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Midterm student feedback is a common process in post-secondary institutions that can lead to enhanced teaching practices and thereby potentially to higher ratings of instructional skills in summative course evaluations. At McMaster University, midterm student feedback is called a 'Course Refinement' and includes consultation with educational developers. As part of a multiphase study investigating teachers' perceptions of the Course Refinement process and its impact, this analysis presents effective attributes of the process as an adaptation of Chickering and Gamson's well-known 'seven principles for good practice in undergraduate education', as our findings align with their work. To our knowledge, this marks the first educational development adaptation of the 'seven principles'.

Ascertaining how racket orientation angle differences at ball-impact influence the accuracy of different squash strokes could assist player skill development and possibly reduce the number of unforced errors hit within a match. The purpose of this study was to identify differences in racket orientation angles of accurate and inaccurate forehand and backhand drive, volley and drop shots. A magnetic-inertial measurement unit embedded in a racket output orientation angles of twelve male junior players, with five accurate and five inaccurate shots per player per stroke analysed. Paired samples t-tests revealed that inaccurate backhand drop shots exhibited significantly (p < 0.05) less racket roll angle (racket face less open) at impact than accurate shots, indicating this parameter was a determining factor in the accuracy of this stroke. Racket orientation angle differences between accurate and inaccurate shots of the remaining strokes were too small to be used to distinguish shot accuracy. There was significantly greater variability in racket orientation angles during inaccurate forehand drop and backhand drive shots compared to accurate shots. These findings demonstrate how racket orientation angle differences at ball-impact can influence the accuracy of shots and highlights the need for consistent racket orientations to allow for an accurate shot. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The torso muscles play important roles in longitudinal rotation between the upper and lower torso on land but demands on these muscles at different swimming speeds and their role in torso twist in front crawl remains unclear. We aimed to compare torso muscle activity at different front crawl speeds and to assess the relationships between torso muscle activity and torso twist. Three-dimensional kinematics and torso muscle EMG data were collected from 15 male swimmers during middle-distance and sprint front crawl. Internal oblique, external oblique, and rectus abdominis, but not erector spinae, activities were greater at sprint than middle-distance pace. Sprint swimmers are likely to benefit from focusing training on the abdominal muscles. Cross-correlation peak coefficients between muscle activity and torso twist occurred with 517–775 and 400–600 ms lag at middle-distance and sprint paces (respectively). These lags are beyond the torso muscle electromechanical delay (~220 ms) and are too long for these muscles to produce movement changes. Further, peak coefficients coincided with both positive and negative shifts, indicating that muscle activity did not always precede kinematic changes. The torso muscles are therefore likely to play a greater role in maintaining stability and controlling posture in front crawl than producing torso twist. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Andersen, JT, Sinclair, PJ, McCabe, CB, and Sanders, RH. Kinematic differences in shoulder roll and hip roll at different front crawl speeds in National Level Swimmers. J Strength Cond Res 34(1): 20-25, 2020--Dry-land strength training is a common component of swimming programs; however, its efficacy is contentious. A common criticism of dry-land strength training for swimming is a lack of specificity. An understanding of movement patterns in swimming can enable dry-land strength training programs to be developed to elicit adaptations that transfer to improvements in swimming performance. This study aimed to quantify the range and velocity of hip roll, shoulder roll, and torso twist (produced by differences in the relative angle between shoulder roll and hip roll) in front crawl at different swimming speeds. Longitudinal torso kinematics was compared between sprint and 400-m pace front crawl using 3D kinematics of 13 elite Scottish front crawl specialists. The range (sprint: 78.1×; 400 m: 61.3×) and velocity of torso twist (sprint: 166.3×øs-1; 400 m: 96.9×øs-1) were greater at sprint than 400-m pace. These differences were attributed to reductions in hip roll (sprint: 36.8×; 400 m: 49.9×) without corresponding reductions in shoulder roll (sprint: 97.7×; 400 m: 101.6×) when subjects swam faster. Shoulder roll velocity (sprint: 190.9×øs-1; 400 m: 139.2×øs-1) and hip roll velocity (sprint: 75.5×øs-1; 400 m: 69.1×øs-1) were greater at sprint than 400-m pace due to a higher stroke frequency at sprint pace (sprint: 0.95 strokesøs-1; 400 m: 0.70 strokesøs-1). These findings imply that torques acting to rotate the upper torso and the lower torso are greater at sprint than 400-m pace. Dry-land strength training specificity can be improved by designing exercises that challenge the torso muscles to reproduce the torques required to generate the longitudinal kinematics in front crawl.

This paper explores five dimensions in which key aspects of the United Kingdom economy appear to be out of balance. These are: intertemporally; internationally; interpersonally; intergenerationally; and in its allocation of capital. It proceeds to consider possible measures that might help to rectify those imbalances. Article Note: I thank numerous participants at the conference for helpful comments and discussions. Text of paper presented on September 7, 2018, at the MMF conference, Gogarburn, Edinburgh. Byline: Peter Sinclair