Written artefacts in post-conference feedback sessions: the running commentary as a support for teacher learning

Written artefacts often form a significant part of teacher education activities and play a crucial role in the dialogue between tutor and student teacher in a post-observation feedback session. However, although the dialogue of feedback sessions has been extensively researched, the role of the artefact has been less explored. This research examines how the written artefact of a running commentary guides or constrains the pedagogical conversation between tutor and student teachers, as well as how it represents the power and authority of the tutor and the teacher education establishment. The article concludes with implications for pre-service teacher education practice.     

Urban regimes and school compacts: The development of the Detroit Compact

School compacts between the business community and school officials have increased in recent years. This paper examines the development and implementation of a school compact program in the Detroit Public School system. The paper shows that the Detroit Compact was initiated by Detroit's corporate leaders. The article highlights some of the issues faced in forging compact agreements between the business community, Detroit Mayor Coleman Young, school officials, and school activists. The paper concludes with a discussion of some of the problems the Detroit Compact faces.     

Effects of Introducing Classroom Peflormance Assessments on Student Learning

How can performance assessments be used as part of regular instruction? Will this raise student performance on external achievement measures? What aspects of examinee performance improve on the assessment exercises?     

Baby Bear or Mrs Bear? Young English Bengali‐speaking children's responses to narrative picture books at school

This article presents findings from a one‐year study of several Bengali‐speaking children aged 5–6 years, in their first year of the English school system. The investigation centres on exploration of the children's responses, principally to the visual text, of a selection of narrative picture books used in their school. The aim was to collect children's responses to characters and visual features, and to see what narratives the children made from the picture books. The children, some of whom were relatively experienced viewers and narrators of picture‐book stories, produced varied responses to character and décor. The article suggests that the books formed a bridge between the known and the culturally unfamiliar, giving the children access to an understanding of scenes from types of homes other than their own. The author asserts the need to welcome children's versions of stories and their interpretation of pictures, and to allow them the opportunity to re‐read picture books many times.     

Families at risk of poor parenting: A model for service delivery,assessment, and intervention

The At Risk Parent Child Program is a multidisciplinary network agency designed for the secondary prevention of poor parenting and the extremes of child abuse and neglect. This model system of service delivery emphasizes (1) the coordination of existing community resources to access a target population of families at risk of parenting problems, (2) the provision of multiple special services in a neutral location (ambulatory pediatric clinic), and (3) the importance of intensive individual contact with a clinical professional who serves as primary therapist, social advocate and service coordinator for client families. Identification and assessment of families is best done during prenatal and perinatal periods. Both formal and informal procedures for screening for risk factors are described, and a simple set of at risk criteria for use by hospital nursing staff is provided. Preventive intervention strategies include special medical, psychological, social and developmental services, offered in an inpatient; outpatient, or in-home setting. Matching family needs to modality and setting of treatment is a major program concern. All direct services to at risk families are supplied by professionals employed within existing local agencies (hospital, public health department, state guidance center, and medical school pediatric clinic). Multiple agency involvement allows a broad-based screening capacity which allows thousands of families routine access to program services. The administrative center of the network stands as an independent, community-funded core which coordinates and monitors direct clinical services, and provides local political advocacy for families at risk of parenting problems.