Maturity-associated variation in sport-specific skills of youth soccer players aged 13-15 years

The aim of this study was to estimate the contribution of experience, body size and maturity status to variation in sport-specific skills of adolescent soccer players. The participants were 69 players aged 13.2-15.1 years from three clubs that competed in the highest division for their age group. Height and body mass were measured and stage of pubic hair development was assessed at clinical examination. Years of experience in football was obtained at interview. Six football skill tests were administered: ball control with the body, ball control with the head, dribbling with a pass, dribbling speed, shooting accuracy and passing accuracy. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to estimate the relative contributions of age, stage of sexual maturity, height, body mass and years of formal training in soccer to the six skill tests. Age, experience, body size and stage of puberty contributed significantly but in different combinations to the variance in four of the six skill tests: dribbling with a pass (21%; age, stage of maturity), ball control with the head (14%; stage of maturity, height, body height x body mass interaction), ball control with the body (13%; stage of maturity, years of training) and shooting accuracy (8%; stage of maturity, height; borderline significance, P = 0.06). There were no significant predictors for the tests of dribbling speed and passing accuracy. In conclusion, age, experience, body size and stage of puberty contributed relatively little to variation in performance in four of the six soccer-specific skill tests in adolescent footballers aged 13-15 years.     

Philosophy in Schools: A Catholic School Perspective

This article builds on the recent Special Interest issue of this journal on ‘Philosophy for Children in Transition’ (2011) and the way that the debate about philosophy in schools has now shifted to whether or not it ought to be a compulsory part of the curriculum. This article puts the spotlight on Catholic schools in order to present a different argument in favour of introducing compulsory philosophy lessons into the curriculum. It is explained that in faith schools, such as Catholic ones, there is an additional need or imperative to have compulsory philosophy as part of the curriculum. This is because it serves as an effective way of avoiding the inherent dangers of confessional education, particularly the indoctrination challenge. It is argued that Catholic schools also have some intriguing theological reasons that can be used to justify the inclusion of compulsory philosophy in the school curriculum. It is proposed that when it comes to philosophy in schools there is a distinctive Catholic school perspective. As part of this it is explained why Catholic schools, perhaps more than others, need philosophy to be a compulsory part of the curriculum.     

Teaching and Learning as a Way of Life

This essay seeks to show that teaching and learning are to be properly understood, not as an undertaking carried out on the will of a higher power or party, but as a way of life with an integrity of its own, arising from its own integral purposes. The essay thus seeks to provide an understanding of educational practice and of educational thought that contrasts in key respects with Alasdair MacIntyre's understanding, though also with a some notable parallels. A largely forgotten 'Socrates of Athens' is identified as furnishing the original inspiration for the understanding of education explored in the essay. Some influential modern (and postmodern) negations of this understanding are then reviewed. Arising from its investigation of teaching and learning as a singular kind of relationship, the essay concludes with a brief sketch of some virtues that might constitute the way of life in question, in its more active and its more reflective moments.     

A Sociocultural Analysis of School and Community Settings as Sites for Developing Environmental Practitioners

This article presents analyses of two cultures that emerged from a school/community partnership to develop high school students' competencies as environmental practitioners and serve the needs of a community-based environmental organization. The first culture was situated largely within the school setting, but was linked to the environmental agency through a requirement that students provide service for that organization, which they did primarily through conducting a water quality study to contribute to a watershed management plan. The second culture was situated mostly within the environmental agency itself, and emerged as a group of independent-study students became involved in its daily work. These two activity settings were the units of analysis for delineating salient elements of each culture, and for developing profiles of the types of environmental practitioner identities that were implicit in each. These analyses led to the identification of constraints on students' development within each setting, and then to recommendations for making both cultures more conducive to students' learning and development as environmental practitioners.     

Changes in Cooperation and Self-Other Differentiation during the Second Year

Cooperation in peer interaction emerges during the second half of the second year. A consideration of the skills and knowledge entailed in these early forms of cooperation suggests that young children's emerging ability to differentiate self from other as causal agents may relate to their ability to coordinate behavior with age mates toward a common goal. Children at 12, 18, 24, and 30 months were observed in same-age, same-sex dyads (8 dyads per age) while attempting to solve a simple cooperation problem. They were also individually administered an elicited imitation task used to index decentration, or self-other differentiation. No 12-month-old dyad could cooperate, 18-month-olds did so infrequently and apparently accidentally, whereas 24- and 30-month-olds were able to coordinate behavior with one another quickly and effectively. Children who were better able to accommodate their behavior to one another during cooperation also represented the agency of others at a more advanced, decentered level.     

The efficacy of directed studies courses as a form of undergraduate research experience: a comparison of instructor and student perspectives on course dynamics

Directed studies (DS) courses are widely touted for their ability to enhance research skills in undergraduate students—yet little is known about the dynamics, motivations, and perceived outcomes connected to these specific types of undergraduate research experiences. Building on earlier qualitative research, in this paper we report the results of a self-report survey designed to directly compare instructor and student perspectives on DS course dynamics at a small, liberal arts university. Samples of students who completed DS courses and instructors who supervised them completed a survey assessing their motives, perceived outcomes, and barriers encountered in their course work. Parallel wording of items in instructor and student surveys permitted comparison of perceptions of DS course dynamics. Results indicated that there were many similarities in how both groups approached DS courses but that there were also several important differences in motives and perceived outcomes pointing to the need for greater communication between instructors and students about their expectations for the course.     

Teacher and Student Attitudes to Affective Education: A European collaborative research project

This article reports on the outcomes of a comparative research project examining teacher and student attitudes to affective education across Europe. Affective education is defined as the aspect of the educational process that is concerned with the feelings, values, beliefs, attitudes and emotional well-being of learners. The article begins with a consideration of some of the conceptual issues in affective education and its diversity across Europe as a basis for stressing the relevance of cross-cultural comparisons. It then offers a general picture of the findings of the present research project, draws a number of tentative conclusions from this and ends with a reference to issues requiring further research in comparative work on affective education.     

Part-time academics’ perception of their role and academic development: a case study from Indonesia

ABSTRACT

Employing part-time and casual academics is now a widely accepted practice in higher education globally. We explored the issue of the identity of part-time academics in Indonesian higher education through interviews with 14 part-time and 11 full-time academics. Both groups identified more strongly with their teaching roles than with other roles. However, they differed in their perceptions of opportunities to enact their chosen academic roles and of the kind of academic development they needed. The current standardised model of academic development needs to be rethought to offer more flexibility and to invite departments’ participation in the development of their academics.     

Included? The Status of African American Scholars in the Discipline of Criminology and Criminal Justice Since 2004

This article provides a re-examination of the progress of African Americans in criminology/criminal justice doctoral programs since 2004. It focuses on African-American faculty, their scholarly research, and involvement in professional associations. Recent trends in African Americans enrolled in doctoral programs also are analyzed. Findings indicate that the representation of African-American faculty and doctoral students in criminology and criminal justice programs has increased although both continue to be under-represented in programs at predominantly white institutions. Evidence of increases in their contributions to the body of knowledge and service to professional associations was notable. The article concludes with strategies and recommendations for ensuring that inclusion continues to matter in the next decade.