‘The million-dollar question’ – exploring teachers and ETB staff understanding of characteristic spirit in publicly managed schools in Ireland

Using a mixed methods approach this study explores characteristic spirit in the post-primary publicly managed sector as understood by teachers and key school personnel of Education and Training Board (ETB) schools and ETB staff. Prior to the Education Act (1998), characteristic spirit did not apply to the ETB sector, resulting in an absence of related policy within the sector. This paper, drawing on questionnaire (n?=?126) and interview data (n?=?73), focuses on research participants’ understanding of characteristic spirit and how they see it expressed in their schools. Uncertainty around the meaning of characteristic spirit was common with over half of teacher respondents rating their level of understanding as average or below. Participants frequently found it difficult to articulate their understanding, even questioning its relevance and applicability to the ETB sector. When asked to illustrate the application of characteristic spirit in their own schools, many referred to the relational, implicit and lived nature of characteristic spirit. Furthermore, some participants believed that values played an important part in articulating a characteristic spirit for the ETB. The paper concludes by exploring some reasons for teacher uncertainty around characteristic spirit and proposes some possible future directions with regard to ETB characteristic spirit.     

Resting state networks mediate the association between both cardiovascular fitness and gross motor skills with neurocognitive functioning

Recent evidence suggests that cardiovascular fitness and gross motor skill performance are related to neurocognitive functioning by influencing brain structure and functioning. This study investigates the role of resting-state networks (RSNs) in the relation of cardiovascular fitness and gross motor skills with neurocognitive functioning in healthy 8- to 11-year-old children (n = 90, 45 girls, 10% migration background). Cardiovascular fitness and gross motor skills were related to brain activity in RSNs. Furthermore, brain activity in RSNs mediated the relation of both cardiovascular fitness (Frontoparietal network and Somatomotor network) and gross motor skills (Somatomotor network) with neurocognitive functioning. The results indicate that brain functioning may contribute to the relation between both cardiovascular fitness and gross motor skills with neurocognitive functioning.     

Phantoms and fabrications:young children's detection of implausible lies

The present study investigated whether young children are gullible and readily deceived by another's lies. Specifically, this study examined whether young children believe a lie teller's statement when the statement violates their developing knowledge of a distinction between reality and fantasy. In the first three experiments 3- to 6-year-olds (N = 293) were presented with either a story or a live staged event in which an individual made an implausible statement about a misdeed (claiming that a ghost jumped out of a book and broke a glass). A significant age effect was obtained: 5- and 6-year-olds tended to report that the individual who made the implausible statement had actually committed the misdeed, whereas 3- and 4-year-olds tended to accept the claim of the protagonist. Experiment 4 revealed that 5- and 6-year-olds (N = 43) not only disbelieved an individual's implausible statement but also inferred that the individual was lying and had a deceptive intent. In contrast, Experiment 5 revealed that 3- and 4-year-olds (N = 41) had difficulty disbelieving an individual's implausible claim about an inanimate object (i.e., the claim that a chair came alive and broke the glass). The findings suggest that 5- and 6-year-olds are not so gullible as previously thought, and that they use their well-developed real-world knowledge to detect scapegoating lies. In contrast, many younger children tend to believe another's implausible lies, perhaps due to the fact that the knowledge needed to detect such lies has not yet been consolidated.     

Plain language summaries: Enabling increased diversity,equity, inclusion and accessibility in scholarly publishing

• Plain language summaries (PLS) are accessible, short, peer-reviewed summaries of scholarly journal articles written in non-technical language.
• The aim of PLS is to enable a broader audience of experts and non-experts to understand the original article.
• Here, we outline the evidence base for the value and impact of PLS and how they can enable diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in scholarly publishing.
• PLS can diversify readership and authorship, address information inequity, include typically under-represented stakeholders and provide an accessible route into scholarly literature.