The implementation of ‘Education for Citizenship’ in schools in Scotland: a research report

Changes in society and government have increased concerns of low participation and involvement by people, especially the young, in the political process and decision-making. As a result, citizenship has become a focus of recent curriculum developments in many countries. In Scotland, ‘Values and Citizenship’ has been made one of the Scottish Executive's national priorities for education and is linked to the major national initiative, ‘Education for Citizenship’. This is seen as encouraging pupils to make informed choices and decisions and to take action, individually and as part of the community. More recently, A curriculum for excellence 3–18 (SEED 2004 Shucksmith, J. and Spratt, J. 2001. Education for citizenship in Scotland: An analysis of responses to the consultation paper, Aberdeen: University of Aberdeen.  [Google Scholar]) placed promoting responsible citizenship at the heart of the curriculum. This article reports on the extent to which a sample of Scottish schools was making progress towards developing education for citizenship, the strategies they developed and the barriers encountered in this implementation. It compares progress and developments in Scotland to the model devised in a longitudinal study for citizenship in England (Ireland et al. 2004 Ireland, E. and Kerr, D. 2004. Making citizenship education real: Learning from current approaches in schools. Teaching Citizenship, 9: 20–25.  [Google Scholar], 2006 Ireland, E., Kerr, D., Lopes, J., Nelson, J. and Cleaver, E. 2006. Active citizenship and young people: Opportunities, experiences and challenges in and beyond school, London: DfES.  [Google Scholar]).     

Pedagogical Transaction in Religious Education: Diversified Society and John Dewey’s Philosophy of Education

The focus of the article is on how a new approach to religious education (RE) in diversified societies can be constructed on the basis of the theory of pedagogical transaction presented by John Dewey. Reflections of developing RE are very current in Western secularized societies. We believe that Dewey's pragmatist philosophy of education and philosophy of religion are still highly relevant to RE. The article consists of three sections: (1) contemporary discussions of RE, (2) reflections on Dewey's philosophy of religion, especially religious experience, and (3) the implementations of Dewey's theory to RE. We conclude by applying pedagogical transaction theory to current challenges in order to design new models of RE in diversified societies. Accordingly, we construct a theory of RE for democratic, multifaith societies that are based on mutual understanding, respect, and recognition of active citizens living in diversified society.     

Academic Mentoring in College: The Interactive Role of Student’s and Mentor’s Interpersonal Dispositions

This study examined the interaction between college students attachment orientation and mentors relational style in the prediction of students behaviors and perceptions in academic mentoring and of their subsequent academic achievement. Ninety college students were administered the Adult Attachment Interview and their professors-mentors completed the Attachment Style Questionnaire. Students displayed more adaptive behaviors and perceptions in mentoring and earned higher grades when their attachment orientation was in contrast to their mentors relational style. Implications for the practice of academic mentoring in college are discussed.     

A review of Wolff-Michael Roth’s “In search of meaning and coherence: A life in research”

Wolff-Michael Roth’s In Search of Meaning and Coherence: A Life in Research, presents a selection of his previously published key works layered with current commentary and analysis. In this book review, we explore themes that emerge through the text to trace Roth’s development as a theoretician and as a researcher. We recommend this book for all those who are interested in Wolff-Michael Roth and the trajectory of his career, in particular those who are just beginning their journey towards academic scholarship.

“It’s More Than a Class”: Leisure Education’s Influence on College Student Engagement

As universities and colleges continue to seek out ways to improve student engagement on their campuses, attention has been given to the role that on-campus leisure opportunities can play in developing this engagement. Yet, little research has analyzed the influence of leisure education on student engagement in the higher education setting. The purpose of this study was to explore how for-credit Leisure Skills classes at a mid-sized southeastern university may build engagement. The results indicate that leisure education provides a uniquely positioned environment for building students’ sense of engagement with their institution through an enhanced sense of community, enhanced sense of self, and active learning.     

Conceptualizing and Contextualizing the Concept of Refugee in Education: A Phenomenological Study of Teachers’ and Students’ Perceptions in a Conflict-Affected Society

The aim of this study was to investigate Greek-Cypriot primary school teachers’ and students’ perceptions of the concept of refugee using a phenomenological-interpretive framework. The value of a phenomenological study was to gain a deeper understanding of the roots of participants’ perceptions of refugeehood as well as how those perceptions were connected to participants’ feelings about refugees. Data collection involved a total of 40 interviews—20 interviews with teachers and 20 interviews with students. Against legal definitions of refugee and internally displaced people, it is shown that participants’ understandings were rooted in their lived experiences of uprootedness, of loss of home, and of lack of belonging. The study makes a contribution in understanding the complexities and tensions between legal definitions and the situatedness of the concept of refugee in lived experiences. Contextualizing the concept of refugee can create pedagogical spaces for the affective dimension in teacher professional development, which is critical to understanding the lived experience of refugees in more complex and nuanced ways, especially within conflict-affected settings.     

Recruiting,Retaining, and Benefiting From a Diverse Community College Faculty: A Case Study of One College’s Successes

The variety of experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives that an ethnically diverse faculty provides a community college give it the capacity to support the complex work that community colleges undertake. The challenges in having a diverse faculty require recruiting diverse applicants and in retaining those applicants once hired. Achieving these twin aims has proven elusive for many community colleges. This case study explores one college that underwent significant institutional transformations and concurrently diversified its faculty in ways that helped it evolve the collective skills that the institution needed. Over a 15-year period, the college became the most diverse in its state while growing from 4.3% full-time faculty of color to 23.3% full-time faculty of color. The study explores that 15-year period through analysis of archived records and interviews with key informants. This study identifies how a diverse faculty strengthened the college; it also suggests three key principles for how other colleges can achieve such diversity.     

The Association Between a Community College’s Teacher Education Program and the 4-year Graduation Rates of Black and Hispanic Teacher Education Students

ABSTRACT

In response to a shortage of qualified Black and Hispanic teachers, community colleges (CC) have developed certificate programs and Associate of Arts degrees in teacher education to address shortages of minority teachers in the nation’s classrooms. We examined one CC’s effectiveness in transferring Black and Hispanic students to university teacher education programs and the association with Black and Hispanic students graduating with a bachelor’s degree. We compared enrollment and transfer student data for the 2003 community college teacher education program cohort to graduation data for native-to-university students of two 4-year universities. Data were analyzed using chi square and phi coefficients. The CC Black and Hispanic students graduated at the same rates as the native-to-university students and higher than their peers of the same races, regardless of major, who began at 2-year colleges at the national level. We encourage CC teacher education programs to invest resources to increase enrollment of Black and Hispanic students to address the growing need for minority teachers to serve in urban communities.     

School district administrators’ perspectives on the professional activities and influence of special educators in Norway and Sweden

The purpose of this study is to investigate school district administrators' perspectives concerning the professional activities and influence of special educators in Norway (n?=?266) and Sweden (n?=?290). We examine three themes drawn from a survey of practices and policies in each country: (a) the organisational arrangements in which special educators work, (b) perceived changes in special educators' activities, and (c) ratings of special educators' influence on the content of instruction and the availability of resources for children with special needs. Findings suggest that special educators frequently work in teams, function largely as advisors, and spend less time working with individual students than in previous years. There appears to be a more pronounced increase in special educators’ time devoted to advising and documentation in Sweden than in Norway. Swedish special educators were also more frequently described as working in multidisciplinary teams. Participants in both countries rated the influence of special educators significantly higher than that of parents and teachers on the availability and distribution of resources; and significantly higher than politicians, public officials, teachers, and parents with regard to influence over the content of instruction. We discuss these findings in relation to the goals and development of inclusive education in Scandinavia.     

Children’s Literature and Education: A Memoir of Dr. Lawrence Sipe

A personal reflection about Dr. Sipe as a teacher and a mentor.     

A conducive learning environment in international higher education: A systematic review of research on students’ perspectives

Higher education institutions (HEIs) strive to meet international students' needs and expectations regarding their learning environments. Current literature covers a wide range of needs, expectations, and HEIs' responses. However, there doesn't seem to be a consensus about the needs and expectations to be addressed. A coherent theoretical framework may help HEIs identify areas of need and provide additional resources and comprehensive services. We performed a systematic review to obtain an overview of international students' needs, expectations, and experiences regarding their learning environments as described in the literature. We categorized students' perspectives into dimensions. Subsequently, we investigated whether these dimensions related to the three key domains outlined in the theoretical framework and the coverage of these key domains by HEIs. Sixty-three studies were eligible for inclusion. We identified 18 dimensions of international students' needs, expectations, and experiences that could be mapped onto the framework. Based on these results, the content of the three domains could be summarized as goal direction, relationships, and supporting services. Thirteen studies covered one domain, 14 covered two domains, and 36 covered three domains. To provide optimal support, HEIs should cover all three domains. Our study may help to better understand and optimize learning environments for international students.     

Fred Clarke’s Ideals of Liberal Democracy: State and Community in Education

ABSTRACT

This paper examines the continuity and changes in Clarke’s ideas about the State and community in education, especially in relation to a rapidly changing political situation in England in the 1930s and 1940s. His ideas evolved in the intellectual context of British idealism. Moreover, in response to the threat to democracy arising from Fascism or Totalitarianism, the distinction between the State and community was a key theme in Clarke’s ideals of liberal democracy. Additionally, this paper also proposes the implications of Clarke’s ideas for future educational development.     

A Two-Generation Education Intervention and Children’s Attendance in Head Start

Two-generation human capital programs seek to promote the education of parents and children simultaneously. This study examines relations between family participation in CareerAdvance, which recruits parents of Head Start children into a workforce training program, and children’s Head Start attendance. The sample included 293 children (on average 4 years old) and their parents. After one semester, CareerAdvance children demonstrated higher rates of attendance and lower rates of absence and chronic absence (missing 10% or more of school days) than matched comparison children. These associations were similar across a range of high- and low-risk subgroups at baseline. These findings are discussed in terms of the implications of a family systems approach for improving children’s Head Start attendance.     

Developing ecological literacy in a forest garden: children’s perspectives

Today, cities become more dense, green spaces disappear and children spend less time outdoors. Research suggests that these conditions create health problems and lack of ecological literacy. To reverse such trends, localities are creating urban green spaces for children to visit during school time. Drawing on ideas in ecological literacy, this study investigates school children’s perspectives on a forest garden, a type of outdoor educational setting previously only scarcely researched. Data were collected through walk-and-talk conversations and informal interviews with 28 children aged 7 to 9. Many children in the study expressed strong positive feelings about the forest garden, the organized and spontaneous activities there, and caring for the organisms living there. We observed three aspects of learning in the data, potentially beneficial for the development of children’s ecological literacy: practical competence, learning how to co-exist and care, and biological knowledge and ecological understanding.     

What’s in a Name? In Pursuit of Israel Education

Naming a discipline is a key component in both the shaping and unpacking of its development. Still, little attention has been devoted to studying the ways in which this process has influenced Israel Education. Based on a long-term ethnographic study, this article presents Israel Education name choices and discusses the manner in which this naming unfolds and affects the development of this field. I claim that this process symbolizes a development beyond the classroom environment; reflects sociocultural and political changes in Israel-Diaspora relations; and exposes conceptual shifts in Israel pedagogy and transforms the place of Israel in Diaspora Jewish education.     

A Critique of the Stem Pipeline: Young People’s Identities in Sweden and Science Education Policy

In this article, we develop critiques of the pipeline model which dominates Western science education policy, using discourse analysis of interviews with two Swedish young women focused on ‘identity work’. We argue that it is important to unpack the ways that the pipeline model fails to engage with intersections of gender, ethnicity, social class and nationality, and their impact on science and with debates about science as elitist and implicated in neoliberalism.     

Education’s role in the economy: towards a new perspective

The economics of happiness is a developing field of inquiry that is arousing more and more interest among public policy-makers. This article discusses some of the educational implications that stem from this new field of inquiry. The article argues that the economics of happiness shows that the present educational focus on enhancing productivity is insufficient in and of itself and that greater emphasis should be placed on how education can help to transform wealth into happiness. It also maintains, however, that it would be inadvisable to directly derive the role that education should play in the economy from the findings of the economics of happiness. The current educational aim of enhancing productivity, it is concluded, must be complemented by an educational emphasis on informing, guiding and even shaping people’s economic preferences.