“I Bought My Degree,Now I Want My Job!” Is Academic Entitlement Related to Prospective Workplace Entitlement?

Academic entitlement, a term that defines students’ expectations of academic success independent of performance, has been linked with a number of maladaptive behaviors. This study examined the potential relationship between academic entitlement and prospective workplace entitlement in a sample of Canadian students (N=1024) using an online survey. Multivariate analyses produced a significant (p<0.05) positive relationship between academic entitlement and prospective workplace entitlement. Graduate students had higher levels of prospective workplace entitlement than did undergraduates, and those pursuing degrees in Education and Law had significantly lower levels of prospective workplace entitlement than students in other areas of study. Results support a need to develop strategies to minimize entitlement beliefs prior to an individual’s entry into the workforce.     

The consequences of being labelled ‘looked‐after’: Exploring the educational experiences of looked‐after children and young people in Wales

The educational experiences and attainment of looked‐after children and young people (LACYP) remains an issue of widespread international concern. Within the UK, children and young people in care achieve poorer educational outcomes compared to individuals not in care. Despite proliferation of research documenting the reasons for educational disadvantage amongst this population, there remains limited empirical consideration of the lived experiences of the educational system, as perceived by LACYP themselves. This paper draws upon qualitative research with 67 care‐experienced children and young people in Wales. The sample was aged 6–27 years, and comprised 27 females and 40 males. Participants had experienced a range of care placements. Findings focus on how educational policies and practices alienate LACYP from dominant discourses of educational achievement through assignment of the ‘supported’ subject position, where children and young people are permitted and even encouraged not to succeed academically due to their complex and disrupted home circumstances. However, such diminished expectations are rejected by LACYP, who want to be pushed and challenged in the realisation of their potential. The paper argues that more differentiated understandings of LACYP's aspirations and capabilities need to be embedded into everyday practices, to ensure that effective educational support systems are developed.     

Mainstream teachers’ concerns about inclusive education for children with special educational needs and disability in England under pre-pandemic conditions

A survey-based investigation of teachers’ concerns was conducted the following adaptation of Sharma and Desai’s ‘Concerns about Integrated Education (CIE) Scale’ two decades ago. The terminology was adjusted and ‘integrated’ became ‘inclusive’, and ‘Special Educational Needs and / or Disability (SEND)’ replaced ‘disability’ in a novel ‘Concerns about Inclusive Education Scale’. A purposive sample included the public and private education sectors. An online questionnaire was completed in April 2020 (n = 93) by teachers (66: state mainstream, 18: independent, 5: UK-based international schools, 3: SEND specialists, 1: alternative provision). Statistical analysis of closed questions aimed to identify teachers’ concerns about IE for children with SEND and was complemented by qualitative analysis of data generated through open-ended questions. Varied understandings of what IE means and longstanding concerns were identified. The highest level of concern was evidenced around resources, specifically, funding for specialist and support staff, resources, and appropriate infrastructure. Qualitative data analysis suggested that children with SEND risk being perceived as an onerous adjunct to an already stressful ‘regular’ teaching role. Few respondents mentioned national performance monitoring and accountability regimes in this context and, instead, viewed additional paraprofessional and external support as self-evident solutions to excessive workloads, neglecting the implications for equity in education.     

The effect of colour of tester on performance on a group reading test

A study of the relationship between colour of tester and performance on a group reading test was carried out using, as testers, two student teachers of similar experience and appearance apart from colour of skin and, as subjects, 24 children of families of West Indian origin and 24 indigenous children matched for school, sex and age (8-9 yrs). Parallel forms of the Young Group Reading Test (Young, 1969) were administered on alternative occasions by the black tester and the white tester. Differences between the mean group scores were not statistically significant. Correlations between performance on test and re-test by ethnic group, sex, school, colour of tester for first test and form of test for first test were statistically significant, and at or beyond the .05 level. Evidence of ethnic-group effect was not apparent. Attempts to reduce stress e.g. the use of group tests, may have inhibited the expression of ethnic-group effect, if indeed it existed.     

Arts enrichment and preschool emotions for low-income children at risk

No studies to date examine the impact of arts-integrated preschool programming on the emotional functioning of low-income children at risk for school problems. The present study examines observed emotion expression and teacher-rated emotion regulation for low-income children attending Settlement Music School's Kaleidoscope Preschool Arts Enrichment Program. At a level of p < .001, results indicate the following. First, within Kaleidoscope, children showed greater observed positive emotions such as interest, happiness, and pride, in music, dance, and visual arts classes, as compared to traditional early learning classes. Second, children at Kaleidoscope showed greater observed positive emotions than peers attending a comparison preschool that did not include full integration of the arts. Third, across the school year, children at Kaleidoscope showed greater growth in teacher-rated levels of positive and negative emotion regulation. The implication is that arts enrichment may promote social–emotional readiness to learn for low-income children at risk for school problems.     

Counseling in the area of child sexual abuse within the family

This paper considers the recent recognition in Ireland of the problem of child sexual abuse. In 1983, the Government Department of Health, for the first time, allocated a separate category for it in its statistics. Treatment to date has been one of localised and ad hoc arrangements.Counseling approaches follow broadly the divisions that exist in the theoretical models that seek to explain the aetiology of abuse. These can be characterised as (1) those programs that derive from the family systems model and that emphasise dysfunctional family dynamics and (2) programs established for the counseling of a wide range of sex offenders, including intrafamily abusers, and which emphasise traits or aspects of individual perpetrator functioning. Both approaches, however, share fundamental prerequisites. These prerequisites are considered.Three issues are of particular relevance during counseling. The first relates to the child victim at the time of the discovery or disclosure of the abuse, and prior to entry into a family counseling program. The second looks at counseling programs that emphasise the family dimension. The third deals with counseling approaches for perpetrators of abuse. Each of these three topics will be discussed.     

CHARTING THE OUTCOMES OF AN INTERDISCIPLINARY SUMMER INSTITUTE ON GERONTOLOGY

The multiple and complex needs of the elderly require interdisciplinary collaboration among many different professionals to provide comprehensive care. As a result, educators must develop interdisciplinary programs and learning experiences that address educational needs and facilitate a better understanding of the various roles and expertise of providers from many fields. Using the framework of a program evaluation model, the Charting the Outcomes of Educational and Clinical Approaches model, this article addresses the outcomes and effects of an interdisciplinary approach to continuing gerontological education used by one summer institute on gerontology. Over its 12‐year history, this institute has attracted more than 2,600 participants from many professions and occupations. The interdisciplinary approach of the Summer Institute has been evident in its planning committees, the delivery of diversified programs by a variety of providers, the facilitation of informal networking among registrants, and the organization of group discussions that bring together professionals and learners from different disciplines to communicate and collaborate on mutual concerns regarding aging issues. One theme on case management, which addressed policy and practical issues related to service delivery for the elderly, was presented by representatives from academia, government, the nonprofit service sector, and consumers to an audience of providers from various fields including business, gerontology, health promotion, nursing, occupational therapy, psychology, recreation, social work, and sociology. Thesue cess of the interdisciplinary approach to gerontological education used by the institute has helped to establish McMaster University as a Canadian leader in this field of continuing education.