An Innovative Approach to Involving Parents in the Education of their Early Years Children

This paper describes and evaluates a project undertaken with parents from an inner city primary school in Hartlepool, UK, devised to help realise children's potential and raise standards. In order to achieve this, it was necessary to create a partnership between parents, school and the child in an environment characterised by the ‘core conditions’ (Rogers, 1957). It was hoped to increase the self‐esteem of the parents and to give them an understanding of the preschool curriculum in order to develop their skills, knowledge and confidence. It was also the intention of the project to involve these, and other parents, in school life and to enable them to take ownership of their own children's education. The multimedia approach involved video, photographs, word processing and press and radio interviews. The process encouraged the fulfilment of the objectives described above. The paper concludes by describing the successful outcomes of the project and indicates some possible developments.     

Disenchanted Evenings: The social organization of talk in parent-teacher consultations in UK secondary schools

Parent-teacher consultations represent something of a 'black hole' in our understanding of educational practices. This study, based on audio-recordings, examines the structure and the fine detail of these brief encounters. We identify some similarities with doctor-patient consultations. Teachers are accorded the right to give an uninterrupted 'diagnosis'; and they maintain knowledge differentials through their use of specialist vocabularies and professional registers, while down-playing parents' deployment of their own 'privileged' knowledge of the student. However, we argue that teachers do not unequivocally have the upper hand: that issues of power, identity, competence and moral conduct are at stake for all involved. The complex negotiations and skirmishes that take place during these encounters testify to their precarious location on the boundary between the two institutions of home and school. In requiring homes to render themselves visible, schools also, fleetingly, expose themselves to the risk of critical scrutiny from those on the outside.     

Franchising: The Quiet Revolution

The rapid spread affranchising activity by universities over the last few years has been a quiet revolution - revolutionary in its speed and radical nature, but so quiet that its significance has yet to be assessed. Publications on franchising, and there are only a few, are investigative and informative, rather than analytical or policy-oriented. This is perhaps because there has been no major national policy lead on franchising. Government departments and national bodies have contributed at best encouragement and recognition; at worst suspicion and obstruction. In the tradition of revolutionary activity, franchising has been a bottom-up initiative, institution-led, and at a speed which, 'In a sector not known as a quick-change artist is breathtaking'. This paper examines the origins, nature and implications of this quiet revolution.     

Exploring practicum: student teachers’ social capital relations in schools with high numbers of pupils living in poverty

The complexity of practicum in initial teacher education, in terms of the range of diverse social relations and differing school contexts, provides a challenge for teacher educators worldwide, aiming to guide and shape opportunities for student teachers learning to teach. This challenge is further compounded by societal problems linked to child poverty. Drawing from social capital theory, this paper explores the kinds of social relations that are currently associated with student teachers’ practicum experience in schools located in areas of social and economic deprivation or with significant proportions of pupils living in poverty. The paper brings to the surface types of social relations that are beneficial to mitigating the effects of poverty on educational outcomes. The case is made that practicum does not currently support the principles of social capital theory by enabling student teachers to develop an understanding of how to make connections, and develop the social relationships required to support positive educational outcomes for the children and young people in such contexts. Findings indicate that more effective ‘joint practice’ is required to better support student teachers’ professional learning.     

MOTIVATIONAL AND INFLUENTIAL COMPONENTS OF MUSICAL PERFORMANCE: A QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS

Fifteen pianists were asked to study the same piano piece for a period of time. They were then interviewed about motivation to pursue musical performance and factors which influence the generation of performance. Participants were encouraged to raise their own issues or refute the ones presented. The data were then subjected to a content analysis. It was assumed that emotion plays an important part in motivating a performer over a long period of time and also influences actual playing. Four main components common to the participants emerged as influencing performance generation. There also appeared to be four main components describing motives for pursuing music. The results suggest that emotion is intertwined with both performance generation and motivation for musical performance. Findings may have a bearing on the nurturing of musical talent, and imply that competitiveness could be detrimental rather than beneficial to an artistic endeavour.     

‘Am I doing it right?’ Conceptualising the practice of supervising master’s dissertation students

ABSTRACT

An action research project involving 25 master’s supervisors, from health and education disciplines, sought to enhance their understanding of dissertation supervision. Recognising that they were sometimes slightly unsure about their role, they sought to identify issues that contributed to this circumstance, and to develop supervisor preparation materials to support future colleagues. During interviews and collaborative workshops, colleagues shared their experiences and reflected with one another on the nature of supervision. Through this process, they constructed a model that conceptualises how they practice. The core element is an ongoing assessment of a student’s readiness, motivation and individual situation. In response to this assessment, supervisors balance three functions: Facilitating, Nurturing and Maintaining Standards. Facilitating encourages student growth through challenge or stimulation. Nurturing involves the provision of support and reassurance within a safe space in which this growth can occur. Maintaining standards ensures that academic and professional rigour are preserved.