Using social theory in educational research: a practical guide

In Flanders, action research as a means of enhancing quality in initial teacher training and in teaching practice is not as widespread as in some of the neighbouring countries. In this article the authors argue for trainees and qualified teachers setting up and conducting research in their teaching practice. Rather than perceiving this as an additional assignment for the parties involved, this is put forward as an inherent part of the profession, just as it is the general medical practitioner’s duty to keep up with the latest scientific developments, implement new approaches, and confer and exchange experiences with confreres. The authors suggest that such an approach could contribute to a stronger tie between theory and practice in teacher training itself, and to a reinforcement of the knowledge basis in the teacher training curriculum and the teaching profession. They discuss how research can be conceived in the teacher training curriculum and subsequent professional setting, and propose establishing a narrow link between action research and the learning cycle intrinsic to experiential learning. The article draws on the authors’ experiences at the Department of Teacher Training of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (Free University of Brussels), where action research is a compulsory subject in the curriculum.     

100 Ideas for supporting pupils with ADHD/Behavioural,emotional and social difficulties: a guide for the early years

It can be argued that our contemporary view of the world is not at all based on ‘objective’ observation of ‘what is out there’, but rather the result of the application of existing mental frameworks and ways of seeing to the world around us, including the world of human beings. Goethe's way of seeing recognizes the special relationship that exists between parts and wholes, so that, rather than being built up of parts, wholes are indeed non-unified wholes which are fully reflected in the parts. Each part is, as it were, one particular manifestation of the whole. My purpose in this paper is to begin to explore Goethe's way of seeing as a tool for new insights into education and to do so by looking at the area of inclusion. Inclusion is a good place to start exploring because it is so obviously based on a notion of parts and wholes. For example, it is based on particular notions of what classes and schools as wholes should look like in terms of their parts: student population, achievement, assessment, curriculum, etc. Thus, examining inclusion from a Goethean perspective may provide new opportunities for thinking about and dealing with exclusion.     

Effectiveness of interventions adopting a whole school approach to enhancing social and emotional development: a meta-analysis

This article presents findings from a meta-analysis which sought to determine the effectiveness of interventions adopting a whole school approach to enhancing children and young people’s social and emotional development. Whole school interventions were included if they involved a coordinated set of activities across curriculum teaching, school ethos and environment, and family and community partnerships. A total of 45 studies (30 interventions) involving 496,299 participants were included in the analysis. Post-intervention outcomes demonstrated significant but small improvements in participants’ social and emotional adjustment (d = 0.220), behavioural adjustment (d = 0.134), and internalising symptoms (d = 0.109). Interventions were not shown to impact on academic achievement. Origin of study and the inclusion of a community component as part of a whole school approach were found to be significant moderators for social and emotional outcomes. Further research is required to determine the active ingredients of whole school interventions that we can better understand the components necessary to achieve successful outcomes.

     

Creating spaces to belong: listening to the voice of girls with behavioural,emotional and social difficulties through digital visual and narrative methods

While interest in the voice of children and young people has grown alongside concern for their rights and participation, for those excluded from mainstream education or with a label of behavioural, emotional and social difficulties, the issue of student voice takes on particular relevance. Yet the voices of these young people, and particularly girls, are often hidden and unheard both in education and educational research. Using digital visual and narrative methods we have been listening to girls excluded from mainstream education. They attend Kahlo School, a small special, girl-only secondary provision in the south of England, and our focus has been on gathering their views as stakeholders in the school and engaging them in curriculum and school development. In this paper, we reflect on the affordances of visual and digital methods and on how the girls perceive their educational inclusion and exclusion. We discuss the themes of space, identity, relationships and community that have emerged from analysis of the data, and conclude by outlining the importance of the core messages about belonging and not belonging that we heard in the girls' accounts.     

Instructional development as a social movement: An illustration of analogical theorizing

Instructional development, a service activity in which a faculty member and an instructional designer work in close cooperation to redesign an existing course or to design a new one. represents the typically elusive subject of educational research: a human process. This article examines the application of naturalistic inquiry to such a research topic and suggests that such inquiry needs to be informed by research traditions in sociology and anthropology that have long used these methods. Drawing on social-movement theory, an example is presented of analogical theorizing, illustrating how socialmovement theory developed in other areas can be applied to the exploration of instructional development.     

Implementing a comprehensive behavioral health model for social,emotional, and behavioral development in an urban district: An applied study

Urban communities are disproportionality impacted by issues such as community violence, leaving children at higher risk of trauma, and increased adverse childhood experiences. This applied study addresses a research-to-practice gap by demonstrating the longitudinal impact of a district-initiated, school-wide multitiered systems of support approach to universal instruction, intervention, and assessment—the Comprehensive Behavioral Health Model. Results from more than 1200 students over a 3-year period indicate that this universal, integrated approach is associated with improved outcomes for students with a demonstrated level of risk, with the greatest impact on students with risk of internalizing behaviors. The findings of this applied study highlight the benefits of a systemic approach and enhance the discourse on robust universal screenings that can identify needs and assets of children within urban communities.     

Using books to nurture the social and emotional development of gifted students

One of the ways teachers can help gifted students to deal with the challenges of growing up is through bibliotherapy. Such facilitated dialogue about literature is discussed in this article. Following a brief discussion of the definition of bibliotherapy, a few basic guidelines for selecting appropriate materials to use with students are given. The practice of bibliotherapy involves several steps but the discussion step led by the teacher is crucial in helping students to interact with the literature. To illustrate the interactive process, a menu of discussion questions for each of six books is given; suggested activities are included for each book. Through this process of interacting with literature, teachers can help students to grow emotionally and socially.     

Child refugees,trauma and education: interactionist considerations on social and emotional needs and development

This paper focuses on the social and emotional needs of children and young people who are refugees. It was inspired by casework undertaken by the author involving a 13‐year‐old boy who was a refugee from Montenegro. A vignette of the case is presented in addition to a review of relevant literature to illustrate and discuss the various sources of trauma experienced by children and young people who are refugees, and the potential impact of these on psychological functioning and emotional wellbeing. Child refugees’ experiences of trauma are seldom restricted to experiences of loss, violence or persecution in their country of origin. Rather, there are multiple experiences in the country of origin, during migration and on arrival in a country of “refuge” that are potentially traumatic, and can have adverse effects on a child or young person’s development. Drawing on research with children and adults who are refugees, as well as research into post‐traumatic stress disorder and into the educational effects of trauma, the paper advocates interactionist and ecosystemic perspectives for understanding the difficulties encountered by refugee children, and considers possibilities for therapeutic intervention.     

Education for transformation: an evaluative framework to guide student voice work in schools

In the context of neoliberal and neoconservative educational reforms, student voice work is faced with a number of potential difficulties in creating the conditions, skills and dispositions necessary for student empowerment. One of the key challenges is evaluating whether student voice initiatives are effective, relevant and transformative. Through a systematic literature review of contemporary student voice literature from the past 10 years, the article proposes an evaluative framework to measure the extent to which student voice contributes to socially transformative educational practices in primary and secondary schools This framework suggests that transformative voice work should be dialogic, intergenerational, collective and inclusive, and transgressive. It argues that the interaction of these four themes forms a set of principles or building blocks which collectively underpin transformative student voice work. The purpose of such an evaluative framework is not to provide a normative benchmarking tool, but rather, to serve as a reflective dialogical tool that could guide teachers and students towards genuine transformation of institutional structures and individual practices as well as informing policy makers, practitioners and researchers.     

The bond between intelligences: Cultural,emotional, and social

Increasing interest in multiple forms of nonacademic intelligences in addition to the well‐established intelligent quotient (IQ) to explain individual success has triggered a need for clear establishment of the theoretical and empirical connection among these constructs. As such, this article explores the interrelationship that exists among three forms of nonacademic intelligences: cultural, emotional, and social. Theoretical and practical implications are also discussed.     

The development of intrapersonal intelligence in pupils experiencing social,emotional and behavioural difficulties

This article draws from an evaluative case study of a group work approach – Support Groups – designed by the author to support pupils perceived as having Social and Emotional Behavioural Difficulties within a Secondary school situated in an area of multiple deprivation in Scotland. The study, which is principally qualitative, draws from the accounts of 69 pupils who participated within the intervention during its first four years of inception and from a range of stakeholder accounts – parents, Support Group Leaders, class teachers and senior managers. The intervention focused upon collaborative, discussion-based activities designed to foster reflection, understanding and thinking skills. The study utilises data drawn from attendance, attainment and discipline statistics, comparing the Support Group population to wider comparator groups, in addition to questionnaires (open and closed), scheduled interviews and focus group discussion. This article focuses specifically upon the extent to which pupils developed intrapersonal intelligence. The findings indicate that the majority of pupils had, to at least an extent, developed greater understanding of their behaviour and that these outcomes were still in evidence up to two years after intervention.