Pedagogy,social status and inclusion in Cypriot schools

This paper reports on a study conducted in five primary schools in Cyprus, focusing in detail on one of them. The purpose of the research was to explore the social status of pupils identified as having special educational needs within mainstream settings. One of the key findings was that pedagogy influences the social status of these pupils. Therefore, this paper examines the dynamic relationship between pedagogy, social status and inclusion. A major intention for inclusion in Cyprus is to promote social interactions and relationships between pupils, identified as having special educational needs, and their peers. Thus, the research examined how far this aspiration is being fulfilled and set out to understand the role pedagogy might play in enhancing or impeding the social status and inclusion of these pupils. The findings suggest that the teaching arrangements and pedagogical approaches employed by teachers are central in shaping the social status and inclusion of all pupils and particularly those who have been identified as having special educational needs.     

‘Asking how instead of why’: exploring inclusive approaches to teaching and learning through pupil and teacher responses to a school link project

The association of inclusive education with an equity discourse means that the question of ‘how’ to include is one currently faced by many teachers in the UK. Written by Eve Griffiths, who teaches English, literacy, media studies and drama in a special school in Wolverhampton, this article constructs a set of inclusive principles for teaching and learning and reports on pupil and teacher responses in mainstream and special schools to a three‐week literacy project in which these approaches were implemented. Research diaries and small group‐based interviews were used in both educational settings to access the opinions of 20 pupils with a Statement of special educational needs. The research found that the pedagogical approaches were successful in breaking down some barriers to inclusion between the two groups of pupils, but Eve Griffiths concludes that significant changes would need to be brought about for there to be any longevity in the eradication of these obstructions.     

Assessing the learning of pupils with special educational needs and disabilities in mainstream school physical education

In the UK, one consequence of neoliberalism has been the development of test cultures in schools and standardised assessment strategies used to judge all pupils against within and across curriculum subjects. Few studies to date have explored the influence of this on assessing the learning of pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), and none have centred physical education (PE). This study used the concept of ableism and semi-structured interviews to explore mainstream secondary school PE teachers’ views and experiences of assessing the learning of pupils with SEND. Based on the findings, we discuss the importance of schools disrupting hegemonic, ableist modes of thinking that cast pupils with SEND as being of inferior ability when compared with their peers and thus being disadvantaged by standardised, normative assessment practices. Specifically, we identify a need for senior leaders and teachers in schools to recognise the needs and capabilities of pupils with SEND, through more holistic assessment approaches that focus on social, affective, cognitive and physical learning and development. We end by discussing the significance of initial teacher education and teacher networks to support this endeavour and advocating for the amplification of the voices of pupils with SEND, given that they have expert knowledge about the perceived inclusivity of assessment in PE because they can draw upon their lived and embodied experiences.     

Individual participant data meta-analysis of the impact of educational interventions on pupils eligible for Free School Meals

Meta-analysis is the synthesis of findings from research projects, which enables an estimate of the average or pooled effect across various studies. This study presents findings from the intention to treat analysis for a series of educational evaluations in England using a two-stage meta-analysis with standardised outcome data and individual participant data meta-analyses. The research estimates the overall impact of educational trials on pupils eligible for Free School Meals (FSM) and the attainment gap in literacy and mathematics performance between FSM and non-FSM pupils based on analysis of 88 trials and data from over half a million pupils. For the meta-analyses, frequentist and Bayesian multilevel models were used to estimate the individual and pooled effect size across categories of explanatory variables such as age groups (key stages in England) and aspects of the type of interventions (one-to-one, small group, whole class). Results indicated that the overall impact of interventions on the literacy outcomes of FSM pupils was positive, with a pooled effect size of 0.06 (0.03, 0.08). However, for mathematics, no overall effect on FSM pupils was observed. Analysis of the attainment gap indicated that literacy outcomes for FSM pupils were improved by interventions marginally more than for non-FSM pupils (pooled attainment gap 0.01 (−0.01, 0.04)). The risk of bias assessment showed that estimates were consistent across different methodological approaches. Overall, evidence from this study can be used to identify, test and scale educational interventions in schools to improve educational outcomes for disadvantaged pupils.     

Pupils’ everyday transitions in school as a condition for social relations and activities in leisure time centres

This article focuses on how pupils’ everyday transitions constitute a condition for pupils’ activities and relationships, and how pupils understand and give meaning to their everyday transitions between different school settings (school and Leisure Time Centre). To examine this, we made participant observations in three different educational settings. The focus of these observations is on pupils in their everyday life in school and LTC, thereby gaining insight into the experiences of being a pupil in these settings. In regard to social relations, the changes brought about by daily transitions between educational settings create conditions for different activities and changes in the group. The changes in groups that occur in the different contexts of everyday transitions in school can be both an opportunity and an obstacle, depending on the situation and with whom pupils wish to engage in social interaction. Thus, it is clear that the transition from school to LTC often involves changes in the group, thereby changing the conditions of pupils’ opportunities to form relationships with each other.     

Teachers’ Attributions of Causality,Control and Responsibility in Respect of Difficult Pupil Behaviour and its Successful Management

It is now almost a quarter of a century since the publication of the first paper demonstrating the effects of a behavioural approach within a British school setting (Ward, 1971). In the intervening period, a succession of papers, mostly in the form of case studies, have extended such work. However, accounts have also frequently drawn attention to the fact that such methods do not always correspond with teachers’ more intuitive approaches to the behaviour of pupils they deem difficult to manage. This paper considers the various attempts that have been made to synthesise behavioural approaches with other theoretical frameworks in order to understand better these recurring problems of implementation within educational settings. One prominent psychological perspective that has been relatively neglected from these considerations is that of attribution theory. This paper reports on an interview study of 24 primary age‐range teachers who had successfully adopted a behavioural approach to a difficult pupil in consultation with an educational psychologist (EP). An analysis is made of these teachers’ attributions for the origins of the pupils’ behaviour and for the improvements that are achieved. The results indicate that different models of attribution are applied by the teachers to the pupils, parents and themselves, suggesting that for sustained and generalisable improvements, EPs may need to take a much more explicit and detailed approach to teachers’ construing of difficult behaviour as well as their actions in response to it.     

Inclusion and deaf education: the perceptions and experiences of young deaf people in Northern Ireland and Sweden

The purpose of the present study is to examine what the concept of inclusion means and how it relates to children who are deaf. The paper begins with a background to deaf education, followed by specific reference to how inclusion is perceived in Northern Ireland and in Sweden. It investigates the experiences and opinions of deaf pupils in Schools for the deaf in both countries where different educational philosophies and forms of instruction prevail. A qualitative approach was adopted in which interviews were conducted with deaf pupils who were in their last school year, had left school recently or were in post-compulsory education. The results indicated that Swedish respondents described their experiences markedly more positively than those in Northern Ireland. The main reason for this was the encouragement of a deaf cultural environment where sign language was used by teachers and pupils for instruction and social interaction throughout the school. Although such a culture was not in evidence in Northern Ireland, positive experiences reported by respondents were associated with sign language and a deaf classroom assistant to facilitate comprehension between teachers and pupils. Implications are drawn for effective, inclusive practice in educational settings of deaf children.     

Promoting Physical Activity in Youth: Focus on Middle SchooI Environments

The sharp decline in physical activity during adolescence is a national concem. However. few studies of adherence to exercise and physical activity have heen conducted with youths. This paper focuses on ecological approaches for promoting physical activily in middle schools. Baseline data collected in physical education classes. leisure time settings, and suuctured extracurricular programs during the four-year Middle School Physical Activity and Nutrition (M-SPAN) project are reviewed. Refocusing physical education goals, promoting gender equity in physical activity opportunities. and linking schools with conimunity agencies are recommended as means for promoting physical activity among adolescents.     

A School Discovers the Gustatory

For the educational sages such as Salzmann or Fröbel it is quite normal to consider nutrition an educational factor as well. But perhaps at that time it was also simpler since it was clear enough from looking at pupils whether they were hungry or not. Today, on the other hand, there are if anything too many fat pupils, but that is probably only conspicuous in physical education. Still, a considerable portion of West German citizens suffer from a vitamin deficiency! This in any case is what the "German Society for Nutrition," which is by no means a lobby for Müsli, has found.     

Notes on contributors

Social cohesion in school is reflected in social discrimination processes and the complementary social roles of teachers, pupils, other staff and pupils' relatives. School social cohesion varies in level from high, characterised by prosocial interactions, to low, characterised by antisocial or violent interactions. Antisocial behaviour is usually embedded in specific interaction patterns between different social actors and is based on specific motives or stereotypes that elicit or justify this behaviour. Comprehensive study of these patterns is enabled by information and communication technology (ICT). The aim of this study is to use ICT to investigate social interaction patterns between personal and school characteristics of secondary school teachers and their curricular and disciplinary characteristics and experience of violence, including the motives they perceive when they are the victim, perpetrator or witness of six types of violence, differentiated according to the complementary roles of pupils, other teachers, other school staff and pupils' relatives. Three questionnaires were developed and used in a nationwide Internet‐based survey in Dutch secondary schools. This school safety monitor was completed in 2006 by 5148 teachers, 80,770 pupils, 1749 educational support staff and 629 school managers. Data were checked for reliability, scale homogeneity and representativeness. Pearson correlation analysis was used to examine the social interaction patterns in teachers' data. The results reveal violence‐specific social behaviour and social‐mirroring processes between teachers and pupils in particular. Furthermore, teachers who are younger, female or working in low‐attainment educational settings apply more curricular differentiation and collaborate more with pupils on disciplinary matters than their respective counterparts. Teachers who work in low‐attainment schools, who work in cities, who are homosexual/lesbian or who do not feel most at home in The Netherlands experience more violent behaviour as a victim or witness than their respective counterparts. In particular, teachers attribute the following motives to violence: physical appearance, behaviour, level of school achievement, a handicap, being religious, gender, sexual preference and ways of dealing with non‐conforming behaviour or punishments. Compared to teachers, pupils gave a broad array of motives for every type of violence. The conclusion is that Internet‐based data‐collection procedures provide a more comprehensive and systematic picture of social discrimination and violence motive patterns in schools than has hitherto been customary.     

Pupils’ Liking for Physical Education as a School Subject

Stensaasen, S. 1975. Pupils’ Liking for Physical Education as a School Subject. Scand. J. educ. Res. 19, 111‐129. The intention of the present study was to assess adolescent pupils’ liking for physical education as a school subject and what aspects of this subject they particularly liked and disliked. The empirical data stem from 1321 pupils at the 7th, 8th and 9th grades levels at youth schools situated in eight densely populated areas in south‐east Norway. Data on the pupils’ liking for physical education and other school subjects were gathered by means of a five‐graded Likert scale and on aspects which the pupils liked or disliked by means of open‐ended questions. Physical education was found to be one ‘of the best liked subjects in school. No sex or grade differences could be detected. The results showed a very high degree of consistency over time from fall to spring.     

Children's rights,school exclusion and alternative educational provision

This paper examines findings from a recent study in Wales of school exclusion and alternative educational provision. Many, but not all, children in alternative provision have been excluded from school. The most recent statistics reveal that nearly 90% of pupils in alternative provision have special educational needs, nearly 70% are entitled to free school meals (free school meal entitlement is often used as a proxy indicator for poverty in the UK) and three quarters are boys (Welsh Government. 2012a. Pupils Educated Other than at School, 2011/12. Cardiff: Welsh Government). The paper focuses on analysis of findings about young people's experiences of exclusion and alternative provision, and how these experiences may be contextualised within a discussion of children's rights. This analysis suggests that young people's experience is highly variable; that inappropriate curricula are still common, pastoral support uneven and that few opportunities exist for success or re-integration. In the most disturbing examples, young people were found to have experienced physical restraint and the use of isolation as punishment. The paper concludes, therefore, with a proposal for change aimed at ensuring that children's rights are placed at the heart of educational experience in practice as well as policy.     

The influence of occupational socialisation upon the teaching of pupils experiencing social and emotional behavioural difficulties (SEBD) in physical education

Research within physical education (PE) utilising the occupational socialisation framework indicates that the childhood phase of socialisation is the most powerful phase of socialisation. However, for most teachers working with pupils experiencing special educational needs (SEN), the childhood phase often lacks direct experience of SEN and thus ceases to exist as a socialising force. Consequently, the higher education and workplace phases form a ‘salvaged’ phase upon which to base pedagogical approaches (Pugach). In light of this dichotomy, the aims of this case study were to (1) examine how one PE head of department (HOD) in a specialist social and emotional behavioural difficulties (SEBD) school taught year 9 pupils games; (2) identify factors that led to such instruction and (3) consider the influence of the three phases of occupational socialisation on her pedagogical approaches. Data collection methods consisted of formal and informal interviews and lesson observations. The data were inductively analysed, and themes were drawn from this process. Using a systematic learning approach, lessons were game orientated based around pupil decision‐making and limited technical practice. Factors influencing this practice were her exploratory outdoor activity experiences and the nature of the pupils. In contrast to Pugach, this research indicates that the childhood phase of socialisation can provide an ‘apprenticeship of observation’ for those teaching PE to pupils experiencing SEBD. That such perceptions can be strongly held suggests that prior examination of the childhood biographies of those recruited to PE teacher training and/or PE teachers teaching pupils who experience SEBD appears warranted.     

Learning environments in information and communications technology classrooms

Abstract

The study of learning environments provides a useful research framework for investigating the effects of educational innovations such as those which are associated with the use of the Internet in classroom settings. This study reports an investigation into the use of Internet technologies in high-school classrooms in Australia and Canada. Specifically, it combined the investigation of the physical and psychosocial learning environments featured within these ‘technological settings’, as well as interactions among the selected physical and psychosocial factors in influencing students' satisfaction with their learning in these settings. Further, we explored how both the physical and psychosocial domains can effectively enable or, alternatively, constrain the teaching methods used in these classrooms. We first explored the learning environment in these classrooms through the use of a questionnaire measuring aspects of the psychosocial learning environment together with ergonomic site evaluations. Next, we investigated interactions among physical and psychosocial variables in these classrooms through selected and detailed case studies, which included a more detailed assessment of the physical classroom environment in tandem with classroom observations and student/teacher interviews. The results offer insights into new approaches to technology implementation and teaching practice and call for teachers to take a leading role in classroom laboratory design.     

Preferential treatment or unwanted in mainstream schools? The perceptions of parents and teachers with regards to pupils with special educational needs and challenging behaviour

This study explored the perceptions of parents and teachers regarding the differential treatment or stigma experienced by pupils with challenging behaviour – more specifically, those with behavioural, emotional and social difficulties (BESD), as well as children with visible special educational needs (Down's syndrome and/or profound and multiple learning difficulties) who frequently displayed challenging behaviour as a characteristic of their SEN. Semi‐structured interviews were conducted with ten parents of children with challenging behaviour, together with 15 educational practitioners employed in mainstream and BESD schools. Findings revealed how several parents, and staff employed in BESD schools, viewed pupils with challenging behaviour as ‘unwanted’ in mainstream schools. The remaining parents, as well as mainstream practitioners, reported the opposite and indicated that these pupils received treatment deemed to be ‘preferential’ in the mainstream. This has direct implications for those concerned with supporting pupils with challenging behaviour in mainstream settings.     

Teachers’ professional beliefs about their roles and the pupils’ roles in the school

In recent decades, many educational reforms have been implemented that aim to effect a change in teachers’ and pupils’ roles by promoting meaningful learning. Yet, little is known about how teachers perceive these roles as a part of their professional belief system. In this study, 68 Finnish comprehensive school teachers were interviewed. The data were content analysed. The results showed that teachers recognised the importance of facilitating pupils’ active role in learning, but still mostly considered pupils as passive in school practices. Moreover, teachers perceived pupils as active educational participants most often outside the classroom, in informal school settings. Correspondingly, teachers described themselves primarily as knowledge transmitters in pupils’ learning. In their professional community, teachers perceived themselves mostly as reproducers of knowledge instead of facilitators of learning. There was also variation between the teachers as well as within a single teacher’s beliefs.     

Self-determination of pupils with intellectual disabilities in Norwegian secondary school

This article examines how the self-determination of pupils with intellectual disabilities is practised in secondary school in Norway and discusses possible challenges connected to this practice. The argumentation builds on the fieldwork of qualitative interviews (N?=?55) and participant observations in schools in Norway (pupils 13–16?years old). The pupils attend a variety of educational settings, including ordinary classes at mainstream schools, the department of special education at mainstream schools and special education schools. The study reveals considerable variations in the pupils’ opportunities to practise self-determination. While the self-determination of pupils with intellectual disabilities is rather extensive when it comes to their influence over informal and minor decisions in everyday life at school, it is very limited when it comes to formal and major decisions. Furthermore, the implementation of the pupils’ self-determination is primarily spontaneous and seldom anchored in the pupils’ Individual Education Plans. Such an implementation practice limits the pupils’ opportunities to participate in democratic processes, learning and social interaction.     

Supporting pupils in school with social,emotional and mental health needs: a scoping review of the literature

This article reports on a scoping review of the academic and related literature published between 2000 and 2015 that addressed the education provision for secondary aged pupils with social, emotional and/or mental health difficulties (SEMH) conducted over a six week period in 2015. A total of 168 documents met the inclusion criteria for the review, including 110 peer reviewed journal articles. The authors found an emerging evidence base to support more effective provision for pupils with SEMH, but there remains, particularly at the group and individual level a dearth of literature. Underpinning all the successful programmes in this review was a positive approach adopted by teachers and school leaders to pupils with SEMH. There was an overlap in practice between approaches used at universal, group and individual level but the majority of effective approaches were common to mainstream and specialist settings.     

Preparing for Contact Between Mainstream Pupils and their Counterparts Who Have Severe and Profound and Multiple Learning Disabilities

Despite the increasing societal inclusion of young people with a disability in Ireland, there is very little evidence of any substantive improvement with regard to inclusion for young people with severe and profound and multiple learning disabilities (usually referred to, in educational settings in the UK, as pupils or students with severe and profound and multiple learning difficulties). As a result, these young people often remain isolated within their local communities and have minimal contact, if any, with their mainstream counterparts. One innovative schools link programme in Ireland offers structured curricular activities that include mainstream pupils and their peers who have severe and profound and multiple learning disabilities. A video programme was used in the pre-contact phase of the programme and this paper explores the effectiveness of the video programme in preparing the mainstream pupils to meet their counterparts who have severe and profound and multiple learning disabilities. Michael Shevlin, who teaches in the Education Department of Trinity College Dublin and has research interests in inclusion, argues that it was evident that the mainstream pupils reacted positively to the video programme and found it useful in overcoming their anxieties at the prospect of contact. He discusses the implications of these findings in relation to the further development of structured contact sessions in integrated classrooms and to the wider issue of societal inclusion for young people with severe and profound and multiple learning disabilities.