The social stratification of theatre,dance and cinema attendance

In current sociological literature the relationship between social inequality and patterns of cultural taste and consumption is the subject of a large and complex debate. In this paper the primary aim is to examine, in the light of empirical results from a research project in which the authors are presently engaged, three main, and rival, positions that have been taken up in this debate, here labelled as the ‘homology’, the ‘individualization’ and the ‘omnivore–univore’ arguments. Elsewhere, we have concentrated on musical consumption in England, and find evidence that is broadly supportive of the omnivore–univore argument. Here we ask whether such findings are confirmed in the case of theatre, dance and cinema attendance. A secondary aim of the paper is to bring to the attention of practitioners in the field of cultural policy and administration the need to address the issues that arise through the use of more powerful methods of data analysis than those often applied in the past. We explain how indicators of theatre, dance and cinema attendance derived from the Arts in England survey of 2001 can be subject to analysis so as to reveal two distinctive patterns of attendance and, in turn, two distinctive types of consumer—who can, it turns out, be regarded as omnivores and univores, even if with some qualification. The former have relatively high rates of attendance at all kinds of the events covered, including musicals and pantomimes as well as plays and ballet, while the latter tend to be cinema-goers only, that is, non-consumers of theatre and dance. A range of measures of social inequality are then introduced into the authors' analyses, including separate measures of social class and social status and also of educational level and income, and it is further shown that, again in conformity with the omnivore–univore argument, these two types of consumer are socially stratified. Omnivores are of generally higher social status than univores and also have usually higher levels of education and higher income than do univores (the latter finding marking the main difference with musical consumption, which was unaffected by income once other stratification variables were controlled). In sum, our results for theatre, dance and cinema attendance lend, overall, further support to the omnivore–univore argument as against its rivals, but also indicate that different aspects of social inequality impact on different forms of cultural consumption in varying degrees and probably through largely separate processes.     

Effect of foster care on young children's language learning

This report examines 174 young children's language outcomes in the Bucharest Early Intervention Project, the first randomized trial of foster placement after institutional care. Age of foster placement was highly correlated with language outcomes. Placement by 15 months led to similar expressive and receptive language test scores as typical age peers at 30 and 42 months. Placement from 15 to 24 months also led to dramatic language improvement. In contrast, children placed after 24 months had the same severe language delays as children in institutional care. Language samples at 42 months confirmed that placement after 24 months led to lower expressive skill.     

Use of the one-minute preceptor as a teaching tool in the gross anatomy laboratory

The one-minute preceptor (OMP) is a time-efficient technique used for teaching in busy clinical settings. It consists of five microskills: (1) get a commitment from the student, (2) probe for supporting evidence, (3) reinforce what was done right, (4) correct errors and fill in omissions, and (5) teach a general rule. It can also be used to address structure-identification questions in gross anatomy laboratory small-group settings. The OMP is an active learner-centered teaching approach that prepares students for a style of learning that they need to master in clinical settings, provides novice anatomy teachers with an efficient and effective teaching strategy, and moves anatomy learning beyond mere name tagging to active knowledge construction.     

标准参照评估的行动实践 ——以香港中文大学通识教育基础课程为案例

香港特别行政区高校从2015年开始，学生学业评估陆续由常模参照评估转为标准参照评估。本文以香港中文大学通识教育基础课程实施标准参照评估的行动为案例，分析了这项新的学业评估方式在实施中所遇到的问题，讨论了解决方法并提出实施模型。该模型包含评分量表的设计与开发、量表使用、教师意见反馈与量表修改，以及评分之后的集体讨论这一套实施流程。文章最后指出，要保证标准参照评估的有效实施，需建立教师实践共同体。实践共同体的行动包括：教师共同开发评估标准，通过集体讨论对评估标准的含义和使用达成共识，共同审视评估结果，根据评估结果进一步修改和完善评估标准。     

Assessment of planarity of the golf swing based on the functional swing plane of the clubhead and motion planes of the body points

The purposes of this study were (1) to determine the functional swing plane (FSP) of the clubhead and the motion planes (MPs) of the shoulder/arm points and (2) to assess planarity of the golf swing based on the FSP and the MPs. The swing motions of 14 male skilled golfers (mean handicap = -0.5 +/- 2.0) using three different clubs (driver, 5-iron, and pitching wedge) were captured by an optical motion capture system (250Hz). The FSP and MPs along with their slope/relative inclination and direction/direction of inclination were obtained using a new trajectory-plane fitting method. The slope and direction of the FSP revealed a significant club effect (p < 0.001). The relative inclination and direction of inclination of the MP showed significant point (p < 0.001) and club (p < 0.001) effects and interaction (p < 0.001). Maximum deviations of the points from the FSP revealed a significant point effect (p < 0.001) and point-club interaction (p < 0.001). It was concluded that skilled golfers exhibited well-defined and consistent FSP and MPs, and the shoulder/arm points moved on vastly different MPs and exhibited large deviations from the FSP. Skilled golfers in general exhibited semi-planar downswings with two distinct phases: a transition phase and a planar execution phase.     

Teachers’ perception of mobile edutainment for special needs learners: the Malaysian case

Study of Malaysian adoption of mobile learning (m-learning) is still in the early stages. However, there are numerous researchers in the country exploring the potential and application of m-learning in the Malaysian education system, including special education. A key question is whether teachers are prepared to incorporate mobile technology as part of their teaching tools or do teachers perceive mobile technology only as personal communication gadgets. This paper investigates teachers' perception of m-learning applications in special education classes. Interviews were conducted to collect related information on teachers' perceptions of m-learning in the selected schools. The teachers expressed that there are limited resources to cater to the attention of special needs learners and they believed edutainment technologies such as augmented reality, game-based educational software and animation projects could be the answer. The benefits and challenges of implementing blended learning for special education are also discussed. The paper concludes by summarising the current environment of m-learning in Malaysian special needs education, together with recommendations for future use of the technology.     

Executive functioning and word reading in Hong Kong Chinese children: A 1-year longitudinal perspective

This study examined the bidirectionality between kindergarten children's executive functioning (EF) and word reading across two time points. Participants were 523 Hong Kong Chinese-speaking children (mean age at Time 2 = 64.59 months; 52.9% male) and their parents. At Time 1, children were administered the measures of EF skills: inhibitory control, attention shifting, working memory and Chinese word reading. They were reassessed with these measures at Time 2 one year later. Results from the cross-lagged panel model revealed that, controlling for child age, gender and parental education levels, children's word reading at Time 1 was significantly predictive of their working memory at Time 2, but that the three EF skills at Time 1 were not predictive of word reading at Time 2. These findings underscored the role of early word reading in promoting children's working memory.