Self-efficacy, stress and job satisfaction among pre-service, novice and experienced English teachers: a study of their occupational health.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to investigate English teachers' self-efficacy for student engagement, classroom management, instructional strategies and literacy instruction, as well as to determine whether teacher stress and job satisfaction may affect their occupational health (in terms of self-efficacy). In addition, this is one of the first studies to examine the differences in self-efficacy among pre-service, novice and experienced in-service teachers in a Chinese society, where English is positioned as a foreign language. PARTICIPANTS AND PROCEDURE: 271 English teachers (90 pre-service, 181 in-service) with mean teaching experience of 5.57 months for per-service and 98.51 months for in-service participated in this quantitative research study. As the targets could not be approached randomly, the English teachers were approached individually though referral sampling, informing them of the purpose of the study and obtaining their consent. RESULTS: It was found that both pre-service and novice in-service teachers possess the lowest self-efficacy. Moreover, teachers' stress from the classroom predicted their self-efficacy for student engagement and classroom management negatively. On the other hand, teachers' job satisfaction predicts their self-efficacy for student engagement, instructional strategies and literacy instruction positively. CONCLUSIONS: Implications (based on the findings) are discussed in order to provide insights for schools and education departments to strengthen the teachers' capability of teaching and their occupational health.

Tai Chi as an Alternative Exercise to Improve Physical Fitness for Children and Adolescents with Intellectual Disability.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of Tai Chi (TC) on anthropometric parameters and physical fitness among children and adolescents with intellectual disabilities (ID). METHODS: Sixty-six Chinese individuals engaged in sport-related extracurricular activities (TC and aerobic exercise (AE)) as exercise interventions or arts/crafts activities as a control condition (CON). The experimental protocol consisted of a baseline assessment, a 12-week intervention period, and a post-intervention assessment. RESULTS: Significant interaction effect was only observed in the performance of a 6-min walk test. After 12 weeks of intervention, the AE group had significant changes in body mass index (p = 0.006, d = 0.11), sit-ups (p = 0.030 and d = 0.57), and 6-min walk test (p = 0.005, d = 0.89). Significant increases in vertical jump (p = 0.048, d = 0.41), lower-limb coordination (p = 0.008, d = 0.53), and upper-limb coordination (p = 0.048, d = 0.36) were observed in the TC group. Furthermore, the TC group demonstrated significantly greater improvements on balance compared to the control group (p = 0.011). CONCLUSIONS: TC may improve leg power and coordination of both lower and upper limbs, while AE may be beneficial for body mass index, sit-ups and cardiorespiratory fitness.

Sex differences in the development of perceived family cohesion and depressive symptoms in Taiwanese adolescents.

This study investigates the progression of family cohesion perceptions and depressive symptoms during the character development stage in adolescents. Data were used from the Taiwan Youth Project. The final sample comprised 2,690 adolescents with 1,312 girls (48.8%; M age = 13.0 yr., SD = 0.5). Latent curve growth analysis was employed to explore these developments. Seventh-grade girls reported greater family cohesion and more depressive symptoms than boys, and boys reported greater growth in family cohesion than girls. However, progression of depressive symptoms was not associated with the child's sex. Higher perceived family cohesion in Grade 7 correlated with less increase of depressive symptoms from Grades 9 to 11. The long-term positive influence of family cohesion on depressive symptoms is discussed.