Blackboard bullies: workplace bullying in primary schools

This paper offers a comprehensive examination of the ‘lived experience’ of workplace bullying in primary schools in Ireland. Underpinned by the qualitative analysis of in-depth interviews with a class teacher, a chairperson of a Board of Management and a school principal – all of whom who believe themselves to have been targets of workplace bullying in their schools – the paper presents their personal narratives as representative inductive exemplars. Each of these case studies highlight the far-reaching impact of negative workplace interaction for both individuals and the wider school community and, in so doing, provide a voice for a hithertofore silent minority. Through a Foucauldian analysis of the complex exercise of power which is at the heart of all bullying relationships, this study reveals the key role of management and organisational cultures to both the experience and incidence of adult bullying in primary schools, as well as the critical importance of leadership in framing the nature of professional relationships in school organisations.     

Higher education students registered with disability services and practice educators: issues and concerns for professional placements

Introduction: The number of students with disabilities accessing Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), including professional courses, has increased substantially within the Republic of Ireland over the past 10 years [AHEAD (Association of Higher Education, Access, and Disability) 2012. “Survey on the Participation Rates of Students with Disabilities in Higher Education for the Academic Year 2011/2012.” http://www.ahead.ie/userfiles/file/PR_2012.pdf]. In one HEI in the Republic of Ireland, it was noticed that there was a large increase in students with disabilities, from 67 in 2006 to 259 in 2013 on professional courses. The aim of this study was to identify the issues and concerns of practice educators (PEs) in both supporting students with disabilities and exploring the concerns for students with disabilities on professional courses. Methods: A survey design was employed to meet the aims of this study and ethical permission was granted from the Faculty of Health Science Ethics Committee. Results: Respondents included 68 PEs and 63 students with disabilities. PEs were found to be concerned with students reaching the required standard of proficiency on placement, and how to support students in this. Students on the other hand identified stigma and disclosure of a disability as a concern. Conclusion: This study highlighted a difference in perceptive between PEs and students with disabilities in relation to disclosure and support needs for their disabilities.     

Effects of sensory-level high-volt pulsed electrical current ondelayed-onset muscle soreness

Abstract

Ten healthy males and ten healthy females aged 21.5 ± 3.2 years (mean ± s) participated in the study, which was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of sensory level-high volt pulsed electrical current (HVPC) on delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS). Arm discomfort, elbow extension range of motion and isometric elbow flexion strength were obtained as baseline measurements. Delayed-onset muscle soreness was induced in the participants' dominant or non-dominant arm using two sets of 20 maximal eccentric elbow flexion contractions. After the induction of DOMS, the participants were randomly divided into an experimental condition (HVPC) or a placebo condition. The experimental condition consisted of 20 min of HVPC immediately after the induction of DOMS, and 20 min every 24 h for three consecutive days thereafter. The participants in the placebo condition received an intervention similar in design; however, no electrical current was administered. Baseline measurements were reevaluated at 24, 48, 72 and 96 h after the induction of DOMS. Three weeks later, the participants returned and the protocol was repeated on the contralateral limb, using the opposite intervention (HVPC or placebo). Repeated-measures analysis of variance revealed a significant increase in overall arm discomfort, decrease in elbow extension and decrease in isometric strength for both conditions over time. No significant main effect of treatment, or time-by-treatment interaction, was found for the HVPC condition when compared with the placebo condition for any variable. Sensory-level HVPC, as utilized in our application, was ineffective in reducing the measured variables associated with DOMS.     

Modification of the Volunteer Functions Inventory for application in youth sports

The purpose of this study was to modify the Volunteer Functions Inventory (VFI) to be specifically applicable to assess volunteer motivation in youth sport settings. Based on a comprehensive review of literature, the VFI items were first modified to reflect the context of youth sports. Testing of measurement properties was accomplished through two studies. In Study One, the modified VFI was administered to volunteers (N = 515) of a nationwide youth soccer organization. Data were randomly split into two-halves: one for exploratory factor analysis (EFA) with principal-axis extraction and oblique rotation, and the other for confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) with maximum likelihood estimation. In the EFA, six factors emerged which were consistent with the dimensions of the VFI; however, 12 items were eliminated due to double loading or misspecification, resulting in 18 items being retained. The CFA revealed that the data fit the 6-factor model well. In Study Two, the resolved scale was re-validated through a sample of 262 volunteers of local youth sport leagues. Overall, findings of these two studies suggest that the modified VFI for youth sports is a valid and reliable scale. This scale may be adopted to study various volunteer motivation issues associated with youth sport organizations and events.     

Quantifying the long-term impact of zoological education: a study of learning in a zoo and an aquarium

Abstract

There is increasing evidence that zoos and aquariums do, as intended, educate their visitors. However, even though most zoos offer a wide array of educational experiences, few studies have considered if the duration of an educational experience affects learning or whether learning lasts beyond the immediate visit. The current study used matched-pairs surveys to investigate children’s knowledge, attitude and knowledge of positive behavior during both a five-day zoo camp and six months after an aquarium visit. The participants of the study included children aged 9–12?years some of whom had participated in a purposefully designed educational intervention. First, the impact of a five-day zoo camp experience on children’s learning was investigated. Second, learning retention was investigated six months after a school tour at an aquarium. Results showed that during the camp learning was positively affected by participation in the educational intervention and by previous zoo experience. Girls were more likely than boys to have an increase in learning six months after an aquarium visit. The study demonstrates that learning persists, but that education can be enhanced with longer programs. Thus, zoos can play an increasingly important role in igniting pro-environmental behavior.     

Quality indicators for effective early intervention in literacy and numeracy

Recent research suggests that multi‐strand and interlinked interventions meet the requirements of early primary school intervention programmes more fully than single programmes. A set of quality indicators, which education authorities and schools can utilize to review and evaluate processes and outcomes of such interventions, is derived from the outcome of an evaluation of the implementation of an early intervention programme (EIP) in literacy and numeracy, involving 274 pupils, in three North Ayrshire primary schools. The implications for primary prevention of difficulties in literacy and numeracy are discussed.     

Constructive and instructive representation

Abstract

Beginning teachers of mathematics are likely to have noted the development of powerful multiple representation software which offers children access to the many modalities through which mathematics is expressed. We argue that embedded, even hidden, within such software are many mathematics conventions, which the naive learner has to unravel in order to construct meaning for those representations. We contrast such representations, which we label as instructive, with those children construct through the use of expressive software; this contrast is seen as analogous to aspects of literacy. We identify various characteristics of these two distinctive forms of representation.     

Perceived control of anxiety and its relationship to self-confidence and performance

This study examined performers' retrospective explanations of the relationship between anxiety symptoms, self-confidence, and performance. Interviews were used to determine how the presence of symptoms and the accompanying directional interpretation affected performance in six elite and six subelite swimmers. Causal networks revealed that perceived control was the moderatingfactor in the directional interpretation of anxiety and not the experience of anxiety symptoms alone. Symptoms perceived to be under control were interpreted to have facilitative consequences for performance; however, symptoms not under control were viewed as debilitative. Increases or decreases in self-confidence wereperceived to improve or lower performance. Findings reveal how cognitive and somatic information was processed, what strategies were adopted, and how this series of events related to performance.     

Using the dynamic approach to school improvement to promote quality and equity in education: a European study

Educational Assessment, Evaluation and Accountability - This paper presents the results of a European study investigating the extent to which the Dynamic Approach to School Improvement (DASI) can...