Semantic-aware components and services of ActiveMath

ActiveMath is a complex web‐based adaptive learning environment with a number of components and interactive learning tools. The basis for handling semantics of learning content is provided by its semantic (mathematics) content markup, which is additionally annotated with educational metadata. Several components, tools and external services can make use of that content markup, eg, a course generator, a semantic search engine and user input evaluation services. The components and services have to communicate, pass content and state changes, actions, etc including mathematical semantics and educational markup. The novel event infrastructure supports this communication. This paper focuses on the usage of the content's semantics by selected novel components and sketches the communication.     

Using and rejecting peer feedback in the science classroom: a study of students’ negotiations on how to use peer feedback when designing experiments

Background: Research on peer assessment has noted ambiguity among students in using peer assessment for improving their work. Previous research has explained this in terms of deficits in the student feedback, or differences in student views of what counts as high-quality work.

Purpose: This study frames peer assessment as a social process in the science classroom. The aim is to explore peer assessment in science education as social practice in order to contribute to an understanding of the affordances and constraints of using peer assessment as a learning tool in science education.

Design and Method: The study was conducted in four lower secondary school classes, school years 8 and 9, in two different schools. An intervention study was designed focussing on the topic of experimental design. It involved the students in a process of peer assessment where they designed experiments individually, and then exchanged their designs, conducted each other’s experiments, provided feedback to each other and revised their original design after discussing the feedback in groups. Data were collected in the form of audio recordings of student discussions and written work.

Results: The results show that, although not all peer feedback resulted in revisions, peer feedback was useful to the students in group interaction when negotiating quality in their work.

Conclusions: To conclude, the potential for using peer assessment in science education should not only be evaluated through the students’ revisions but also in terms of in what ways the feedback constitutes interactional resources for defining quality in student work.     

Do single-gender classrooms in coeducational settings address boys' underachievement? An Australian study

This paper reports a research project developed in partnership with the Principal and Leadership Team of an Australian secondary school. It monitored a school-based initiative designed to address the underachievement of male students. Students in Year 9 selected single-gender or coeducational classes in mathematics and English during the second half of a school year. Student scores in standardized tests and school-based assessment in these subjects were obtained before and after the establishment of the initiative. Results indicate no significant difference in mathematics achievement that can be attributed to gender or class composition. However, scores in school-based English improved for students in single-gender classes. Improvement for girls in single-gender classes was greater than that for boys in single-gender classes.     

Assessing what generates precompetitive emotions: development of the precompetitive appraisal measure

Athletes’ precompetitive appraisal determines which emotion they experience with regard to an upcoming competition. Such precompetitive emotions have powerful and potentially destructive consequences for performance. To control and optimise these consequences, it is important to examine precompetitive appraisal. Currently, such efforts are hampered by the lack of a valid measurement tool. The present study aimed to develop a novel measure of precompetitive appraisal. Specifically, the Precompetitive Appraisal Measure (PAM) was constructed by adapting an existing self-report scale. Female and male intercollegiate team sport athletes (N = 384) completed the PAM, along with a measure of intensity and interpretation of precompetitive anxiety symptoms (CSAI-2D) prior to competition. On these responses, (a) a Principal Component Analysis and a Confirmatory Factor Analysis supported the PAM’s suggested two-factor structure (Primary and Secondary Appraisal), (b) cluster analyses indicated the measure’s ability to distinguish theoretically congruent appraisal profiles (Threat and Challenge) and (c) a MANOVA and multiple regression analyses demonstrated that PAM-responses predicted precompetitive symptom intensity and interpretation. Further, analyses revealed that the majority of athletes appraised the upcoming competition as a challenge.     

Yacht type and crew-specific differences in anthropometric, aerobic capacity, and muscle strength parameters among international Olympic class sailors

Physical fitness and muscular strength are important performance factors for Olympic class sailors, but the physical demands vary greatly between yacht classes, and limited information is available regarding the physical demands for the different crew positions. In the present paper, strength and aerobic capacity data from elite Olympic sailors are presented and compared with previous findings. Furthermore, a system for classification of Olympic class sailors is suggested. Peak aerobic capacity (peak oxygen uptake, VO(2peak)) and maximal isometric and isokinetic muscle strength of the knee extensors and flexors were assessed, together with the hamstring/quadriceps strength ratio (H/Q ratio). Peak aerobic capacity (ml O(2) . min(-1) . kg(-2/3)) was as follows: males - static hikers (n = 5) 215, s = 7; dynamic hikers (n = 8) 252, s = 17; trapezing helmsmen (n = 6) 234, s = 15; trapezing crew (n = 10) 239, s = 16; females - dynamic hikers (n = 6) 194, s = 16; trapezing crew (n = 2) 200, s = 13. Strength data for hikers, presented as peak moments (normalized to body weight) obtained during eccentric, isometric, and concentric contraction (Nm . kg(-1)) respectively were as follows: males - quadriceps: 3.66 (s = 0.68), 3.97 (s = 0.66), 1.82 (s = 0.34); hamstrings: 1.93 (s = 0.22), 1.38 (s = 0.41), 1.05 (s = 0.21); females - quadriceps: 3.84 (s = 0.71), 3.81 (s = 0.58), 1.60 (s = 0.28); hamstrings: 1.75 (s = 0.23), 1.10 (s = 0.16), 0.84 (s = 0.13). The peak moment based H/Q ratios for slow eccentric and concentric contractions were 0.42 (s = 0.11) and 0.39 (s = 0.04) for males and 0.43 (s = 0.06) and 0.39 (s = 0.04) for females respectively. Elite Olympic class sailors demonstrated high VO(2peak) values comparable to those observed in other non-endurance sports. The strength data revealed very high quadriceps strength for hikers, which is likely a result of the high muscle forces encountered during sailing, and a low H/Q ratio. To ensure optimal knee joint stabilization during sailing and other training activities, it is suggested that hikers should counter this strength imbalance by performing additional strength training for the hamstrings muscle group.