The assessment of perceptual-cognitive and decision-making abilities for the prediction of talent in Australian rules football

Talent identification (TID) is a vital component within the recruitment process for all sporting bodies and organisations. Given the considerable influence it may have on the success of a team, substantial resources are invested in identifying young athletes with the most potential for the development of expertise. Successful performance in team sports requires an athlete to have a unique combination of physical, technical and tactical skills. Such a combination allows athletes to compensate for different areas of weaknesses in the dynamic nature of game play. However, traditional TID does not allow athletes to showcase this multi-factorial element, but instead utilises mono-dimensional approaches, such as testing only physical fitness. Thus, forecasting longitudinal performance based upon one element of effective play (e.g. physical), fails to provide sufficient information for selectors to make informed decisions and leads to biased identification. In addition, TID uses a subjective assessment for the tactical decision-making performance, whereby recruiters watch game footage to determine a player’s decision-making ability based on their own perspectives and experiences. This type of assessment is problematic as it leaves assessments open to conscious or below conscious biases, due to conflicting opinions of what constitutes good play. The purpose of the current Doctoral study was to address the current limitations in talent identification practices and explore accessible additions to the current battery of tests, with an emphasis on decision-making. This thesis examines the tactical decision-making skill requirements within Australian Rules (AR) football to identify underlying mechanisms of elite decision-making. To achieve this, we measured eye-movement behaviour and related verbal explanations for decisions. The research presented in this thesis is divided into three studies. The first study (Chapter 2) explores perceptual-cognitive and decision-making skills in elite senior AR football players. This is followed by a longitudinal study (Chapter 3) which examines perceptual-cognitive and decision-making skill for elite junior AR football players across an eighteen-month time period. These studies form the foundation for the proposed testing items in study three which is a proof of concept, outlining a protocol design that quantifies perceptual-cognitive and decision-making skill in a manner not used in current AR football TID testing programs. The research findings contribute an important body of research to the study of TID by providing a conceptually translatable means through which the development of an objective protocol design approach can be undertaken in the future, thus ensuring that objective measurements of all determinants of game play are assessed and in turn creating a more comprehensive TID procedure

Novel Methods of Measuring and Visualising Youths’ Physical Activity

Despite the physiological and psychosocial health benefits of youth achieving at least 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) every day, only a small proportion of youth in the UK meet this daily target. While there are several reasons for this failure to achieve the recommended amount of MVPA, recent evidence suggests that many youths lack awareness of their physical activity levels (PAL) and have difficulty interpreting and applying the guidelines to their daily activity. One solution to counteract this problem is to utilise and integrate technology, such as an objective measurement of PAL in combination with personalised feedback, to enhance youth’s awareness and understanding of, and motivation for, physical activity. Whilst accelerometers are the de facto standard in objectively measuring PAL, they have limitations when it comes to assessing non-linear movements, such as turning, that are habitual to youths’ sporadic activity. Study 1, therefore, investigated the energy expenditure of turning in children, finding that the magnitude and frequency of turns completed are important considerations when measuring habitual PAL. Specifically, significant differences in energy expenditure to straight-line walking within speed were established for 2.5 km·hr-1 at 90° turn (~7% increase) and 3.5, 4.5 and 5.5 km·hr-1 for 180° turns (~13%, ~14% and ~30% increase, respectively). Nonetheless, one innovative method that has potential to make physical activity targets more comprehensible and actionable for youths is personalised, 3D-printed feedback that can conceptualise their PAL. Therefore, Study 2 explored youths’ perceptions of, and designs for, 3D-printed visualisations of PAL. The findings revealed that youths understood the concept of visualising physical activity as a 3D object and felt that such feedback could act as a motivational tool to enhance youths PAL. Following youths’ preferences for weekly models represented as abstract and bar-chart designs, two age-specific 3D models were developed to represent MVPA, across a week, with the recommended guideline depicted as a tangible goal. Study 3 sought to validate youths understanding of the age-specific 3D models and intensities of physical activity. Youth were able to correctly interpret the different components of the age-specific 3D models, although showed some misconceptions when defining moderate-intensity activities. Despite this, the age-specific 3D models showed promise to enhance youths understanding of the recommended guideline and associated MVPA intensities. Study 4 subsequently examined the efficacy of the age-specific 3D models within an intervention setting, whereby youth received personal models of their PAL. Over time, the 3D models enhanced youths’ awareness of their PAL and provided a tool to compare their MVPA levels to the recommended guideline. Youths displayed their 3D models in their home environments and utilised the models as a goal-setting strategy to increase their PAL. In conclusion, the nature of the 3D models being a blend of personalised feedback, a reward and a goal-setting tool, may offer a unique strategy for the promotion of PAL and associations to the recommended guideline

Undergraduate Bulletin, 2017-2018

https://red.mnstate.edu/bulletins/1101/thumbnail.jp

Undergraduate Bulletin, 2018-2019

https://red.mnstate.edu/bulletins/1102/thumbnail.jp

Graduate Bulletin: 2019-2020

https://red.mnstate.edu/graduate_bulletins/1033/thumbnail.jp

Undergraduate Bulletin, 2019-2020

https://red.mnstate.edu/bulletins/1103/thumbnail.jp

Investigating the Place of Children’s Home Literacy in the Ontario Kindergarten Curriculum: A Document Analysis

The Ontario Kindergarten programmatic curriculum was examined to determine and articulate how it represents children’s and families’ funds of knowledge and how it relates to home literacy and literacy learning at school. The Kindergarten Program (2016) was the primary source within the document analysis methodology. Funds of knowledge underpins this study as the theoretical framework. This study was driven by three questions: In what ways does programmatic curriculum, The Kindergarten Program (2016), connect (or not) literacy learning with children’s home language and literacy experiences from home? How are families depicted within (if at all) the programmatic curriculum in relation to their children’s literacy? What are some recommendations for programmatic curricula based on the analysis? The findings indicated that The Kindergarten Program had little emphasis on family involvement, home language, and deep understandings of children’s home, culture, and community perspectives. However, the programmatic curriculum document highlighted children’s sense of belonging, and the freedom to express their opinion and ideas. The study recommends that the programmatic curriculum needs to look closely at children’s funds of knowledge and funds of identity to allow educators to include the child as a whole and value the experiences they bring to school from home. Funds of knowledge also give teachers the chance to communicate and create relationships with families that are built on a mutual trust. These relationships between teachers, children, and families contribute to the construction of a concrete bridge between school and home allowing children to value who they are and create a solid basis for being lifelong learners