Adaptation and Self‐Determination in English Primary Schools

abstract

New government policies have to be mediated through teachers. Research among some teachers in primary schools revealed a number of creative adaptations to the National Curriculum. Some were strongly ‘resisting’ some elements. Where conditions were favourable, this developed into ‘appropriation’. A powerful aid towards appropriation can be ‘resourcing‘—ways in which the teacher role can be enhanced. At times, the teacher's work might be ‘enriched’ by the National Curriculum. However, at other times, another teacher might be forced to ‘re‐route’, and retire from teaching. Running through all these modes of adaptation is the interconnecting theme of self‐determination. Four aspects of this—self‐defence, self‐reinforcement, self‐realisation and self‐renewal—are revealed in the adaptations. The changes have been cathartic for teachers’ sense of self, but some, at least, are emerging stronger than before, whether they are still teaching or not.     

A strategic view of parent participation

Partnership and parental participation are terms which have featured frequently in discussions of educational matters in recent years. Their exact meaning and implications, however, are problematic. This paper seeks to move towards a strategic understanding of parental participation and in doing this addresses several themes: the concept of participation; contrasting perspectives on parental participation; the development of ‘welfare state’ rationality; the growth and significance of collective consumption and with this the development of the consumer‐citizen; and strategies towards consumer weakness. Tackling consumer weakness, it is argued, requires radically changing (or re‐casting) the relationship between consumer‐citizens and producers. It is suggested that education is a sphere which is particularly fruitful for the investigation and development of such a policy.

The themes discussed in the paper suggest an alternative approach or framework for education and participation is required and this is briefly outlined. The paper concludes with proposals for promoting collective parental involvement and influence; in particular, a scheme for a national representative body for parents, which is both government‐funded and accountable to local associations of parents, is put forward.     

A National Profile of Teacher Education Faculty: The Construction of an Online Survey

The purposes of this study were to examine the test-retest reliability of the PACER 20-m, multistage shuttle run and to examine the equivalence reliability of the mile run/walk and PACER from both a criterion-referenced and norm-referenced framework. All fourth- and fifth-grade children (N = 266) from one public school were administered two trials of the PACER and one trial of the mile run/walk (mean age = 10.5 ± 0.5 years). The percent of boys that passed the PACER (68%) was similar to the percent of boys that passed the mile run/walk (66%); however, the percent of girls that passed the PACER (96%) far exceeded the percent of girls that passed the mile run/walk (65%). Criterion-referenced reliability was estimated with proportion of agreement (Pa) and modified kappa (Kq) using FITNESSGRAM® (Cooper Institute for Aerobics Research, 1992) standards. Pa = .97 (Kq = .94) for girls and Pa = .82 (Kq = .65) for boys. The high level of agreement for girls was found because of the low criterion-referenced standards, which allowed 99 of 104 girls to pass both trials of the PACER. Criterion-referenced equivalence reliability of the mile run/walk and PACER was moderate for boys (Pa = .83, Kq = .65) and low for girls (Pa = .66, Kq = .33). The low level of classification agreement for girls was also explained by the low standards for the PACER for this age group. Thirty-four percent of the girls that passed the PACER failed the mile run/walk. Norm-referenced test-retest reliability of the PACER was estimated with an intraclass correlation (R_xx) from a one-way analysis of variance model. Reliability estimates were high for two trials (R_xx = .89 for boys and R_xx = .89 for girls) and acceptable for one trial (R_xx = .80 for boys and R_xx = .79 for girls). Pearson correlations between the mile run/walk and PACER were moderate (-.59≤r≤-.67). The moderate correlations between the mile run/walk and PACER and the low criterion-referenced...     

Children's Activity Levels and Lesson Context during Third-Grade Physical Education

Abstract

Little is known about children's activity levels during physical education classes and how they relate to the national health objectives for the year 2000 (U.S. Public Health Service, 1991). We systematically observed students' physical activity and associated variables in 293 third-grade physical education lessons in 95 schools in 4 Child and Adolescent Trial for Cardio-vascular Health (CATCH) centers in California, Louisiana, Minnesota, and Texas. The influence of independent variables was assessed simultaneously by analysis of variance. Significant differences among study centers were evidenced for both physical activity and lesson context variables. Additionally, there were differences among variables for lesson location and teacher specialty, but not for teacher gender. Boys were more active than girls, but only during free play opportunities. The findings have widespread implications for educators responsible for developing and implementing health-related physical education programs, as well as for designing and conducting staff development.     

The Effects of Achieved National Board for Professional Teaching Standards Certification on the Marginality of Physical Education Teachers

The purpose of the study was to examine the relationship between achieving The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards certification and feelings of marginality of physical education teachers. Data sources included a focus group interview with 6 National Board Certified Physical Education Teachers (NBCPETs) and individual phone interviews with 20 NBCPETs using an interview guide (Patton, 2007 Patton, M. Q. 2007. Qualitative research & evaluation methods. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publishers..  [Google Scholar]). Data were analyzed inductively using the Miles and Huberman (1984) Miles, M. B. and Huberman, A. M. 1984. Qualitative data analysis: A source book of new methods. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publishers..  [Google Scholar] four-stage process. Findings indicated that teachers and administrators considered National Board Certification a symbol of highly skilled teaching. Possessing this symbol changed the way the NBCPETs approached their work and how others acted toward them. NBCPETs felt more confident, more vocal, and more active in leadership positions.     

Governing Troubles: authority,sexuality and space

This paper analyses events at Kingsmead School, Hackney, in the aftermath of head teacher, Jane Brown's refusal to take children to a ballet of Romeo and Juliet. The paper explores the ensuing struggle over space, governance and gender within the context of LEA power after IMS. It analyses different levels of governance: direct, midway and at a distance, and explores the relationship between these levels and devolved legal powers. The paper links Hackney's techniques of governing, and school supporters’ acts of resistance, to their competing spatial representations of Kingsmead. Highlighted are discourses of ridicule, excessive sexuality, kinship, community and parents rights, as well as techniques of discipline, law, and fortification. Finally, the paper explores the conflict in terms of the production of lesbian feminist space, and considers the centrality of gender to the events that occurred.     

Critical Events in Education

From time to time, education is marked by critical events. In contrast to routine processes and any gradual cumulation of learning, these bring radical change in both pupils and teachers. They also have a confirmatory and preservation function in sustaining teachers’ beliefs, interests and commitment, and aiding strategic redefinition. They could have a wider influence through a ‘community of interactive professionals’. The critical events studied are marked by constructivist learning theory and relationships that generate distinct forms of communitas. They go through fairly well‐defined stages from initial conceptualisation to final celebration, with a rhythm of learning between structure and freedom developing. The conditions favourable to the occurrence of critical events include legitimation within the curriculum structure, a facilitative school ethos and, above all, a critical agent.