Using applied behaviour analysis as standard practice in a UK special needs school

This article describes how applied behaviour analysis can be implemented effectively and affordably in a maintained special needs school in the UK. Behaviour analysts collaborate with classroom teachers to provide early intensive behaviour education for young children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), and function based behavioural interventions for children between the ages of three and 18 years. Data are presented that show how the model is effective. Children with ASD under the age of seven made significant gains on intelligence quotient and on a range of skills including language, social and play, and academic skills following three academic terms of intervention. Case study data for two children reveal a marked decrease in challenging behaviour following a function based behavioural intervention. These interventions have led to greater independence, integration and access to curricular activities. These data show that children are making significant gains within this cost‐effective model.     

Creating effective teaching and learning environments: Building a positive behavioural support (PBS) model for UK special schools

The importance of reducing restraint and restrictive interventions in special schools has been recognised across the four nations of the UK. Government guidance for England and Wales, and recommendations produced by Restraint Reduction Scotland, both reference Positive behavioural support (PBS) as an evidence-based approach that can be used to proactively support pupils with, or at risk of, behaviours that challenge. The Department of Education of Northern Ireland recommends the development of behaviour support plans to support children with special education needs and disabilities. Special schools, however, also have a responsibility to set high expectations for every pupil, to provide access to the respective national curricula and to meet individual needs. School-wide positive behavioural support (SW-PBS), originated in the USA in the 1990s in response to a body of evidence that showed improved social and academic outcomes when behavioural interventions were implemented across whole school settings. It is increasingly being adopted in the UK. Drawing upon examples from schools in England and Wales with which the authors are familiar, this paper outlines the rationale for a special schools' model of SW-PBS and illustrates the ways in which this can be adjusted to meet the specific needs of each setting.

Key Points

• Reducing restraint and restrictive interventions in schools is a high priority across all four nations of the UK.
• Special schools also have a responsibility to provide children with special education needs and disabilities positive learning environments that maximise learning opportunities and meet individual needs.
• School-wide positive behaviour support (SW-PBS) provides a useful framework to help special schools meet these expectations.

     

Picturing Sex Education: Notes on the politics of visual stratification

This paper addresses the scarcity of research on depictions and layout in sex education materials. It is argued that pictures and layout can inform an analysis of social stratification based on visual access. This process of social organization is located using four theoretical models. However these models do not lend themselves to a close reading of graphical strategies. To illustrate how pictures operate, three European works are subjected to a comparative semiotic analysis: Zeig Mal! (Germany, 1974), Vies is lekker (Holland, 1979), and Questions children ask and how to answer them (UK, 1997). It is concluded that the works examined inform three pedagogical paradigms of sex education: liberationism, post-structuralism, and stratificationism. These paradigms are discussed in relation to three known paradigms of analysing power (sovereign power, discipline, and control) and a newly discussed paradigm of ultrastructural confinement.     

Becoming a problem: Behaviour and reputation in the early years classroom

How does it happen that some children acquire a reputation as a ‘problem’ in school? The article discusses some findings of a qualitative study involving children in the Reception year (ages 4–5). The research focused on problematic behaviour as this emerged within, and was shaped by, the culture of the classroom. A key question for the research was: what makes it difficult for some children to be, and to be recognised as, good students? Using an analytic framework derived from discourse and conversation analysis, we identify some critical factors in the production of reputation, including: the ‘discursive framing’ of behaviour; the public nature of classroom discipline; the linking of behaviour, learning and emotions; the interactional complexities of being (seen to be) good, and the demands on children of passing as the ‘proper child’ required by prevailing discourses of normal development, as coded in UK early years curriculum policy and pedagogy.     

Every child matters? An evaluation of “Special Educational Needs” programmes in England

The need for education to help every child has become more important for policy in the US and the UK. Remedial programmes are often difficult to evaluate because participation is usually based on pupil characteristics that are largely unobservable to the analyst. We evaluate programmes for children with ‘Special Educational Needs’ in England. We show that the decentralized design of the policy generates much stronger differences across schools in access to remediation resources for children with moderate learning difficulties than for children with either no difficulties or severe difficulties. However, these differences are not reflected in subsequent educational attainment – suggesting that the programme is ineffective for children with moderate learning difficulties. Also, we use demographic variation within schools to consider the effect of the programme on whole year groups. Our analysis is consistent with no overall effect on account of the combined direct and indirect (spillover) effects.     

Literacy and Children Who Are Blind and Who Have Additional Disabilities— the challenges for teachers and researchers

This paper considers the challenges that confront teachers wishing to develop literacy skills in children with complex needs and the issues which face those wishing to research this area. The article is based upon work undertaken by the authors in the United Kingdom into the use of the Moon tactile code to provide access to literacy for children who are blind and who have additional disabilities. Moon has become established as an option for developing the literacy of children who are blind in the UK and it has been estimated that around 100 children are using Moon in their schoolwork. A general overview of the use of Moon by children in the UK is reported upon in McCall and McLinden (2001) and a full report of the Moon research project and its outcomes can be found in McCall (2000). Here the authors reflect on some of the challenges that have emerged during their 10 years of investigation in this area. The reflections are presented under four broad headings: "Resourcing Literacy," "Defining the Population," "Defining Literacy," and "Evaluating Literacy." Each of these headings represents a cluster of issues that the authors consider that those with an interest in the development of literacy for children with complex educational needs will need to address.     

‘It’s the most important thing – I mean,the schooling’: father involvement in the education of children with autism

Father involvement in education has been shown to result in a range of positive outcomes for typically developing children. However, the nature of paternal involvement in the education of children with disabilities and especially autism has been under-researched and is little understood. This study aimed to explore the nature of the involvement of 25 UK fathers in the education and their children with autism, aged up to 19 years through the use of semistructured interviews. Findings showed that fathers were highly engaged both directly and indirectly across several dimensions of their children’s education and schooling. Key areas of indirect engagement were involvement in administrative processes necessary for securing an appropriate educational placement; facilitating daily access to school and general support of children’s progress through attendance at school-based meetings and events. Direct support for learning occurred through homework assistance and working on school-related goal. Findings are discussed in relation to diversity and generative models of fatherhood. Implications for greater father inclusion in the education of children with autism are explored with reference to a gender-differentiated approach.     

An exploratory study investigating the viability of a communication and feedback intervention for school children at risk of exclusion: analysis of staff perspectives

Every day nearly 900 children will be excluded from UK schools for disruptive behaviour and almost one-third of this population has a diagnosed mental health disorder. Exclusion from school is the endpoint of most schools’ sanction-based behaviour management policies. This exploratory study investigated staff opinions for using a communication and feedback intervention for children at risk of exclusion from school. Workshops to demonstrate the model were facilitated for staff participants followed by group interviews. The interview data were analysed using Template Analysis. Staff considered the intervention as viable both for themselves and for children at risk of exclusion. The analysis highlighted two broad categories: Communication Skills Training; weighing the potential, and Adapting to the Population. Sub-categories encompassed a range of factors related to the viability of the model and potential outcomes for both staff groups and young people. Due to ethical considerations, children were not recruited at this exploratory stage, but further investigation is warranted with child participants to ascertain their views. Psychologists working within schools are in a good position to utilise the model for both staff training and interventions.     

Creating and funding school buildings that promote the inclusion of pupils with behaviour problems

Abstract

In the course of her work as a behaviour consultant and teacher, the author has access to many different types of educational settings, both private and under LEA control, in the UK and Belgium. In all cases, it is apparent how a sympathetic physical environment can reduce alienation and encourage social inclusion, especially with regard to difficult behaviour. Once this viewpoint has been reached then there are funding implications which this present review considers and researches for UK educational establishments.     

Mothering and intellectual disability: partnership rhetoric?

This paper is about mothering an intellectually disabled child identified with special educational needs. It specifically looks at the parent partnership rhetoric that has dominated UK government policy and directives for nearly three decades and yet research suggests parents and more often mothers have to battle to be recognised as legitimate experts. This paper engages with sociological analysis as it highlights via qualitative narratives that mothers are weighed down by the sheer number of professionals involved in their day-to-day life. Moreover, mothers whose children are not identified in the early years are often blamed in the first instance for playing a part in their child’s difficult behaviour. This research ultimately suggests that partnership work is important and necessary for practice within health, education and social work professions, not least of all because the emotional roller-coaster that mothers experience during the assessment and statementing process is disabling.     

Digital play: a new classification

Abstract

This paper draws on an ESRC-funded study of play and creativity in preschool-aged children’s use of apps in the UK. The main objectives of the study were to collect information about access to and use of apps in the home, establish the most popular apps and identify the features of those apps that are successful in promoting play and creativity. A mixed-method approach was used to collect data, including video filming of children using the most popular apps. In identifying play types that emerged in the analysis of data, the team utilised an established taxonomy, which outlines sixteen play types. This taxonomy was reviewed and adapted to analyse data from the project relating to digital play. Through this process, an additional type of play, transgressive play, was identified and added to the taxonomy. The paper outlines the implications of the revised taxonomy for future studies of play.     

A comparison between national and transnational students’ access of online learning support materials and experience of technical difficulties on a fully online distance learning master of public health programme

Online distance learning (ODL) is now recognised as a mainstream teaching method for undergraduate and postgraduate students around the world. However, differences in learner characteristics such as help-seeking behaviour between transnational students and home students may impact on student attainment. 64 students undertaking an online master of public health programme in the UK completed a survey which explored students’ access of learner support resources, their experience of technical difficulties, demographic characteristics and learner characteristics. We collected data on the geographic region in which students were currently living and their geographical region of origin. Students whose region of origin was outside the UK/EU accessed a greater number of support resources than students based within the UK/EU and students whose region of residence was outside the UK/EU experienced a greater number of technical difficulties than students from within the UK/EU. Thus transnational students access more support resources than home students despite having to overcome more technical difficulties in order to do so. The classification of students based on fee-paying status was unable to detect these differences and may not be appropriate for ODL courses.     

Book Reviews

Rational choice models of teenage sexual behaviour lead to radically different predictions than do models that assume such behaviour is random. Existing empirical evidence has not been able to distinguish conclusively between these competing models. I use regional data from England between 1998 and 2001 to examine the impact of recent increases in access to family planning on teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted infection diagnosis rates. I find consistent evidence that access to family planning services is not associated with reductions in teenage pregnancy rates. I also find consistent evidence that increased promotion of emergency birth control in youth family planning clinics has not affected the relationship between clinic services and teenage pregnancy rates, but has significantly worsened the relationship between clinic services and teenage sexually transmitted infection diagnosis rates. Most of the observed relationships are inconsistent, with teenage sexual behaviour being the result of a random decision‐making process.     

Children's language and behavioural,social and emotional difficulties and prosocial behaviour during the toddler years and at school entry

The ability of young children to manage their emotions and behaviours is an important prerequisite for social adjustment and school readiness. With an increase in early‐onset behavioural difficulties in children, understanding changes in child behaviour during the preschool years and the factors that influence it is a priority for policy and practice. Despite much evidence on the association between language and behavioural difficulties in children, few studies have examined longitudinally language and problem/prosocial behaviour in early years. Using a UK community‐based sample, Dimitra Hartas, from the University of Warwick, examines the association between language, gender and behavioural, social and emotional difficulties and prosocial behaviour during the toddler years and at school entry. The findings showed a moderate decline in behavioural and social difficulties during preschool, and stability in emotional difficulties. Moderate associations were found between vocabulary and problem behaviour but not prosocial behaviour, with literacy‐based language emerging as a substantive predictor of teacher‐rated behaviour. These findings have important implications for early years provision.     

Who gets what? Is improved access to basic education pro-poor in Sub-Saharan Africa?

This paper explores changing patterns of access to basic education in six Sub-Saharan Africa countries using data from Demographic and Health Surveys at two points in time. In general the analysis confirms that participation of children in schooling has increased over the last decade. However, access to education remains strongly associated with household wealth. In most countries the differences associated with urban and rural residence and sex are smaller than those associated with household wealth. Over time the wealth gradient related to access has deteriorated more often than it has improved in the countries in the sample. Disturbingly, the proportion of over age children has also risen rather than fallen more often than not, and the poorer the household the more likely children are to be over age. Increased numbers of over age children are indicative of internal inefficiencies, and make it unlikely that goals to universalise access and completion will be achieved. Education for All should be pro-poor and where it is not, it is failing.     

Foucauldian Iterative Learning Conversations - an example of organisational change: developing conjoint-work between EPs and Social Workers

An organisational change-process in a UK local authority (LA) over two years is examined using transcribed excerpts from three meetings. The change-process is analysed using a Foucauldian analytical tool – Iterative Learning Conversations (ILCS). An Educational Psychology Service was changed from being primarily an education-focussed service-provider for children and families, to having a broader multi-agency focus, exemplified in conjoint work with the Social Care department of the LA in non-educational contexts, particularly in changes in working arrangements with children and young people (C&YP) who use Harmful Sexual Behaviour (HSB), and with their families. It is proposed that change-process models used by educational psychologists do not adequately take account of the exercise of power within organisational-change discourse. An exemplar of organisational change described is revealed using ILCS to be an ineluctable top-down innovation, idiosyncratically commissioned and forcefully driven by senior managers in the organisation.     

Regarding learning: Children’s drawings of learning in the classroom

This article explores drawings of learning in the classroom made by a class of 6 to 7-year-olds in a UK primary school. The drawings were analysed by considering the choices that children made in their drawings in terms of four themes: self and social relations in learning, the physical environment, learning activities, and learning and behaviour. These are discussed using five drawings as examples. A wide range of images was used by the children, although some drew common views of learning. The article warns against assuming that we know how a young person views their learning, or that a class of children share a common view of it. It is also suggested that talk about such drawings can make a contribution to a joint exploration of understandings of learning by teachers and children.     

Who is out of school? Evidence from the Statistics South Africa Community Survey

The South Africa Schools Act requires every child to “attend school from the first school day of the year in which such learner reaches the age of seven years until the last day of the year in which such learner reaches the age of 15 years or the ninth grade, whichever comes first” (Republic of South Africa, 1996). This paper addresses three questions in relation to this. First, to what extent has this legal requirement been met? Second, what are the trends in relation to achieving universal access to compulsory education? And third, what are the factors related to and characteristics of those learners of compulsory school age who are not attending? To address these questions, we have made use of the Statistics South Africa dataset, Community Survey 2007. Our analysis suggests that the size of the compulsory age population who are not attending school may be slightly higher than some government sources have suggested. The trend associated with access remains consistent, with the only major change over the past 10 years being the improved levels of enrolment of six and seven year old children. With regard to the factors related to and the characteristics of children who are not attending school, our analysis reveals that certain sub-populations have higher non-attendance ratios: coloured boys; children whose parents, particularly mothers, have died; children born outside South Africa; children who have moved in the past five years; children with disabilities; and children living in some specific rural communities. A number of broad but interrelated factors may account for children not being in school: disability; family structure; children living in households that are eligible for social grants but are not receiving them; and geographic and racial characteristics. To be poor in South Africa may mean exclusion from the mainstream of the economy, but it does not necessarily mean exclusion from access to basic state services like enrolment in schooling or social grants. Children not attending are not only likely to be living in households that are excluded from participation in the mainstream economy, but are also on the fringes of state services; they may also be on the fringes of households. The paper concludes with recommendations for further research to identify reasons why children in these vulnerable sub-populations are less likely to be enrolled.     

‘Settling in’

Abstract

This study examined the ‘settling in’ behaviour of newly enrolled children who entered an established preschool classroom. Settling in can cause emotional distress and behavioural problems in children. Thus, it is important to document the ways in which young children successfully adjust. The behaviours of the ‘new’ children were tracked across the school year and compared with ‘old children’, or those previously enrolled. Results indicated that new children did not differ from old children in terms of unengaged behaviour. While all children's socially interactive behaviour and social fantasy increased across the school year, the new children engaged in lower levels of these behaviours. Further, the signals they used to initiate social interaction were less sophisticated than those used by established children. Results are discussed in terms of the role of familiarity in supporting children's exhibition of competence. Implications for practice and policy are discussed.