SELF-PERCEIVED GAINS IN CRITICAL THINKING AND COMMUNICATION SKILLS: ARE THERE DISCIPLINARY DIFFERENCES?

The influence of disciplinary differences onself-perceived gains in critical thinking andcommunication skills were examined in terms of studentbackground characteristics, experiences in the major,and college experience variables. Academicdisciplines were categorized according to Biglan's(1973a) classification of single- and multiple-paradigmdisciplines. Although multigroup structural equationmodeling showed no differences between self-perceivedgains for single- and multiple-paradigm disciplines, theproposed theoretical model accounted for 13.5% and 25.3%of the variance in self-perceived gains in critical thinking and communication skills,respectively. The variable most highly associated withself-perceived gains was the quality of lower-divisioncourses in the major.     

An examination of the use of audiovisual media in reducing prejudice

This study was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of audiovisual media as an instructional technique for altering ethnic attitudes among young children. Subjects were 153 children between the ages of five and nine, randomly assigned to one of three groups: Group 1 (Control), Group 2 (subjects viewed one film) or Group 3 (subjects viewed two films). The findings indicated that Group 2 and Group 3 gave significantly fewer prejudiced responses than Group 1 (p < .01). Furthermore, demographic variables (i.e., age, sex, or ethnicity of subject and tester) did not affect the ability of the treatment to modify attitudes. Both the implications and the limitations of these findings are discussed.     

Statistically significant differences between subtest scores on the test of reading comprehension

The authors contend that erroneous conclusions concerning intraindividual strengths and weaknesses may result when comparing scaled scores on subtests of The Test of Reading Comprehension. Examination of scaled scores may seem to indicate that a given student has performed better on one subtest than on another when, in reality, the difference between the two scores is not statistically significant. The authors present a table in which statistically significant differences between subtest scaled scores are identified. Use of the table enables more precise determination of intraindividual strengths and weaknesses.     

Phase analysis in maximal sprinting: an investigation of step-to-step technical changes between the initial acceleration,transition and maximal velocity phases

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate spatiotemporal and kinematic changes between the initial acceleration, transition and maximum velocity phases of a sprint. Sagittal plane kinematics from five experienced sprinters performing 50-m maximal sprints were collected using six HD-video cameras. Following manual digitising, spatiotemporal and kinematic variables at touchdown and toe-off were calculated. The start and end of the transition phase were identified using the step-to-step changes in centre of mass height and segment angles. Mean step-to-step changes of spatiotemporal and kinematic variables during each phase were calculated. Firstly, the study showed that if sufficient trials are available, step-to-step changes in shank and trunk angles might provide an appropriate measure to detect sprint phases in applied settings. However, given that changes in centre of mass height represent a more holistic measure, this was used to sub-divide the sprints into separate phases. Secondly, during the initial acceleration phase large step-to-step changes in touchdown kinematics were observed compared to the transition phase. At toe-off, step-to-step kinematic changes were consistent across the initial acceleration and transition phases before plateauing during the maximal velocity phase. These results provide coaches and practitioners with valuable insights into key differences between phases in maximal sprinting.     

Does generating examples aid proof production?

Many mathematics education researchers have suggested that asking learners to generate examples of mathematical concepts is an effective way of learning about novel concepts. To date, however, this suggestion has limited empirical support. We asked undergraduate students to study a novel concept by either tackling example generation tasks or reading worked solutions to these tasks. Contrary to suggestions in the literature, we found no advantage for the example generation group on subsequent proof production tasks. From a second study, we found that undergraduate students overwhelmingly adopt a trial and error approach to example generation and suggest that different example generation strategies may result in different learning gains. We conclude by arguing that the teaching strategy of example generation is not yet understood well enough to be a viable pedagogical recommendation.     

Right-left digit ratio (2D:4D) and maximal oxygen uptake

A low digit ratio (2D:4D) and low 2D:4D in the right compared with the left hand (right-left 2D:4D) are thought to be determined by high in utero concentrations of testosterone, and are related to "masculine" traits such as aggression and performance in sports like running and rugby. Low right-left 2D:4D is also related to sensitivity to testosterone as measured by the number of cytosine-adenine-guanine triplet repeats in exon 1 of the androgen receptor gene. Here we show that low right-left 2D:4D is associated with high maximal oxygen uptake (VO2(max)), high velocity at VO2(max), and high maximum lactate concentration in a sample of teenage boys. We suggest that low right-left 2D:4D is linked to performance in some sports because it is a proxy of high sensitivity to prenatal and maybe also circulating testosterone and high VO2(max).     

A Cost–Benefit Analysis of Automatic Item Generation

Automatic item generation (AIG)—a means of leveraging technology to create large quantities of items—requires a minimum number of items to offset the sizable upfront investment (i.e., model development and technology deployment) in order to achieve cost savings. In this cost–benefit analysis, we estimated the cost of each step of AIG and manual item writing and applied cost—benefit formulas to calculate the number of items that would have to be produced before the upfront costs of AIG outweigh manual item writing costs in the context of K‐12 mathematics items. Results indicated that AIG is more cost‐effective than manual item writing when developing, at a minimum, 173 to 247 items within one fine‐grained content area (e.g., fourth‐ through seventh‐grade area of figures). The article concludes with a discussion of implications for test developers and the nonmonetary tradeoffs involved in AIG.