Towards a Framework of Socio-Linguistic Analysis of Science Textbooks: The Greek Case

This study aims at presenting a grid for analysing the way the language employed in Greek school science textbooks tends to project pedagogic messages. These messages are analysed for the different school science subjects (i.e., Physics, Chemistry, Biology) and educational levels (i.e., primary and lower secondary level). The analysis is made using the dimensions of content specialisation (classification) and social-pedagogic relationships (framing) promoted by the language of the school science textbooks as well as the elaboration and abstraction of the corresponding linguistic code (formality), thus combining pedagogical and socio-linguistic perspectives. Classification and formality are used to identify the ways science textbooks tend to position students in relation to the interior of the corresponding specialised body of knowledge (i.e., in terms of content and code) while framing is used to identify the ways science textbooks tend to position students as learning subjects within the school science discourse. The results show that the kind of pedagogic messages projected by the textbooks depends mainly on the educational level and not particularly on the specific discipline. As the educational level rises a gradual move towards more specialised forms of scientific knowledge (mainly in terms of code) with a parallel increase in the students' autonomy in accessing the textbook material is noticed. The implications concern the way both students and teachers approach science textbooks as well as the roles they can undertake by internalising the textbooks' pedagogic messages and also the way science textbooks are authored.     

Collaboration and integration of services in Greek special schools: two different models of delivering school services

Multidisciplinary collaboration is considered to be very important for the education of pupils with special educational needs and particularly those pupils with the most severe disabilities. This research adopts a multiple case‐study design in order to understand collaboration and the integration of services and the effectiveness of these among pupils with profound and multiple learning difficulties (PMLD) in Greece. The teams, choosing case studies in five special schools, considered 10 pupils and their parents. Reviews and analyses of the legislation; the use of diaries; participant observations and semi‐structured interviews were used for the collection of data. Two different models of service integration which provide different opportunities to the inclusion of pupils with PMLD were revealed since schools have different methods of integrating health and social professionals. In the first model, the school works with outside services, whereas in the second, services are within the school. In addition, roles and responsibilities differ within the different models. Service integration and collaboration were found to be more effective in schools where teachers and health and social professionals work under the same management. The study suggests the expansion of the second model of multidisciplinary collaboration with the integration in schools of health therapists, educational psychologists and social workers.     

The cultural understanding of inclusion and its development within a centralised system

This paper discusses inclusion in relation to centralised systems, in particular the constraints central control makes upon decisions at school level. The discussion is empowered by an evaluative case study research undertaken to understand the development of inclusion in contexts where flexible teaching and curriculum change are sometimes hard to find. In particular, based on a systems approach, this research describes and evaluates an attempt in a Greek primary school to implement inclusive practices, aiming to analyse the problems and prospects of inclusion in a highly centralised system, entirely controlled by the Ministry of Education. The inclusive practices developed in this school were based on a collaborative teacher model, offering new roles to mainstream teachers. The research data come from a diary, group interviews, classroom and meetings observations, and document analysis. The study reveals several obstacles to inclusion, besides the good practices which promote it. The main argument is that a centralised system favours the integration of students with disabilities more than their inclusion.     

Young people’s relationship to education: the case of Greek youth

The aim of this study is to explore how Greek youth understands their relationship to education, and how this understanding might change as a result of the interplay between participation in different educational/social arrangements and structural factors such as gender, socio‐economic background and area of residence. In total, 800 young people (i.e. four groups—students in upper‐secondary school, tertiary education, vocational education and training and working young people) were surveyed. The results yield an impressive homogeneity of the young people’s views corresponding to a ‘pragmatic’ image of schooling, though they are partially differentiated with respect to attitudes and practices. Moreover, boundaries are discerned between the young people following academic and non‐academic educational trajectories, and between the learning opportunities provided within and outside the formal educational system. Finally, females appear to be more mobilized, but less satisfied by educational services. These findings are contextualized and discussed against a background of relevant trends in other European countries, as well as of wider social, historical and political forces affecting Greek society.     

Towards an Analysis of Visual Images in School Science Textbooks and Press Articles about Science and Technology

This paper aims at presenting the application of a grid for the analysis of the pedagogic functions of visual images included in school science textbooks and daily press articles about science and technology. The analysis is made using the dimensions of content specialisation (classification) and social-pedagogic relationships (framing) promoted by the images as well as the elaboration and abstraction of the corresponding visual code (formality), thus combining pedagogical and socio-semiotic perspectives. The grid is applied to the analysis of 2819 visual images collected from school science textbooks and another 1630 visual images additionally collected from the press. The results show that the science textbooks in comparison to the press material: a) use ten times more images, b) use more images so as to familiarise their readers with the specialised techno-scientific content and codes, and c) tend to create a sense of higher empowerment for their readers by using the visual mode. Furthermore, as the educational level of the school science textbooks (i.e., from primary to lower secondary level) rises, the content specialisation projected by the visual images and the elaboration and abstraction of the corresponding visual code also increases. The above results have implications for the terms and conditions for the effective exploitation of visual material as the educational level rises as well as for the effective incorporation of visual images from press material into science classes.     

ICT and play in preschool: early childhood teachers’ beliefs and confidence

This study investigated early childhood teachers’ beliefs about information and communications technology (ICT) and play in preschool, as well as their confidence in integrating ICT in the classroom. A 28-item questionnaire was compiled and administered to 190 early childhood teachers in Greece. Although ICT play (which can provide learning opportunities) has largely replaced traditional childhood play, in Greece, there is inadequate integration of ICT in early childhood education. In this study, two factors were extracted: ‘playing with ICT as an effective mode of learning and developing children's technological competence’ and ‘ICT use as free play’. The fewer the years of teaching experience and the higher the teachers’ computer self-efficacy, the stronger was the view that ICT play is not just free play. Teachers’ beliefs and confidence affect their classroom practices and, consequently, the children's learning. Viewing ICT as a mode of learning that should be embedded in the curriculum is expected to lead to ICT integration in a teacher's daily practices. The implications for in-service teacher training are therefore discussed.