Innovative ways to teach biomechanics using video analysis software

Steve Goodlass and Ferg D’Ardis, Siliconcoach Ltd

This was a hands on practical activity where we actually got to use the software.

We were shown:

• How to break down movement using the features in siliconcoach Pro
• The Movement Resource Pack. This resource is the result of collaboration between PENZ and siliconcoach. The pack includes ‘Learning Biomechanics through Movement’, ‘Learning Functional Anatomy through Movement’ and ‘Performance Appraisal written’.

Kapa Haka in Mainstream Secondary Schools: Teaming up to be Healthy, Alive and Excellent

Dr Paul Whitinui - The University of Waikato


Presented an empirical snapshot exploring the educational benefits associated with Maori students participating in kapa haka in four mainstream Central North Island secondary schools.

The findings present a strong rationale for providing learning environments that are socially, culturally, emotionally and spiritually linked to their identity as Maori and will increase the likelihood of them participating more consistently in their learning.

Understanding the Sports Media: Why it is Important to Teach Critical Media Skills

Dr Toni Bruce - University of Waikato

This presentation explored some of the main reasons why it is so important for physical educators to critically assess the sports media and to begin the process of developing young people as critical media consumers.
Using examples from research she discussed a series of contexts – including the areas of gender, race and ethnicity, national identity and disability – that teachers can use to facilitate discussion.

Ways that teachers may find useful to facilitate discuss with students and to teach critical (sport) media literacy skills.

Bullying and hazing in schools: How sport and physical education can be part of the problem and part of the

Roger Rees - Adelphi University

This presentation looked at examples from American schools to show how public rituals attached to sport can reinforce a narrow perception of masculinity that can and sometimes does enable hazing and bullying behaviour by athletes. This behaviour was linked to the broader problem of bullying in schools. In American schools, athletes (particularly male athletes) typically stand at the top of the “pecking order” of social status, and model masculinity for lower status boys. If athletes haze and bully they are legitimizing this behaviour for the rest of the student body. Alternatively, if they reject bullying and hazing and accept ethnic, physical and sexual diversity they can set a more positive tone for the rest of the school.

He suggested that athletes can be encouraged to model positive behaviour that can challenge traditional stereotypes of masculinity, not to bully and haze by using models such as
Hellison's Teaching Responsibility through Physical Education, and
Student Athlete Leadership Team (SALT) Program.

In summary, he suggested that sport and physical education can be part of the problem of anti-social behaviour in schools and part of the solution, depending on how we use them. Finally, any antibullying and hazing programs we develop need to be part of school-wide (and community-wide) initiatives.

Factors influencing Physical Activity amongst People with type II Diabetes

Hennie PienaarCo presenters – Phill Surgenor & Duncan McKenzie Southern Institute of Technology

Key points:

• studyed people with Type II Diabetes;
• investigated physical activity levels and the factors that influence;
• formulate strategies to improve physical activity participation amongst this population.

The presenter described a study which investigated physical activity levels and the factors that influence this amongst people with Type II Diabetes, in order to formulate strategies to improve physical activity participation amongst this population.

Regular physical activity can decrease the chance of diabetic complications. Research shows that there is a low exercise participation rate amongst people with Type II Diabetes.

The study involved an online survey with 12 questions (link provided by Diabetes New Zealand website). 72 people with Type II Diabetes responded. Their responses were analysed by SPSS software.

The study developed seven recommendations:

1. Make exercise more enjoyable: music, with friends, set goals, clothes that make a person feel good, exercise that challenges and at the correct level, variety, establish regular time slots, continue push play programme.
2. Increase the awareness of the health benefits of exercise
3. Increase the importance on regular physical activity over other daily demands.
4. Indentify which challenges might limit participation in physical activity and formulate strategies to overcome these potential challenges.
5. Address the concerns of those who cannot exercise.
6. Ensure a high level of awareness within communities about facilities for exercise and physical activity.
7. Further research should be conducted to formulate strategies as to how these suggestions may be implemented.

We know what we want and need ‘cause we live it everyday”: Involving students in designing their learning

Saunders, Rachel University of Waikato

“We know what we want and need ‘because we live it every day”: Involving students in designing their learning experiences in Health and Physical Education.

Rachel spoke about her experience of being involved in leadership programmes with students. She described how the first leadership programme which she designed and taught was not particularly successful. The experience of this lead her to be involved in developing a programme in which she handed over the designing of the programme to the students. She discussed the importance of using student voice, creating adult-student partnerships and building learning communities.

The presentation was advertised to propose an alternative model for designing Health and PE curriculum. A model to illustrate how teachers and students can work together to share knowledge in order to design learning experiences that are relevant to young people today. However for me the presentation did not move past a discussion of how it is important for students to be involved in designing their own learning programmes and did not move into the how this can be done. This may have been due to the 30 minute time slot available for this presentation. It was interesting to hear about Rachel’s experiences and I would like to find out more about the model she has developed.

Is there a joker in that mind? Cross curricular learning using a deck of cards

Lintott, Miranda Victoria University

This was an enjoyable practical session exploring cross curricular learning using a deck of cards
In the workshop we took part in activities which used a deck of cards as the only equipment. Activities ranged from blackjack to 52 card pick up and include ideas for icebreakers, problem-solving, communication, and debriefing.

Building castles in the sand”: Community, context and physical culture

Burrows, Lisette School of Physical Education, University of Otago

Myth busting. This presentation challenged common assumptions about children being ‘at risk’ in relation to physical inactivity, poor nutrition and unsafe environments.

She argued that the diversity of children’s social and cultural demographics is seldom considered. Children’s own perceptions of physical activity, their own engagement with physical culture in home, school and community senses, is rarely drawn on to inform the programmes and policies devised ‘for’ them.

She presented a paper which reported on in-depth qualitative interviews with four Year 6 young children from a rural school in New Zealand about what was important to them in terms of health and physical activity. The children associated sport with physical activity and did not consider; horse riding, motor cross, and tree climbing etc when asked about physical activity.

Findings suggest that, for the children in this rural context, many commonly held presumptions about children’s inactivity and the nature of their ‘modern’ lifestyles do not apply.

• Children in this study were engaged in a range of physical activities, both functional and recreational.
• They clearly linked their physical activity choices to social, geographical, economic and familial enablers.
• Infrequently revealed any sense of themselves, or others, as ‘at risk’ in relation to health and/or physical activity practices.
• Their descriptions of their lives and the place of physical activity within those gel closely with the ‘ideal’ envisaged by many who seek to change the lifestyles and habits of the ‘young’.

Body, mind and heart

Angus MacFarlane. Prof Maori Research at Canterbury University.

The presentation reported on research on exceptional teachers and offered a range of demonstrations of their practice.

Some practices of effective teachers:

• Importance of culturally responsive practice; knowledge of students’ culture is important for building a supportive social climate and a vibrant learning context.
• The provision of opportunities to exert personal choice.
• Offering of relevant and meaningful learning activities.
• Learning is enhanced and nurtured by the presence of supportive relationships.
• Effective practitioners show connectedness with the students and extend relationships beyond the classroom.
• It is proposed that the success of these teachers may be attributed largely to their being simultaneously assertive and warm.

Angus has done extensive behaviour amanagement work. His books might be worth a look. He uses narrtive, students own stories in his research and writing. He suggested that all young people benefit from:

1. clear expectations
2. teaching young people how to meet expectations.
   

Technology in schools - supporting the ‘difficult students’ (‘special’ or not)

Presentor Lynne Silcock

This was an excellent session.
The presentation provided many practical ways in which we can use mutli media technology tools to provide for the learning needs of our students.Some of the useful tips and practical ideas that I have taken away from the session are:
1. Provide clear and simple resources.
2. Put learning material in an electronic form. The student can then:

• a. Enlarge it;
• b. Can have it read aloud using text to speech technology;
• c. Listen to it repeatedly or as often as is required;
• d. Using virtual environments can make more experiences available she used the example of frog dissection.

3. She demonstrated how Microsoft word can be set up to convert text to speech using the languages tool bar. To show other teachers and students how to set up there computer to be able to convert text to speech I have created this short video.