Influence of chronotype and social zeitgebers on sleep/wake patterns

Inter-individual differences in the phase of the endogenous circadian rhythms have been established. Individuals with early circadian phase are called morning types; those with late circadian phase are evening types. The Horne and Östberg Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire (MEQ) is the most frequently used to assess individual chronotype. The distribution of MEQ scores is likely to be biased by several fact, ors, such as gender, age, genetic background, latitude, and social habits. The objective of the present study was to determine the effect of different social synchronizers on the sleep/wake cycle of persons with different chronotypes. Volunteers were selected from a total of 1232 UFPR undergraduate students who completed the MEQ. Thirty-two subjects completed the study, including 8 morning types, 8 evening types and 16 intermediate types. Sleep schedules were recorded by actigraphy for 1 week on two occasions: during the school term and during vacation. Sleep onset and offset times, sleep duration, and mid-sleep time for each chronotype group were compared by the Mann-Whitney U-test separately for school term and vacation. School term and vacation data were compared by the Wilcoxon matched-pair test. Morning types showed earlier sleep times and longer sleep duration compared with evening types (23:00 ± 44 and 508.9 ± 50.27 vs 01:08 ± 61.95 and 456.44 ± 59.08, for the weekdays during vacation). During vacation, the subjects showed later sleep times, except for the morning types, who did not exhibit differences for sleep onset times. The results support the idea that social schedules have an impact on the expression of circadian rhythmicity but this impact depends on the individual chronotype.

Predictors of academic achievement and social competence in adolescence : facilitation, inhibition and general cognitive processing /

The relevance of attentional measures to cognitive and social adaptive behaviour was examined in an adolescent sample. Unlike previous research, the influence of both inhibitory and facilitory aspects of attention were studied. In addition, contributions made by these attentional processes were compared with traditional psychometric measures of cognitive functioning. Data were gathered from 36 grade 10 and 1 1 high school students (20 male and 16 female students) with a variety of learning and attentional difficulties. Data collection was conducted in the course of two testing sessions. In the first session, students completed questionnaires regarding their medical history, and everyday behaviours (the Brock Adaptive Functioning Questionnaire), along with non-verbal problem solving tasks and motor speed tasks. In the second session, students performed working memory measures and computer-administered tasks assessing inhibitory and facilitory aspects of attention. Grades and teacher-rated measures of cognitive and social impulsivity were also gathered. Results indicate that attentional control has both cognitive and social/emotional implications. Performance on negative priming and facilitation trials from the Flanker task predicted grades in core courses, social functioning measures, and cognitive and social impulsivity ratings. However, beneficial effects for academic and social functioning associated with inhibition were less prevalent in those demonstrating a greater ability to respond to facilitory cues. There was also some evidence that high levels of facilitation were less beneficial to academic performance, and female students were more likely to exceed optimal levels of facilitory processing. Furthermore, lower negative priming was ''S'K 'i\':y-: -'*' - r " j«v ; ''*.' iij^y Inhibition, Facilitation and Social Competence 3 associated with classroom-rated distraction and hyperactivity, but the relationship between inhibition and social aspects of impulsivity was stronger for adolescents with learning or reading problems, and the relationship between inhibition and cognitive impulsivity was stronger for male students. In most cases, attentional measures were predictive of performance outcomes independent of traditional psychometric measures of cognitive functioning. >,, These findings provide support for neuropsychological models linking inhibition to control of interference and arousal, and emphasize the fundamental role of attention in everyday adolescent activities. The findings also warrant further investigation into the ways which inhibitory and facilitory attentional processes interact, and the contextdependent nature of attentional control.associated with classroom-rated distraction and hyperactivity, but the relationship between inhibition and social aspects of impulsivity was stronger for adolescents with learning or reading problems, and the relationship between inhibition and cognitive impulsivity was stronger for male students. In most cases, attentional measures were predictive of performance outcomes independent of traditional psychometric measures of cognitive functioning. >,, These findings provide support for neuropsychological models linking inhibition to control of interference and arousal, and emphasize the fundamental role of attention in everyday adolescent activities. The findings also warrant further investigation into the ways which inhibitory and facilitory attentional processes interact, and the contextdependent nature of attentional control.

An empirical study of in-school and out-of-school day care

The purpose of this study was to determine if there were differences between in-school and out-of-school day care centres. Five centres housed in public schools and five housed in other locations were selected for the research. Aquality assessment was administered in each centre which examined the following components - physical environment, adult social structure and socia-emotional environment, children's socia-emotional environment, cognitive stimulation program and toys and equipment. Quantitative analysis using simple t-tests showed a significant difference between in-school and out-of-school day cares for the physical environment variable. Differences approached significance for the children's socia-emotional environment variable as well as overall quality. Qualitative analysis using a triangulated methodology revealed noticeable differences for every variable. The researcher concluded that both the quality of the physical environment and the capabilities of the administrators strongly influence the quality of the day care environment. This study also included an assessment of children's attitude toward learning. No significant difference was found between in-school and out-of-school centres.

Developing Life Skills through Physical Activity: A Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility Model Approach

Ethnographic methods were used to study a weekly after-school physical activity program over an eight-month period. Based on Hellison’s Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility (TPSR) model, the program sought to foster positive life skills amongst youth. The study investigated how the developed program influenced this life skills education experience. Several themes were identified from the data revolving around culture, life skills, pedagogy, and lessons learned. Data suggests that the positive environment developed within the program positively influenced youths’ life skill education experience. The topic of ethnicity as it relates to the experience of marginalized youth in physical activity settings is also discussed. This study supports TPSR literature and suggests that effort to establish caring relationships and empower youth contribute to the establishment of a positive atmosphere where life skills education can occur. Beyond this, practical tools were developed through this study to help others deliver life skill education.

Individual and social determinants of multiple chronic disease behavioural risk factors in Canadian children and adolescents

Contexte: Les facteurs de risque comportementaux, notamment l’inactivité physique, le comportement sédentaire, le tabagisme, la consommation d’alcool et le surpoids sont les principales causes modifiables de maladies chroniques telles que le cancer, les maladies cardiovasculaires et le diabète. Ces facteurs de risque se manifestent également de façon concomitante chez l’individu et entraînent des risques accrus de morbidité et de mortalité. Bien que les facteurs de risque comportementaux aient été largement étudiés, la distribution, les patrons d’agrégation et les déterminants de multiples facteurs de risque comportementaux sont peu connus, surtout chez les enfants et les adolescents. Objectifs: Cette thèse vise 1) à décrire la prévalence et les patrons d’agrégation de multiples facteurs de risque comportementaux des maladies chroniques chez les enfants et adolescents canadiens; 2) à explorer les corrélats individuels, sociaux et scolaires de multiples facteurs de risque comportementaux chez les enfants et adolescents canadiens; et 3) à évaluer, selon le modèle conceptuel de l’étude, l’influence longitudinale d’un ensemble de variables distales (c’est-à-dire des variables situées à une distance intermédiaire des comportements à risque) de type individuel (estime de soi, sentiment de réussite), social (relations sociales, comportements des parents/pairs) et scolaire (engagement collectif à la réussite, compréhension des règles), ainsi que de variables ultimes (c’est-à-dire des variables situées à une distance éloignée des comportements à risque) de type individuel (traits de personnalité, caractéristiques démographiques), social (caractéristiques socio-économiques des parents) et scolaire (type d’école, environnement favorable, climat disciplinaire) sur le taux d’occurrence de multiples facteurs de risque comportementaux chez les enfants et adolescents canadiens. Méthodes: Des données transversales (n = 4724) à partir du cycle 4 (2000-2001) de l’Enquête longitudinale nationale sur les enfants et les jeunes (ELNEJ) ont été utilisées pour décrire la prévalence et les patrons d’agrégation de multiples facteurs de risque comportementaux chez les jeunes canadiens âgés de 10-17 ans. L’agrégation des facteurs de risque a été examinée en utilisant une méthode du ratio de cas observés sur les cas attendus. La régression logistique ordinale a été utilisée pour explorer les corrélats de multiples facteurs de risque comportementaux dans un échantillon transversal (n = 1747) de jeunes canadiens âgés de 10-15 ans du cycle 4 (2000-2001) de l’ELNEJ. Des données prospectives (n = 1135) à partir des cycle 4 (2000-2001), cycle 5 (2002-2003) et cycle 6 (2004-2005) de l’ELNEJ ont été utilisées pour évaluer l’influence longitudinale des variables distales et ultimes (tel que décrit ci-haut dans les objectifs) sur le taux d’occurrence de multiples facteurs de risque comportementaux chez les jeunes canadiens âgés de 10-15 ans; cette analyse a été effectuée à l’aide des modèles de Poisson longitudinaux. Résultats: Soixante-cinq pour cent des jeunes canadiens ont rapporté avoir deux ou plus de facteurs de risque comportementaux, comparativement à seulement 10% des jeunes avec aucun facteur de risque. Les facteurs de risque comportementaux se sont agrégés en de multiples combinaisons. Plus précisément, l’occurrence simultanée des cinq facteurs de risque était 120% plus élevée chez les garçons (ratio observé/attendu (O/E) = 2.20, intervalle de confiance (IC) 95%: 1.31-3.09) et 94% plus élevée chez les filles (ratio O/E = 1.94, IC 95%: 1.24-2.64) qu’attendu. L’âge (rapport de cotes (RC) = 1.95, IC 95%: 1.21-3.13), ayant un parent fumeur (RC = 1.49, IC 95%: 1.09-2.03), ayant rapporté que la majorité/tous de ses pairs consommaient du tabac (RC = 7.31, IC 95%: 4.00-13.35) ou buvaient de l’alcool (RC = 3.77, IC 95%: 2.18-6.53), et vivant dans une famille monoparentale (RC = 1.94, IC 95%: 1.31-2.88) ont été positivement associés aux multiples comportements à risque. Les jeunes ayant une forte estime de soi (RC = 0.92, IC 95%: 0.85-0.99) ainsi que les jeunes dont un des parents avait un niveau d’éducation postsecondaire (RC = 0.58, IC 95%: 0.41-0.82) étaient moins susceptibles d’avoir de multiples facteurs de risque comportementaux. Enfin, les variables de type social distal (tabagisme des parents et des pairs, consommation d’alcool par les pairs) (Log du rapport de vraisemblance (LLR) = 187.86, degrés de liberté = 8, P < 0,001) et individuel distal (estime de soi) (LLR = 76.94, degrés de liberté = 4, P < 0,001) ont significativement influencé le taux d’occurrence de multiples facteurs de risque comportementaux. Les variables de type individuel ultime (âge, sexe, anxiété) et social ultime (niveau d’éducation du parent, revenu du ménage, structure de la famille) ont eu une influence moins prononcée sur le taux de cooccurrence des facteurs de risque comportementaux chez les jeunes. Conclusion: Les résultats suggèrent que les interventions de santé publique devraient principalement cibler les déterminants de type individuel distal (tel que l’estime de soi) ainsi que social distal (tels que le tabagisme des parents et des pairs et la consommation d’alcool par les pairs) pour prévenir et/ou réduire l’occurrence de multiples facteurs de risque comportementaux chez les enfants et les adolescents. Cependant, puisque les variables de type distal (telles que les caractéristiques psychosociales des jeunes et comportements des parents/pairs) peuvent être influencées par des variables de type ultime (telles que les caractéristiques démographiques et socioéconomiques), les programmes et politiques de prévention devraient également viser à améliorer les conditions socioéconomiques des jeunes, particulièrement celles des enfants et des adolescents des familles les plus démunies.

Academic and social adjustment of teenagers in social rehabilitation : the role of intrinsic need satisfaction and autonomy support

Les études antérieures ont démontré les bénéfices de la satisfaction des besoins intrinsèques et du soutien à l’autonomie dans le domaine de l’éducation. Or, l’applicabilité des tenants principaux de la Théorie de l’Auto-Détermination (TAD; Deci & Ryan, 2000) n’a pas été investiguée auprès d’une population clinique d’adolescents. L’objectif de cette thèse doctorale est de faire la lumière sur la façon dont l'adaptation scolaire et sociale peut être favorisée par les agents de socialisation dans le contexte de la réadaptation sociale. Cette thèse est composée de deux études s’intéressant à l’application des tenants clés de la TAD auprès de deux échantillons d’adolescents vivant des problèmes d’adaptation et recevant des services d’éducation spécialisée et de réadaptation sociale. Les relations entre les concepts motivationnels de base sont étudiés afin de déterminer si, comme la TAD le propose, la satisfaction des besoins intrinsèques des jeunes peut être soutenue par le style interpersonnel des agents de socialisation (c.-à-d., le soutien à l’autonomie, l’implication et la structure). Il est aussi vérifié si ces concepts motivationnels améliorent la motivation ainsi que d’autres conséquences qui résultent de leur expérience, proposées par la TAD. La première étude a évalué si le style interpersonnel des enseignants peut favoriser la satisfaction des besoins des élèves, leur style de motivationl, tout comme leur ajustement scolaire. Les élèves en difficulté d’adaptation (N = 115) inscrits aux écoles internes des Centres de Réadaptation en raison de leurs problématiques émotionnelles et comportementales ont rempli les questionnaires à deux reprises, au début et à la fin de l’année scolaire. Les analyses de modèles d’équations structurelles révèlent que l’augmentation du soutien à l’autonomie et de l’implication (mais pas de la structure) des enseignants pendant l’année est associée à une augmentation de la satisfaction des besoins des élèves qui, conséquemment, conduit à une motivation scolaire plus auto-déterminée et à une diminution d’intentions de décrochage à la fin de l’année scolaire. De plus, l’amélioration de la satisfaction des besoins mène directement à une meilleure expérience affective à l’école. La deuxième étude consiste en une recherche expérimentale conduite auprès d’adolescentes en difficulté d’adaptation (N = 29). Le devis expérimental a permis de comparer l’impact de la présence (c. absence) du soutien à l’autonomie sur l’internalisation d’une tâche et sur les conséquences motivationnelles et expérientielles des jeunes. La tâche, fastidieuse mais importante, consistait à de la résolution de problèmes interpersonnels (activité clinique). Les résultats suggèrent qu’un style interpersonnel soutenant l’autonomie a augmenté la motivation auto-déterminée, la perception de la valeur de la tâche et son appréciation, ainsi que diminué les affects négatifs comparativement à la condition sans soutien à l’autonomie. Les résultats sont discutés en lien avec les implications théoriques et pratiques d’étendre la portée de la TAD à une population clinique d’adolescents aux prises avec des difficultés d’adaptation.

The Politics of Poverty in the European Union: How States Respond to the Open Method of Coordination on Social Inclusion

This article assesses the responses of EU-15 member states to the poverty reduction objectives of the Open Method of Coordination (OMC) on social inclusion between 2001 and 2006. As a flexible mechanism of information sharing between governments, the OMC could not produce strong convergence. A thorough analysis of the OMC documents indeed points to the enduring power of national institutions and partisan politics, for the three dimensions of social inclusion identified by the EU (rights, labour market policies, and participation). There was however some learning and adaptation around emerging policy ideas like activation and the participation of people experiencing poverty.

Metamorphism and Fluid Inclusion Studies of Charnockites and Associated Rocks from the Madurai Granulite Block , Southern India with Special Reference to Graphite Mineralization

The present research is aimed at studying the charnockites and associated rocks of the Madurai Granulite Block (MGB), especially in terms of their field settings, texture, mineralogy, and mineral chemistry analyzing their petrogenesis with the help of thermobarometrical studies and geochronological constraints. The mechanism of charnockitization by the influx of CO2 rich fluids and its relation to the graphite mineralization is actually a matter of discussion and study. The objectives of the present study are, to delineate petrological and structural relationship of charnockites and associated gneissic rocks, to study the field and petrogenetic aspects of graphite mineralization in the MGB, to establish and re-evaluate the P-T conditions of formation of the rocks with the aid of thermbarometric computations and to compare with the earlier studies, characterization of graphite with XRD, Raman spectroscopy and isotope studies together with a search in to its genesis and its relation to the high-grade metamorphism of the terrain, to evaluate the role of CO2 bearing fluids in the processes of charnockitization as well as in the genesis of graphite within the high-grade terrain and to delineate the metamorphic geochronology of selected rocks using ‘monazite dating’ technique with EPMA.

El plan de lengua y cohesión social en Catañunya: primeros datos de una investigación = Language and Social Cohesion Plan in Catalonia: Initial research data

Los programas de inmersión lingüística han constituido y constituyen dentro del Sistema Educativo catalán la principal forma para que el alumnado de lengua familiar no-catalana aprenda una nueva lengua, el catalán, sin que, en su proceso de aprendizaje, vea mermado ni el desarrollo de su propia lengua ni su rendimiento académico. El éxito de la inmersión lingüística en las décadas anteriores ha sido frecuentemente utilizado como uno de los argumentos orientativos para justificar la política lingüística que se sigue en la escolarización de la infancia extranjera. Sin embargo, los resultados obtenidos por investigaciones recientes parece que no avalan empíricamente dicho argumento. Este artículo analiza dichos resultados y expone, a partir del Plan para la Lengua y Cohesión Social puesto en marcha por el Departamento de Educación de la Generalitat de Cataluña, cuáles son los retos que se presentan a su Sistema Educativo dentro del nuevo marco que supone el aumento de la diversidad cultural y lingüística en la actual sociedad catalana

Intercultural Mediation as a strategy to facilitate relations between the School and Immigrant Families

Monogr??fico con el t??tulo: "La participaci??n de las familias en la escuela"

Formação e leitura : o professor, sua prática e a inclusão social

“Formação e Leitura: o Professor, sua Prática e a Inclusão Social” aborda a problemática do fazer pedagógico para formar leitores ‘competentes’ favorecendo a inclusão social e a formação de cidadãos críticos. Pesquisa de natureza qualitativa, mas que não descarta dados quantitativos adota como fundamento metodológico a abordagem qualitativa de pesquisa, num recorte para estudo de caso. Objetiva conhecer e traçar um perfil da formação dos professores atuantes no Ensino Fundamental I, da rede de ensino público municipal de Cotia – São Paulo, identificar as concepções do professor a respeito deste ensino e aprendizagem, compreender e apresentar a relação dos professores e alunos em torno desta prática e sua qualidade social. As considerações a respeito da importância da leitura, as práticas pedagógicas e atuação do professor como incentivador e disseminador do hábito de ler e a formação necessária para que sejam comprometidos com o desenvolvimento desta prática social, constituem os questionamentos que norteiam esta pesquisa. Dentre os resultados, constata que o universo de significações trazido pelos professores recaem sobre a prática docente; são os seus hábitos e crença na leitura, como fator de inclusão social sua e de seus alunos que determinam o seu fazer pedagógico. Essa pesquisa tem o potencial de contribuir para reflexões dos projetos pedagógicos e suas equipes escolares, visando elevar a qualidade social da educação de um modo geral.

Teaching assistants and pupils' academic and social engagement in mainstream schools: insights from systematic literature reviews

The last 20 years have seen a huge expansion in the additional adults working in classrooms in the UK, USA, and other countries. This paper presents the findings of a series of systematic literature reviews about teaching assistants. The first two reviews focused on stakeholder perceptions of teaching assistant contributions to academic and social engagement. Stakeholders were pupils, teachers, TAs, headteachers and parents. Perceptions focused on four principal contributions that teaching assistants contribute to: pupils’ academic and socio-academic engagement; inclusion; maintenance of stakeholder relations; and support for the teacher. The third review explored training. Against a background of patchy training provision both in the UK and the USA, strong claims are made for the benefits to TAs of training provided, particularly in building confidence and skills. The conclusions include implications for further training and the need for further research to gain an in-depth understanding as to precisely the manner in which TAs engage with children.

Participation in Higher Education: aspirations, attainment and social background

The recent report of the Milburn Review into Social Mobility highlights the under-representation of young people from lower socio-economic groups in higher education and encourages universities and others to act to remedy this situation as a contribution to greater social mobility. The paper uses data from the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England to examine the relationship between social background, attainment and university participation. The results show that differences in school-level attainment associated with social background are by far the most important explanation for social background differences in university attendance. However, there remains a small proportion of the participation gap that is not accounted for by attainment. It is also the case that early intentions for higher education participation are highly predictive of actual participation. The results suggest that although there may be some scope for universities to act to improve participation by people from less advantaged backgrounds, a much more important focus of action is on improving the school-level achievement of these students.

Looking back, moving forward: drama, disability and social justice

The aim of this chapter is to briefly outline how disability has been represented in theatre, what access disabled people have had to drama and theatre in the past, and what might be achieved in the pursuit of social justice with young people in relation to awareness of and provision for disability. It will focus in particular on how disability has been addressed in drama education and what assumptions have been made regarding drama and disability in education. In considering such issues one might perceive manifestations of what Freebody and Finneran (2013) recognise as an overlapping and ‘somewhat artificially created dichotomy between drama for social justice and drama about social justice.’ This chapter will examine some examples of how drama has been used to give students in mainstream schools insights into disability, and the philosophy that underpins the drama curriculum of one special school where the focus is on drama as social justice: the argument being that in some cases simply doing drama is, in effect, a manifestation of social justice. Finally, some of the progress made in recent years regarding access and engagement will be addressed through specific reference to the authors’ on-going work into ‘performing social research’ (Shah, 2013) and how theatres are increasingly attempting to give more access to disabled young people and their families by offering ‘relaxed performances.’

Ageing, solidarity and social protection in Latin America and the Caribbean: time for progress towards equality

Includes bibliography