Researching in school – creating a meaningful school/university alliance: a reflection

This paper reflects upon the experience of carrying out a piece of action research as a university academic, in partnership with a primary school. It considers roles and responsibilities, agendas, dynamics, ethical dilemmas and issues of voice. It contextualises the research within a field where educational research continues to be conceptualised as the ‘poor relation.’ In light of this, it explores the richness and value to be found in rejecting positivist tradition and re-imagining the research process as one of uniqueness and ‘dissensus’ whereby learning happens through collaborative shared-learning encounters. It concludes that research relationships such as these can illuminate new understandings in ways that are not only rich and enduring but often unforeseen.     

Tutoring primary trainee teachers through E-conferencing

This article explores issues for developing primary teacher trainee mathematics subject knowledge from a tutor perspective, and ways of working together in an e-environment that can promote quality learning. It focuses on the design of the e-environment, the methods of working and the advantages and disadvantages for developing mathematics subject knowledge through an e-environment from a tutor perspective.     

To globalise or not to globalise? ‘Inward-looking youth’ as scapegoats for Japan's failure to secure and cultivate ‘global human resources’

In Japan in recent years, there has been much discussion of the need for global human resources alongside criticism of Japanese youth as having an ‘inward-looking’ (uchimuki) orientation. Drawing out the contradictions apparent in a youth apparently reluctant to leave Japan and companies, universitiesand government seemingly desperate to nurture and attract global talent, this paper frames the uchimuki discourse as a cover for an insular Japan and its failure to attract and foster ‘global human resources’.As such, the two discourses shed a great deal of light on Japan's complex relationship with globalisation.     

Communicated Stereotypes,Attitudes, and Intended Accommodation of Appalachians

ABSTRACT

The study illuminates intergroup cognitions and intended communication towards Appalachians. American MTurk workers’ (N = 252) open-ended responses illuminated stereotype content of “backwards,” “uneducated,” “poor,” “mountain dwelling,” “self-reliant,” “kind,” and “prejudiced,” corroborating non-Appalachians’ closed-ended responses that Appalachians are deemed moderately competent and warm. The previous contact with an Appalachian yielded no significant differences in “attitudes towards Appalachians” scores. Intended (non)accommodations towards Appalachians commonly included “no adjustments,” with a variant array of overaccommodations (e.g. talking slower) and avoidance that either invoked or enforced stereotypes. Results may inform future testing and enhancement of intergroup and interpersonal communication with and about Appalachians.