What young people report about the personal characteristics needed for social science research after carrying out their own investigations in an after-school club

Several arguments have been put forward about the benefits of young people carrying out their own social science research in terms of empowering their voices and their participation. Much less attention has been paid to investigating the understandings young people develop about the research process itself. Seven twelve-year olds carried out self-directed social science research into a topic of their choice. Towards the end of their six months experience, we used a questionnaire and follow-up semi-structured interviews to investigate, from a sociocultural perspective, what the young people thought about being a researcher. Thematic analysis of the interviews identified three themes and eight subthemes suggesting that they were aware of: the need to demonstrate researcher/research integrity (be thorough, truthful, orderly, and have a good understanding of research process); the need for good interpersonal skills and standards, and good self-management skills (be resilient, agentic, committed and good at time management). We discuss how first-hand social science research experience might: be relevant to several areas of schooling; give young people experience of the personal characteristics important for success; help young people to realise that they can be social science researchers, and offer advanced and novel learning experiences outside the constraints of the school curriculum.     

K-12th grade students as active contributors to research investigations

TheEarth Day: Forest Watch Program at the University of New Hampshire utilizes morphological and anatomical measurements made on branch and needle samples from eastern white pine (Pinus strobus), collected by K-12 students throughout New Hampshire and Maine. White pine is considered to be a bio-indicator species for ozone exposure. A University research project which monitors the response of white pine to elevated levels of tropospheric ozone has been developed by the authors, who incorporate student-made measurements such as needle length, occurrence of diagnostic foliar symptoms, needle retention, and cellular levels of damage, into an on-going project which characterizes conifer response to a variety of air pollutants. The research team compares classroom measurements with laboratory spectral reflectance measurements made on student-collected branch samples, and infers state-of-health conditions in white pine from the two-state area. These state-of-health data are, in turn, compared with State-monitored tropospheric ozone measurements on a yearly basis, resulting in change-over-time analysis of both regional ozone levels and relative levels of tree health. Based on the work to data (1991–1996), student-derived data have been found to correlate well with spectral parameters and with spatial patterns of summer ozone levels, suggesting that student measurements represent an accurate and reliable source of data for research scientists. Specific examples of student datasets and comparisons with reflectance data and how these can be used for Landsat data verification are presented, along with a discussion of the importance of being able to assess the accuracy of student data. Research scientists need to recognize the tremendous potential for access to reliable data represented by student data-collection programs such asEarth Day:Forest Watch.     

LANGUAGE IN CONSULTATION: THE EFFECT OF AFFECT AND VERB TENSE

This study was an exploration of school consultation interactions between instructional consultants and consultees. Of specific interest was how consultants (n = 18) and consultees (n = 18) used verb tense and emotion words during the problem identification and analysis instructional consultation stage, similarities and differences in communication patterns, and whether verb tense and emotion words were related to perceptions of collaboration, consultee outcomes, or client outcomes. Data provided mixed support for study hypotheses. Among the findings, consultants’ past tense verb use negatively correlated with the consultation relationship (r = ?.62, p = .01), consultees’ present tense use correlated with better consultee outcomes (r = .49, p = .05), and positive emotion word use by consultees was correlated with better consultee outcomes (r = .54, p = .05). Implications of these and other findings are explored in the context of interpersonal communication during school consultation.     

Towards a Realist Sociology of Education: A Polyphonic Review Essay

This review essay evaluates Karl Maton's Knowledge and Knowers: Towards a Realist Sociology of Education as a recent examination of the sociological causes and effects of education in the tradition of the French social theorist Pierre Bourdieu and the British educational sociologist Basil Bernstein. Maton's book synthesizes the scholarship of Bourdieu and Bernstein and complements their work with “discoveries” from the world of systemic functional linguistics to produce a new “realist sociology of education.” It does so by means of Legitimation Code Theory, defined as a “toolkit” to analyze knowledge construction in cultural fields, especially education. The authors of this review essay take a polyphonic approach in assessing this ambitious synthesis, offering four perspectives on Maton's book. Brian Barrett provides a Bernsteinian perspective; Dan Schubert approaches the book from his grounding in Bourdieu; and Susan Hood contributes a view from systemic functional linguistics. Michael Grenfell weaves these three perspectives together and provides introductory and concluding reflections. They aim, through their combined expertise, to use Maton's book as an occasion to take stock of the state of the field of sociology of education generally and to reflect on the questions: What is its nature and what type of knowledge does it express? To what uses may it be set and what is its place within the larger project of educational theory?     

‘At least they’re learning something’: the hazy line between collaboration and collusion

This paper reports the results of a study which investigated whether there is a common understanding of the terms plagiarism and collusion between students and staff. Participants made judgements on scenarios describing student behaviour in assessments. The results suggest that although plagiarism is well understood, the same can not be said of collusion. Both staff and students feel that collusion is much more acceptable than plagiarism because some learning is taking place. It appears that there is no consensus on the boundary between collaborative behaviour and collusion.     

Counselor Trainees' Perceptions of Clients Based on Client Sexual Orientation

In this analog study, the authors examined how client sexual orientation, counselor trainee homophobia, and counselor trainee gender affected counselor trainees' (N = 162) assignment of positive and negative adjectives to clients. A series of multiple regression analyses revealed that client sexual orientation, counselor trainee gender, and counselor trainee homophobia significantly predicted counselor trainees' perceptions of clients. Implications for counselor training and research are discussed.