Training Effects on Older Adults in Information and Communication Technologies Considering Psychosocial Variables

The main aim of this study is to contribute knowledge about the impact of the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) on the self-concept, mood, and quality of life of institutionalized older adults in retirement homes and day care centers (Portuguese institutions). It also studies the influence of independent variables such as age; education; referral to the institution (own initiative, indicated by friends, indicated by family, indicated by social security); attendance schedule; and visits from family and friends. The study comprised 41 participants organized into two groups: 22 older adults in the ICT Group and 19 older adults in the Passive Control Group. There were three evaluation periods: before the onset of intervention and 11 and 22 months after intervention began. The results demonstrate that involvement with information and communication technologies produced positive effects on older adults’ social behavior and their self-perception of physical and environment facets of quality of life. Moreover, they suggest that there is a relationship between psychosocial variables and independent variables.     

Citizenship education in Mexico: the depoliticisation of adolescence through secondary school

Recent contributions have argued about the depoliticisation of citizenship education (CE), mainly through theoretical and documentary analyses, and based on the European context. Nonetheless, there is a lack of field studies which can provide empirical evidence about how does the depoliticisation of CE actually operate. Based on a mixed-method research in Mexico City’s secondary schools, this paper shows how the contemporary approach to CE, instead of looking at nurturing children’s and adolescents’ politicity, contributes to pupils’ depoliticisation. Among different potential characterisations of political participation (PP), the curriculum of CE circumscribes it within the arena of formal politics, from which students are largely excluded in the present. Additionally, CE promotes a range of practices of participation which are deprived from a political meaning. Students appropriate them discursively, but perceive limited opportunities for perform them, especially in school. Through the depoliticisation of CE, adolescents mostly learn that PP is a promise of inclusion in the future, while the idea of active citizenship becomes reduced to a correct discourse about largely imperceptible practices in students’ everyday life. The article stresses the need of shifting the priority of CE in Mexico from the formal curriculum to the transformation of school practices, in order to develop students’ politicity through participation.     

Balancing tensions in educational policy reforms: large-scale implementation of Assessment for Learning in Norway

This study investigates how different stakeholders in Norway experienced a government-initiated, large-scale policy implementation programme on Assessment for Learning (AfL). Data were collected through 58 interviews with stakeholders in charge of the policy; Ministers of Education and members of the Directorate of Education and Training in Norway, and the main actors such as municipality leaders, teachers, school leaders and students. Successful implementation of AfL processes was found in municipalities where there were dialogue and trust between the municipality level, school leaders, teachers and students and where the programme was adapted to the local context. Implementation was challenged when the policy was interpreted as a way of controlling the schools. Despite the successful implementation in some municipalities, the programme did not have any effect upon students’ learning outcome, as measured on national tests in reading and mathematics. The results are discussed in relation to how local assessment cultures with particular characteristics influence governing, accountability and trust.     

When Circles Collide: Unpacking TPACK Instruction in an Eighth-Grade Social Studies Classroom

The technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) conceptual framework, since its introduction in 2006, has provided researchers and teacher educators a theoretical means by which to understand the knowledge required to teach effectively with technology. However, a clear picture of what TPACK looks like in practice is still in its infancy. Using a case-study approach, this research examines the teaching practices of an eighth-grade social studies teacher, specifically how the teacher operationalizes TPACK within his classroom. Four examples of TPACK practices are given along with the teacher's rationale for his technology use. Two themes emerged: the transformation of technology into something that just happens in the classroom and the teacher's use of technology to shape instruction. Implications from this case study are then discussed, including the process and timing of combining the different knowledge components of TPACK and the need to better capture the role of students in the TPACK model.     

Postmodern footballers and their ‘second skin’: emotional narratives ranging from solidarity to intimacy

This article underlines some key traits in the make-up of postmodern footballers. Specifically, we discuss the changes in celebrating goals as sporting events in recent years. We contribute a new perspective on the birth of the postmodern ‘me-event’ compared with the ‘goal-event’ typical of modern times. To support our contribution empirically, we use two methodological dimensions: the discourse analysis of international football legislation and photographic and video archive to illustrate the diversity of phenomena with hermeneutic sampling criteria. The differences between the modern and postmodern way of celebrating a goal, individually and/or collectively, highlight a process of social change in which the individual way of celebrating advances rapidly in a society where there is ever greater media coverage and commercialism.     

Influence of different sports on bone mass in growing girls

The aim of this study was to analyse whether there are differences in bone mass in girls playing different sports. Two hundred girls (10.6 ± 1.5 years old, Tanner stages I–III) participated in the study and were divided into groups of 40 (swimmers, soccer players, basketball players, handball players and controls). Bone mineral content and bone mineral density (BMD) (whole body and hip) were measured using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. The degree of sexual development was determined using Tanner test, and physical activity habits were recorded through a questionnaire designed ad hoc for this research. Girls were divided by pubertal stage and the type of sport. In the prepubertal group, intertrochanteric BMD was significantly higher in both handball and soccer players compared with the control group (P < 0.05). Furthermore, in the pubertal group, total BMD, mean arms BMD, pelvis BMD, femoral neck BMD, intertrochanteric BMD and Ward’s triangle BMD were significantly higher in soccer and handball players compared with the control group (P < 0.05), and the swimmers showed significantly higher values in the mean arms BMD compared with the control group (P < 0.01). Our data suggest that sport practice during puberty, especially in activities that support the body weight, may be an important factor in achieving a high peak bone mass and improving bone health in girls.     

高校应用性创新型人才培养教学改革探析

在我国应用性创新型人才培养过程中．还存在教学范式亟待转变、应用性教学创新平台滞后、毕业论文“假题假做”等诸多问题。对上述问题进行改革,需要做好以下工作：树立全程参与人才培养的教改新思路;强化应用特色,系统设计教学范式;强化“双师型”师资队伍建设;加强实践教学环节;毕业论文真题真做等。