Analysis of Stair Climbing to Find an Optimum Knee Angle in Order to Reduce the Chances of Leg Muscle Fatigue and Injuries

Stair climbing is one of the unique exercises which is frequently used and helps in maintaining the leg muscles active and healthy. However, if the height of the stair is not optimum, it may cause serious injuries due to increased or decreased knee angle that may damage the human leg muscles such as quadriceps and hamstring involved in its proper function. A stair climbing leg model PASCO ME-7001 was designed to find an optimum knee angle for reducing the maximum chances of leg muscle fatigue and injuries by using the force sensors. Resultant forces applied on leg muscles i.e. hamstring and quadriceps at 4 different average angles: 40º, 57º, 68º, and 76º for four different stair heights: 3", 5", 7", and 9" respectively were studied graphically during ascending stairs. Also, the energy consumption of quadriceps is calculated for the desired 4 average angles. The optimum knee angle maybe 57-68 degrees at 5"-7" stair height for both flexion and extension of the leg during stair climbing.

Analysis of Multiple Assessment Practices at Secondary Level in Pakistan

Ministry of Education Government of Pakistan (2009, 2017) focused on English teachers to use modern assessment techniques for measuring students’ learning through multiple assessment methods. The study was designed to study in this context. The prime focus of the study was to investigate the English teachers’ perception, practice, paradigm preference and impact of multiple assessments on students’ scores. The population of the study was all secondary schools’ English teachers and their respective 10th class students. Cluster sampling was used as the two main streams of education (federal and provincial) were included in the study for knowing English teachers exercise of multiple assessment. The equal participation of federal and provincial English teachers was ensured having similar division on the basis of gender and locality. The revised validated assessment tools: CAPSQ-LT, 2011; SPAQ, 2012 and English Teachers’ Beliefs and Practices of Multiple Assessments, (2003, 2008) were consulted before designing the research instrument. The research tool was finalized after expert opinions. The tool had three parts; the first part of the questionnaire dealt with demographic details, the second part investigated teachers’ perception and practice regarding multiple assessment practices and the third part explored English teachers’ assessment paradigms preferences. The sample of the study was 344 English teachers and 3440 students (ten students of each sampled teacher). The data was analyzed through descriptive and inferential statistics unveiling English Teachers’ multiple assessment perceptions, practices, its impact on student’s results and paradigms preference of English teachers. The findings of the study revealed the higher perceptional mean score as compared to their practices. The positive correlation was found between perception and practices of four multiple practices. The gap was identified between perception and practice of Alternative assessment practice. The statistical analysis of multiple assessment practices of English teachers were graded as: Test-based; Traditional; Observational; Task-Based and Alternative consecutively that revealed the teachers more frequently exercised those practices which are designed for summative assessment. The analysis of assessment paradigms reflected the secondary school’s English teachers’ preference as: assessment of learning; assessment to inform; assessment for learning; assessment as learning and assessment for instruction. The alignment of multiple assessment practices and paradigms preferences of English teachers is evident from the findings which indicate that the teachers exercised assessment practice according to paradigm (purpose of assessment) which they reflected from their preferences. The inferential statistics revealed that the most applied assessment practices Test-based and Traditional did not prove their significant impact on students’ results while highly significant impact was calculated of Observational, Task-Based and Alternative assessment practices that were less exercised by English teachers. It was deduced from the English teachers’ corroborated preferences of assessment paradigms and assessment practices that the primary focus of English teachers was not encouraging students to improve their language competency rather they mostly used those assessment practices that minimize the scope of assessment to assign grades or award certificates to the learners. Thus, it is concluded that there arises a need of changing teachers’ assessment preferences for availing the maximum benefits from all assessment practices by providing them facilitation to exercise those practices that widen the scope of learning. The researcher recommended the teachers’ assessment literacy, pre-service and in-service teacher’s assessment training for improving and enhancing the professional skills of English teachers in the field of assessment.