School factors that facilitate or hinder the ability of teaching assistants to effectively support pupils with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) in mainstream secondary schools

Growing numbers of pupils with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are attending mainstream schools, and increasing numbers of teaching assistants (TAs) are being deployed into classrooms to support them. Evidence suggests, however, that pupils who have a TA may underperform academically, receive less attention from their teachers and be isolated from their peer group. Issues relating to the deployment and training of these staff, and their relationships with class teachers have been raised as contributing to the negative impact of TAs. However, school factors – such as inclusive school culture and teacher training – have been overlooked. In light of this, the objectives of the current study were to (1) develop understanding of the aspects of school culture that TAs feel contribute to the development of inclusion, and (2) identify aspects of school culture, policies and practices that facilitate or hinder their ability to effectively support pupils with ASD. Fifteen TAs supporting pupils with ASD in four mainstream secondary schools were interviewed. Thematic analysis identified positive attitudes towards pupils with special educational needs, school leadership support for inclusion, collaboration and respect as components of an inclusive school culture. The factors perceived as facilitating or hindering the ability of TAs to effectively include pupils with ASD included access to expertise, communication within school and teaching staff awareness of ASD. These findings are discussed in relation to the growing literature on inclusive education for pupils with ASD.     

What was it like for you?

Abstract

As LEAs and schools develop their inclusive policies and practices, arguments about how to provide the most effective education for pupils with EBD continue. Is it possible to provide high quality education for this group in mainstream schools whilst not adversely affecting the education of the other pupils? What are the consequences of placing the most disturbed pupils in special schools? What do the pupils themselves think? This article draws on findings from 26 interviews with former pupils of an EBD residential school. We were interested in their opinions about the quality of education and care they received at the school and the impact of the placement on their experiences as young adults. Overall, despite some concerns, the former pupils have very positive memories of the school and felt that it had helped them to overcome their learning and behavioural difficulties. The findings have key implications for the development of policy and practice.     

A critical investigation of the nature and extent of cyberbullying in two post-primary schools in Northern Ireland

This study aimed to investigate internet usage among post-primary pupils in years 9, 11 and 13 in two contrasting post-primary schools in Northern Ireland, the nature and incidence of cyberbullying among these pupils, and the ways in which their schools are currently addressing the problem. A mixed methodological approach was adopted: a paper questionnaire was completed by pupils in Years 9, 11 and 13 (n = 425) in the two post-primary schools; focus group interviews were conducted with pupils from each year group (n = 18); and individual semi-structured interviews were carried out with the pastoral care coordinators (deputy heads with responsibility for pupil wellbeing) of each school (n = 2). The findings confirm that the post-primary pupils in these two schools own a range of internet-capable media devices and spend considerable time online. The incidence of cyberbullying among these pupils was relatively low, and most often consisted of hurtful or nasty comments sent via texts or posted on social networking sites. The study reveals inconsistencies between the approaches taken by the two schools, but also generally low levels of staff training, little engagement with parents, a lack of pupil confidence in the school’s ability to discuss cyberbullying openly, and a worrying absence of any systematic evaluation of the effectiveness of the schools’ current strategies for tackling this complex issue.     

The contribution of ‘shared education’ to Catholic–Protestant reconciliation in Northern Ireland: a third way?

Northern Ireland has achieved political stability and its devolved government is now tackling public policy issues neglected during periods of sectarian violence. Notwithstanding the prevailing political optimism, one legacy of the conflict is a deeply divided society. This is particularly manifest in the education system where around 90% of children attend either state (controlled) schools (de facto Protestant) or Catholic (maintained) schools, with integrated schools accounting for less than 6% of the school population. In an attempt to address this duplication of services, in the context of 85,000 empty desks, external funders have piloted an initiative entitled The Shared Education Programme (SEP) where schools working in cross‐community partnerships deliver shared classes and activities in order to improve education outcomes. This paper attempts to: quantify the educational returns for pupils participating in the SEP; articulate the qualitative reconciliation benefits from the perspective of teachers, parents and pupils; and, locate the findings of the research in the ongoing policy debate about restructuring education provision in Northern Ireland at a time of budget retrenchment and declining school rolls.     

The impact of placing pupils with special educational needs in mainstream schools on the achievement of their peers

Background Over the past 20 years or so policy and practice on the education of children with special educational needs (SEN) has been aimed at placing increasing numbers of children in a mainstream school environment. Although this policy has been supported in principle by many teachers, parents and local authority officers, there has been much less agreement about whether this principle can be realized in practice, and even if it can, about what the impacts might be on the achievements of pupils with SEN in mainstream schools and, in particular, on their peers.

Purpose This paper discusses the key findings from a systematic review of the literature carried out by the Inclusion Review Group, on behalf of the Evidence for Policy and Practice Information (EPPI)-Centre, the purpose of which was to review research evidence on whether the placement of pupils with special educational needs (SEN) within mainstream schools has an impact on academic and social outcomes for pupils without SEN.

Design and methods The methodology followed the procedures adopted by the EPPI-Centre. Having agreed on the inclusion and exclusion criteria for studies that could be included in the review, an initial pool of 7137 papers were identified through electronic databases. After having screened all their titles and/or abstracts and having marked out possible papers to be included in the review, 119 paper copies were obtained—all of which were read by one or more of the authors of this paper. This led to a further reduction to 26 studies that were subjected to the EPPI data extraction process and synthesis.

Conclusions Overall, the findings suggest that there are no adverse effects on pupils without SEN of including pupils with special needs in mainstream schools, with 81% of the outcomes reporting positive or neutral effects. Despite concerns about the quality of some of the studies that were reviewed and the fact that the great majority were carried out in the USA, these findings should bring some comfort to headteachers, parents and local authority officers around the world at a time when concerns have been raised about the problems that schools face in responding to the twin agenda of becoming more inclusive and, at the same time, raising the achievements of all their pupils.     

Can social and emotional learning improve children’s academic progress? Findings from a randomised controlled trial of the Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies (PATHS) curriculum

Despite the significant evidence base demonstrating the positive impact of the Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies (PATHS) curriculum on children’s social-emotional and mental health outcomes, there has been very little research on its efficacy in improving academic attainment. More generally, the relationship between implementation variability and PATHS intervention outcomes has been underexplored. A cluster-randomised controlled trial with two arms: intervention (PATHS – 23 schools) and control (usual practice – 22 schools) was implemented to assess the impact of PATHS on English and Mathematics for children in years 5 (aged 9–10 years, n = 1705 pupils) and 6 (aged 10–11 years, n = 1631 pupils) in English primary schools. Two-level hierarchical linear models (school, child) were used to assess both primary ‘intention-to-treat’ effects and secondary ‘subgroup’ effects (for children eligible for free school meals). Additionally, the moderating role of implementation variability was assessed in 31 year 5 (n = 712 pupils) and 32 year 6 (n = 732 pupils) classes across the 23 intervention schools, with fidelity, dosage, quality/responsiveness and reach data generated via classroom-level structured lesson observations. Intention-to-treat and subgroup analyses revealed no significant positive effect of PATHS on children’s academic attainment. Cluster analyses of observational data revealed four distinct implementation profiles, differentiated primarily by dosage levels. However, these profiles were not significantly associated with differential academic outcomes. In light of our findings and their likely generalisability, it is not possible to recommend PATHS as an effective intervention for improving the academic attainment of children in English primary schools.

Trial registration: ISRCTN85087674

     

Pre-service and in-service teachers’ knowledge,attitudes and confidence towards self-injury among pupils

Teachers are ideally placed to identify and refer pupils who self-injure, but are often unaware when pupils self-injure or unsure how to respond. The aims of this study were to explore and compare pre-service and in-service teachers’ knowledge and attitudes towards self-injury, and their confidence responding to pupils who self-injure. Pre-service teachers (n = 267) and in-service teachers (n = 261) completed self-report questionnaires. Prior education regarding self-injury was positively related to knowledge and confidence, while pre-service teachers were more confident than in-service teachers in their ability to cope with legal and school regulations. Thematic analysis of open-ended questions indicated that although pre- and in-service teachers are concerned about pupils who self-injure and are willing to help these students, they feel ill-informed about self-injury and requested school policies and additional education regarding the behaviour. Results have implications for educational programmes that prepare pre- and in-service teachers to identify and respond to pupils who self-injure.     

Global social issues in the curriculum: perspectives of school principals

In this article, we discuss principals’ perspectives on the priority given to the place in the curriculum of and the supporting practices related to health and sustainability education in schools in Denmark (for pupils aged 6–16). The study is situated within the discourses about critical health and sustainability education and treats the two issues as societal challenges that are important to address in schools as educational examples. We draw on the literature on school leadership challenges linked to global neoliberal trends in educational reform. The context of the study is the ongoing school reform in Denmark. The data were generated through an online survey of principals in Denmark (n = 118). The findings show that although the principals view school as an important arena for health and sustainability education, their actual support for such education lags behind. Health education is prioritized somewhat more than sustainability education; however, both are characterized by insufficient attention to teachers’ professional development and the low prioritization of collaboration within the school and between the school and community actors. Acknowledging the contradicting demands that principals face in the context of the reform, we argue for reconnecting the concept of leadership with the wider purposes of schooling and for providing space for an emergent, whole-school curriculum that addresses health and sustainability.     

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.     

CURRENT AND FUTURE SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGISTS’ PREPAREDNESS TO WORK WITH LGBT STUDENTS: ROLE OF EDUCATION AND GAY‐STRAIGHT ALLIANCES

This study sought to assess current and future school psychologists’ attitudes toward and preparedness to address the needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) students in schools. Two‐hundred seventy‐nine school psychologists (n = 162, 58%) and school psychology graduate students (n = 117, 42%) were included in the study. Participants completed measures of attitudes toward LGBT students, preparedness to address the needs of LGBT youth, and social desirability. For both school psychologists and graduate students, increased education was associated with improved attitudes and increased preparedness to treat LGBT youth. For school psychologists, presence of a gay‐straight alliance was associated with increased knowledge about LGBT youth, as well as higher ratings of preparedness to treat LGBT youth; the same associations did not hold true for the graduate students. These findings have implications for the training and practice of school psychologists in addressing the needs of LGBT youth in schools.     

Legal Regulation and Professional Discretion in Schools

ABSTRACT

The paper aims to analyse how pupils’ equal educational opportunities are warranted. We focus on how regulations of adapted education and the right to special needs education provide school leaders’ and teachers’ room for discretionary decision-making, how it is interpreted and how discretionary power is justified. The paper draws on findings from an interdisciplinary study (education and law) on the transformation of legal standards into professional actions in schools. This paper employs interview data from three compulsory schools (grades 1–10), legal documents, and public reports, and the analysis is guided by a conceptual distinction between structural and epistemic aspects of discretion. Based on our findings, we question whether the discretionary space regarding special needs education gives too many opportunities for action and, hence, weakens pupils’ legal rights. Under the guise of a common school, there is a risk that pupils’ special needs are made invisible.     

Reasons and resources: understanding pupils’ aspirations in lower vocational Dutch education

Much research has already been done on the aspirations of young people in lower (vocational) education. As a result, we have learnt more about why students may have high or low aspirations, and to what end their aspirations may lead them. However, there are still some crucial elements missing from the existing academic framework around pupils’ aspirations, which deals with the realisation of pupils’ ambitions. Through the study of ethnographic cases of native Dutch white girls in a lower vocational school, voicing their aspirations, two new concepts will be introduced: reasons and resources. With these two additions, it is hoped that this article will contribute to the existing academic literature on pupils’ ambitions, and it also endeavours to provide useful input for school staff to help them deal with the complexity of the formation and realisation of pupils’ aspirations in vocational schools.     

The ‘spirit of education’ in Indonesian Pesantren

This paper employs Foucauldian theory to consider Islamic boarding school experiences in Indonesia. For some pupils ‘the spirit of education’ – a dimension of pleasure – comes to be highly valued, creating a lifelong passion for the pursuit of knowledge. Two school principals (both pesantren [Islamic boarding school] graduates themselves) articulated strong commitment to the ‘spirit of education’. Yet their respective boarding schools were very poor, not only by western standards but compared with Indonesian public schools, and conditions were austere. The embodiment of pesantren discourse as high academic achievement is illustrated by the example of Khadija – a young female pesantren graduate now studying at doctoral level in the United Kingdom. Explaining the embodied production of the ‘spirit of education’ demands looking at charismatic pedagogy, strict rules, austere conditions and sparse provision of learning resources as regimes of truth and power–knowledge relations that inhere in pesantren as lived experiences of pupils.     

Teaching Grammar and Testing Grammar in the English Primary School: The Impact on Teachers and their Teaching of the Grammar Element of the Statutory Test in Spelling,Punctuation and Grammar (SPaG)

The research examined the impact on teachers of the grammar element of a new statutory test in Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar (SPaG) in primary schools in England. The research aimed to evaluate the nature and the extent of changes to the teaching of grammar and to wider literacy teaching since the introduction of the test in 2013. The research explored teachers’ responses to teaching grammar to a statutory test format, and how teachers implemented rapid curriculum change in their classrooms. The research sought to learn the perspectives of teachers as they adjusted to new English assessments and new expectations for children’s language in the primary school. This paper draws on teacher interviews (n = 16) and an online survey of teaching staff (n = 170). Teachers discuss their knowledge, understanding and enjoyment of grammar at their own level, and their skills for teaching pupils; they also discuss their observations of how pupils have responded to explicit grammar teaching and the grammar test. The data give some insights into the processes for teachers of applying new requirements for teaching and testing grammar, and how teachers strive to make grammar accessible to children. The findings discussed in this paper are: (1) since the introduction of the statutory SPaG test in primary schools, time spent teaching decontextualised and contextualised grammar has increased significantly; (2) grammar is now taught explicitly and formally as a classroom literacy routine; (3) the test format influences grammar teaching content and approaches; (4) teachers observe that pupils enjoy learning grammar and taking the test; (5) teachers disagree about the extent to which explicit grammar teaching and testing have a positive impact on pupils’ language and literacy skills; (6) teachers feel more confident about teaching grammar.     

Emotional and behavioural difficulties: the effects of structures,ethos and understandings on provision in Irish post-primary schools

Emotional and behavioural difficulties (EBD) in mainstream schools in Ireland attract much attention and significant resources, yet little research has been conducted in the Irish context about how this concept is understood by practitioners, what influences that understanding nor how that influences provision in schools. This paper is based on the findings of a study which investigated these issues among principals, special education teachers and guidance counsellors in mainstream post-primary schools, employing questionnaires (n = 36) and semi-structured interviews (n = 10). Several themes are presented regarding how EBD is conceptualised and responded to. The findings of the study suggest definitions of EBD appear to focus mostly on intrapersonal characteristics of students and suggest a resignation in the attitude of practitioners. The effectiveness of behaviour policies is ambiguous due to an imperative to produce written policies in many areas, traditional views of the homogeneity of the school population and a tendency to rely on SEN policy to address EBD issues. Responses to EBD vary considerably. Responsibility for most aspects of the school experience of students presenting with EBD appears to rest predominantly with special education teachers, even where there is access to guidance counsellors. Gender impacts on several of these issues, particularly in the type of language used in schools when discussing EBD.     

Drawing digital pictures: An investigation of primary pupils’ representations of ICT and schools

The relatively restricted nature of children's use of information and communications technologies (ICTs) inside the school setting has long been noted by researchers. With this in mind, this article offers a grounded analysis of drawings collected from 355 primary pupils (years three to six) from five English primary schools depicting desired future forms of school ICT provision. The article contends that the nature and content of these future orientated pictures reflect many of the tensions underlying children's current engagements with ICTs in school. Specifically the article discusses how the drawings offer valuable insights into the issues underlying pupils’ understandings of ICT and schools, not least: the restrictions of the school as organisation; the oppositional relationship between the ‘work’ of learning in school and the ‘play’ of using digital media at home; the unequal power relations that exist between pupils, schools and teachers. The article concludes that rather than accede to demands for free and unfettered use of game consoles and portable devices in the classroom, schools should instead concentrate on fostering informed dialogues with young people about the potential educational benefits of school ICT use.     

School leadership during violent conflict: rethinking education for peace in Nepal and beyond

This paper outlines the impact and professional tensions created by the decade-long armed conflict (1996–2006) on school leadership in Nepal. Drawing on qualitative interviews and discussions with school heads and teachers (n?=?92), the study reveals that the onerous pressure of pupils’ safety during crisis ultimately fell upon teachers and school leaders who faced direct violence on school grounds and communities they lived in. It was found that school heads were traumatised by consistent pressures, as manifested in the form of financial extortion, physical threats and abductions by the Maoists while the security forces frequently harassed them as Maoist sympathisers or confederates. Maintaining relational equilibrium with warring parties in order to ensure their personal and school survival was a traumatic experience. Despite the enormity of effects on education during conflict, the post-conflict educational debates largely undermine the voice of those who were at the frontlines during crisis. These findings provide useful insights into the ‘experiential dimension’ of civil conflict at schools in conflict zones and implications for educational programming.     

Dutch non-affiliated pre-vocational pupils,their world view and religious education

Abstract

More and more, Dutch adolescents are no longer affiliated with or involved in institutionalised religious world views. This development raises questions on how religion is treated and taught in secondary schools in the Netherlands. In order to reconsider religious education within these schools, closer insights into this particular, growing, group of pupils is needed. Therefore, the aim of the current study was to gain knowledge on how pupils from third-grade pre-vocational secondary education [In Dutch: vmbo], who are not affiliated with or involved in an organised world view, perceive the way their world view is being shaped. Ten pupils (14–16 years old) were interviewed about their world view formation process and about potential influential factors. The results showed that pupils emphasised that they are in charge of their world view formation process. Based on trust, they choose their own norms and values and answers to life questions from various sources. Religious education in school seemed only influential if pupils can relate the content of lessons to questions and experiences they have in their own lives. Findings suggest rethinking the content and the role of teachers of religious education in school in light of what non-affiliated pupils learn about world view at from home and other sources.