Sixth-Grade Physical Education: An Acculturation of Bullying and Fear

Purpose: Although bullying is recognized as a serious problem among adolescents, more information is needed regarding bullying within the context of physical education. Grounded in a social-ecological framework, the purpose of this investigation was to discover the perceptions students and teachers have about bullying in physical education and about peer and adult support. Method: Data collection included formal and informal interviews with 24 students and 4 teachers and 20 observations of 6th-grade physical education classes in 1 Midwestern school. Data were analyzed using a constant-comparative process. Results: The results indicate that adults acculturate students to support a bullying climate by providing mixed information regarding social interactions, ignoring nonphysical instances of bullying, and promoting inappropriate curricular selections. Participants also report that perceived differences such as appearance, body size, physical ability, and personal attire ignite most episodes of harassment in physical education. Further, students perceive that fear prevents many from (a) reporting instances of bullying to those in authority, (b) assisting bullied friends, and (c) feeling safe in certain physical education locations. Finally, students and teachers report that bullying impacts students' desire to participate in physical education. Conclusions: Overall, evidence from this investigation suggests that an efficacious support system does not exist for addressing the magnitude of the bullying problem. Although this study provided an initial step toward understanding the social-ecological factors affecting peer harassment in physical education, additional research is warranted.     

Identifying the Critical Time Period for Information Extraction When Recognizing Sequences of Play

We analyzed the effect of an 8-week strength training (ST) program on the rate of force development (RFD) and electromyographic activity (EMG) in older women. Seventeen women (M age = 63.4 years, SD = 4.9) without previous ST experience were randomly assigned to either a control (n = 7) or training (n = 10) group. A leg-press isometric test was used for assessment. ST (three sessions/ week, three sets of 10–12 repetition maximum, five different exercises) induced significant increases (p < .05) on peak RFD (48.4%) and on RFD and EMG of vastus medialis at time intervals of 0–50, 0–100, 0–150, and 0–200 ms (41.1–69.2% and 43.8– 64.3%, respectively). Therefore, ST resulted in favorable changes in neuromuscular responses in older women.     

A cross-sectional examination of the physical fitness and selected health attributes of recreational all-terrain vehicle riders and off-road motorcyclists

Abstract

The aims of this study were: (1) to characterize selected fitness and health attributes of two types of habitual recreational off-road vehicle riders – off-road motorcyclists and all-terrain vehicle riders; (2) to explore differences among riders in terms of vehicle type, age, and gender; and (3) to compare the fitness and health of riders to population norms and clinical health standards. Canadian off-road riders (n = 141) of both sexes aged 16 years and over were recruited through local and national off-road riding organizations. Anthropometry, fitness, and health measures of off-road motorcycle and all-terrain vehicle riders were compared with population norms, health standards, and physical activity guidelines. Off-road motorcycle riders had above average aerobic fitness (79th percentile), while all-terrain vehicle riders were lower than average (40th percentile). All riders had a healthy blood lipid profile and a low incidence of the metabolic syndrome (12.9%) compared with members of the general population. Off-road motorcycle riders had healthier body composition and fitness than all-terrain vehicle riders; however, the body composition of off-road motorcycle riders was no healthier than that of the general population and all-terrain vehicle riders were worse than the general population. Off-road motorcycle riders had healthier anthropometry and fitness than all-terrain vehicle riders and thus fewer health risk factors for future disease, demonstrating that the physiological profiles of off-road riders are dependent on vehicle type.     

Impacts of an Early Childhood Mathematics and Science Intervention on Teaching Practices and Child Outcomes

abstract

This randomized controlled trial examined effects of the MyTeachingPartner-Math/Science intervention on the quality and quantity of teachers’ mathematics and science instruction, and children’s mathematics and science outcomes in 140 pre-kindergarten classrooms. Teachers participated in the intervention for two years with consecutive cohorts of children. Results from Year 1 are considered experimental, however due to high levels of attrition, results from Year 2 are considered quasi-experimental. Across both years, intervention teachers exhibited higher quality and quantity of instruction. In Year 1, there were no significant effects of the intervention on children’s outcomes. In Year 2, children in intervention classrooms made greater gains in teachers’ ratings of mathematics and science skills and performed better on a spring assessment of science skills. These results have implications for designing and evaluating professional development aimed at supporting children’s mathematics and science knowledge and skills.     

Transnational public sector knowledge networks: Knowledge and information sharing in a multi-dimensional context

Sharing of knowledge, information, and practices across cultural and national boundaries has become a means to address critical global problems. As government agencies increasingly collaborate with international counterparts on these issues, transnational knowledge and information sharing networks grow in importance as mechanisms for collaboration. This paper explores the nature of transnational public sector knowledge networks (TPSKNs) and identifies critical contextual factors that shape their performance. In these networks, each participating organization operates within complex national, organizational, and information contexts. The contextual differences between participants produce distances in culture, politics, intentions, organizational factors, relationships, knowledge, resources, geography, and technology. These distances influence their ability to engage in the processes and interactions that are essential to network performance. The paper concludes with a conceptual dynamic model that accounts for the relationships among these factors that can guide further research in understanding knowledge and information sharing across national and cultural boundaries.     

Using Virtual Field Trips to Connect Students with University Scientists: Core Elements and Evaluation of zipTrips?

Physical field trips to scientists?? work places have been shown to enhance student perceptions of science, scientists and science careers. Although virtual field trips (VFTs) have emerged as viable alternatives (or supplements) to traditional physical fieldtrips, little is known about the potential of virtual field trips to provide the same or similar science career exploration advantages as physical field trips. The overarching goal of this paper is to describe a VFT, zipTrips?, designed to provide middle school students, especially those in resource limited rural areas, with access to university scientists. Using zipTrips as a case example, the paper identifies and describes some of the core characteristics and elements of high quality authentic VFTs that foster student-scientist interactions. In addition, the paper uses program evaluation data to examine the impact of zipTrips on student perceptions of scientists.     

Using a wiki to facilitate an online professional learning community for induction and mentoring teachers

The purpose of this case study was to report on the use of a wiki as a tool for conducting online professional learning communities (OLCs) with 26 induction and mentor teachers. Data sources include teachers’ wiki postings and teacher interviews. Results indicate that: (a) Web 2.0 tools may be most effective in OLCs when the social features are utilized in addition to the features that enable task completion; (b) Using Web 2.0 tools restrictively, and without consideration of their affordances, may inhibit the success of OLCs; (c) Online learning communities for induction teachers may be most effective when supplemented with face-to-face discussion; and (d) A task-driven environment in OLCs can encourage professional dialogue and reflection, but may make induction teachers feel isolated and unsupported.     

Strategic Alliance Poker: Demonstrating the Importance of Complementary Resources and Trust in Strategic Alliance Management

Strategic Alliance Poker (SAP) provides instructors with an opportunity to integrate the resource based view with their discussion of strategic alliances in undergraduate Strategic Management courses. Specifically, SAP provides Strategic Management instructors with an experiential exercise that can be used to illustrate the value creation potential of complementary resources and the role of trust in fostering resource sharing in strategic alliances. A discussion of the theoretical background, implementation, implications, and results of SAP is provided in this paper.     

Prominent Messages in Television Drama Switched at Birth Promote Attitude Change Toward Deafness

The study at hand employed a pre- versus posttest experimental design to test the effects of television drama Switched at Birth on viewers’ attitudes toward deafness. This program tells the story of two teenage girls (one of whom is deaf) and their struggles to relate to their peers and families after discovering they were switched as newborns. Two hundred eleven female adults completed pre- and postexposure measures utilizing Cooper, Rose, and Mason's (2004 Cooper , A. , Rose , J. , &; Mason , O. ( 2004 ). Measuring the attitudes of human service professionals toward deafness . American Annals of the Deaf , 148 , 385 – 389 .[Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) Attitudes to Deafness measure, the items of which were categorized according to thematic dimensions. After exposure to one of three episodes, viewers’ attitudes toward deafness significantly improved overall, although significant differences in attitude changes varied by episodes and dimensions. The three thematic dimensions that were most strongly represented in the program (social interaction, deafness as a handicap, and language issues) appeared to show the strongest attitude change. Positive attitude changes were observed on social interaction and deafness as handicap dimensions, which was consistent with program content depicting positive deaf-hearing friendships and capable deaf characters. However, attitudes on the language issues dimension showed a negative shift, possibly due to the way that deaf characters communicated with hearing characters onscreen.