desirable that future investigations examine the teacher's assessment practices.     

Isolation of cells for selective treatment and analysis using a magnetic microfluidic chip

This study describes the development and testing of a magnetic microfluidic chip (MMC) for trapping and isolating cells tagged with superparamagnetic beads (SPBs) in a microfluidic environment for selective treatment and analysis. The trapping and isolation are done in two separate steps; first, the trapping of the tagged cells in a main channel is achieved by soft ferromagnetic disks and second, the transportation of the cells into side chambers for isolation is executed by tapered conductive paths made of Gold (Au). Numerical simulations were performed to analyze the magnetic flux and force distributions of the disks and conducting paths, for trapping and transporting SPBs. The MMC was fabricated using standard microfabrication processes. Experiments were performed with E. coli (K12 strand) tagged with 2.8 μm SPBs. The results showed that E. coli can be separated from a sample solution by trapping them at the disk sites, and then isolated into chambers by transporting them along the tapered conducting paths. Once the E. coli was trapped inside the side chambers, two selective treatments were performed. In one chamber, a solution with minimal nutrition content was added and, in another chamber, a solution with essential nutrition was added. The results showed that the growth of bacteria cultured in the second chamber containing nutrient was significantly higher, demonstrating that the E. coli was not affected by the magnetically driven transportation and the feasibility of performing different treatments on selectively isolated cells on a single microfluidic platform.     

Public Versus Private Colleges: Political Participation of College Graduates

Using data from the Baccalaureate and Beyond Longitudinal Study (B&B:93/03) of College Graduates, we use structural equation modeling to model the relationships between college major, values held in college, collegiate community service participation, and the post-college political participation of college graduates by public versus private institutions. We use Holland’s Theory of person-environment fit as lens to understand differences in political participation across majors and institutional contexts. Over a 10-year period immediately after receiving the baccalaureate, we find that choice of major and individual values are differentially associated with post-college political participation for private institution graduates when compared to the counterparts at public institutions. We relate our findings to extant literature that highlights the differences in institutional characteristics between public and private colleges and socialization patterns of undergraduates that may inform differences in post-college political participation. Implications for future research are also offered.     

Greater basal skeletal muscle AMPKα phosphorylation in men than in women: Associations with anaerobic performance

Objectives: This study was designed to investigate the association of gender, fibre type composition, and anaerobic performance with the basal skeletal muscle signalling cascades regulating muscle phenotype. Design: Muscle biopsies were obtained from 25 men and 10 women all young and healthy. Methods. Protein phosphorylation of Thr¹⁷²AMPKα, Ser²²¹ACCβ, Thr²⁸⁶CaMKII as well as total protein abundance of PGC-1α, SIRT1, and CnA were measured by Western blot and anaerobic performance by the Wingate test. Results: Percent type I myosin heavy chain (MHC I) was lower in men (37.1?±?10.4 vs. 58.5?±?12.5, P?P?P?221ACCβ and Thr²⁸⁶CaMKII fractional phosphorylation tended to be higher in men (P?=?.1). PGC1-α and SIRT1 total protein expression was similar in men and women, whereas CnA tended to be higher in men (P?=?.1). Basal AMPKα phosphorylation was linearly related to the percentage of MHC I in men (r?=?0.56; P?Conclusion: In summary, skeletal muscle basal AMPKα phosphorylation is higher in men compared to women, with no apparent effect on anaerobic performance.     

Between tradition and modernization: understanding the problem of female Bedouin dropouts

This study discusses the problem of Bedouin girls dropping out from the public school system in the Negev region of Israel. Data show that this phenomenon results from a conflict between the modern Israeli institutes’ perception of modernity (which promote coeducation) and the Bedouin traditions that remain the cultural ethos of the girls’ fathers. Israeli institutions’ perception of modernity (enlightenment theory) aims to modernize the Bedouins according to Israel’s modern principles, thus revoking traditional Bedouin values (sex separation). This paper promotes a postmodern theory that calls for embedding feminine traditional values of local communities as a necessary process in the development of modernity.     

Maternal Socialization and Kindergarten Children’s Behaviors from Jordanian Mothers’ and Teachers’ Perspectives

This study investigated whether Jordanian mothers’ self-reported parenting practices were associated with their kindergarten children’s prosocial or anti-social behavior based on three parental patterns: nurturance, respect, and power assertion. The participants were 95 mothers with children in the kindergarten level in Jordan. Additionally, 13 teachers of these 95 kindergarten children were also participants. This Parenting Styles Inventory Scale, and the Prosocial and Anti-Social Behavior Rating Scale, developed by Lin (Influences of parenting and teaching styles on young children’s prosocial and anti-social development in Taiwan. Unpublished dissertation, Arizona State University, USA, 1995), were used as instruments. Results indicated that nurturance was the most frequent and preferred parenting pattern of participants. Mothers who are warm and nurturing were more strongly associated with prosocial behavior in their children. An unexpected finding was that mothers with more children were more assertive and strict towards them.