A cross‐sectional study of fluency and reading comprehension in Spanish primary school children

The importance of prosodic elements is recognised in most definitions of fluency. Although speed and accuracy have been typically considered the constituents of reading fluency, prosody is emerging as an additional component. The relevance of prosody in comprehension is increasingly recognised in the latest studies. The purpose of this research is to examine the contribution of prosodic reading to comprehension beyond automaticity in word reading, taking into account children's grade level. One hundred and twenty‐two Spanish children (74 second and 48 fourth graders) were tested in prosodic reading, automaticity in word reading (nonword reading and reading rate) and comprehension abilities. Results show that the contribution of automaticity in word reading is relevant in both grades; however, it is more significant in Grade 2. The prosodic components of reading seem to be related differently to comprehension across grades, intonation being the highest predictor of comprehension in Grade 4. Implications for educational practice are discussed.     

Aerobic exercise did not have compensatory effects on physical activity levels in type 2 diabetes patients

Although exercise promotes beneficial effects in diabetic patients, some studies have questioned the degree of their importance in terms of the increase in total energy expenditure. In these studies, the decrease of physical activity levels (PAL) was referred as “compensatory effect of exercise”. However, our aim was to investigate whether aerobic exercise has compensatory effects on PAL in type 2 diabetes patients. Eight volunteers (51.1 ± 8.2 years) were enrolled in a supervised exercise programme for 8 weeks (3 d · wk^?1, 50–60% of VO₂ peak for 30–60 min). PAL was measured using tri-axial accelerometers in the 1st, 8th and 12th weeks. Biochemical tests, cardiorespiratory fitness, anthropometric assessment and body composition were measured in the 2nd and 11th weeks. Statistical analysis was performed using non-parametric tests (Friedman and Wilcoxon, P < 0.05). We found no significant differences in PAL between intervention periods, and participants spent the majority of their awake time in sedentary activities. However, the exercise programme generated a significant 14.8% increase in VO₂ peak and a 15% reduction in fructosamine. The exercise programme had no compensatory effects on PAL in type 2 diabetes patients, but improved their cardiorespiratory fitness and glycaemic control.     

La Mesure des Effets Pédagogiques des TIC : Pièges et Illusions du Découpage du Réel et de L'administration de la Preuve

La forte incitation actuelle de la part des autorités scolaires À recourir aux médias numériques en classe pose une nouvelle fois la question des arguments mis en avant. Et comme À l'occasion d'incitations antérieures (télévision scolaire, audiovisuel, informatique éducative), partisans et détracteurs s'appuient sur différents travaux qui attestent ou non de telle ou telle amélioration ou dégradation. Cette contribution se propose de montrer que les concepts et les modèles convoqués dans certains travaux, y compris les nÔtres et notamment le programme IN-TELE (Internet-Based Teaching and Learning), établissent entre les situations d'enseignement-apprentissage considérés comme classiques et celles qui sont supposées innovantes des distinctions parfois non pertinentes, qui se traduisent par des résultats outrageusement significatifs ou non significatifs. C'est donc le schéma modèle-observation-interprétation que nous interrogeons en suggérant que les outils de pensée disponibles et les procédés d'observation mis en m uvre aujourd'hui dans les différentes disciplines académiques qui s'intéressent aux usages pédagogiques des TIC contraignent, voire altèrent, notre compréhension des phénomènes éducatifs induits par les 'nouveaux' médias. Measuring the pedagogic effects of CIT: traps and illusions of cutting out actuality, and the

administration of proof. The strong current encouragement of school authorities to have recourse to digital media in the classroom poses once again the question of the arguments that have been advanced. And, as at the tine of earlier encouragement, (for school television, audiovisual, educational informatics), partisans and detractors rely on different works which support, or not, such-and-such a praise or detraction. This contribution attempts to show that the concepts and the models brought together in certain works, including our own and notably the IN-TEL (Internet-Based Teaching and Learning) programme, which establish between the teaching-training situations considered as classic and those which are supposed to be innovative, distinctions which sometimes are not pertinent, which are translated into results which are outrageously significant – or non-significant. It is, then, the schema of model-observation-interpretation that we question in suggesting that the mental tools available and the observational procedures used today in the different academic disciplines which are interested in the pedagogic use of CIT constrain us to see, may even, alter our understanding of the educational phenomenon introduced by the 'new' media. Analyse der pädagogischen Auswirkungen von ICT (Information and Communcation Technologies) : Fallen und Illusionen aus der Wirklichkeit, sowie die Beweisführung. Die gegenwärtig stark geförderte Umstellung des Unterrichtsmaterials auf digitale Medien durch die Schulbehörden, stellt erneut die bereits vorgebrachten Argumente in Frage. Und wie schon bei vorangegangenen Einführungen (von Schulfernsehen, Audiovision, pädagogische Informatik) beziehen sich Befürworter und Gegner auf verschiedene Studien, die den Nutzen oder Unnutzen attestieren. Dieser Beitrag versucht aufzuzeigen, dass herangezogene Konzepte und Modelle in verschiedenen Arbeiten - einschliesslich der unseren und insbesondere des Programms IN-TELE (Internet-Based Teaching and Learning) - sich zwischen klassischen Bildungssituationen und denen als innovativ angenommenen wiederfinden - auch wenn diese Unterscheidung nicht immer treffend ist. Wir stellen also das Schema Modell-Observation-Interpretation in Frage, indem wir suggerieren, dass die heute applizierten Denkmodelle und Observationsverfahren - der verschiedenen akademischen Disziplinen, die sich für den pädagogischen Gebrauch von ICT interessieren - für unser Verständnis des pädagogischen Einflusses durch Multimedia hinderlich sind, ja wenn nicht sogar deren Gebrauch nachteilig beeinflussen.     

Quality input and sustainability in early immersion classrooms: A case study of an experimental school in Macao

This paper looks into the case of a school in Macao nominated as the first (and so far the only) China-Canada-United States English Immersion (CCUEI) centre in the Macao Special Administrative Region (Macao SAR) China for the experimentation and application of English immersion instruction (EI) in the K1-3 and Primary 1–2 classes. Drawing on Krashen’s Input Hypothesis (1982) and Cummins’ (2000) framework of instruction for language learning and academic achievement in the formal school context, the authors report their observations by analyzing the data collected from school teachers and participation in classes and by reflecting on their experiences, and suggest improvement that can be made to teachers’ linguistic and communicative competence, in terms of quantity and quality of comprehensible input and expected output, and thus the sustainability of English immersion classrooms in a Chinese context.     

Biomechanical differences between left- and right-handed baseball pitchers

Left-handed baseball pitchers are thought to have a number of theoretical advantages compared to right-handed pitchers; however, there is limited scientific research detailing differences in the pitching mechanics of right- and left-handed pitchers. Therefore, this study sought to understand whether any kinematic and kinetic differences existed between right- and left-handed baseball pitchers. A total of 52 collegiate pitchers were included in this study; 26 left-handed pitchers were compared to 26 age-, height-, weight- and ball velocity-matched right-handed pitchers. Demographic information, passive shoulder range of motion and kinematic and kinetic data were obtained for each pitcher participating in the study. Results indicated that left-handed pitchers did not have a glenohumeral internal rotation deficit as compared to right-handed pitchers. Kinematic analysis indicated that elbow flexion, horizontal glenohumeral abduction and wrist coronal plane motion were significantly different between the two study cohorts. It was also noted that left-handed pitchers had increased elbow varus moments. The findings of this study suggest that pitching coaches should be aware that there are biomechanical differences between left- and right-handed pitchers.     

Mass deacidification of papers and books: V. Fungistatic properties of papers treated with aminoalkylalkoxysilanes

A new process using aminoalkylalkoxysilanes (AAAS) was developed recently for paper and book mass deacidification. This process is entirely novel in that, besides deacidifying, it also improves the mechanical properties of paper. In the present article, the properties of inhibition of fungal growth of the treated papers are investigated. It was found that the AAAS tested acted as surface-active antifungal agents when introduced in the paper, significantly reducing the growth of Aspergillus niger and Paecilomyces variotii, two fungal species commonly found in storage areas of libraries and archives. The AAAS which seemed the most efficient in preventing the fungal development was 3-aminopropylmethyldimethoxysilane (AMDES), functionalised with a primary amine. The effect was significant in the different papers tested which demonstrated the protection against the proliferation of filamentous fungi in vitro for papers treated with AMDES. The higher concentration of AMDES inside the paper proved to be the most effective. The highest efficiency was reached for AAAS uptakes around 6%. At this concentration the sporulation of the two strains was inhibited and the development of A. niger mycelia was highly reduced.     

The Critical Role of Stereopsis in Virtual and Mixed Reality Learning Environments

Anatomy education has been revolutionized through digital media, resulting in major advances in realism, portability, scalability, and user satisfaction. However, while such approaches may well be more portable, realistic, or satisfying than traditional photographic presentations, it is less clear that they have any superiority in terms of student learning. In this study, it was hypothesized that virtual and mixed reality presentations of pelvic anatomy will have an advantage over two-dimensional (2D) presentations and perform approximately equal to physical models and that this advantage over 2D presentations will be reduced when stereopsis is decreased by covering the non-dominant eye. Groups of 20 undergraduate students learned pelvic anatomy under seven conditions: physical model with and without stereo vision, mixed reality with and without stereo vision, virtual reality with and without stereo vision, and key views on a computer monitor. All were tested with a cadaveric pelvis and a 15-item, short-answer recognition test. Compared to the key views, the physical model had a 70% increase in accuracy in structure identification; the virtual reality a 25% increase, and the mixed reality a non-significant 2.5% change. Blocking stereopsis reduced performance on the physical model by 15%, on virtual reality by 60%, but by only 2.5% on the mixed reality technology. The data show that virtual and mixed reality technologies tested are inferior to physical models and that true stereopsis is critical in learning anatomy.