Urban public spaces have been considered an essential part of cities throughout history. Over the span of urban life, public spaces have continuously reflected the complexities of their cities’ cultural, social, and economic contexts. Public spaces play a particular role in the life of urban areas, whether as memorable, accessible, or meaningful places. However, recent researches on public spaces reveal that some are currently experiencing a decline in their physical design and in their use. Many writers and scholars of public spaces issues identify a general decline, for which the causes and prescriptions are different according to the context of urban planning and designing. Thus, in this period of change in using public spaces, it becomes important to evaluate and investigate actual use of contemporary public spaces, how and why they are used, particularly in terms of their physical deterioration and/or improvement. Therefore, an opportunity exists to reveal and understand the interrelationship between physical patterns of contemporary public spaces and people’s activity patterns within such spaces. This thesis relates to urban public spaces uses, particularly public squares, and to the relationship between their physical and activity patterns. It considers the design features of urban public space, focusing on people’s activities and various forms of use – from passive to active engagement to understand the activity-physical patterns relationship in a selected urban public space. It therefore asks: How do people’s activities relate to the physical patterns of an urban public space? And how are people’s activities affected and encouraged by urban public space’s physical features? In order to address these questions, this thesis employs a methodology that combines direct field observations, activity mapping and Geographical Information Systems (GIS), as applied to a selected public space in Toronto, Mel Lastman Square to reveal the activity patterns that appear to be correlated with particular use of design features within the square. Thus, the value of this thesis is in studying the relationship between the activities and the physical settings of urban public spaces through using a proposed methodology and exploring GIS as an analytical tool to describe the activity-patterns relationship. Analyzing this relationship will add insights into and complement the application of urban design theories and practice which could lead to further studies to improve the public spaces design and planning process.

PURPOSE: To determine if participation in a short-term, high intensity physical education (PE) intervention that respected the multiple goals of the PE curriculum would result in any health- and/or fitness-related improvements for grade four and five students. METHODS: Seventy-six students were divided into a control and intervention group (CG & IG). During 15 successive classes, the IG participated in six minutes of high intensity activities while no changes were made to the structure of the CG’s PE class. Accelerometers and direct observation were used to quantify the percentage of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (%MVPA). Health- and performance-related measures were assessed pre- and post-intervention. RESULTS: Students spent an average of 27% of their PE class engaged in MVPA. Within this category, the intervention was successful at increasing students’ VPA levels by 7.7%. Observations regarding pedagogical practices are also reported. CONCLUSIONS: Participating in a PE intervention can increase students’ PA levels without compromising the goals of the PE curriculum.

Urban public spaces have been considered an essential part of cities throughout history. Over the span of urban life, public spaces have continuously reflected the complexities of their cities’ cultural, social, and economic contexts. Public spaces play a particular role in the life of urban areas, whether as memorable, accessible, or meaningful places. However, recent researches on public spaces reveal that some are currently experiencing a decline in their physical design and in their use. Many writers and scholars of public spaces issues identify a general decline, for which the causes and prescriptions are different according to the context of urban planning and designing. Thus, in this period of change in using public spaces, it becomes important to evaluate and investigate actual use of contemporary public spaces, how and why they are used, particularly in terms of their physical deterioration and/or improvement. Therefore, an opportunity exists to reveal and understand the interrelationship between physical patterns of contemporary public spaces and people’s activity patterns within such spaces. This thesis relates to urban public spaces uses, particularly public squares, and to the relationship between their physical and activity patterns. It considers the design features of urban public space, focusing on people’s activities and various forms of use – from passive to active engagement to understand the activity-physical patterns relationship in a selected urban public space. It therefore asks: How do people’s activities relate to the physical patterns of an urban public space? And how are people’s activities affected and encouraged by urban public space’s physical features? In order to address these questions, this thesis employs a methodology that combines direct field observations, activity mapping and Geographical Information Systems (GIS), as applied to a selected public space in Toronto, Mel Lastman Square to reveal the activity patterns that appear to be correlated with particular use of design features within the square. Thus, the value of this thesis is in studying the relationship between the activities and the physical settings of urban public spaces through using a proposed methodology and exploring GIS as an analytical tool to describe the activity-patterns relationship. Analyzing this relationship will add insights into and complement the application of urban design theories and practice which could lead to further studies to improve the public spaces design and planning process.

Background: Historically the identification of ACL injuries upon initial presentation is low and considerable diagnostic delays have been reported. However, specific evidence on the individual elements of, and factors which influence delay, is lacking. Aims: The overarching aim was to provide a comprehensive picture of delay to diagnosis and specialist consultation, including factors which influence delay. An additional aim was to determine whether the approach to examining acute knee injuries varied as a consequence of varying patient presentation or experience of the assessing clinician. Methods: Study 1: Cross -sectional survey. Study 2: Non-participant direct observation methodology. Results: Data from 194 patients were analysed in the survey. Only 15.5% of patients were given a correct diagnosis of ACL rupture at the initial consultation. Median delay to diagnosis was 67.5 days (IQR= 15 to 178 days) and specialist consultation 108 days (IQR= 38 to 292 days). The factors most influential on delay were whether a follow-up appointment was arranged after attending A&E, whether the site of attendance operated an acute knee clinic and whether MRI was performed. The direct observation study showed wide variation in approach to injury assessment. Specialist clinicians performed the most comprehensive examination. A&E clinicians were more likely to assess for bony, neurovascular and gross tendon injuries as opposed to ligamentous or meniscal injury. Conclusions: The diagnostic rate of ACL injury at initial presentation remains low. Considerable delays to diagnosis and specialist consultation are apparent following ACL injury, the majority of which is attributable to health system delay.

xiii, 80 p. : ill. A print copy of this thesis is available through the UO Libraries. Search the library catalog for the location and call number. / Procedures for direct observation as part of functional behavior assessment (FBA) in natural settings continue to be an important area of inquiry and evaluation in the field of education. Spread across a continuum of control and rigor, various direct FBA methods involve a variety of strengths and limitations. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the treatment utility of routines analysis when applied to direct observation as part of the function-based assessment and intervention process in general education classrooms. Central to this procedure is the use of routines analysis during the FBA interview to inform and develop direct observation conditions. This procedure was evaluated across 3 students in grades K-6. Data collected via this procedure showed utility when compared to traditional ABC observation methods such that clearer indications of a hypothesized function of behavior were obtained. Interventions developed from the assessment data resulted in an observed decrease in problem behavior for each participant. Results of this study suggest the importance of routines analysis as a possible way to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the FBA process. / Committee in charge: Cynthia Anderson, Chairperson, Special Education and Clinical Sciences; Robert Horner, Member, Special Education and Clinical Sciences; Richard Albin, Member, Special Education and Clinical Sciences; Jean Stockard, Outside Member, Planning Public Policy & Mgmt

China’s development during the last several decades has happened at an amazing speed, and public plazas in China have changed considerably. For example, public dancing has become a very popular activity in most public plazas, and many more people than before are using these new plazas. However, some plazas are less popular than others. Therefore it is important to know what are the elements that affect people’s use of China’s public plazas? In the United States, William H. Whyte’s research proposed seven elements in public space that affect people. This study tried to answer the following questions: 1) Do William H. Whyte’s seven elements also apply to China? 2) How are urban public plazas used differently in the United States and China?

INTRODUCTION: Direct observation (DO) systems have been used for decades to assess free-living PA in children. These traditional DO systems identify the highest intensity observed during alternating observe-and-record periods. Using video-taped DO would allow researchers to code activities and contextual information each time the participant changes their behavior. PURPOSE: To develop and test a novel video-based DO system for children’s free-play activity. METHODS: Following iterative DO system development (The Observer XT, Noldus), 28 children (age=8.4 ± 1.5 years) participated in a 30-minute simulated free-play session that was recorded with a GoPro camera. Participants wore a portable indirect calorimetry (IC) device and an accelerometer on the hip (AG-H) and non-dominant wrist (AG-W). The DO system includes Whole Body Movement (body position, main movement pattern) that was further described with four modifiers: 1) Locomotion, 2) Limb Movement, 3) Activity Type, and 4) MET value. To assess intrarater reliability, an expert coder coded six randomly selected videos from the main sample and recoded the same videos one week later. Six novice coders were trained and coded three videos from the subsample to assess interrater reliability. To assess construct validity, total energy expenditure and time spent in activity intensity categories from DO were compared with IC and accelerometer estimates. RESULTS: Percent agreement for intrarater reliability was above 80% except for Locomotion (47%; video 3) and Limb Movement, MET value and Locomotion (19%, 78%, 26%), respectively, video 4). Across all variables, percent agreement for interrater reliability ranged widely from 12%-96%, 0-100%, and 36%-97% for videos 1, 2 and 3, respectively. Mean estimated time spent in PA intensity categories from AG-H overestimated sedentary (SED) and underestimated light, moderate, and moderate-to-vigorous PA (LPA, MPA, and MVPA; p < 0.001-0.008). AG-W and IC underestimated SED (p=0.03, p=0.03) and LPA (p< 0.001, pONCLUSION: The current DO system is feasible for observing detailed changes in children’s free-play activity. However, refinement to the system must be made to improve reliability before it is adopted as a criterion measure for free-play activity in children.

Recently, Direct Behavior Ratings have been shown to be a promising new tool for observing students and classrooms in an education setting for a variety of behaviors. The traditional method of observing students and classroom behavior was through tools called Systemic Direct Observations. Currently, there are only a few studies looking at the use of a Direct Behavior Rating as a device to collect peer comparison data to estimate classwide behavior problems. This study examined the estimated percentages of on-task and disruptive behavior between a Systemic Direct Observation with momentary time sampling and three random peers, a Systemic Direct Observation with momentary time sampling using the entire class, and a Direct Behavior Rating. Multiple undergraduate classrooms were taped and divided up into twenty-five 7-minute segments. The videos were then coded on all three of the observation forms with 100% reliability ratings. Results indicated that there was a strong relationship between the Direct Behavior Rating and the SDO classwide on-task estimates with 37% of the variance in the Systemic Direct Observation classwide data consistent with the Direct Behavior Rating data. There was a moderate relationship between the on-task Direct Behavior Rating and three-peer on-task with 13% of the variance in the Systemic Direct Observation data as a portion of the Direct Behavior Rating data. Results also showed that there was a significant correlation between Direct Behavior Rating both of the Systemic Direct Observation methods with 43% for the classwide Systemic Direct Observation and 39% of the three-peers Systemic Direct Observation variance consistent with the Direct Behavior Rating data. Implications and future directions were considered. The research yielded results that indicated that Direct Behavior Ratings might be a useful tool when evaluating classwide behavior, and that further research is warranted.

In recent years physical inactivity among students has become a matter of great concern. Nearly 65% of students do not meet the daily recommended level of physical activity, which is 60 minutes or more of moderate to vigorous physical activity each day, with 50% of that time being spent in moderate to vigorous levels of activity (CDC, 2010b). As a result, the 21st century has shown to be a time of many health problems such as, obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. In fact, nearly one third of all children are considered obese or overweight (Slawta & DeNeui, 2009). Researchers suggest that these health problems are directly related to students' sedentary lifestyles (Pate et al., 2006). Schools play a pivotal role in addressing and increasing physical activity during the school day. The purpose of this research study was to measure levels of physical activity in elementary students during school hours. Specifically, the study sought to discover if there were increased levels of physical activity while students were using a cross-curricular adventure playground, as compared to when they were engaged in free play or physical education class. The study also compared the different measurement types (pedometers, accelerometers, and the observational method) used to assess physical activity, to indicate which measurement types were most feasible in the elementary school setting. Schools are ideal locations for assessing levels of physical activity, as 95% of all children are enrolled in these learning institutions (National Center for Educational Statistics, 2005). The data indicate that physical education provided for the highest levels of moderate to vigorous activity, while both free play and cross-curricular activity still rendered adequate levels of physical activity. After studying the different measurement protocols (pedometers, accelerometers, and the observational method) used in this study, results suggested the pedometer to be the most feasible device to use for measuring children in these types of physical activity settings. One implication for practice was implementing cross-curricular physical activity as a supplement to other physical activities or as an addition to physical education classes in an effort to allow more time for academic instruction while having students engaged in physical activity. Another recommendation for practice was to use pedometers as a cost-effective physical activity measurement device for elementary students.

Background: Historically the identification of ACL injuries upon initial presentation is low and considerable diagnostic delays have been reported. However, specific evidence on the individual elements of, and factors which influence delay, is lacking. Aims: The overarching aim was to provide a comprehensive picture of delay to diagnosis and specialist consultation, including factors which influence delay. An additional aim was to determine whether the approach to examining acute knee injuries varied as a consequence of varying patient presentation or experience of the assessing clinician. Methods: Study 1: Cross -sectional survey. Study 2: Non-participant direct observation methodology. Results: Data from 194 patients were analysed in the survey. Only 15.5% of patients were given a correct diagnosis of ACL rupture at the initial consultation. Median delay to diagnosis was 67.5 days (IQR= 15 to 178 days) and specialist consultation 108 days (IQR= 38 to 292 days). The factors most influential on delay were whether a follow-up appointment was arranged after attending A&E, whether the site of attendance operated an acute knee clinic and whether MRI was performed. The direct observation study showed wide variation in approach to injury assessment. Specialist clinicians performed the most comprehensive examination. A&E clinicians were more likely to assess for bony, neurovascular and gross tendon injuries as opposed to ligamentous or meniscal injury. Conclusions: The diagnostic rate of ACL injury at initial presentation remains low. Considerable delays to diagnosis and specialist consultation are apparent following ACL injury, the majority of which is attributable to health system delay.