scholarly journals Moving from the sidelines to the playing field: Developing a relationship with student athletics

2019 ◽  
Vol 80 (4) ◽  
pp. 224
Author(s):  
Kate Costin ◽  
Pamela J. Morgan

The Vanderbilt University Library, in collaboration with the university’s Department of Athletics Stratton Foster Academic Support Center, established an initiative to better acquaint the counselors at the center with the library and its resources. Through conversation, both sides realized there were many opportunities to make the relationship stronger, resulting in year-round support for student athletes. The partnership, now in its fourth year, has evolved to meet the needs of both the students and support staff.

Author(s):  
Lauren Kirby ◽  
Patricia Amason

The current study explores how academic success is defined and perceived by student-athletes and athletic academic support staff professionals, specifically learning specialists and academic advisors. Using qualitative methods, one-on-one interviews were conducted with participants from six “Power 5” programs to establish overarching themes. Academic advisors identified academic achievement and personal development as academic success. Learning specialists identified academic success as maximizing individual potential. Student-athletes identified meeting grade-based standards and work ethic resulting in reaching personal goals as academic success for themselves. Student-athletes also perceived that their advisor would identify eligibility and effort as academic success, and that their learning specialist would view academic success as building academic skills and work ethic.


2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 32
Author(s):  
Gabriela E. Gui

In today’s America, not every child starts on a level playing field, and very few children move ahead based solely on hard work or talent. Generational poverty and a lack of cultural capital hold many students back, robbing them of the opportunity to move up professionally and socially. Children of immigrants are especially at-risk because, in addition to facing poverty, race, geographical location or economic disadvantages, they are also confronted with failure due to their limited or non-existent English proficiency. This study focuses on the degree to which teachers in a mid-sized urban school district take into consideration the individual needs of immigrant children in the process of their education. The study also examines the preparation teachers have had to equip them with knowledge of best practices in teaching immigrant children, and the relationship between teachers’ practices, beliefs, and their demographic and personal characteristics (age, gender, years of experience, level of education, etc.). Quantitative data was collected via a survey. Interviews with teachers and one central office administrator provided data for the qualitative section of the study. The findings revealed that teachers, in general, appeared to lack knowledge of specific policies for mainstreaming immigrant students into general education classrooms; their use of effective teaching practices for working with immigrant children were limited; and most of the teachers had not participated actively in professional development that focused on teaching immigrant children.


2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 195-215
Author(s):  
Cristina Scardulla

AbstractThe use of English as a Lingua Franca is a promising solution to the overcoming of language barriers in a wide variety of contexts and, despite being formally governed by the principle of multilingualism, the European institutions are no exception. This paper aims at shedding light on the perception on the use of ELF within the European Commission, by presenting the results of a questionnaire carried out within the framework of a broader PhD project. The target population is that of interpreters working for the European Commission. The analysis focuses on two specific questions, which address interpreters in their role as communication experts, inviting them to momentarily set aside their opinion on the relationship between ELF and interpretation and rather assess ELF in terms of “communicative effectiveness,” considered as an essential component to a successful communication. Results confirm previous ITELF (Interpreting, Translation and English as a Lingua Franca) studies, in that interpreters believe that ELF tends to decrease the level of communicative effectiveness and that, based on their direct experience, less than half of the speakers in these meetings succeed at expressing themselves effectively when using ELF. Most importantly, they elaborate on what this loss of effectiveness entails in terms of communication quality, interlocutors’ participation rights and multilingualism.


Author(s):  
Jessica Murphy ◽  
Christopher Gladney ◽  
Philip Sullivan

Student athletes balance academic, social, and athletic demands, often leading to increased levels of stress and poor sleep. This study explores the relationship between sleep quality, sleep hygiene, and psychological distress in a sample of student athletes. Ninety-four student athletes completed the six-item Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K6), Sleep Hygiene Practice Scale, and four components from the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. Age, gender, and sport were also collected. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index revealed that 44.7% of student athletes received ≥6.5 hr of sleep each night; 31% of athletes showed signs of severe mental illness according to the K6. Stepwise regression predicted K6 scores with the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and the Sleep Hygiene Practice Scale scores as independent variables. A significant model accounting for 26% of the variation in K6 scores emerged; sleep schedule and sleep disturbances were significant predictors. Athletic staff should highlight the importance of sleep for mental health; suggestions on how to help athletes are provided.


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