Using shared online blogs to structure and support informal coach learning. Part 2: the participants' view and implications for coach education

In part one of this paper, Stoszkowski and Collins showed that shared online blogs were a useful tool to structure and support the informal learning of a cohort of final year undergraduate sports coaching students. The aim of the present study was to offer insight into student coaches' perceptions of their use and experiences of structured group blogging for reflection and learning. Twenty-three student coaches (5 females, 18 males), purposely sampled from the original study, took part in four semi-structured focus group interviews. Interview data were inductively analysed. Student coaches were generally very positive about their learning experiences and the pedagogical approach employed. This was especially apparent in terms of perceived increases in levels of reflection, knowledge acquisition and improvements in coaching practice; changes corroborated by the data presented in part one. A range of reasons emerged for these outcomes, alongside several potential limiters of engagement in shared group blogging as a learning endeavour. Whilst these findings support recent, and growing proposals to systematically incorporate Web 2.0 technologies such as blogs into coach education pedagogy, several key considerations for the process of using such tools are outlined. Finally, the implications for coach educators are discussed.     

Connectedness: Developing a Shared Construction of Affect and Cognition in Children with Autism

Dave Sherratt and Gill Donald teach children with autism at Mowbray School, North Yorkshire. Dave Sherratt also teaches at the University of Birmingham and is honorary research fellow at the University College of York St John. Gill Donald is also a specialist speech and language therapist for Hambleton and Richmondshire Primary Care Trust. In this article, Dave Sherratt and Gill Donald outline an approach to teaching children who are on the autistic spectrum. They describe the social construction of understanding in normally developing children and suggest ways in which this differs in children with autism. These children may have difficulties in attributing relevance to the aspects of experience that are regarded as significant by most learners. The authors suggest that this may account for the poverty in social engagement or connectedness commonly observed in children with autism. Illustrating their propositions with vivid examples from practice, Dave Sherratt and Gill Donald go on to describe ten teaching structures promoting progress from early social engagement; through a shared understanding of objects and observable processes; to a shared understanding of symbolic representation in play, ideas and language. These structures, rooted in a fascinating evocation of theory, will help practitioners striving to develop a shared understanding of self, others and the environment in children with autistic spectrum disorders.     

The role of ‘pracademics’ in education and development of adventure sport professionals

Understanding and exploiting the synergy between theory and practice lies at the heart of effective education for outdoor professionals. Accordingly, and in an attempt to stimulate debate, this paper conceptualizes the interaction between theory and practice in the context of the education of outdoor professionals. We identify issues specific to the often separated worlds of practice and academia. While acknowledging those distinct skills and competencies, however, we also explore a mid-role; that of the ‘pracademic’ or scientist–practitioner or practitioner scholar, considering behaviours that may encourage greater collaborative work to inform the process and implementation of the education of outdoor professionals.     

The role of cognitive style in educational computer conferencing

This paper reports an investigation of the impact of students’ cognitive style on their effective use of educational text‐based computer‐mediated conferences. The research centres on an empirical study involving students from three courses run by the British Open University. Statistical analysis of the data does not suggest that cognitive style has a strong influence on student participation in the conference, but does suggest that, contrary to expectations, ‘imagers’ may send more messages to conferences than ‘verbalisers’. The data also suggest a possible link between certain cognitive styles and course completion, and that the interaction of different styles within a group, as described by Riding and Rayner's (1998 ) team roles, may have an indirect influence on task completion.     

The adventure sports coach: all show and no substance?

The primary objective of this research was to establish the range of interpersonal strategies, tools and techniques used by adventure sports coaches (ASCs) to influence participants’ actions and behaviours, and to determine where these strategies were acquired. An interpretative approach was employed using semi-structured interviews with a convenience sample of expert paddlesport coaches (n = 4). Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to get close to the data and identify salient topics. Five themes were subsequently identified as fundamental to effective coach–participant interaction: appropriate environment, stories told, knowing the participant, formal training and situational context. The implications are that whilst ASCs have well-developed intuitive social engagement skills, these are not consciously or declaratively employed in coaching sessions, and neither are they used at strategic levels to enhance participant development. Therefore, a multi-layer approach is recommended to help ASCs access and employ these skills that has consequences for the education, training and continued professional development of ASCs.     

Gender Differences in Pupil Attitudes to the National Curriculum Foundation Subjects of English,Mathematics, Science and Technology in Key Stage 3 in South Wales

The attitudes of pupils in South Wales to mathematics, English, science and technology were tested using a Likert‐type attitude scale. Pupils were selected from National Curriculum Key Stage 3, specifically Year 9 (age 13‐14 years). Schools were selected by their position in the 1992 National League tables produced by the Welsh Office, the schools being placed into one of four bands. The number of schools involved was 34 and the number of pupils 4263. This represents 15.3% of the total population of school children of age 13‐14 years in the region (Welsh Office, 1993). The results show gender differences in attitudes to English, mathematics, science and technology and some between school differences. The results are subjected to a factor analysis and are discussed in relation to groups of statements reflecting key aspects of each subject scale.     

No scholar is an island: The impact of sharing in the work life of scholars

The sharing of scholarly articles is an intrinsic and often ignored facet of the value and mission of scholarship. It is so entwined in the daily work life of scholars that it has almost become second nature, an integral part of the research process itself. This article addresses this often overlooked area of research in usage studies. In an international survey of 1,000 published scholars, the Beyond Downloads project examined their sharing behaviours in order to gain a more contextualized and accurate picture of their usage beyond download patterns and citation counts. Scholars share published articles with others as a mode of content discovery and dissemination, particularly if they work in groups, and most expect to increase their sharing in the future. While their methods of sharing articles may change, and their reasons for sharing may vary from self‐promotion to the more altruistic motives of scientific progress, they desire to share the final published versions of articles with their colleagues.