Cultural Exchange,Appropriation and Physical Culture: Strongman Eugen Sandow in Colonial India, 1904–1905

This paper examines the eight-month 1904–1905 Indian tour of world-renowned strongman and physical culture pioneer Eugen Sandow, which occurred as nationalism surged and Japan shockingly defeated Russia during the Russo-Japanese War. Using Sandow’s writings, numerous newspaper accounts and several fascinating Indian texts it penetrates beyond Sandow’s claims that he ‘learnt little’ in the subcontinent to explore processes of cultural exchange despite the power imbalances inherent in the colonial context. The paper provides details about Sandow’s itinerary, shows and reception in key cities such as Calcutta, Bombay and Madras between October 1904 and June 1905, when the strongman headed further east to the Straits Settlements and China, but it also reveals the voices of Indian physical culture practitioners, including wrestlers and pahlwans such as Ramamurti Naidu – the ‘Indian Sandow’ – who repeatedly challenged Sandow. The paper suggests that through the careful reading of a variety of sources it is even possible to glimpse moments of recognition and respect between Sandow and Indian strongmen or physical culturists. In Sandow’s case this was particularly apparent in his use of Indian knowledge to produce a new health product named ‘Sandow’s Concentrated Embrocation’ following his stay in India.     

Assisting Performance: A case study from a primary science classroom

The interactions of a primary school teacher with her class during two sessions of science are analysed to find the extent to which the teacher can be considered to be assisting the performance of her class. The qualitative analysis is in terms of both Tharp and Gallimore's six assisting behaviours and Coulthard's 'initiation-response-feedback' pattern for typical classroom discourse. The teaching shows features which suggest children's science concepts are being developed and features which are consistent with assisted performance, though it is not possible to show a causal relationship between these two aspects. It is suggested that there would be potential for exploring assisted performance further as a framework for teaching for conceptual development in primary science.     

The prevalence of boredom proneness and depression among profoundly deaf residential school adolescents.

We investigated boredom proneness and depression among 50 profoundly deaf residential school adolescents using the Boredom Proneness (BP) scale and a version of the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) that has been modified for use with deaf subjects. Consistent with previous research, the deaf students had a significantly higher incidence of depression than the hearing students. In addition, the deaf students were found to be significantly more boredom prone than the hearing subjects. The results suggest that deafness not only increases a person's vulnerability to mild levels of depression, but also tends to augment one's tendency toward experiencing boredom. Implications for educational settings and areas for future research are discussed.     

Success or Failure in a Core University Unit: What makes the difference?

Factors which have been identified as contributing to student academic success at the degree and program level in tertiary study include mode of study, student age, previous tertiary qualifications and past academic performance. Limited published Australian research is available, however, on student academic success in individual subjects. This study investigated identifiable patterns related to the academic success of three separate cohorts of students in an Early Childhood second-year Language, Literature and Literacy unit (N = 601). The data support previous research findings with regard to the effect of mode of study, previous university qualifications and past academic performance on academic success in this subject. In contrast with most previous studies, this study found a significant relationship between previous study at TAFE (college study at a Technical and Further Education institute) and failure in an academic unit, perhaps due to the timing of this unit in the students' overall program. Further implications for Early Childhood teacher education are discussed.     

Tutorials for Schools Programme: a bridge between school and higher education or the workplace

This paper describes the Tutorials for Schools Programme which has recently been piloted and evaluated in a region of Scotland. The Programme is run by university students who take university style tutorials with 15–18 year old pupils in their own school setting. The tutorials are carried out during the post‐preliminary or ‘mock’ examination period so that pupils have learnt as much of their examination syllabus as possible and can discuss topics in some depth. The scheme aims to promote pupils' communication and analytical skills, as well as motivate their interest in their examination subjects, helping their revision. By using university style pedagogy, the Programme aims to stimulate their enthusiasm to continue their study in a new environment and by different means. For less able pupils, the Programme provides an opportunity to practise debating skills, justify opinions and feel confident when answering questions in preparation for job interviews.     

Knowledge of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and attitudes toward teaching children with ADHD: THE role of teaching experience

Knowledge of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and attitudes toward teaching children with ADHD are compared across stages of Australian teachers' careers. Relative to pre‐service teachers with (n = 218) and without (n = 109) teaching experience, in‐service teachers (n = 127) show more overall knowledge of ADHD, more knowledge of characteristics and treatments for ADHD, and higher perceived knowledge. In‐service teachers reported less favorable emotion about teaching children with ADHD than did pre‐service teachers without experience and more favorable behaviors than pre‐service teachers with experience. Groups did not differ in knowledge of causes of ADHD, overall attitudes, stereotypical beliefs, and beliefs about teaching children with ADHD. Identification of knowledge gaps and ambivalent attitudes will guide pre‐service and in‐service training courses. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Performance Funding and Quality Enhancement at Three Research Universities in the United States

This paper discusses the effect performancefunding has had on funding and qualityenhancement at three research universities asimplemented over the past six years. Thepresentation details the accountabilityrequirements and the relationship they have hadon funding levels. It describes thecost-benefit ratio of maintaining andresponding to the required indicators, and howcollaborative efforts among the institutionshave brought about positive reform in thestate. This discussion will cover budgetprocesses and trends across the United Statesrelative to funding for performance andquality. Suggestions for implementation andimprovement of existing systems are alsodiscussed.     

A Comparison of Self-Report Scales and Accelerometer-Determined Moderate to Vigorous Physical Activity Scores of Finnish School Students

The current article provides an important insight into measurement differences between two commonly used self-reports and accelerometer-determined moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) scores within matched samples across 1 school year. Participants were 998 fifth- through eighth-grade students who completed self-reports and 76 fifth- and sixth-grade children with accelerometers. The Health Behavior in School-aged Children (HBSC) Research Protocol showed the higher frequency of days exceeding 60 minutes of MVPA than the International Physical Activity Questionnaire Short Form (IPAQ-SF). Larger proportions of children achieved the MVPA guidelines based on HBSC results (girls 16%, boys 29%), than IPAQ-SF (girls 5%, boys 11%), or accelerometers data (girls 0%, boys 0%). MVPA remained stable over 12 months on the basis of both self-report and accelerometer results. Both self-report scales presented should be used with discretion in population studies, whereas accelerometer-determined data can be more authentic when personal guidance is required.     

Motivational control after extended instrumental training

Hungry rats were trained to press a lever for food pellets prior to an assessment of the effect of a shift in their motivational state on instrumental performance in extinction. The first study replicated the finding that a reduction in the level of food deprivation has no detectable effect on extinction performance unless the animals receive prior experience with the food pellets in the nondeprived state (Balleine, 1992; Balleine & Dickinson, 1994). When tested in the nondeprived state, only animals that were reexposed to the food pellets in this state between training and testing showed a reduction in the level of pressing during the extinction test relative to animals tested in the deprived state. The magnitude of this reexposure effect depended, however, on the amount of instrumental training. Following more extended instrumental training, extinction performance was unaffected by reexposure to the food pellets in the nondeprived state whether or not the animals were food deprived at the time of testing. A second study demonstrated that the resistance to the reexposure treatment engendered by overtraining was due to the animals’ increased experience of the food pellets in the deprived state during training rather than to the more extensive exposure to the instrumental contingency. In contrast to the results of the first two experiments, however, a reliable reexposure effect was detected after overtraining in a final study, in which the animals were given greater reexposure to the food pellets in the nondeprived state.