Being school-ready when transitioning to the primary school system has been associated with favourable outcomes during schooling and adult life. While children living in socio-economically disadvantaged areas may be at a higher risk of being less school-ready, research in the area has highlighted that not all children experience such a delay. This…

This article attempts to show an adolescent boy's continuing process of self-realisation through his disillusionment with the bleak reality of Dublin in the early twentieth century in the short story "Araby" by James Joyce. Brought up in the drab and deadening surroundings with his uncle and aunt in conservative Catholic cultures, the…

Purpose: To determine the individual contributions of chronological age, somatic maturation, body size and composition, and training experience as indicators of performance in neuromuscular and judo-specific assessments in young athletes. Methods: Sixty-six youth judo athletes performed anthropometric measurements, neuromuscular tests--standing…

This paper presents the experiences of mature students at a satellite campus of an English higher education institution. Twenty students over age 25 who fit various widening participation criteria were interviewed at four points during their first two years of bachelor's level study at a higher education (HE) centre in an area underserved by HE.…

Development and dissemination of innovative pedagogies continues to be one of the challenges of the 21st century. The visible deficiencies in the educational field have highlighted the need for other types of pedagogies that promote complete student development. Gardner's theory about multiple intelligences (MIs) has great potential that has not…

Since the latter part of the twentieth century there has been increasing recognition of the need for more effective approaches to engaging adolescent boys. Much of the focus in youth work practice and research has previously been dominated by attempts to better understand young male bio-social and cognitive development through examining high risk…

This study examines the relationship between career interest, knowledge, adaptability and maturity in predicting career choice among 720 students in the Malaysian Skills Certification System. Career interest, knowledge and adaptability were found to be positively related to career choice, while career maturity was not significantly related to…

This paper examines how young people account for choosing mathematical subjects, and how these processes sustain, or not, their continued participation. It draws on a 2-year qualitative study of 24 young people's accounts of following advanced mathematical pathways within a widening participation programme. Working within a post-structural…

Menarche is one of the most important transitions for women. Perceptions of menarche play an important role in this transition process and appear to be influenced strongly by culture. The purpose of this study was to examine perceptions of menarche among female adolescents in South Korea. Fifty-three female students' essays and drawings…

Background: Transition Year (TY) is a quasi-gap year offered midway through post-primary education in Ireland. TY is intended to provide a low-stakes environment to promote maturity and social skills, and to prepare students for adult life. Previous interview-based research has found that TY is seen as a positive experience by many students and…

Teachers and parents intuitively judge the 'level' of the child and the 'level' of the text and try to match them; they know that overestimation or underestimation of either will be met with restlessness or boredom. In this way, they have an empirical understanding of Vygotsky's ZPD--the zone of proximal development he envisioned as measuring the…

Since the 1970s, schools in Ireland have offered an optional programme known as 'Transition Year' midway through secondary education, when students are typically 15 years old. It lasts one academic year and aims to promote maturity, social development and vocational exploration, and to give students a chance to develop personal and intellectual…

Mature-age postgraduate students are those who are late to higher education or have returned to postgraduate study after an educational hiatus in industry. While some mature-age students seek a postgraduate qualification out of extrinsic motivations such as for vocational reasons, there are older non-traditional students who seek higher status;…

In many educational systems, age is used as a criterion to organise education. Children's age is used to group students together and indicate entry into particular programmes. The use of age for organisational purposes in education stems from the idea that age provides an indication of the development of children, which is associated with teaching…

This paper focuses on the students who are registered in the University of Pretoria's academic development programme, named the Four-year Programme (FYP). The programme was introduced as a gateway for students who are underprepared but have the potential to succeed and then continue their studies into the mainstream science programmes. Our…