Search

Psychomotricity is a broad term that encompasses different approaches to bodily action to support children and adolescents to reach their highest motor and cognitive potential. The aim of the study was to highlight gender differences in the manifestation of psychomotor behaviors in 8-9-year-old children who practice sports swimming. The subjects (N=52, 26 males, 26 females) are children aged 8.0-9.11 years (M = 8.80; SD = ±0.65) who practice swimming in one of the swimming pools of a city in Romania. They were tested, using specific instruments, to assess the level of manual dexterity, body schema, hand laterality, body balance, body balance on water/buoyancy, general coordination. For four of the variables (manual dexterity, body schema, hand laterality and spatial orientation) no statistically significant differences were found, while for the other three (body balance, body balance on water and general coordination) statistically significant differences were recorded. The results indicate differences between the two genders, girls in this age group who practice swimming having more developed psychomotor skills compared to boys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article re-examines the initial training of physical education teachers with the purpose of pinning down its professional significance. The author maintains that we have lost, in part, its meaning, and, in an attempt to recover it, offers two initial strategies: to revisit two basic concepts: education in general and physical education in particular. Purposes: To seek answers to the following questions:What does being a real ‘physical educator’ actually mean? Although it is not easy to answer his question due to the breadth it would encompass and the multitude of issues it would cover. What training should a physical educator have and how should it be delivered? Another question we must consider along with those mentioned previously is what training is relevant to teachers of physical education? Any teacher who delivers physical education (or any other subject) must receive both personal and professional training (covering the curriculum and methodology).

Introduction: This paper examines the convergence of the opinions of European higher education institution (HEI) experts on possible implementation of dual career policies and provision areas at university level. Methods: An online 32-item questionnaire encompassing 26 dual career aspects collected the opinion of European HEI experts as the last phase of a Delphi method preceded by i) focus groups with student-athletes who aimed to identify needs for dual careers and ii) a workshop with 21 dual career experts to generate the statements to be included in the survey. Seventy-one HEI experts from 12 EU member states participated in the survey, rating each dual career aspect identified in previous phases. Results: The relative position of each aspect has been plotted based on relevance (x-axis) and feasibility (y-axis). The Quadrant IV of the resulting scatterplots identified the following nine aspects rated as highly relevant and highly feasible for implementation: tutorship/mentorship, psychological support, programmes based on integration of academic departments and sports services, and adaptable programmes to the needs of each student-athletes (assistance/tutorship area), individual study plans and distance learning (curricula requirements area), publicity for student-athletes and initiatives for increasing the awareness of student-athletes and knowledge of dual career issues (social support area), and access to educational facilities (logistic support area). Discussion and conclusions: The HEI experts' views represent a coherent and useful starting point to develop a deep understanding of the considered 26 aspects founded on a phenomenological lifeworld-led approach and emphasizes the need for a minimum standard for dual career policies and provisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]