Self-talk influences vertical jump performance and kinematics in male rugby union players

We examined the effects of instructional and motivational self-talk on centre of mass displacement and hip kinematics during the vertical jump. Twenty-four male rugby union players (age 21.1 years, s = 3.5; body mass 81.0 kg, s = 8.9; height 1.80 m, s = 0.06) performed three vertical jump tests, with a 2 min rest between jumps. Before each jump, participants engaged in one of three counterbalanced interventions (motivational self-talk, instructional self-talk or no-intervention). Motivational self-talk led to greater centre of mass displacement (0.602 m, s = 0.076; P = 0.012) than the no-intervention control (0.583 m, s = 0.085). Centre of mass displacement did not differ between instructional self-talk and the control condition or between motivational and instructional self-talk. Motivational (100.75 degrees , s = 16.05; P = 0.001) and instructional self-talk (106.14 degrees , s = 17.04; P = 0.001) led to greater hip displacement than the no-intervention control (94.11 degrees , s = 17.14). There was also a significant difference in hip displacement between motivational and instructional self-talk (P = 0.014), although there was no difference between instructional self-talk and the control condition. Motivational (451.69 degrees /s, s = 74.34; P = 0.008) and instructional self-talk (462.01 degrees /s, s = 74.37; P = 0.001) led to greater hip rotation velocity than the no-intervention control (434.37 degrees /s, s = 75.37), although there was no difference between the two self-talk interventions. These results indicate that self-talk may influence performance and technique during the vertical jump in male rugby players.     

Repeatability of scores on a novel test of endurance running performance

The aim of the present study was to determine the repeatability of a running endurance test using an automated treadmill system that requires no manual input to control running speed. On three separate occasions, 7 days apart, 10 experienced male endurance-trained runners (mean age 32 years, s = 10; VO2peak 61 ml x kg(-1) x min(-1), s = 7) completed a treadmill time trial, in which they were instructed to run as far as possible in 60 min. The treadmill was instrumented with an ultrasonic feedback-controlled radar modulator that spontaneously regulated treadmill belt speed corresponding to the changing running speed of each runner. Estimated running intensity was 70% VO2peak (s = 11) and the distance covered 13.5 km (s = 2), with no difference in mean performances between trials. The coefficient of variation, estimated using analysis of variance, with participant and trial as main effects, was 1.4%. In summary, the use of an automated treadmill system improved the repeatability of a 60-min treadmill time trial compared with time trials in which speed is controlled manually. The present protocol is a reliable method of assessing endurance performance in endurance-trained runners.     

Changes in jump performance and muscle activity following soccer-specific exercise

The jump performance of ten youth soccer players (mean age 15.8 years, s= 0.4) was assessed before and after 42 min of soccer-specific exercise performed on a non-motorized treadmill. A squat, countermovement, and drop jump were performed on a force platform and simultaneously surface EMG activity of four lower limb muscles was collected. Jump height deteriorated across all conditions with mean reductions of - 1.4 cm (s = 1.6; P < 0.05), - 3.0 cm (s = 2.9; P < 0.05), and -2.3 cm (s = 1.7; P < 0.01) in the squat, countermovement, and drop jump respectively. The impact force in the drop jump was the only force variable to show a significant change with fatigue (P < 0.05). Following the prolonged exercise, reductions in total muscle activity were non-significant for the squat jump, approached significance for the counter-ovement jump (P = 0.07), and achieved significance for the drop jump (P < 0.05). The results showed that completing soccer-specific exercise reduced performance in all jump tasks. Reductions in muscle activity were greatest for the drop jump, suggesting an influence of muscle stretch and loading on reduced muscle activity when fatigued.     

Patterns of physical activity and overweight among 7-13-year-old Russian children: a 7-year nationally representative monitoring study

This is a repeated cross-sectional study of overweight and physical activity (PA) and inactivity patterns of successive samples of 7-13-year-old Russian children who were surveyed six times between 1995 and 2002 as part of the Russian Longitudinal Monitoring Survey. This analysis focused on moderate/vigorous (MOD/VIG) PA (e.g., active commuting to school, during school MOD/VIG PA as part of physical education classes, and/or before/after school MOD/VIG PA) and inactivity patterns (e.g, television viewing habits) obtained through parent proxy-reports of 3,507 boys (M age = 10.1 years, SD = 2.0; body mass index = 17.5 kg/m2, SD = 3.0) and 3,273 girls (M age = 10.1 years, SD = 2.0; body mass index = 17.2 kg/m2, SD = 3.0). Time spent in MOD/VIG PA appears to be on the rise, while the proportion of those actively commuting to school is decreasing, especially among girls.     

Beating the bunker: the effect of PETTLEP imagery on golf bunker shot performance

The aim of this study was to compare the effects of physical practice with PETTLEP-based (Physical, Environment, Task, Timing, Learning, Emotion and Perspective; Holmes & Collins, 2001) imagery and PETTLEP + physical practice interventions on golf bunker shot performance. Thirty-two male county- or international-level golfers were assigned to one of four groups; PETTLEP imagery, physical practice, PETTLEP + physical practice, or control. The PETTLEP imagery group imaged 15 bunker shots, their interventions incorporating PETTLEP components, such as physical, environment, and emotion, twice a week. The physical practice group physically performed their 15 bunker shots twice per week; the PETTLEP + physical practice group performed PETTLEP imagery once per week and physical practice once per week. Each group performed their respective tasks for 6 weeks. Pre- and posttests consisted of 15 bunker shots, with points awarded according to the ball proximity to the pin. All groups improved significantly (p < .01) from pre- to posttest, and the PETTLEP + physical practice group improved more (p < .05) than the PETTLEP and physical practice groups. However, there was no significant difference between the physical practice and PETTLEP groups (p > .05). Findings, therefore, support the effectiveness of PETTLEP in enhancing golf performance, especially when combined with physical practice.     

Introduction to the F. L. T. Terms

Feedback Information 'fed back' to the teacher from learners on questions such as the efficiency of the teaching and the materials, and in the light of which teaching arrangements can be modified and improved; information 'fed back' to learners to help them gauge their performance and progress.     

AN IMPROVED AXISYMMETRIC WILSON NONCONFORMING FINITE ELEMENT METHOD FOR STRESS ANALYSIS

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理解一种基于脑的学习与教学观点

《外国教育资料》已发表多篇文章向读者介绍融信息技术与新教学观念于一体的建构主义学习与教学现。建构主义学习与教学观的一个重要前提是把认知或学习视作智力建构的结果。所谓“智力建构”至少包括三层意思:其一是指学习者通过积极加工融新旧信息于一体而获得理解与意义;其二是强调学习必然受到学习在其中发生的情境的影响,受到学习者因与环境、与他人互动而产生的自身的情绪与情感、信念与态度的影响;最后,学习者在进行“智力建构”时,最理想的状态就是“放松警觉状态”,这是一种融合有意识的中心注意与无意识、下意识的边缘注意的一种特殊状态,是能最大限度地调动人的创新意识与能力的状态。建构主义的学习与教学现引人注目的一个重要原因是因为它力求将有关人脑的最新研究成果作为理论与实践的基础,从而使每一个人都能充满信心地在创造性地掌握作为人类智慧结晶的高新智能技术的过程中,不断开发每一个人自身拥有的独一无二的脑的巨大潜力。 为了帮助读者更好地理解建构主义的学习与教学观,特翻泽R·N·凯因、G·凯因于1990年10月在《Educational Leadership》杂志上发表的“理解一种基于脑的学习与教学观点”一文,以引起对相关问题的关注与思考。     

Pedometer-assessed physical activity in young adolescents

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the physical activity (PA) patterns of children. Forty-four 7th-grade students (19 boys, 25 girls) recorded pedometer data for 2 consecutive weeks. Separate 2 x 3 repeated measures analyses of variance were used to examine differences in total steps/day between boys and girls and between after-school activity participants and nonparticipants. The relative contribution of physical education (PE) and after-school activity (ASA) to weekday steps/day was evaluated as a proportion, for example (steps taken in PE class/total daily steps taken on a PE class day) * 100. The total sample mean was 11,392 steps/day, SD = 4112; for boys, M = 12,490 steps/day, SD=3910, versus girls, M = 10,557 steps/day, SD=4142; F=(1, 42) 4.365, p = .043. The sample population averaged 2046 steps, SD=945, during PE class; boys=2379 steps, SD=1115, versus girls=1782, SD=703; t (42) = 2.15, p = .038, d = .65, which represented 18% of the total steps/day on PE days. In comparison, the participants accumulated an average of 5366 steps, SD=2590; ASA for boys=5897 steps/day, SD=2738, versus girls=4963 steps/day, SD=2450; t (42) = 1.190, p = .241, d = .36), representing 46% of the steps/day on all weekdays and 47% of the total on PE days. Expressed as a rate, the sample population took 45.5 steps/min (SD=21) during PE class and 13.1 steps/min (SD = 4.7) in ASA on all weekdays. The relative stability of day-to-day behavior in youth is a preliminary finding but noteworthy. Although the absolute contribution ofPE class to daily PA was less than ASA (i.e., 18 vs. 47%, respectively), the importance of the condensed contribution in class was evident when these two activities were expressed as rates (i.e., steps/min). These data indicate that youth involved in ASA accumulated a greater number of steps on all days, weekend days, and health education days when compared to youth not involved in ASA.     

When "where" is more important than "when": birthplace and birthdate effects on the achievement of sporting expertise

In this study, we assessed whether contextual factors related to where or when an athlete is born influence their likelihood of playing professional sport. The birthplace and birth month of all American players in the National Hockey League, National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball, and Professional Golfer's Association, and all Canadian players in the National Hockey League were collected from official websites. Monte Carlo simulations were used to verify if the birthplace of these professional athletes deviated in any systematic way from the official census population distribution, and chi-square analyses were conducted to determine whether the players' birth months were evenly distributed throughout the year. Results showed a birthplace bias towards smaller cities, with professional athletes being over-represented in cities of less than 500,000 and under-represented in cities of 500,000 and over. A birth month/relative age effect (in the form of a distinct bias towards elite athletes being relatively older than their peers) was found for hockey and baseball but not for basketball and golf. Comparative analyses suggested that contextual factors associated with place of birth contribute more influentially to the achievement of an elite level of sport performance than does relative age and that these factors are essentially independent in their influences on expertise development.