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Transferring primary generalists’ positive classroom pedagogy to the physical education setting: a collaborative PE-CPD process
Get PDFBackground: The primary school age group (aged 5–11 years) is acknowledged as a critical period in the development of physical activity patterns and healthy lifestyle behaviours. Furthermore, high quality physical education (PE) is crucial for the development of lifelong physical activity behaviours and is highly dependent on the interaction between the teacher and the pupil. Despite this, there is a lack of training and confidence of many primary generalist teachers to teach PE in the UK. It is argued that effective continuing professional development (CPD) to address this issue should be supportive, job embedded, instructionally focused, collaborative and ongoing.
Purpose: This study was funded by a national government funded organisation and led by a university in collaboration with a secondary PE specialist and two primary teachers. The purpose was to develop a replicable PE-CPD process to improve primary generalist teachers’ PE pedagogy by transferring their positive pedagogy from the classroom to the PE setting.
Participants: The participants were two Year 3 (age 7–8 years) primary classroom teachers from the same school and one secondary PE specialist teacher who acted as a mentor.
Research approach: A collaborative professional learning (CPL) approach was utilised to develop the PE-CPD intervention process. CPL involves teachers and other members of a profession working together to improve their own and others’ learning on pedagogic issues. A six-week needs assessment phase was completed through classroom and PE lesson observations to identify key areas for development in the PE-CPD process over the duration of a 23 week intervention.
Data collection and analysis: Reflective logs, structured lesson observations and teacher interviews were used to collect the data during the PE-CPD intervention. Inductive and deductive qualitative thematic analysis was used to analyse and interpret the data.
Findings: A number of key themes were generated during the data analysis including the transfer of positive pedagogy from the classroom to the PE setting and the implementation of effective pedagogic principles including the setting of clear learning outcomes, differentiation and inclusion to enhance the PE pedagogy. A key element to the success of the intervention was the trusting relationships built by the secondary PE specialist with the primary teachers. Further, the results also revealed the importance of CPL in ensuring rigorous, evidence-based PE-CPD and providing the time and support required for fundamental sustainable changes in practice, which can endure beyond the life of the research project.
Conclusion: The major contribution of this paper is in demonstrating the potential of CPL between national organisations, universities, secondary and primary schools to improve the PE pedagogy of primary generalist teachers. Future research should build upon the findings in this study and replicate this PE-CPD approach with other classes and schools
Influence of Audiovisual Training on Horizontal Sound Localization and Its Related ERP Response
Get PDFThe objective was to investigate the influence of audiovisual training on horizontal sound localization and the underlying neurological mechanisms using a combination of psychoacoustic and electrophysiological (i.e., event-related potential, ERP) measurements on sound localization. Audiovisual stimuli were used in the training group, whilst the control group was trained using auditory stimuli only. Training sessions were undertaken once per day for three consecutive days. Sound localization accuracy was evaluated daily after training, using psychoacoustic tests. ERP responses were measured on the first and last day of tasks. Sound localization was significantly improved in the audiovisual training group when compared to the control group. Moreover, a significantly greater reduction in front-back confusion ratio for both trained and untrained angles was found between pre- and post-test in the audiovisual training group. ERP measurement showed a decrease in N1 amplitude and an increase in P2 amplitude in both groups. However, changes in late components were only found in the audiovisual training group, with an increase in P400 amplitude and decrease in N500 amplitude. These results suggest that the interactive effect of audiovisual localization training is likely to be mediated at a relatively late cognitive processing stage
Age-related changes in upper body contribution to braking forward locomotion in women
Get PDFIntroduction
Gait termination is a transitory task that requires the lower body to produce braking forces and inhibit forward propulsion. However, it is still unknown whether the upper body plays an active role in braking of gait and whether this mechanism is impaired with ageing.
Research question
Do older women exhibit an impaired control of upper body segments during gait termination with respect to young women?
Methods
Ten young and 10 older women performed three gait termination trials at comfortable speed while fixing the gaze on a visual target. A 3D motion analysis system was used to measure head, trunk and pelvis angular displacement and velocity, and estimate neck, waist and hip moments through Plug-in Gait modeling. Cross-correlation analysis of kinematic waveforms between paired adjacent segments (head-trunk and trunk-pelvis) was performed to investigate upper body coordination. Surface EMG activity of erector spinae (L3), sternocleidomastoid and neck extensor muscles was recorded. Statistics was carried out by MANOVA.
Results
Older participants exhibited delayed peak extensor torques of neck, waist and hip compared to young participants, along with lower progression speed. Both groups showed a slight flexion of the trunk counteracted by a backward tilt of head and pelvis during braking. In addition, older women displayed a peculiar upper body coordination pattern, with the head coupling with trunk motion, as shown by cross-correlation. Older women displayed shorter lumbar erector spinae onset latency relative to last heel contact than young (16 ± 68 ms vs 92 ± 37 ms).
Significance
The upper body plays an active role in the braking of gait and this mechanism is impaired in older women. Moreover, the age-related coupling of head and trunk motion may produce an unbalancing effect on whole-body stability during the braking mechanism, thus leading to a higher risk of falls
‘It's the sea and the beach more than anything for me’: Local surfer's and the construction of community and communities in a rural Cornish seaside village
Get PDFThis paper reports on a qualitative ethnographic study undertaken on a small rural village community in Cornwall, UK with a significant population of local surfers. It focuses on these local surfers' interactions with the wider rural community they co-exist with, and in which ways this group might contribute to the formation, maintenance and identity of that broader rural community. The analysis presented draws together a range of broadly agreed conceptual notions of community with Victor Turner's (1969) notion of spontaneous, normative and ideological communitas as dynamic emergent elements in what Whol (2015) refers to as a process of developing community sense through experiencing and communicating aesthetic judgments. Findings illustrate that notions of community were not restricted to a static and bounded geographical location. Rather, the village focused upon in this study was seen as a hub of a close and a wider de-territorialised community. Despite their obvious differences, there was a strong sense of communitas, community sense and aesthetic judgement between surfing locals and non-surfing locals, expressed through the sharing of experience of the inspired feelings of native place configured around relationships with the sea, the local beach, surf break and village life
Similarity between carotid and coronary artery responses to sympathetic stimulation and the role of alpha-1 receptors in humans
Get PDFBackground. Carotid artery (CCA) dilation occurs in healthy subjects during cold pressor test (CPT), whilst the magnitude of dilation relates to cardiovascular risk. To further explore this phenomena and mechanism, we examined carotid artery responses to different sympathetic tests, with and without α1-receptor blockade, and assessed similarity to these responses between carotid and coronary arteries. Methods. In randomised order, 10 healthy participants (25{plus minus}3yrs) underwent sympathetic stimulation using CPT (3-minutes left hand immersion in ice-slush) and lower-body negative pressure (LBNP). Before and during sympathetic tests, CCA diameter and velocity (Doppler ultrasound) and left anterior descending (LAD) coronary artery velocity (echocardiography) were recorded across 3-min. Measures were repeated 90-min following selective α1-receptor blockade via oral Prazosin (0.05mg-per-kg bodyweight). Results. CPT significantly increased CCA diameter, LAD maximal velocity and velocity-time integral area-under-the-curve (all P<0.05). In contrast, LBNP resulted in a decrease in CCA diameter, LAD maximal velocity and velocity time integral (VTI, all P<0.05). Following α1-receptor blockade, CCA and LAD velocity responses to CPT were diminished. In contrast, during LBNP (-30mmHg), α1-receptor blockade did not alter CCA or LAD responses. Finally, changes in CCA diameter and LAD VTI-responses to sympathetic stimulation were positively correlated (r=0.66, P<0.01). Conclusion. We found distinct carotid artery responses to different tests of sympathetic stimulation, where α1-receptors partly contribute to CPT-induced responses. Finally, we found agreement between carotid and coronary artery responses. These data indicate similarity between carotid and coronary responses to sympathetic tests and the role of α1-receptors that is dependent on the nature of the sympathetic challeng
The Kung Fu family: A metaphor of belonging across time and place
Get PDFKung Fu associations are often understood as ‘families’ forming broader ‘family trees’ or lineages operating across centuries of history as well as transcultural associations. In an effort contributing to interdisciplinary martial arts studies, this paper presents data from two qualitative studies of Western practitioners of traditionalist Chinese martial arts (TCMA) in both the West and Asia by a phenomenological psychologist and an anthropological sociologist. We assess the use of the term ‘Kung Fu family’, what it means to the practitioners and how it impacts on their practice and their relationships with other martial artists. We argue that the conceptual metaphor of family offers a sense of belonging and solidarity within a diverse community in terms of age, ethnicity, gender, religion and social class. Meanwhile, we explore the metaphor in terms of the micro-political power dynamics that accompany martial arts collectives. Overall, the ideal of family can illuminate how identity can transcend across time (‘generations’ of practitioners) and place (from and to cultures and contingents). It is thus a way of understanding the organisation, spread and transcendence of Chinese martial arts
Evolution of design considerations in complex craniofacial reconstruction using patient-specific implants
Get PDFPreviously published evidence has established major clinical benefits from using Computer Aided Design (CAD), Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM), and Additive Manufacturing (AM) to produce patient-specific devices. These include cutting guides, drilling guides, positioning guides, and implants. However, custom devices produced using these methods are still not in routine use – particularly by the UK National Health Service (NHS). Oft-cited reasons for this slow uptake include: a higher up-front cost than conventionally-fabricated devices, material-choice uncertainty, and a lack of long-term follow-up due to their relatively recent introduction. This paper identifies a further gap in current knowledge – that of design rules, or key specification considerations for complex CAD/CAM/AM devices. This research begins to address the gap by combining a detailed review of the literature with first-hand experience of interdisciplinary collaboration on five craniofacial patient case-studies.
In each patient case, bony lesions in the orbito-temporal region were segmented, excised, and reconstructed in the virtual environment. Three cases translated these digital plans into theatre via polymer surgical guides. Four cases utilised AM to fabricate titanium implants. One implant was machined from PolyEther Ether Ketone (PEEK). From the literature, articles with relevant abstracts were analysed to extract design considerations. 19 frequently-recurring design considerations were extracted from previous publications. 9 new design considerations were extracted from the case studies – on the basis of subjective clinical evaluation. These were synthesised to produce a design considerations framework to assist clinicians with prescribing and design engineers with modelling. Promising avenues for further research are proposed
Beyond ‘Crude Pragmatism’ in sports coaching: Insights from C.S. Peirce,William James, and John Dewey: A commentary
Get PDFSystolic and Diastolic Left Ventricular Mechanics during and after Resistance Exercise
Get PDFPURPOSE:
To improve the current understanding of the impact of resistance exercise on the heart, by examining the acute responses of left ventricular (LV) strain, twist and untwisting rate ('LV mechanics').
METHODS:
LV echocardiographic images were recorded in systole and diastole before, during and immediately after (7-12 s) double leg press exercise at two intensities (30% and 60% of maximum strength, 1-repetition-maximum, 1RM). Speckle tracking analysis generated LV strain, twist and untwisting rate data. Additionally, beat-by-beat blood pressure was recorded and systemic vascular resistance (SVR) and LV wall stress were calculated.
RESULTS:
Responses in both exercise trials were statistically similar (P > 0.05). During effort, stroke volume decreased while SVR and LV wall stress increased (P 0.05). Immediately following exercise, systolic LV mechanics returned to baseline levels (P < 0.05) but LV untwisting rate increased significantly (P < 0.05).
CONCLUSIONS:
A single, acute bout of double leg-press resistance exercise transiently reduces systolic LV mechanics, but increases diastolic mechanics following exercise, suggesting that resistance exercise has a differential impact on systolic and diastolic heart muscle function. The findings may explain why acute resistance exercise has been associated with reduced stroke volume but chronic exercise training may result in increased LV volumes
Retrofitting the built environment ‘to save’ energy: Arbed, the emergence of a distinctive sustainability transition pathway in Wales
Get PDFCombining insights from research on systems innovation and sustainable transitions with multi-level governance perspectives, this paper examines the ‘Arbed’ domestic housing retrofit programmes in Wales. In so doing, the paper demonstrates the critical role of sub-national government in the emergence of a distinctive sustainability-oriented pathway for domestic end-use energy demand reduction in Wales, and highlights the multi-level governance challenges involved. The governance processes contributing to this purposive transformation (e.g., policies and institutions; a ‘shared’ normative vision; network building; competencies, resource mobilisation, etc.) are illuminated and how they simultaneously cut across multiple spatial scales is discussed. Rather than simply viewing such transition arenas as simple sites of experimentation, the paper argues that sub-national sustainable energy transitions and pathways are shaped by pressures and opportunities that are mediated by unique place and context-specific conditions that exert influence on the mobilisation of resources, governance capabilities and actor-networks