This work aims to further the understanding of the trajectory and velocity profile of curved motion. Two competing theories, the two-thirds power law and the minimum jerk velocity profile, were tested. A set of two experiments was run that had the subjects generate curved motion. The first experiment had subjects move along a bounded oval and the second experiment had subjects move is a less constrained manner inducing a curved path. The study shows evidence for the expected effects of distance travel and allowable room for error. The evidence for the two movement profiles explaining the data is minimal.

Recent evidence suggests that when performing reach-and-grasp actions on day-to-day objects, lift-actions are faster to execute relative to use-actions, and that a “use-on-lift” interference occurs and produces switch costs when changing actions from using to then lifting (Jax & Buxbaum, 2010; Osiurak & Badets, 2016). Such findings result from paradigms that include the sudden appearance of objects, requiring participants to react quickly to the features of the object, independent of the functionality of the objects. Because of the importance this topic has to day-to-day interactions with objects, the following four experiments were executed with objects continuously visible to participants. When imitating images of hand actions on objects, participants showed no differences in the initiation time of use- and lift-actions, suggesting that no systematic differences exist between these two actions. Using this as a baseline, we compared a more generative approach, as when actions are instructed by auditory sentences. In this case, we see that switching actions is difficult, switching objects is even more difficult, and that use-actions are modestly faster than lift-actions; the reverse of what previous research shows. In a third experiment modelled after the paradigm used in studies producing rapid lift- and slowed use-actions, we showed that use-actions are actually facilitating lift-actions. Further, we demonstrate that having a use-action goal in mind provides the knowledge required to perform a lift-action, and that use-actions are again faster than lift-actions. These results are a critical addition to the task-switching literature on the cognitive control of motor processes associated with hand actions as distinctions are made between non-naturalistic and realistic settings relevant to day-to-day interactions with objects. We show that use-actions facilitate lift-actions and that, in realistic settings, both use- and lift-actions require access to stored knowledge. / Graduate / 0633 / hvanmook@uvic.ca

This dissertation is comprised of four studies investigating the hypothesis that adults and children who stutter differ from their same-age fluent peers in the neuroanatomy and neurophysiology underlying auditory speech processing. It has been consistently reported that adults who stutter demonstrate unique functional neural activation patterns during speech production, including reduced auditory activation, relative to nonstutterers. The extent to which these functional differences are accompanied by abnormal morphology of the brain in stutterers is unclear. The first study in this dissertation examined the neuroanatomical differences in speech-related cortex between adults who do and do not stutter using magnetic resonance imaging and voxel-based morphometry analyses. Adults who stutter were found to have localized grey matter volume increases in auditory and motor speech related cortex. The second study extended this line of research to children who stutter, who were found to have localized grey matter volume decreases in motor speech related cortex. Together, these studies suggest an abnormal trajectory of regional grey matter development in motor speech cortex of people who stutter. The last two studies investigated the mechanism underlying the repeated findings of reduced auditory activation during speech in people who stutter in more detail. Magnetoencephalography was used to investigate the hypothesis that people who stutter have increased speech induced suppression of early evoked auditory responses. Adults and children who stutter demonstrated typical levels of speech induced suppression relative to fluent peers. However, adults and children who stutter showed differences from peers in the timing of cortical auditory responses. Taken together, the studies demonstrate structural and functional abnormalities in brain regions related to auditory processing and point to the possibility that people who stutter have difficulty forming the neural representations of speech sounds necessary for fluent speech production.

This dissertation is comprised of four studies investigating the hypothesis that adults and children who stutter differ from their same-age fluent peers in the neuroanatomy and neurophysiology underlying auditory speech processing. It has been consistently reported that adults who stutter demonstrate unique functional neural activation patterns during speech production, including reduced auditory activation, relative to nonstutterers. The extent to which these functional differences are accompanied by abnormal morphology of the brain in stutterers is unclear. The first study in this dissertation examined the neuroanatomical differences in speech-related cortex between adults who do and do not stutter using magnetic resonance imaging and voxel-based morphometry analyses. Adults who stutter were found to have localized grey matter volume increases in auditory and motor speech related cortex. The second study extended this line of research to children who stutter, who were found to have localized grey matter volume decreases in motor speech related cortex. Together, these studies suggest an abnormal trajectory of regional grey matter development in motor speech cortex of people who stutter. The last two studies investigated the mechanism underlying the repeated findings of reduced auditory activation during speech in people who stutter in more detail. Magnetoencephalography was used to investigate the hypothesis that people who stutter have increased speech induced suppression of early evoked auditory responses. Adults and children who stutter demonstrated typical levels of speech induced suppression relative to fluent peers. However, adults and children who stutter showed differences from peers in the timing of cortical auditory responses. Taken together, the studies demonstrate structural and functional abnormalities in brain regions related to auditory processing and point to the possibility that people who stutter have difficulty forming the neural representations of speech sounds necessary for fluent speech production.

Reforms that have taken place in the South African education system since 1994 have led to changes in terms of how learning areas are taught in schools. There have been changes regarding the teaching of physical development activities in schools in recent years. Physical education as a subject was infused within life orientation (LO) as a learning area with physical development activities as one of the outcomes. The time to teach physical development activities has been reduced as other learning outcomes within LO have to be taught. This has led to situations where the teaching of physical development activities is undermined in many schools. Pressure to perform well in learning areas such as mathematics and literacy makes educators to devote less time on the teaching of physical development activities. To a larger extent, financial resources on the other hand, are being directed to other learning areas due to pressure to conform to international education standards. There is a need for school leaders to respond to new conditions of teaching. This research project deals with the leadership practices of heads of department (HODs) in the implementation of physical development activities. The study aims to investigate how HODs lead and manage the educators who teach physical development activities. Among other things, the study will focus on the HODs‟ leadership styles relevant to the teaching of physical development activities. The study will also look at challenges they experience in their departments, training needs and how they keep balance between teaching and monitoring educators who teach physical development activities. The researcher used qualitative research approach to collect information for the study. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with two HODs and four educators in two primary schools. The findings indicate that lack of experience and specialisation in the teaching of physical development activities has an influence on the HODs leadership style. More support is needed in the teaching of physical development activities in order to boost the confidence of those who are teaching this part of the learning area. Deployment of staff members to the relevant positions is one of the priority areas. An implication for schools, particularly HODs and school management teams is that the teaching of physical development activities is as important as the teaching of other learning areas. / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / gm2014 / Education Management and Policy Studies / unrestricted

Abstract The preverbal vocalisation up to the first word, feeding skills as well as motor development until the first steps of ELBW preterm infants without disability were compared in this descriptive study to those of healthy full-term infants. In addition, preverbal and feeding skills were studied in relation to gross motor movement patterns. The preverbal development of preterm infants proceeded according to the same temporal schedule as that of full-term infants, however, preterm infants failed to produce several vocalisation skills that full-term infants presented. The preterm infants increased their vocalisation slower than the full-term infants in the beginning of each of the developmental stages. The difference between the preterm and the full-term infants grew when approaching syllables, syllable combinations, and words. The preterm infants reached the first word approximately two months later than the full-term infants. The suckling of preterm infants was either disorganised or dysfunctional, while normal or disorganised in the case of full-term infants. The preterm infants reached the spoon-feeding skills approximately at the same (corrected) ages as the full-term infants, but the transitions to new stages were difficult. Half of the preterm infants suffered from feeding problems while only two of the full-term infants had feeding problems. Both the preterm and full-term infants reached vocalisation and feeding skills in relation to gross motor movement patterns earlier than assumed according to the predominant clinical knowledge. The vocalisation and feeding skills did not seem to be dependent upon the gross motor development. / Tiivistelmä Tässä kuvailevassa tutkimuksessa tarkasteltiin tiiviissä seurannassa erittäin ennenaikaisina ja pienipainoisina syntyneiden lasten esileksikaalista ääntelyä ensisanaan asti sekä syömistaitojen ja motoriikan kehitystä ensiaskeliin asti. Tuloksia verrattiin terveiden, täysiaikaisina syntyneiden lasten vastaaviin taitoihin. Lisäksi ääntelyn ja syömisen kehitystä tarkasteltiin suhteessa karkeamotoristen taitojen kehitysaikatauluun. Ennenaikaisesti syntyneiden lasten ääntely kehittyi saman aikataulun mukaan kuin täysiaikaisten lasten ääntely. Ennenaikaisesti syntyneet lapset jättivät kuitenkin väliin taitoja, jotka täysiaikaisina syntyneet lapset saavuttivat. Siirryttäessä uusille ääntelyn ja kielen kehitystasoille ennenaikaisina syntyneiden lasten ääntelyn määrä lisääntyi hitaammin kuin täysiaikaisina syntyneiden lasten ääntelyn määrä. Ero ennenaikaisina ja täysiaikaisina syntyneiden lasten kehityksessä kasvoi lähestyttäessä tavuja, tavuyhdistelmiä ja sanoja. Ennenaikaisesti syntyneet lapset saavuttivat ensisanavaiheen kaksi kuukautta täysiaikaisia lapsia myöhemmin. Ennenaikaisina syntyneiden lasten syömisen taidoissa havaittiin, että varhainen imeminen oli joko jäsentymätöntä tai poikkeavaa, kun täysiaikaisina syntyneillä se oli puolestaan normaalia tai jäsentymätöntä. Ennenaikaisina syntyneet lapset oppivat käsittelemään soseita ja kiinteitä ruokia samassa (korjatussa) iässä kuin täysiaikaisina syntyneet lapset, mutta siirtyminen kehitysvaiheesta toiseen tuotti vaikeutta. Puolet ennenaikaisista lapsista kärsi syömisvaikeuksista. Sen sijaan täysiaikaisina syntyneistä lapsista kahdella todettiin syömisen vaikeutta. Sekä ennenaikaisina että täysiaikaisina syntyneet lapset oppivat ääntelyn ja syömisen taitoja ennen tiettyjä karkeamotorisia liikemalleja, joiden on vallitsevan kuntoutuskäsityksen mukaisesti oletettu edeltävän näiden taitojen saavuttamista. Ääntelyn ja syömisen taidot eivät siis näyttäneet olevan riippuvaisia karkeamotoriikan kehityksestä.