Using drawing in research with children: lessons from practice

Emerging from projects that have involved working with primary school children in school-related research, this article offers suggestions of how drawing as a principal means of data gathering can be either constructive or of little value. The qualitative research projects discussed include investigations of school improvement and consideration of school design, in which freehand drawing was used in different contexts with young people. In many cases, the value of the visual data was high, contributing strongly to the research aims. In some, however, the work contributed little meaningful data to address the research questions. The usefulness of data derived from drawings to the research was assessed by observing factors such as the materials and time available as well as teacher and peer influence. This article discusses those variables and proposes recommendations to improve the likelihood of obtaining quality visual data when working with children.     

Adaptations for young children with visual impairments in regular settings

Adaptations must be made in order to maximize the learning potential of children with visual impairments to compensate for learning which occurs through visual observation. As the impetus for integration in national and state legislation accelerates, more young children with visual impairments are being educated in community settings with nondisabled peers. The purpose of this article is to provide the child-care and preschool teacher with information that may facilitate the development of children with visual impairments with integrated or inclusive settings.     

Shaping space and practice to support autonomy: lessons from natural settings in Scotland

In the present paper, I explore some of the concrete manifestation of autonomy support in natural childcare and early childhood education settings, under the organising framework of self-determination theory. More specifically, I present the ways in which early childhood educators shape the space of natural settings and use the affordances of the natural environment to promote autonomy in children aged 3–8 years. The practices presented are a result of direct observation in several Scotland-based outdoor settings, observations and organic conversations with educators in outdoor and forest kindergartens. Hopefully the practices and spaces presented in this paper can be of use by educators and setting managers who aim to support autonomous learning and intrinsic motivation in their pupils in outdoor natural early years’ settings.

     

Engaging children in lessons: the role of efficient and effective teachers

The training of effective teachers has been one of the main aims of educational systems, in so far as it could be an important tool to improve the education performance of children and, consequently, contribute to their career progression and foster social mobility towards a more meritocratic society. The present study intends to identify these teachers by their ability to engage young students in lessons, which may reflect the capacity of their teaching practices and efficient use of available resources to increase students’ learning. We focus on 4th-grade reading and mathematics teachers in Spain – using TIMSS and PIRLS 2011 data – and we propose a 2-step procedure for this analysis: the 1st step obtains teachers’ efficiency scores, which are later employed in a 2nd step – together with teachers’ practices – to explain children’s engagement in lessons.     

English lessons: children’s poetic perspectives

Children from eleven PGCE partnership schools participated in a poetry writing competition. In writing a poem entitled An English Lesson they have provided an insight into what they experience in the English classroom. The poems, published in-house as an anthology, have been analysed using the key concepts of the National Curriculum for English ( QCA, 2007 ) – competence; creativity; cultural understanding; and critical understanding. This article accompanies some of the children’s poems.     

弱智儿童语文教学中先行组织者作用的实验研究

奥苏贝尔提出的“先行组织者”是一种有效的教学辅助手段 ,其作用已被多项实验研究所证实。本研究的主要目的是探讨先行组织者在高年级弱智儿童语文教学这一特殊的教学环境中应用的可行性和有效性。同时也研究和探讨不同组织形式的先行组织者 ,在弱智儿童语文教学中的作用的异同之处。     

Assessing coping in children and adolescents: Research and practice

Although standardized and psychometrically-sound instruments for assessing children's coping are essential to both clinical practice and theory development, there have been few systematic efforts to design such measures. This review of assessment instruments compatible with the Lazarus and Folkman (1984) formulation of coping reveals a limited number of instruments but great diversity in the types of techniques employed to assess the coping of children and adolescents. Types of measures critiqued include projective techniques, interviews, questionnaires, and behavioral observation scales. A comprehensive assessment procedure is proposed and suggestions for future research are discussed.     

Swimming against the tide: philosophy for children as counter-cultural practice

Philosophy for children (P4C), rooted in the Socratic Method and constructivist and pragmatic assumptions, is a dialogic and democratic pedagogy which teaches pupils to philosophise; to develop multi-dimensional modes of thinking through discussion of questions which connect with all human experience. Despite a wide range of research, both national and international, citing P4C's efficacy in promoting children's cognitive and affective skills the researcher observed that within her own Local Authority P4C failed in most cases to become established in the schools that had trained in this approach. As a consequence the researcher set out to explore teacher's perceptions of the factors determining the implementation of P4C in the classroom using a qualitative research methodology. Teachers do not teach in a vacuum; they are situated in a social, political and economic context which is broader than the classroom or the school. In order to better understand ‘the considerations which bear upon curricular action’, this paper will begin with a discussion of the wider policy context in which P4C is operating before moving on to explore the educational assumptions and practice of P4C and the extent to which these values and practices cohere with those espoused through the wider policy context. The researcher will then discuss the findings from qualitative interviews conducted with a small group of geographically dispersed primary school teachers in England. This paper argues that the ideology of economic rationalism, promulgated through educational policy and manifest in a culture of performativity and short-termism in the classroom, exposes conflicts of values for primary teachers with regard to the implementation of P4C which appear to suggest that P4C in the current educational climate represents counter-cultural practice.     

A model for enhancing social communication and interaction in everyday activities for primary school children with ASD

Children with a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder may find the social aspects of learning particularly challenging because of the traits of diffculty with social communication and interaction. This paper evaluates the impact of an interactive model designed to support social communication and interaction for twelve students with ASD, who attend three international primary schools in Hong Kong. Using an exploratory mixed‐methods approach, the study investigates the children's participation and engagement when a Social Communication and Interaction model is in operation. The model is built around the concept of mediation and the use of tools, which were intended to encourage children with ASD to be engaged in high‐level participation activities. Attention is drawn towards the children's growth of self‐confidence, a reduction of adult support and the children's increased participation with others in the activity sessions.     

Assessment in early childhood education: threats and challenges to effective assessment of immigrant children

Research indicates that early childhood professionals gather assessment information to monitor child development and learning, to guide curriculum planning and decision making, to identify children who may have special needs, to report and communicate with others, and to evaluate programmes. A review of literature indicates that immigrant children have low achievement assessment scores as compared with mainstream American children, also immigrant children enter kindergarten already behind their mainstream American peers. The current study explored early childhood teachers' perceptions of assessment measures used with immigrant children and the challenges faced when assessing immigrant children. Findings of the study reveal that there are several factors that make early childhood teachers fail to gather effective assessment information from immigrant children. Unless the factors are addressed, planning for effective curriculum for immigrant children using assessment data will continue to be a challenge for early childhood teachers. Factors that continue to affect gathering effective assessment data from immigrant children include language barriers, cultural clashes, socio‐economic factors, and culturally and linguistically biased assessment measures.     

‘Nature’ in German colonial literature for children and young people

ABSTRACT

German colonialism has long been treated as a sort of footnote in the epoch of the Empire due to its relatively short time span. The focus was mostly on the reconstruction of a story of ‘white’ men – as the story of pioneers, ‘discoverers’, missionaries or traders. But how were children included in the colonial project? This article deals with this question with regard to the genre of colonial literature for children that emerged in the German Empire. Due to their pedagogic impetus these novels are of significance for historical educational research: they were explicitly put in the service of instruction to inspire children with the meaning of colonial issues. Within these novels ‘nature’ had high priority. On the basis of selected colonial novels for boys and girls, this article investigates the question of what was understood by ‘nature’ and of its importance for colonial education.     

浅谈师幼互动中的教育机会均等

本文从互动对象、互动内容、互动时间、互动性质四个方面探讨了师幼互动中的教育机会不均等现象,认为师幼互动中的教育机会不均等主要是由教师对幼儿的认识偏差、对幼儿的期望不同以及教师的社会背景、专业素养,还有幼儿的家庭背景引起的。     

Supporting children and families: lessons from Sure Start for evidence-based practice in health,social care and education

According to the relevance of teacher attitudes in the teaching process as well as to the great number of discussions among experts of pre-school education, it was interesting to examine the students of pre-school teaching about their attitudes toward the use of computer among pre-school children. The sample consisted of N = 40 students from regular study and N = 37 students of irregular study of Pre-school education from Faculty of Teacher Education in Rijeka. Their attitudes have been investigated using an 18-item questionnaire created for the purposes of this study only. Overall, it was determined that future pre-school teachers have no clear and decisive general attitude toward the use of computer among pre-school children. In addition, they have shown from neutral to more positive attitudes according to all other items but with certain conditions. The discussion resulted with the recommendations for pre-school teacher’s education.     

Dialogic practice in primary schools: how primary head teachers plan to embed philosophy for children into the whole school

The Philosophy for Children in Schools Project is an ongoing research project to explore the impact of philosophy for children (P4C) on classroom practice. This paper reports on the responses of head teachers, teachers and local educational authority (LA) officers in South Wales, UK, to the initial training programme in Philosophy for Children carried out by the University School of Education. Achieving change in schools through the embedding of new practices is an important challenge for head teachers. Interviews and qualitative questionnaires were used to explore perceptions of and attitudes towards the dialogic practice of P4C and the related challenges for school leaders. The results provide an insight into how head teachers planned to embed the new practice of P4C in their schools. Results from the interviews and questionnaires have been subject to iterative analysis and categories derived under which to discuss the findings. There are many similarities in the ways in which different head teachers go about planning change n their schools as well as differences. The results provide insight into the role of initial continuing professional development (CPD) in school development and the processes by which individual heads plan to embed change in practice across the whole school.     

Vulnerable children,communities and schools: lessons from three HIV/AIDS affected areas

The growing number of children made vulnerable by HIV/AIDS threatens the achievement of Education for All (EFA) and Millennium Development goals. Policy recommendations assign schools key roles in meeting the needs of vulnerable children, but there is a dearth of evidence about how vulnerable children and schools interact in AIDS affected communities. Case studies of schools and vulnerable children in Kenya, Malawi and Zimbabwe show that although schools are materially and symbolically well‐positioned to serve as the institutional base to meet the needs of vulnerable children, schools are not accountable for these children and have not reorganised or built capacity to meet their special needs. The Malawi and Zimbabwe cases show that elimination of fees, passive open door policies and exhortations are insufficient measures to bring and keep these children in school. The Kenya case study suggests that investments in long term, well‐resourced local partnerships can be effective.     

Supporting resilience in war-affected children: How differential impact theory is useful in humanitarian practice

This paper examines the utility of the Differential Impact Theory for child protection practitioners who work in humanitarian settings, with a focus on war-affected children. A primary advantage of DIT is that it focuses efforts to strengthen children's resilience on improving children's social ecologies at different levels. This ecological focus is more likely to address the sources of children's suffering and resilience and also helps to avoid the problems associated with an individualized focus. It also shows how DIT provides a differentiated view of war-affected children and stimulates multiple interventions at different ecological levels, avoiding the common error of taking a one size fits all approach to intervention. In keeping with DIT, it suggests that child protection practice would benefit from addressing macro-level risks such as poverty and discrimination that are drivers of various harms to children and from more systematic linkages between macro- and micro-levels. It concludes that DIT serves as a critical lens for viewing current work on child protection in humanitarian settings and also for illuminating ways to develop more comprehensive supports for children's resilience.     

‘SENitizing’ migrant children in inclusive settings: exploring the impact of the Salamanca Statement thinking in Italy and the United States

ABSTRACT

This paper emphasizes the aporetic nature of the Salamanca Statement on Special Needs Education (UNESCO, 1994), adopting a cross-cultural perspective. It draws on an intersectional perspective on inclusion (Connor, Ferri & Annamma, 2016; Artiles & Kozleski, 2016 Artiles, A. J., and E. B. Kozleski. 2016. “Inclusive Education’s Promises and Trajectories: Critical Notes About Future Research on a Vulnerable Idea.” Education Policy Analysis Archives 24 (43): 1–29. [Google Scholar]; Erevelles, 2014) to argue that although inclusion has been defined by such an international declaration as a transformative project to ensure access to quality education for all students, national inclusive policies are still focused on a pathological construction of student difference, slowly incorporating children from different linguistic and ethnic backgrounds. The focus on Italy and the United States is a response to examine the discourses and practices of inclusion in two countries that have been impacted by the Salamanca Statement thinking. To substantiate our argument concerned with the limitations embedded in the Salamanca Statement, data from two empirical studies conducted in Rome and in Upstate New York will be presented. The studies show how inclusion leads to overrepresentation of migrant students in Special Educational Needs. We conclude that the Salamanca Statement has been transferred into a tool to strengthen normality against difference, and that it should focus on interrupting micro-exclusions for groups sitting at the intersections of race, ability and other identity markers.     

Chinese children with ASD in Hong Kong (SAR): development of inclusive practice

The advancement of inclusive educational provision in the Asia‐Pacific region has been guided by international research. As one example, Hong Kong has developed a unique and cultural response to inclusive practice within the region. This paper reviews Hong Kong's development of inclusive education practice for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). It provides an account of how services in education have developed for Chinese children with ASD, from diagnosis to school placement, and how the students are supported. A number of challenges for the region are discussed including those related to pedagogy, mentoring, placement, support and the need for culturally appropriate professional learning.     

Implementing Godly Play in educational settings: a cautionary tale

At the heart of all curriculum decision-making is the learner. Contemporary early childhood education theory and practice emphasises young children’s agency and voice in their learning paying particular attention to valuing each child’s sociocultural contexts. As learners, children are considered capable and active participants rather than as deficit and passive recipients. How does the implementation of godly play in prior-to-school and school early years settings sit within a contemporary view of childhood? To what extent does this programme align with early childhood theory and practice? This paper seeks to evaluate the presence and place of godly play (which is not a curriculum and nor does it claim to be a curriculum) in the religiously affiliated early childhood education context in either prior-to-school or school settings. It is to be emphasised that this paper is not evaluating the presence and place of godly play in the faith community of the local parish where all who participate are believers coming together to share that faith and to have that faith strengthened. However, its presence and place in formal educational settings outside of parish faith communities is questionable and requires closer critique.