In early years' (primary grade) classrooms in Australia repeated patterns are commonly explored as an early introductory activity to mathematics. Most young students have an extensive knowledge of and exhibit success in copying, continuing, creating and transferring patterns into other media. By contrast, research indicates one of the most…

To understand young people's low levels of sun protection behaviour, 145 young people (aged 12 to 20 years) were recruited from Queensland, to participate in a one-hour focus group where they discussed issues related to sun protection and images of tanned and non-tanned people. Responses were content analysed to identify common sun protection…

This study focuses on adolescents' overnight contact with their nonresident parents. Sixty young people ages 12 to 19 and their resident parents were interviewed as part of a nationally representative study in Australia. The likelihood of overnight stays was lower when there was conflict and lack of trust between the parents. Adolescents who…

There are a wide range of provisions to be considered when catering for the mathematically gifted student(s) in the classroom. These include acceleration, enrichment, differentiation, curriculum compacting, mentorships, and competitions. The focus for this article is specifically on the use of competitions as one provision for the education of…

Aim: To describe sports participation in Australian adolescents. Method: Use of time, demographic, pedometer and anthropometric data were collected on a random sample of 2200 9-16 year olds. Results: Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) constituted 29% of all energy expenditure, and sport 58% of MVPA energy expenditure. Sports…

The concurrent validity of the Developmental Coordination Disorder Questionnaire (DCDQ) and the McCarron Assessment of Neuromuscular Development (MAND) was investigated in an Australian sample of 38 girls and 91 boys aged 9-12 years (M = 11.15, SD = 0.81). The MAND identified 44 children with motor impairment (MI) and 85 children without MI. The…

The study adopted a person-centered approach to examine whether clusters of children could be identified on the basis of temperament profiles assessed on four occasions from infancy to early childhood, and if so whether differing temperament clusters were associated with subsequent differences in behavior problems, social skills, and school…

Investigates possible differences in measured self-concept between preadolescent physically disabled children attending either a special school for the physically disabled or a regular school. Comparisons were also made with a group of nondisabled controls, and self-concept of participants' siblings was also studied. (RH)

This study examined relationships among components of attributional style and trait anxiety for 428 English-speaking boys and girls, grades 4-6, from primary public schools in New South Wales, Australia. Students completed general measures of attributional style and trait anxiety. Results showed a small but significant relationship between…

Examined relationship between self-perception and psychological adjustment among disturbed (n=33) and nondisturbed (n=33) young adolescents. Results indicated that dimensional self-concept scores were significantly lower for disturbed group. No significant differences were found between groups on mathematics, honesty, and physical ability…

Compared twenty groups of Australian children (N=132) of different social class, ethnic, national, and regional backgrounds on their moral stances on "lying" and "killing" and their reasons for those stances. There was an impressive consistency in moral attitudes and reasons across children of different social backgrounds. (JAC)

The paper reports epidemiological and phenomenological investigations of aberrant eating among 347 pre-adolescent children in court-ordered foster and kinship care, in New South Wales, Australia. A quarter of children displayed clinically significant aberrant eating problems, with no evidence of gender or age effects. Two distinct patterns were…

Examines proposition that relations between children's aspirations and measures of cognitive performance and learning environments differ as a function of children's attitudinal orientation. Data were collected from 516 Australian children, 11 years old during the initial survey, and 16 at the follow-up. Results suggest that the proposition is…

Argues that children's life experiences as members of families, schools, and the wider society provide understandings that must be taken into account if they are to appreciate the principles and purposes that underpin democratic practices. Investigates the perceptions of children (n=27) on their constructions of power and politics. (DAJ)

Test-retest data (six-month interval) collected on preadolescent student self-concepts, teachers' ratings of student self-concepts, and academic ability provided strong support for the construct validity of self-concept. The multiple dimensions of self-concept showed a logical and consistent pattern of relationships with a variety of criteria.…