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This paper focuses on a document analysis for an Australian case study, which contributes to a larger international study on teacher leadership. The aim of this paper is to ascertain how teacher leadership is understood and conceptualised from an Australian documentary perspective spanning the national, state, regional, and local education administrative levels. A document analysis framework stipulated by the larger study identified the attributes of teacher leadership. Twenty-one documents were analysed and the attributes in relation to five considerations impacting teacher leadership are discussed. Results indicated differences of dominant attributes across each of the levels: however, accountability and advocacy are consistently represented. Accountability filters through all four levels. The system is beginning to advocate and acknowledge pathways to leadership. At the state level, teacher leadership is strengthened through professional and collaborative practices. However, this paper suggests this is not consistently evident at the regional and local levels due to a number of pertinent organisational issues.

This paper presents how some Australian schools are changing their approaches to leading the teaching and learning in their diverse and multi-characteristic contexts. Experiences of these schools shows that the development of a school wide approach to pedagogy and its implementation needs to be firmly embedded in the leadership of learning. Drawing on recent research conducted in the Sydney Catholic Education Office system in Australia (Crowther et al. in "Leading and Managing" 18(2):1-33, 2012) there is evidence of relationship between the development and implementation of a school wide approach to pedagogy and student achievement. There is also evidence to support leadership that is based on a mutualistic relationship between teacher leaders and the principal. This paper focuses on the way schools have used their visions and pedagogical frameworks to enhance whole of school quality outcomes. It highlights the power of teacher leaders taking responsibility for pedagogical development and implementation. In addition, it illustrates the power of mutualistic relationships (parallel leadership) when the principal takes responsibility for unleashing and trusting the creative expertise of teacher leaders in line with the role of strategic leadership and management.

The term "schoolwide pedagogy" was once rarely heard and yet has now become a part of most discussions around school improvement. But what does it really mean and why is the presence of a schoolwide pedagogical framework important? Some would say that in their school the adoption of an authoritative approach such as Habits of Mind, Bloom's Taxonomies or the Productive Pedagogies is a schoolwide pedagogical framework. To some extent they are, but what is often lacking is the intellectual and social capacity that is built through collective professional sharing and articulation of strongly held beliefs about contextually relevant teaching and learning practices. Without this sense of ownership, teacher adoption ends up being sporadic at best with some teachers paying only lip service to imposed quality frameworks. In schools that have engaged with the processes of the Innovative Designs for Enhancing Achievements in Schools ("IDEAS") project, personal pedagogical principles and authoritative pedagogical principles are contextualized by the school community as a whole. The story from one school is used to demonstrate the enduring strength of commitment when a school creates its own SWP. (Contains 2 tables and 3 figures.)

Objective Dietary supplements are not recommended as part of a weight-loss program due to concerns about efficacy and safety. This study sought to assess prevalence and duration of nonprescription weight-loss supplement use, associated weight-control behaviors, discussion of use with a health care professional, and specific ingredient use. Participants and design Adults aged [greater than or equal to] 18 years (n=9,403) completed a cross-sectional population-based telephone survey of health behaviors from September 2002 through December 2002. Statistical analyses performed Both [chi square] and t tests were conducted for categorical and mean comparisons and multiple variable logistic regression was used to determine significant predictors. Results An estimated 15.2% of adults (women 20.6%, men 9.7%) had ever used a weight-loss supplement and 8.7% had past year use (women 11.3%, men 6.0%); highest use was among women aged 18 to 34 years (16.7%). In regression models, use was equally prevalent among race/ethnic groups and education levels. One in 10 (10.2%) of users reported [greater than or equal to] 12 month use, with less frequent long-term use in women (7.7%) than men (15.0%), P=0.01. Almost one third (30.2%) of users discussed use during the past year; 73.8% used a supplement containing a stimulant including ephedra, caffeine, and/or bitter orange. Conclusions Use of supplements for losing weight seems to be common among many segments of the US adult population. Many adults are long-term users and most do not discuss this practice with their physician. Most of the weight-loss supplements taken contain stimulants. Qualified professionals should inquire about use of supplements for weight loss to facilitate discussion about the lack of efficacy data, possible adverse effects, as well as to dispel misinformation that may interfere with sound weight-management practices.

To link to full-text access for this article, visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jada.2006.09.014 Byline: Patricia A. Sharpe, Michelle L. Granner, Joan M. Conway, Barbara E. Ainsworth, Mirela Dobre Abstract: The sale of nonprescription weight-loss products accounts for millions of dollars spent by Americans trying to lose weight, yet there is little evidence for effectiveness and there are multiple safety concerns. The purpose of this study was to determine what products, and ingredients within products, were available at retail outlets in a metropolitan area. A purposive sampling strategy identified 73 retail outlets. An audit form was used to collect information from product labels. The audit identified 402 products containing 4,053 separate ingredients. The mean number of ingredients per product was 9.9[+ or -]8.96 (range=1 to 96). A database search was conducted regarding evidence for effectiveness, safety precautions, and side effects for the 10 ingredients that appeared most often across products. Modest evidence of effectiveness exists for green tea (Camellia sinensis), chromium picolinate, and ma huang (Ephedra major). For the remaining seven (ginger root [Zingiber officinale], guarana [Paullinia cupana], hydroxycitric acid [Garcinia cambogia], white willow [Salix alba], Siberian ginseng [Eleutherococcus senticosus], cayenne [Capsicum annuum], and bitter orange/zhi shi [Citrus aurantium]), inadequate or negative evidence exists. Although precautions and contraindications were found for all 10 ingredients, the strongest concerns in the literature appear for ma huang, bitter orange, and guarana. Our audit revealed numerous weight-loss products available to consumers, yet there is little evidence to support the effectiveness of the top 10 ingredients identified and many potential adverse reactions; therefore, food and nutrition professionals should discuss dietary supplement use with their clients.

Objective The purpose of this study was to evaluate the reliability of label weights as surrogates for actual weights in commercial portion-controlled foods used in a research setting. Design Actual weights of replicate samples of 82 portion-controlled food items and 17 discrete units of food from larger packaging were determined over time. Comparison was made to the package label weights for the portion-controlled food items and the per-serving weights for the discrete units. Setting The study was conducted at the US Department of Agriculture's Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center's Human Study Facility, which houses a metabolic kitchen and human nutrition research facility. Main Outcome Measures The primary outcome measures were the actual and label weights of 99 food items consumed by human volunteers during controlled feeding studies. Statistical Analyses Performed The difference between label and actual weights was tested by the paired t test for those data that complied with the assumptions of normality. The Wilcoxon signed rank test was used for the remainder of the data. Compliance with federal guidelines for packaged weights was also assessed. Results There was no statistical difference between actual and label weights for only 37 food items. The actual weights of 15 portion-controlled food items were 1% or more less than label weights, making them potentially out of compliance with federal guidelines. Conclusions With advance planning and continuous monitoring, well-controlled feeding studies could incorporate portion-controlled food items and discrete units, especially beverages and confectionery products. Dietetics professionals should encourage individuals with diabetes and others on strict dietary regimens to check actual weights of portion-controlled products carefully against package weights. J Am Diet Assoc. 2004;104:1420-1424.

Objective This observational validation study was conducted under controlled conditions to test the accuracy of dietary recall in normal weight, overweight, and obese men using the USDA five-step multiple-pass method for dietary recall. Design Cross-sectional analysis of actual and recalled intake of food during 1 day. Subjects/setting Forty-two men ranging in age from 21 to 65 years and in body mass index from 21 to 39 kg/[m.sup.2] who lived in the metropolitan Washington DC area were studied. Intervention The subjects selected and consumed all meals and snacks, for 1 day, from a wide variety of foods provided at a human study facility. Main outcome measures Actual and recalled energy, protein, carbohydrate, and fat intakes were determined by direct observation and by a 24-hour dietary recall, respectively. Dietary recall was determined via telephone administration of the USDA five-step multiple-pass method the following day. Statistical analyses performed Analysis of variance and covariance tested the overall accuracy of recall and the effect of body mass index on dietary recall. Bland-Altman plots were used to assess bias in recall of food intake. Results In this population of men, there were no significant differences between actual and recalled intakes of energy (3,294[+ or -]111 and 3,541[+ or -]124 kcal/day), protein (117[+ or -]5 and 126[+ or -]5 g/day), carbohydrate (414[+ or -]16 and 449[+ or -]16 g/day), or fat (136[+ or -]7 and 146[+ or -]8 g/day), respectively. Accuracy of recall was not related to body mass index in that the obese men recalled food intake as accurately as the nonobese men. The energy intake of these men was significantly correlated (r=0.57, P<.05) with their estimated energy requirements. Significant interin-dividual variation in accuracy of recall was found. Conclusions Under controlled conditions, the USDA five-step multiple-pass method can accurately assess intakes of energy, protein, carbohydrate, and fat in a population of men regardless of their body mass index. Researchers and clinical dietitians need to continue to examine factors that influence underreporting and overreporting of food intake by the multiple-pass 24-hour recall method. J Am Diet Assoc. 2004;104:595-603.

The objectives of the study were to determine regional changes in body composition, energy expenditure by means of doubly labeled water, and net energy balance during exposure to high and extreme altitudes (5,300-8,848 m). This study focuses on a subset of subjects who consumed the doubly labeled water (three base camp personnel and seven climbers). Regional body composition was determined by measuring skinfold thicknesses and circumferences at 10 different sites on the body. Energy expenditure was measured by doubly labeled water excretion. Discrepancies between actual energy expenditure and data obtained from diet records and body weight changes suggested a chronic underreporting of dietary energy intake, especially by those subjects who reached the highest altitudes. This underreporting may be due in part to diminished cognition or to a preferential focus on survival, rather than on filling out diet records accurately. Mean adjusted dietary intakes were 10.50 [+ or -] 0.65 MJ/d (2510 [+ or -] 155 kcal/d) for those who remained at base camp, and 20.63 [+ or -] 6.56 MJ/d (4931 [+ or -] 1568 kcal/d) for those who climbed above base camp. Energy expenditure averaged 2.5-3.0 times sea level resting energy expenditure. Differential changes in regional body composition suggested a preferential loss of fat mass and a relative sparing of muscle mass, despite insufficient energy intake to maintain body weight. KEY WORDS: * altitude * anthropometrics * doubly labeled water * energy expenditure * energy intake * body composition * humans

To determine sex and race differences in muscle power per unit of muscle contraction, knee-extensor muscle power normalized for knee-extensor muscle volume was measured in 79 middle-aged and older adults (30 men and 49 women, age range 50–85 years). Results revealed that women displayed a 38% faster peak movement velocity than men and African Americans had a 14% lower peak movement velocity than Whites of a similar age when expressed per unit of involved muscle (p < .001). As expected, men exhibited greater knee-extensor strength and peak power per unit of muscle than women, but women had a faster knee-extension movement velocity per unit of muscle than men at the same relative strength level. Moreover, African Americans had greater knee-extensor muscle volume than Whites but exhibited lower knee-extensor strength and lower movement velocity per unit of muscle when tested at the same relative strength levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. The alpha-actinin-3 (ACTN3) R577X polymorphism has been associated with muscle power performance in cross-sectional studies. Methods. We examined baseline knee extensor concentric peak power (PP) and PP change with ∼10 weeks of unilateral knee extensor strength training (ST) using air-powered resistance machines in 71 older men (65 [standard deviation = 81] years) and 86 older women (64 [standard deviation = 9] years). Results. At baseline in women, the XX genotype group had an absolute (same resistance) PP that was higher than the RR (p = .005) and RX genotype groups (p = .02). The women XX group also had a relative (70% of one-repetition maximum [1 -RM]) PP that was higher than that in the RR (p = .002) and RX groups (p = .008). No differences in baseline absolute or relative PP were observed between ACTN3 genotype groups in men. In men, absolute PP change with ST in the RR (n = 16) group approached a significantly higher value than in the XX group (n = 9; p = .07). In women, relative PP change with ST in the RR group (n = 16) was higher than in the XX group (n = 17; p = .02). Conclusions. The results indicate that the ACTN3 R577X polymorphism influences the response of quadriceps muscle power to ST in older adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]