Perceptions of Assessment in Elementary Physical Education: A Case Study

The purpose of the study was twofold: (a) to examine a teacher\u27s perceptions of attempting to implement assessments aligned with the NASPE standards and (b) to examine students\u27 perceptions of assessment in physical education. Participants were 46 4th grade students and their physical education teacher. Data were collected through a Likert-scale attitude questionnaire, documents and interviews with 27 of the 46 students and their teacher. Questionnaire data were analyzed with descriptive statistics. Interview data were analyzed qualitatively. Results indicated that both teacher and students perceived that the teaching-learning process was enhanced through the process of using assessment aligned with the NASPE standards. Secondly, marginalization of physical education impacted both students\u27 and teacher\u27s perceptions of assessment

Tango-therapy vs physical exercise in older people with dementia; a randomized controlled trial

[EN] Background: Dementia is a growing health concern that affects millions of people worldwide. Gait and mobility disorders are often present and represent a major risk factor for falls. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of tango-therapy in gait speed, functional mobility, balance, falls, ability to perform activities of daily living and quality of life. Methods: A randomised controlled trial with 31 participants living in a specialised dementia unit, aged 65 to 93 years old, who were randomly assigned to tango group (IG) or physical exercise group (CG). The primary outcome was gait speed and Timed Up and Go test. The secondary outcomes include the Short Physical Performance Battery, the ability to perform activities of daily living (Katz Index) and quality of life (Quality of life in Alzheimer Disease). Measurements were performed at baseline, and after one and three months of training. Results: After 3 months, IG improved gait speed (p = 0.016), implying a statistically significant difference between groups in favour of IG (p = 0.003). CG significantly worsened the time to complete the TUG (p = 0.039). Both groups declined in their ability to perform activities of daily living, being statistically significant only in the CG (p < 0.001). Conclusion: Tango interventions showed efficacy in improving gait speed and in mitigating the decline in functional mobility and ADL skill capacities. Allowing older people with dementia access to non-pharmacological interventions may be a successful strategy to prevent functional decline.SISociété de Gérontologie de l’Est, ISATIS Association and the Conférence des Financeurs de Paris

A componente de apoio à família no jardim-de-infância de Alcabideche

Relatório de estágio realizado no âmbito do Ciclo de Estudos conducente ao Grau de Mestre em Ciências da Educação (Administração Educacional), apresentada à Universidade de Lisboa através da Faculdade de Psicologia e de Ciências da Educação, 2008O presente Relatório de Estágio de Natureza Profissional é focalizado na Componente de Apoio à Família no Ensino Pré-escolar, tem como principal característica o facto de ter proporcionado a oportunidade de estar presente na gestão da mesma (CAF), complementando a minha formação com uma vertente prática. O projecto de estágio teve ainda uma componente investigativa, pois pretendia também que fossem aprofundados procedimentos científicos (identificação de problemas, contextualização dos mesmos, procura de teorias e estudos que pudessem contribuir para o alargamento do nosso quadro teórico e para a resolução dos problemas identificados). Surge o Jardim-de-Infância de Alcabideche, do Agrupamento de Escolas de Alcabideche, onde foram aplicados questionários a Crianças, Pais e Monitoras com o intuito de conhecer e caracterizar a CAF e seu funcionamento, verificar qual a receptividade destas actividades, por parte das crianças e respectivas e quais os seus benefícios reais, detectar problemas e obstáculos à realização das actividades e tentar encontrar soluções para resolver e ultrapassar os mesmos. Claramente, com uma amostra tão pouco significativa não se podem tirar conclusões gerais, no entanto pela experiência que adquiri ao longo deste ano lectivo e principalmente com as observações que fiz no decorrer deste projecto de investigação, afirmo com convicção que uma das peças centrais para a concretização eficiente e eficaz desta nova medida de apoio às famílias são as monitoras responsáveis pela sua organização e animação. De facto, este tempo e espaço de animação sócio-educativa funciona bem em termos da vontade e das intenções de quem está no campo a pôr em prática as actividades, no entanto passa a ideia de que os recursos são escassos e nem sempre as crianças da CAF do Jardim-de-Infância de Alcabideche são vistas como uma prioridade.The present document is a report of a trainee project; it is focused on the support to the family pre-school component . One of its main characteristic is the fact that it gave me the opportunity to complement my education with a practical component, as I was able to participate and observe how the management of this support to the family pre-school component works. This trainee project also had an investigative purpose, as it was intended that the trainees acquired scientific procedures (problem identification, research of theories and studies that could bring more information about this thematic, and could help find solutions for the identified problems). This project was developed at Alcabideche's Pre-School (Kindergarden), where questionnaires where applied to the children, parent's and the support to the family pre-school component teachers. The main objectives were to fin out what this new component is, and what are the positive or negative effects it can have on these children, identify possible problems and try to find solutions. It is clear that with a small sample like this one, we can't take general conclusions, but with the experience I acquired with this project I can firmly say that the main pieces for this new component to work properly are the teachers responsible for it's organization and animation. It's a fact that at this pre-school this component works relatively well thanks to these young women that have good intentions and try very hard to do the best they can. Even though the idea that remains is that there are not enough supports, and that these activities are not seen as a priority

Catawba River Valley grist mill survey

The Catawba River Valley Gristmill Survey project was designed to achieve several objectives. The first was to develop an historical context that could be useful in understanding the gristmill industry in the Carolina Piedmont region. The second objective was to survey eight gristmill sites. The final objective of the project was to integrate the results of background research and field reconnaissance in a professional archaeological report

Changes in Physical Activity after Sacrocolpopexy for Advanced Pelvic Organ Prolapse

To describe changes in physical activity one year after sacrocolpopexy for pelvic organ prolapse

HEART UK Consensus Statement on Lipoprotein(a) - a call to action

Lipoprotein(a), Lp(a), is a modified atherogenic low-density lipoprotein particle that contains apolipoprotein(a). Its levels are highly heritable and variable in the population. This consensus statement by HEART UK is based on the evidence that Lp(a) is an independent cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factor, provides recommendations for its measurement in clinical practice and reviews current and emerging therapeutic strategies to reduce CVD risk. Ten statements summarise the most salient points for practitioners and patients with high Lp(a). HEART UK recommends that Lp(a) is measured in adults as follows: 1)those with a personal or family history of premature atherosclerotic CVD; 2)those with first-degree relatives who have Lp(a)levels > 200nmol/l; 3) patients with familial hypercholesterolemia; 4) patients with calcific aortic valve stenosis and 5) those with borderline (but<15%) 10 year risk of a cardiovascular event. The management of patients with raised Lp(a) levels should include: 1) reducing overall atherosclerotic risk; 2)controlling dyslipidemia with a desirable nonHDL-cholesterol level of <100mg/d (2.5mmol/l) and 3) consideration of lipoprotein apheresis

Long working hours and change in body weight : analysis of individual-participant data from 19 cohort studies

Objective To examine the relation between long working hours and change in body mass index (BMI). Methods We performed random effects meta-analyses using individual-participant data from 19 cohort studies from Europe, US and Australia (n = 122,078), with a mean of 4.4-year follow-up. Working hours were measured at baseline and categorised as part time (= 55 h/week (long working hours). There were four outcomes at follow-up: (1) overweight/obesity (BMI >= 25 kg/m(2)) or (2) overweight (BMI 25-29.9 kg/m(2)) among participants without overweight/obesity at baseline; (3) obesity (BMI >= 30 kg/m(2)) among participants with overweight at baseline, and (4) weight loss among participants with obesity at baseline. Results Of the 61,143 participants without overweight/obesity at baseline, 20.2% had overweight/obesity at follow-up. Compared with standard weekly working hours, the age-, sex- and socioeconomic status-adjusted relative risk (RR) of overweight/obesity was 0.95 (95% CI 0.90-1.00) for part-time work, 1.07 (1.02-1.12) for 41-48 weekly working hours, 1.09 (1.03-1.16) for 49-54 h and 1.17 (1.08-1.27) for long working hours (Pfor trendPeer reviewe