EDITORS' PREFACE

In this study, the authors explore the role of press freedom in the development of an economy, both in terms of economic growth and foreign direct investment. The relationship between press freedom, foreign direct investment, and economic growth is analyzed using a balanced panel of 115 countries. The existence of a bidirectional relationship between press freedom and economic growth is established using the generalized method of moments technique. We also find a bidirectional relationship between foreign direct investment and economic growth using the analysis. Our results are not contradicted by similar indices produced by Reporters Sans Frontières and Freedom House.     

Student Support in Higher Education: Understandings, Implications and Challenges

This paper attempts to offer a critical examination of the notion of student support in higher education in the UK. It compares some of the key ways in which student support is understood across the sector and contrasts a humanistic view with understandings driven more by instrumental and therapeutic concerns. The possible risks and effects that could be associated with these differing understandings are also examined. Against this background, consideration is additionally afforded to international students studying at UK universities. Finally, the paper identifies a number of questions worthy of institutional consideration.     

Instructional designers as reflective practitioners: developing professional identity through reflection

As the design thinking approach becomes more established in the instructional design (ID) discourse, the field will have to reconsider the professional identity of instructional designers. Rather than passively following models or processes, a professional identity rooted in design thinking calls for instructional designers to be dynamic agents of change who use reflective thinking to navigate the design space and develop solutions to ill-structured problems. Graduate programs in ID will also need to prepare students to manage the complexities they will encounter in their professional practice, including the establishment of design precedents, reflective thinking skills, and the foundations of professional identity. This research explored the use of reflective writing assignments in an introductory ID graduate course, with results indicating that most students are able to engage in meaningful reflection in relation to prompts concerning design concepts, experiences, and identity attributes, although no clear patterns of improvement emerged over time. Future directions for research include the use of feedback and the structure of prompts (including frequency of writing assignments and wording of prompts) to support improved student performance.     

The constraints on school provision of post-primary physical education in Ireland: principals’ and teachers’ views and experiences

Dated and limited research relating to physical education in Ireland has reported that the subject is in crisis, unable to move forward until the fundamental resources of facilities, staffing and time for physical education are significantly improved. As part of a recent national physical education survey carried out in Ireland, data was collected from principals (n=417) and teachers (n=405) to inform discussion on the level of current infrastructure for physical education in post-primary schools. This paper investigates the areas of physical education facilities, time allocation and staffing, as a contribution to the debate on the way forward for physical education at post-primary level, illuminating both issues of policy and practice.     

WHO SHOULD GO TO COLLEGE

Empirical research exploring the spiritual lives of young children in Australia is a field in which scholarship is beginning to emerge. This article reports on one particular finding that emerged from an Australian study seeking to identify some characteristics of children's spirituality in Catholic primary schools. The characteristic has been termed spiritual questing, and pertains to the way in which these children were spiritual seekers, finding authentic ways of connecting with self, others, the world, and with God. In the light of the emergence of this characteristic, this article presents some implications for religious education in faith contexts for nurturing children's spirituality.     

Behavior of descriptive fit indexes in confirmatory factor analysis using ordered categorical data

The purpose of this study was to examine the behavior of 8 measures of fit used to evaluate confirmatory factor analysis models. This study employed Monte Carlo simulation to determine to what extent sample size, model size, estimation procedure, and level of nonnormality affected fit when polytomous data were analyzed. The 3 indexes least affected by the design conditions were the comparative fit index, incremental fit index, and nonnormed fit index, which were affected only by level of nonnormality. The measure of centrality was most affected by the design variables, with values of n2>. 10 for sample size, model size, and level of nonnormality and interaction effects for Model Size x Level of Nonnormality and Estimation x Level of Nonnormality. Findings from this study should alert applied researchers to exercise caution when evaluating model fit with nonnormal, polytomous data.     

A new sustainable change theoretical framework for the professional disciplines

This paper contends that one key reason for the lack of adoption of comprehensive change models based in higher education (HE) teaching and learning is that they lack a strong theoretical underpinning, thus potentially impeding their effectiveness in dealing with the complexities of human and organisational behaviour. Change theories that articulate the specific roles and influences of context, time and key actors in the change process are interrogated to highlight barriers to sustainable change in HE. A new theoretical framework for sustainable change is proposed that integrates these change theories in the context of HE professional disciplines. The findings provide several recommendations for university management in implementing change models including the provision of reciprocal feedback loops, enhanced learning for staff and students through scaffolding, developing workplace and professional networks, and implementing study and work unit flexibility.     

Effects of a feint on reactive agility performance

Abstract

This study compared reactive agility between higher-standard (n = 14) and lower-standard (n = 14) Australian footballers using a reactive agility test incorporating a life-size video image of another player changing direction, including and excluding a feint. Mean agility time in the feint trials was 34% (509 ± 243 ms; p < 0.001; effect size 3.06) longer than non-feint trials. In higher-standard players, agility time was shorter than for lower-standard players in both feint (114 ± 140 ms; p = 0.18; effect size 0.52; likely beneficial) and non-feint (32 ± 44 ms; p = 0.22; effect size 0.47; possibly beneficial) trials. Additionally, the inclusion of a feint resulted in movement time increasing over three times more in the lower-standard group (197 ± 91 ms; p = 0.001; effect size 1.07; almost certainly detrimental) than the higher-standard group (62 ± 86 ms; p = 0.23; effect size 0.66; likely detrimental). There were weak correlations between the feint and non-feint trials (r = ?0.13–0.14; p > 0.05), suggesting that reactive agility involving a feint is a unique skill. Also, higher-standard players are more agile than their lower-standard peers, whose movement speed deteriorates more as task complexity increases with the inclusion of a feint. These results support the need for specific training in multi-turn reactive agility tasks.