Chapter 3 The haphazard connection: Social science and public policy

This chapter explores the history of social science knowledge utilization in America. Four main functions that social science serves for government officials are discussed. The chapter suggests characteristics for making research more useful for decision makers.     

Retrospective analysis of previous relationship disengagement and current and current attachment style

This study examined attachment styles and disengagement strategies used to end romantic relationships for 213 college students. The research predicted differences between attributions about the cause of the breakup and who initiated the breakup. The study also predicted differences in reports about the use of disengagement strategies, depending upon a person's attachment style and whom they attributed as the initiator of the breakup. People more frequently attributed the cause of breakups to situational factors than to the other person; and least frequently, to self. Persons who perceived they caused the breakup more frequently perceived they also initiated the breakup. Some of the hypothesized differences in reports about the use of disengagement strategies for persons with different attachment styles and different attributions of who initiated the breakup were observed for positive‐tone, behavioral de‐escalation, and negative identity management strategies. Leniency in self‐attributions was detected in higher reports of self‐use of justification strategies and lower reports of self‐use of behavioral de‐escalation.     

Strategies and students: beginning teachers' early encounters with national policy

The 1‐year Postgraduate Certificate in Education Secondary English method course at the University of Sheffield's School of Education has, since 2001, asked its students to write an essay of around 4000 words on their initial understanding and experience of the National Strategies promoted by the United Kingdom's Department for Education and Skills. The essay expects a critical, reflective and analytical piece of writing that records the student teacher's developing views on the place, role and value of the National Strategies in the classroom. Using grounded theory and content analysis techniques, this small‐scale study of the 2005 cohort identifies common perceptions regarding the National Strategies among student teachers of English and seeks to categorise these to account for their developing identities as future English teachers. Drawing on Twiselton's identification of teacher types, Task Manager, Curriculum Deliverer and Concept/Skill Builder, and Shulman's classification of knowledges necessary for teaching, this article will argue that the National Strategies and their respective Frameworks, while successful in moving teachers on from the role of ‘Task Managers’, runs the risk of locking teachers into being ‘Curriculum Deliverers’, and not developing the pedagogical content knowledge necessary for teaching English expertly.     

An exploration of arts teachers' beliefs and judgements concerning students with SEND

There is little research addressing teachers' beliefs and judgements concerning students with identified Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND), a group which is regularly cited as experiencing disadvantages in their schooling compared to peers. This paper draws on research which examined the beliefs and judgements of a set of arts teachers in an English secondary school regarding their students with SEND. Data were collected using observation, semi-structured and stimulated recall interviews. Phenomenological analysis uncovered patterns of tension in these beliefs and judgements. Teachers were able to consider some of the interactions between their students' individual characteristics and the classroom environment, and the ways these might give rise to certain educational needs; they also believed their subjects were singularly inclusive in providing for diverse needs. Nonetheless, traditional systems of educational assessment significantly affected what is judged ‘successful’ learning, which teachers tended to negatively associate with SEND. We conclude that deficit thinking about the educational capacities of students with SEND underlies teachers' judgements. Nevertheless, teachers do believe there are many ways for students to participate meaningfully, articulate and demonstrate understanding in arts subjects, which have the potential to challenge traditional notions of ‘success’.     

Middle years and middle schools: an analysis of national policy

The terms ‘primary education’ and ‘primary schools’ were in use long before 1945. However, it was not until 1 April 1945 that primary education became the first of three statutory stages of the English education system. At that time, primary education faced an uncertain future because of the enormous problems it had inherited from the elementary school tradition. This article charts the early challenges that were faced during the years of World War II and immediate post-war period.     

Students' use of writing strategies and their English writing achievements in Taiwan

The purpose of this study was to explore the role of students' use of writing strategies in light of their English writing achievements in Taiwan. This research used a cognitive approach to examine the process of writing. Forty student writers (including 20 low and 20 high achievers) in Taiwan participated in this study. Strategies used for writing by high and low achievers as revealed by a concurrent think-aloud protocol and immediate retrospective interviews with students were investigated, analysed, and compared. Results indicated that compared to low-achieving student writers, high-achieving student writers were more aware of and focused more on formulating their position statement in planning, generating text, and revising and editing their text, such as changing the meaning and fixing grammatical and spelling errors during their review. The findings are discussed in light of writing strategies and implications for writing pedagogy and teacher education.     

A phenomenological approach to experiences with technology: current state, promise, and future directions for research

In this paper I conceptualize experiences with technology as an object of study for educational technology research and propose phenomenology as a highly suitable method for studying this construct. I begin by reviewing existing research focusing on the construct of experiences with technology and the approaches utilized for its study. To augment this literature, I explain the phenomenological concept of experience and describe its utility for understanding experiences with technology. I propose the theoretical and methodological approach of phenomenology as a framework for developing a research agenda on experiences with technology and for unifying existing lines of research in this area. To illustrate the promise of this approach and to facilitate its application, I describe a research design consistent with the theoretical underpinnings of phenomenology, including methods for collecting and analyzing data as well as ethical and validity considerations specific to this research design. I conclude by identifying several possible research directions utilizing a phenomenological approach in educational technology to incite further research in this area.     

A national survey of current supervision and evaluation practices of school psychologists

This paper presents findings from a national survey of school psychologists regarding current supervision and evaluation practices. Thirty‐seven percent of usable surveys were returned. Overall results suggested that the sample of school psychologists were somewhat to moderately satisfied with current supervision and evaluation practices. However, wide variation in how supervision, evaluation, and professional development are obtained was indicated. The evaluation process is most often conducted by an administrator who may not be familiar with school psychology; and it is not viewed as an opportunity for professional development. In addition, evaluation criteria often are not tailored specifically to the roles of the school psychologist. Most alarming, and consistent with previous research, is that many school psychologists do not have enough supervision available to meet either their wishes or standards for the profession. Higher satisfaction with supervision was found when participants were provided with more regular and formal supervision contacts. Participants also indicated a person knowledgeable about school psychology could best provide supervision. Implications of the results and future directions are discussed. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.