Technique and timing in women's inward two and one half somersault tuck (405C) and the men's inward two and one half somersault pike (405B) 3 m springboard dives

The purpose of this study was to compare the inward two and one half somersault dive in a tuck position (405C) performed by females (n = 22) and the inward two and one half somersault dive in a pike position (405B) performed by males (n = 24) to determine changes required by females to successfully perform 405B. Key performance variables in inward dives were also compared to those of backward dives. Video data of the dives performed at the 1999 FINA World Diving Cup were captured and digitized to obtain times and postures of the divers at specific events including takeoff and entry. Estimates of flight height and mass-normalised work done on the springboard were obtained from flight times. Some females worked the springboard strongly enough to generate sufficient height and rotation to perform 405B. Males performed 405B comfortably because they achieved better height and rotation than the females. A comparison of backward and inward dives revealed that divers are able to attain greater height in backward dives than inward dives.     

John A. Stormer and the Hofstadter hypothesis

Does political rhetoric hold the key to an understanding of political pathology? Blending historical scholarship and behavioral research, this study tested empirically hypotheses derived from Richard Hofstadter's model of the “paranoid style” in American politics. The data were drawn from John A. Stormer's None Dare Call It Treason.     

Students selling sex: marketisation,higher education and consumption

Robust academic research on the topic of students involved in the sex industry is in its infancy, yet the relationship appears consistent and permanent. This paper draws on findings from the largest study into the stripping industry in the United Kingdom to explore the relationships between students, sex work and consumption. To make sense of the relationship between students and participation in the sex industry, a deeper understanding of other social and cultural processes is needed. In this discussion we argue that the following points are relevant and interlinked: changes to the nature of sexual commerce and sexual consumption as they become part of the marketplace; changes in social attitudes and the rise of ‘respectability’ in sexual commerce; the ‘pleasure dynamic’ amongst students; and changes in the higher education structure that place students as consumers as well as financially fragile. We set out a future research agenda given that this relationship is set to grow as the individual bares the cost of higher education.     

Responding to racism at school: Ethnic-racial socialization and the academic engagement of Black and Latinx youth

Guided by the Theory of Racial Socialization in Action (TRSA; Smith-Bynum in press), this study examined observed caregiver-provided ethnic-racial socialization in response to a school-based discriminatory dilemma. Forty-five Black and 36 Latinx caregivers (88% mothers) with low-income and their children (M_age = 11.09, SD = 0.29; 46.3% female) participated in Dallas, Texas from 2018 to 2019. Dyads responded to a hypothetical scenario in which a school counselor makes a discriminatory comment to the child. Results of a factor mixture analysis suggested that caregivers engaged in the dialogue using one of four approaches: Low-engaged, Legacy, Racial Literacy, or High-engaged. Profiles were found to differ significantly by the race/ethnicity and language of caregivers and were associated with youth’s concurrent behavioral engagement (R² = .04).     

Evaluating the potential of teacher-designed technology-based tasks for meaningful learning: Identifying needs for professional development

With technology increasingly being introduced into classrooms worldwide, stakeholders are asking whether ICT provides educational value. It is not simply having access to technology but how teachers use it that will determine its worth to education. Thirty-three teacher-designed technology-based tasks from eight subject areas were analysed for their effective use of ICT, and their potential to involve students in constructivist learning. Few of the tasks made effective use of ICT for meaningful learning, for reasons associated with teachers’ beliefs, attitudes, and missing TPACK components or competencies. These factors provide the basis for a model of areas to target when structuring professional development courses to help teachers better utilize educational ICT to design meaningful learning tasks.     

The reading rate and comprehension of adults with impaired reading skills or visual discomfort

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of impaired reading skills and visual discomfort on the reading rate and comprehension of university students when reading texts presented at a high school (Grade 9) or university (Grade 12) level of difficulty. Groups included impaired readers (n=18) and normal readers with (n=13) or without visual discomfort (n=19). Regardless of text difficulty the impaired reader group had a significantly slower reading rate and poorer comprehension than the normal reader control group. However, when reading rate and comprehension were compared at the assessed reading level of each group, no group differences were found. The normal reading visual discomfort group had poorer reading comprehension than other normal readers with presentation of university‐level text only. It was concluded that poor word decoding skills may exacerbate comprehension difficulties in impaired readers. In contrast, the comprehension difficulties found for normal readers with visual discomfort occurred because of the somatic and perceptual difficulties induced with exposure to the repetitive striped patterns found on text pages. The types of strategy needed to increase the reading efficiency and produce greater academic success in university students with impaired reader skills or visual discomfort are discussed.     

Nutrition and Physical Activity Practices in Childcare Centers Versus Family Childcare Homes

Obesity rates among preschool-aged children have doubled in the past 10 years, and 60 % of these children spend the majority of their day in childcare facilities. Few studies have examined the quality of nutrition and physical activity practices in childcare centers as compared to family childcare homes. The purpose of this study is to determine if a pattern of differences exist in these two settings. As part of a CDC-funded study to reduce the obesity epidemic in young children, directors of 1,140 childcare facilities (842 out-of-home and 298 in-home) in one large county completed a survey that detailed their practices related to child nutrition and physical activity. Results showed that compared with out-of-home facilities, in-home facilities were more likely to report excellent indoor physical activity (87.2 vs. 85.5 %, p = 0.059), less likely to report excellent outdoor physical activity (92.8 vs. 96.5 %, p = 0.018), more likely to serve fruit (80.3 vs. 51.2 %), and less likely to serve 1 % milk (45.2 vs. 55 %). This study’s present findings revealed that ample opportunity exists to significantly improve the health of young children in both in-home and out-of-home facilities.