Background： A positive association between fundamental movement skills （FMS） and physical activity （PA） has been shown in previous research of children with and without disability. This pilot study explored a cau...Background： A positive association between fundamental movement skills （FMS） and physical activity （PA） has been shown in previous research of children with and without disability. This pilot study explored a causal mechanism for such relationship, and hypothesized that when FMS proficiency is improved, enhanced PA uptake will be found in children with and without disability. It was further hypothesized that improving FMS proficiency will have a greater impact on children with disability than those without disability. Methods： Participants include typically developing （TD） children without disability and children with cerebral palsy （CP）, who were allocated to FMS training groups （CP-FMS n = 12, TD-FMS n = 13） and control groups （CP-C n = 12, TD-C n = 13）. Training groups practiced five FMS （run, jump, kick, throw, catch） in weekly 45-min sessions for 4 weeks. Control groups had their regular physiotherapy （CP） or physical education （TD） sessions. FMS were evaluated using process- and product-oriented measures, and PA was measured using accelerometers, before and after training. Results： It was verified that training groups gained improvements in FMS while control groups did not. No significant changes in weekday PA were found. Increased weekend moderate to vigorous physical activity （MVPA） was found in the CP-FMS group, while decreased weekend sedentary time was found in the CP-FMS and TD-FMS groups. The percentages of participants who exceeded the minimum detectable change （MDC9o） in MVPA and sedentary time were larger in children with CP than in children without disability. Conclusion： The findings suggest that improved FMS proficiency could potentially contribute to heightened PA and decreased sedentary time during weekends for children. Such effect of improved FMS proficiency on PA appears to be greater in those with physical disability than in those without disability. It is recommended that the findings of this pilot study should be further examined in future research.展开更多
With more emphasis on the communicative and pragmatic function of Business English learning, the author discusses a case study of a Business English course based on projects conducted by the students in their communit...With more emphasis on the communicative and pragmatic function of Business English learning, the author discusses a case study of a Business English course based on projects conducted by the students in their community This curriculum aims at students experiencing and implementing their knowledge of Business and English in the real business environments, engaging community in the process, and avoiding isolation and separation of business English teaching and learning from communities. The research lays more importance on the students＇ experiencing and participating process by providing them with a series of guidelines as reference and assessment, but meanwhile the students have their freedom of choices and decision-making in many aspects. Integrative skills are practiced including linguistic skills, business-related skills, communicative skills, and technology-related skills. Specifically, the students are required to conduct a mini market research in their community. The topic of the research is negotiated, classified, and grouped in the entire class until each individual student belongs to a group. The project procedure and requirements are given to the students on weekly basis, including field of research, questionnaire, data collection and analysis, report, and the final group presentation. Based on their experience from the research, the students write down their reflections. Based on the observation of the instructor and students＇ feedback, the research found that students＇ expectations and teacher＇s roles varied in a number of aspects. A variety of knowledge and skills have been practiced. Problems have also been found in each step of the project.展开更多
基金supported by the Sciences of Learning Strategic Research Theme of the University of Hong Kong
文摘Background： A positive association between fundamental movement skills （FMS） and physical activity （PA） has been shown in previous research of children with and without disability. This pilot study explored a causal mechanism for such relationship, and hypothesized that when FMS proficiency is improved, enhanced PA uptake will be found in children with and without disability. It was further hypothesized that improving FMS proficiency will have a greater impact on children with disability than those without disability. Methods： Participants include typically developing （TD） children without disability and children with cerebral palsy （CP）, who were allocated to FMS training groups （CP-FMS n = 12, TD-FMS n = 13） and control groups （CP-C n = 12, TD-C n = 13）. Training groups practiced five FMS （run, jump, kick, throw, catch） in weekly 45-min sessions for 4 weeks. Control groups had their regular physiotherapy （CP） or physical education （TD） sessions. FMS were evaluated using process- and product-oriented measures, and PA was measured using accelerometers, before and after training. Results： It was verified that training groups gained improvements in FMS while control groups did not. No significant changes in weekday PA were found. Increased weekend moderate to vigorous physical activity （MVPA） was found in the CP-FMS group, while decreased weekend sedentary time was found in the CP-FMS and TD-FMS groups. The percentages of participants who exceeded the minimum detectable change （MDC9o） in MVPA and sedentary time were larger in children with CP than in children without disability. Conclusion： The findings suggest that improved FMS proficiency could potentially contribute to heightened PA and decreased sedentary time during weekends for children. Such effect of improved FMS proficiency on PA appears to be greater in those with physical disability than in those without disability. It is recommended that the findings of this pilot study should be further examined in future research.
文摘With more emphasis on the communicative and pragmatic function of Business English learning, the author discusses a case study of a Business English course based on projects conducted by the students in their community This curriculum aims at students experiencing and implementing their knowledge of Business and English in the real business environments, engaging community in the process, and avoiding isolation and separation of business English teaching and learning from communities. The research lays more importance on the students＇ experiencing and participating process by providing them with a series of guidelines as reference and assessment, but meanwhile the students have their freedom of choices and decision-making in many aspects. Integrative skills are practiced including linguistic skills, business-related skills, communicative skills, and technology-related skills. Specifically, the students are required to conduct a mini market research in their community. The topic of the research is negotiated, classified, and grouped in the entire class until each individual student belongs to a group. The project procedure and requirements are given to the students on weekly basis, including field of research, questionnaire, data collection and analysis, report, and the final group presentation. Based on their experience from the research, the students write down their reflections. Based on the observation of the instructor and students＇ feedback, the research found that students＇ expectations and teacher＇s roles varied in a number of aspects. A variety of knowledge and skills have been practiced. Problems have also been found in each step of the project.
