Making Sense of Hurtful Mother-in-law Messages: Applying Attribution Theory to the In-Law Triad

This study focused on hurtful messages daughters-in-law (DILs, N = 132) reported receiving from mothers-in-law (MILs). Results reveal various hurtful message types: under- and overinvolvement, personal attacks, and hurt communicated to or through a third party. Grounded in attribution theory, we examined DILs’ attributions for MILs’ hurtful messages and their perceived agreement with their husbands’ reasoning for the message. Our findings illuminate distress-maintaining and relationship-enhancing attribution biases for MILs’ behaviors, such that DILs who were less satisfied with their MILs tended to make more internal attributions for MIL hurtful behaviors, and more satisfied DILs tended to make more external attributions. The degree to which a DIL believed she and her husband interpreted his mother’s behavior similarly was also important and positively predicted marital satisfaction. Findings addto the growing portrait of in-law communication, offering directions for hurtful messages and attribution theorizing in the in-law context.     

Re-presenting the ‘forgotten estate’: participatory theatre,place and community identity

In this article, we discuss the work undertaken in the first phase of a participatory theatre project which took place on a council housing estate in the Midlands of England, in which residents were invited to share their memories for a production which would present the history of the estate. This community is often characterised as deficient, ageing, welfare-oriented, low in educational attainment and aspiration. Interviews and field notes suggest that there was not a great amount of hope within the community for the success of a participatory arts project such as this. However, the performance attracted a large number of participants who performed to full houses over five nights. Using a place-based approach, we argue that a model of open participation led to the presentation of alternative, more positive, narratives of this community as a place to live.     

The politics of ESOL (English for speakers of other languages): implications for citizenship and social justice

A number of countries in Europe, including the UK, have adopted language and citizenship tests or courses as a requirement for granting citizenship to immigrants. To acquire citizenship, immigrants to the UK must pass a test on British society and culture, or demonstrate progress in the English language. For those with an insufficient command of the language, there is the option in the UK of taking an English for speakers of other languages (ESOL) with citizenship course. These language and citizenship tests and courses are seen by governments as a way of encouraging immigrants to develop the competences believed necessary for social integration. Equally, these are seen as a means for immigrants to demonstrate their willingness to integrate. However, two types of criticisms have been made against compulsory tests and language programmes. The first questions the need for these. The second focuses on whether they are a genuine contribution to preparation for citizenship or whether these, in effect, constitute a gatekeeping mechanism, or otherwise lead to social injustice; related to this is the question of whether the emphasis on language as defining of nationhood and citizenship is a move away from multiculturalism towards a policy of assimilation. In addition, there are issues relating to funding. This paper presents the results of a study of a ‘skills for life’ ESOL course at a community college in London that is specifically intended to help immigrants seeking to qualify for British citizenship. An interview was carried out with staff involved in ESOL at the college, and a focus group discussion was conducted with a student group. The aim of the paper is to provide an account of the experiences of the students in the light of the criticisms that have made against compulsory tests and language programmes. We also examine the impact of policy changes, including funding cuts, on the college and students. Although we found the language and citizenship class to be a positive experience, we note inconsistencies and contradictions in policies and discourses around language.     

Index

American education is in a dilemma. At least three distinct schools of thought can be recognized. At the extreme right is oldfashioned idealism, embedded in the classical tradition and carried forward largely by inertia. At the extreme left is newfangled pragmatism in its many manifestations, all indigenous to America. The third distinct group, the realists, challenge both the traditionalists and the activists. Floating hither and yon on the sea of controversy are the vast majority of American school teachers, open to attack from all sides.     

The learning alliance: ethics in doctoral supervision

This paper is concerned with the ethics of relationships in doctoral supervision. We give an overview of four paradigms of doctoral supervision that have endured over the past 25 years and elucidate some of their strengths and limitations, contextualise them historically and consider their implications for doctoral supervision in the contemporary university. Two common threads across the four paradigms are a view of doctoral supervision as pedagogical practice and that supervisors have primary responsibility for the supervision of doctoral students. We challenge these assumptions. In their place, we propose that the goal of doctoral supervision is praxis and that this involves a learning alliance between multiple institutional agents grounded in a relational ethics of mutual responsibility.     

Democratised Primary School Government: relevant theoretical constructs

The movement to democratise school government has developed steadily for two decades. Both those who champion the cause and those who oppose it draw on the theoretical constructs of democracy, participation and representation in order to strengthen and justify their case.

This paper aims to put these concepts more firmly on the educational agenda by highlighting how they may be applied to educational policy and discussing some of the problems and dilemmas they pose for those with an interest in school government.     

Gender representation in the public sector schools textbooks of Pakistan

This paper examines gender biases in school textbooks after a decade long effort by the ministry of education (MoE) Pakistan and international organisation (IOs) to eliminate all forms of gender inequality in education. The intention underpinning these initiatives was to nurture a view of gender equality based consciousness through the introduction of more positive gendered images into school textbooks in Pakistan. However, the study discussed in this paper discovered that schools textbooks are still embedded with gender-biased messages and stereotypical representations of male and females. Gender biases in 24 textbooks (Urdu, English and Social Studies) from class 1 to 8 were analysed with the help of a qualitative content analysis approach. The paper draws attention to the insouciant approach taken by the MoE and IOs towards the goal of gender equality. The study found that, despite the prevailing claims of achievements, the new textbooks are ideologically invested – and contribute to the perpetuation of gender inequality. In this context, the gender blindness of the curriculum designers and textbook authors is a matter of serious concern.     

Peer Acceptance and Social Adjustment in Preschool and Kindergarten

Research on the relation between social behavior and peer acceptance in preschool children and the long-term consequences of peer acceptance or rejection is reviewed. Preschool children who exhibit aggressive behavior tend to be rejected by peers at an early age and these first impressions have a lasting effect on peer acceptance, in spite of subsequent changes in the child's behavior. Social behaviors that are related to peer popularity vary by age and sex. Children who experience high levels of peer acceptance in preschool and who have friends entering kindergarten with them make a better adjustment to school. Recommendations for fostering social development in preschoolers are discussed.