Organizational Power and the Institutional Review Board

In this essay, we respond to the narratives and essays in this issue by examining organizational power issues related to researchers and institutional research boards (IRBs). Rather than taking a singular perspective on power, we use multiple perspectives and suggest that the cumulative analyses provide the best understanding of IRBs and organizational power.     

The Evaluation of Training for Health-Care Professionals and Community Leaders Regarding 6-Month Exclusive Breastfeeding in Northeast Thailand

To address the reduction of the 6-month exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) rate in Northeast Thailand, a 3-year 6-month EBF intervention model was developed using concept mapping. A training for health-care professionals and community leaders was prioritized as the initial intervention. The aim was to assess the feasibility of the training intervention and its potential to improve 6-month EBF knowledge. A pre- and posttest, and an open question were conducted. Data were analyzed using t tests and thematic analysis. For the 17 health-care professionals and community leaders who participated, the mean 6-month EBF knowledge scores improved significantly from 5.28 to 10.21 (p value < .01). It is recommended that this workshop could be duplicated and scaled up in other regions across Thailand to standardize care.     

Unemployment and social class stigmas

Western economies have seen a shift away from a model of job security to a model of work precarity. Cycles of unemployment are a defining feature of the new precarious economy. Given these cycles of unemployment, it becomes imperative to explore the barriers to reemployment. The present study uses stigma communication to explore the intersection of two barriers to reemployment: the stigmatization of unemployment and social class position. Analysis of 40 interviews revealed that the meaning of unemployment changed depending on the perceived social class of an unemployed person. Participants described typical unemployed people as pathologically lazy and unmotivated. Upper class unemployed people were stigmatized as a product of privilege. Middle class unemployed people were relatively unstigmatized. The typical unemployed person merged with the typical unemployed lower class person, suggesting that the dominant meaning of unemployment assumes that unemployment is a lower class phenomenon that is preventable if the lower class person would work harder.     

Partnering with Districts to Expand an After-School Maths Club Programme

Abstract

A key intervention of the South African Numeracy Chair Project (SANCP) since 2011 has been the introduction of mathematics (or maths) clubs, which occur in the out-of-school time space. In 2016 the maths club concept was developed into a 15-week Pushing for Progression (PfP) teacher development programme which supports primary school mathematics teachers to run clubs beyond the SANCP local area. Expanding intervention models beyond local schools is imperative in the second phase of the SANCP (2016–2020). Working from a mixed methods methodological approach, the researchers collected pre- and post-data for a 4-operations assessment of the entire PfP programme. In this article they share learner data from one of the nine teachers who participated in the PfP maths club programme in the Uitenhague District, Eastern Cape, South Africa, to illuminate how partnerships between academics, district officials and teachers can enable powerful student learning in the club space. They argue further that within the tightly focused development programme run by teachers in this one district, it is possible for learners to make substantive progress in mathematical proficiency (MP) (especially procedural fluency and conceptual understanding) when comparing scores and learner methods between a pre- and post- assessment.     

Evaluation of the implementation, use and effects of a computerised management information system in English secondary schools

Very little empirical large-scale research has been carried out on the use of IT in the management and administration of schools despite of the fact that schools all over the world have adopted such IT based systems. The move in many countries towards autonomous school management will further require the use of these systems. Sophisticated computerised school information systems (SISs) will have to provide school-based information relevant to the development of policies in areas where schools used merely to follow governmental guidelines. If such systems are to be designed and used to full effect, knowledge is urgently needed on the implementation, use and effects of established computerised SISs. The large-scale research project in England, reported here, goes some way towards filling this gap in our knowledge.