The association between fundamental athletic movements and physical fitness in elite junior Australian footballers

This study investigated the associations between fundamental athletic movement and physical fitness in junior Australian football (AF). Forty-four under 18 players performed a fundamental athletic movement assessment consisting of an overhead squat, double lunge, single leg Romanian deadlift and a push up. Movements were scored on three assessment criterions using a three-point scale. Additionally, participants performed five physical fitness tests commonly used for talent identification in AF. A Spearman’s nonparametric correlation matrix was built, with correlation coefficients being visualised using a circularly rendered correlogram. Score on the overhead squat was moderately positively associated with dynamic vertical jump height on left (r_s = 0.40; P ≤ 0.05) and right (r_s = 0.30; P ≤ 0.05) leg take-off, stationary vertical jump (r_s = 0.32; P ≤ 0.05) and negatively associated with 20-m sprint time (r_s = ?0.35; P ≤ 0.05). Score on the double lunge (left/right side) was moderately positively associated with the same physical fitness tests as well as score on the multistage fitness test. Results suggest that improvements in physical fitness qualities may occur through concurrent increases in fundamental athletic movement skill, namely the overhead squat and double lunge movements. These findings may assist with the identification and development of talent.     

Pre-service teachers in an after school program: increasing understanding of students,communities, and teaching

The purpose of the After School Creative Expression Program (ASCEP) was to provide a short-term afterschool program focusing on the visual and written creative arts to a group of elementary school children attending a Title 1 school. Pre-service teachers attending a liberal arts university within the same geographic region developed lessons in writing and photography and served as afterschool educators for ASCEP. The program provided pre-service teachers a valuable experience outside the classroom. Findings demonstrate pre-service educators gained new insights from ASCEP that will impact their teaching practices during school. Overall, results show ASCEP provided future educators with valuable learning experiences and opportunities to connect more deeply with their students and their community.     

Using the Blended Learning Approach in a Quantitative Literacy Course

The efforts to improve the quantitative reasoning (quantitative literacy) skills of college students in the United States have been gaining momentum in recent years. At the same time, the blended learning approach to course delivery has gained in popularity, promising better learning with flexible modalities and pace. This paper presents the results of an exploratory study that compares student learning outcomes and student attitudes over several semesters of blended versus traditional delivery in the upper-division quantitative literacy course at Point Loma Nazarene University.     

Investigating Strategies for Pre-Class Content Learning in a Flipped Classroom

In a flipped classroom model, learning of basic content is shifted before class while in-class time is used for concept application. Empirical and controlled research studies are lacking on the best strategies to provide the necessary pre-class content instruction. In this study, we tested three methods of pre-class content learning—interactive online tutorials, video lectures, and textbook-style readings—while holding the content and the in-class application activities constant. Identical introductory, non-majors biology classes were manipulated at both a public, open-enrollment institution and a private, highly selective institution. We found that video lectures offer a small advantage to overall student learning over interactive tutorials or textbook-style readings. Although our two populations differed in their ability to effectively learn from pre-class activities, through a student-centered flipped classroom approach, students at both institutions demonstrated equal learning gains by the final assessment. Potential reasons for some observed differences are suggested.     

How Community Colleges in Texas Prioritize Resources for Latino Men

This study explored how administrators at community colleges conceptualized change related to resource allocation and managing competing priorities to support targeted programming for Latino men. The study included the perspectives of 39 administrators from seven community colleges across Texas using concepts associated with institutional change to ground our analysis. Findings revealed that state and national initiatives, particularly those concerned with enhancing success for students of color, influenced how community college administrators approached change on their campuses. In addition, community college institutional mission, leadership, and a desire for data-informed resource management influenced the approach to resource allocation for Latino men.     

Design and development of a new facility for teaching and research in clinical anatomy

This article discusses factors in the design, commissioning, project management, and intellectual property protection of developments within a new clinical anatomy facility in the United Kingdom. The project was aimed at creating cost‐effective facilities that would address widespread concerns over anatomy teaching, and support other activities central to the university mission–namely research and community interaction. The new facilities comprise an engaging learning environment and were designed to support a range of pedagogies appropriate to the needs of healthcare professionals at different stages of their careers. Specific innovations include integrated workstations each comprising of a dissection table, with removable top sections, an overhead operating light, and ceiling‐mounted camera. The tables incorporate waterproof touch‐screen monitors to display images from the camera, an endoscope or a database of images, videos, and tutorials. The screens work independently so that instructors can run different teaching sessions simultaneously and students can progress at different speeds to suit themselves. Further, database access is provided from within an integrated anatomy and pathology museum and display units dedicated to the correlation of cross‐sectional anatomy with medical imaging. A new functional neuroanatomy modeling system, called the BrainTower®, has been developed to aid integration of anatomy with physiology and clinical neurology. Many aspects of the new facility are reproduced within a Mobile Teaching Unit, which can be driven to hospitals, colleges, and schools to provide appropriate work‐based education and community interaction. Anat Sci Ed 2:34–40, 2009. © 2009 American Association of Anatomists.     

Urea production during prolonged swimming

Male interscholastic swimmers (n = 8) completed a 4572 m training swim in 62 ±1.1 min (x ± s.e.) with terminal heart rate and blood lactate of 152 ± 6 beats min^‐1 and 6.9±0.89 mM, respectively. Sweat rate (0.48±0.0951. h^‐1) was lower than similar intensity cycling (1.5±0.13 1. h^‐1) or running (1.1 ± 0.14 l.h^‐1). Post‐swim serum urea N (11.6±0.71 mM) was elevated (P<0.05) vs pre‐swim (4.6±0.39 mM). Post‐swim urine volume (860±75 ml 24 h^‐1) was reduced (P<0.07) and resulted in an elevated (P<0.05), but delayed (24–84 h), post‐exercise urea N excretion. Although the reduced urine and sweat production during the swim undoubtedly contributed to the elevated serum urea, there must be another explanation because together they could only account for 38% of the observed increase. On the basis of the magnitude of serum urea increase, it appears that the swim caused an increase in urea production (amino acid oxidation). The failure to observe larger increases in urinary urea during recovery indicates that either urea excretion following exercise continues for prolonged periods of time (>48 h) or another significant mode of nitrogen excretion exists.     

The effect of marathon running on carnitine metabolism and on some aspects of muscle mitochondrial activities and antioxidant mechanisms

Carnitine is an essential co‐factor in the catabolism of fats as an energy source. The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of running a marathon on the metabolism of carnitine by endurance‐trained athletes, and to evaluate the effect of carnitine administration on the performance of such exercise. The effects of marathon running on mitochondrial enzymes and cellular anti‐oxidants were also examined to assess whether the expression of these activities is altered by exercise. Subjects were 10 experienced male marathon runners aged between 19 and 25 years. Running a marathon caused a fall in the plasma content of unesterified carnitine (37%) and an increase in the level of acetylcarnitine present (288%). Loading of the athletes with L‐carnitine for 10 days before running a marathon abolished the exercise‐induced fall in plasma‐free carnitine (P<0.05) whilst amplifying the production of acetylcarnitine (P<0.05). Carnitine loading of the athletes studied made no detectable improvement in performance of the marathon (P > 0.05). Cytochrome oxidase, succinate cytochrome C reductase and Superoxide dismutase activities present in skeletal muscle were unaltered by marathon running. However, such exercise caused a large increase in the tissue content of oxidized glutathione (189%) at the expense of reduced glutathione (–18%).