The primary school as an institution: Analysis and implications

The aim of this paper is to offer a view of the primary school as an institution with structural properties comparable to institutions in general. Five studies will provide the basis from which such a view is developed, those by Sorokin, (1938), Perrow, (1965), Schon (1970), Taylor, et al (1974) and Collins and Porras, (1998). The common thread running through these studies focuses on three properties — core purpose, technology and task or social group — necessary to the effective functioning of an institution which are incidentally the multiple and overlapping, contexts of teaching.     

Remodeling a model: An elaborated hierarchy of types of learning 1

A revision of Merrill's revision of Gagné's hierarchy is proposed, based upon experience in training, teachers and instructional designers to use the taxonomy as an analytical tool to develop relevant instruction and precise evaluation. The three‐dimensional model emphasizes the interaction of Affective, Psychomotor, and Cognitive domains. The category Verbal Repertoire is added to emphasize the role of memory in high‐level attainment and to integrate recent developments in mathemagenic research and the measurement of comprehension. The crucial distinctions between Memory and Complex Cognitive types of learning are maintained.     

Body composition analysis of inter-county Gaelic athletic association players measured by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry

Gaelic Football and Hurling are two sporting codes within the Gaelic Athletic Association. The purpose of this study was to report the body composition phenotype of inter-county Gaelic athletic association players, comparing groups by code and field position. 190 senior, male, outfield inter-county players (144 hurlers and 46 Gaelic footballers) were recruited. Stature and body mass was measured, estimates of three components of body composition, i.e. lean mass, fat mass and bone mineral content was obtained by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), and normative data for Gaelic athletic association athletes by code and position was compared. Other than in the midfield, there was limited difference in body composition between codes or playing position. Stature-corrected indices nullified any existing group differences between midfielders for both codes. Further comparisons with a non-athletic control group (n = 431) showed no difference for body mass index (BMI); however, the athletic group has a lower fat mass index, with a greater lean mass in accounting for the matched BMI between groups. In addition to providing previously unknown normative data for the Gaelic athletic association athlete, a proportional and independent tissue evaluation of body composition is given.