New technology and industrial relations in provincial newspapers : computerisation and bargaining power of journalists

Imperial Users onl

Additive Manufacturing for Medical Education

A growing body of evidence is suggesting that anatomical knowledge, the keystone of many medical specialties, is suffering among new graduates. While a host of reasons are provided, one common thread that many point to is the decline of cadaver dissections in the classroom. Many virtual audio-visual tools are used to address this gap, yet evidence has shown their ineffectiveness. Given this gap, the high degree of flexibility found in additive manufacturing (AM), and the many uses AM has already found in the medical field, we propose its use to fill this gap, allowing for students to learn with touch in addition to sight and sound among a host of other benefits. Our proposed system is a modular workflow that covers the generation of highly detailed heterogenous digital model representations and manufacturing said digital representations. In service of this, a basic framework of this workflow was implemented on Windows operating systems to show the viability of used standards

The Effectiveness of a Primary School Based Badminton Intervention on Children’s Fundamental Movement Skills

This study examined the effects of the Badminton World Federation (BWF) Shuttle Time program on fundamental movement skills (FMS) in English children. A total of 124 children; 66 in key stage 1 (ages 6–7 years) and 58 in key stage 2 (10–11 years) undertook the Shuttle Time program, once weekly for six weeks (n = 63) or acted as controls (n = 61). Pre, post and ten-weeks post, both process and product FMS were determined. Children in the intervention group, aged 6–7 years, had higher total process FMS (via test of gross motor development-2) compared to the control group at post and ten-weeks post intervention (both p = 0.0001, d = 0.6 and 0.7, respectively). There were no significant differences in process FMS scores for children aged 10–11 years. Ten-meter sprint speed decreased pre to post and was maintained at ten-weeks post for the intervention groups aged 6–7 years (p = 0.0001, d = 0.6) and 10–11 years (p = 0.001, d = 0.2) compared to control. Standing long jump distance increased pre to post (p = 0.0001, d = 0.8) and was maintained at ten-weeks post (p = 0.0001, d = 0.5) for the intervention group. Medicine ball throw performance increased pre to post (p = 0.0001, d = 0.3) for the intervention group. The BWF Shuttle Time program is beneficial in developing FMS for key stage 1 children (ages 6–7)

The Effects of Combined Movement and Storytelling Intervention on Motor Skills in South Asian and White Children Aged 5–6 Years Living in the United Kingdom

Early motor development has an important role in promoting physical activity (PA) during childhood and across the lifespan. Children from South Asian backgrounds are less active and have poorer motor skills, thus identifying the need for early motor skill instruction. This study examines the effect of a movement and storytelling intervention on South Asian children’s motor skills. Following ethics approval and consent, 39 children (46% South Asian) participated in a 12-week movement and storytelling intervention. Pre and post, seven motor skills (run, jump, throw, catch, stationary dribble, roll, and kick) were assessed using Children’s Activity and Movement in Preschool Study protocol. At baseline, South Asian children had poorer performance of motor skills. Following the intervention, all children improved their motor skills, with a bigger improvement observed for South Asian children. Early intervention provided remedial benefits to delays in motor skills and narrowed the motor skills gap in ethnic groups

“Football- It’s in Your Blood”—Lived Experiences of Undertaking Recreational Football for Health in Older Adults

Physical inactivity is prevalent in older adults and contributes to age-related decline in function, health, well-being, and quality of life. Recreational football for older adults has shown promise for promoting health benefits. This study explores the lived experiences of older adults engaging in a walking and recreational football intervention and identifies factors that affect behaviours and can encourage change in this population. A purposive sample (n = 14; aged 67 ± 5 years) of the lived experiences of those participating in a recreational football intervention took part in two focus groups. The participants’ responses were grouped into three-time reflecting specific points in their lives: what stopped them from playing football, what got them playing, and what is needed for them to continue playing in the future. Within each of these time points in their lives, themes were identified. The key findings and practical recommendations were that football needs to be adapted and local, that the priority to play football changes over time, and that football itself is a fundamentally intrinsic motivator; ‘it’s in your blood’. The findings can be used to inform future interventions, encourage participation, and advise on the best practices for key stakeholders in the physical activity domain

Perception of Affordances for Dribbling in Soccer:Exploring Children as Architects of Skill Development Opportunity

This study examined affordance perception for soccer dribbling using a mixed-methods approach in male grassroots soccer players. We examined how children construct and perceive skills practices for dribbling in soccer. Fourteen boys aged 10–11 years (Mean ± SD = 10.8 ± 0.4 years) who were regularly engaged in grassroots soccer participated in the present study. Children were provided with ten soccer cones and asked to create their own soccer dribbling pattern that would enable them to maximise the number of touches with a football and then dribble the ball in the pattern they had created for a 1 min period. Children were interviewed to explore their perception of affordances for soccer dribbling. The test of gross motor development-3 was used to assess fundamental movement skills (FMS), and the UGent soccer dribbling test was used to assess soccer dribbling skills. Children self-rated their own ability for soccer dribbling, as did their coaches. Pearson’s correlations were employed to examine the associations between quantitative variables, and thematic analysis was used to explore qualitative data. Results of the present study suggest that those children who created patterns with less space between cones accrued more touches of the football in their dribbling task (r = −0.671, p = 0.03). Children with a higher perception of their own dribbling ability had higher scores for FMS (r = 0.604, p = 0.049). Those children who scored better in actual soccer dribbling had higher scores for FMS (r = −0.746, p = 0.012) and were rated as better dribblers by their coaches (r = −0.67, p = 0.03). Interview data suggest a feedback loop between perception of ability and actual ability, which influenced the dribbling patterns that were created. This suggests that dribbling performance is scaled to the (perceived) action capabilities of the children, and children can act as architects in their own skill developmen

Barriers and Facilitators to Physical Activity and FMS in Children Living in Deprived Areas in the UK: Qualitative Study.

Using the socio-ecological model, this qualitative study aimed to explore teachers’ perspectives on the barriers and facilitators to Fundamental Movement Skills (FMS) and physical activity engagement in children living in deprived areas in the UK. A purposive sample of 14 primary school teachers participated in semi-structured focus groups drawn from schools situated in lower SES wards and ethnically diverse areas in Central England. Thematic analysis of transcripts identified multiple and interrelated factors across all levels of the socio-ecological model for barriers to FMS and PA (i.e., intrapersonal, interpersonal, organisational, community and policy). Facilitators at three levels of influence were found (i.e., intrapersonal, interpersonal and organisational). We conclude, barriers and enablers to the PA and FMS in children from ethnically diverse backgrounds living in deprived areas are multifactorial and interrelated. At a school level, initiatives to increase PA and develop the FMS needed to be active are likely to be ineffective unless the barriers are addressed at all levels and considered more holistically with their complexity. Multi-disciplinary solutions are needed across sectors given the range of complex and interrelated factors