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Central to this research paper are findings from a major international collaborative study into the social and economic impact of the World Rally Championship (WRC) during 2007. Scholarship in the field of motorsport is rare, which is remarkable against the backdrop of a discipline that has truly global appeal. The analysis contained herein unfolds within extant research into the staging of so-called 'mega' sports events but highlights important shortcomings in this literature when examining a sport, such as rallying, which takes place beyond the normal sporting boundaries. The study also engages in debates surrounding the role of sport as an agent for social and cultural regeneration but advances a number of inadequacies within this and other procedures involved in measuring the full impact major sports events exercise upon their host communities. Beyond this a study of the WRC in 2007 reminds the reader of how sport events have differing symbolic significance depending upon the national political and cultural locales in which they take place. In this regard this essay also unpacks established discourses surrounding sporting legacy, exactly what constitutes a 'sport tourist' and the vexed issue of the use of multipliers when calculating the full economic impact of sports events both now and in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper details the technical and operational aspects of a project investigating the role of digital video in physical education in 12 Irish schools over a period of two academic years. The project design involved a qualitative investigation into the use of digital video in three areas of physical education, namely teaching, learning and assessment. The group of physical education teachers who implemented the project received intensive training in the use of the technology initially and were also given additional training to meet the evolving needs of the project over its duration. The time demands placed on the team in terms of planning and preparation and post-production work were recorded. The motivational effect of the use of the technology on students was noted. The capacity of the technology to provide focused feedback on performances was examined through the reviewing of video clips of students' performances in physical education lessons. The use of digital video as an aid to both formative and summative assessment in physical education was also examined. Aspects of assessment for learning were used in providing a cohort of students with opportunities to set their own learning goals and evaluate their own learning while compiling electronic learning portfolios. A total of 31 such portfolios were collated. An examination of the use of digital video technology as a means of assessing practical performances was also undertaken. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This report presents the findings of an exploratory study aimed at assessing the nature and extent of drug use amongst a group of young Travellers (aged twelve to eighteen years) in the South Eastern Region of Ireland. The results are intended to inform the Irish policy debate by providing data on patterns of youth drug use, drug-related risk behaviours, the impact of drug use on the Traveller community and issues regarding access to services. The young Travellers exhibited similar trends to "settled" adolescents with regard to drug use trends and attitudes but reported poor levels of health awareness and knowledge of drug services. The social exclusion of young Travellers puts them at risk of problematic drug use due to issues of poor literacy levels, family crisis, discrimination, poor knowledge of service provision relating to drug education and treatment, and the location of halting sites in areas of high drug usage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]