NOTES ON ONGOING RESEARCH IN SPECIAL EDUCATION

ABSTRACT

With the support of Unicef and Unesco, the Romanian Ministry of Education has since 1993 been operating a programme to promote the educational and social integration of children and young people with special needs. In a comparatively short time the programme has grown from a pair of pilot projects to comprise a number of interactive elements which include a Joint European Project within the EU's TEMPUS programme, as well as provision for networking, and for describing, monitoring and generalizing experience of good practice. In this process a ‘philosophy’ of integration has developed which is appropriate to Romanian realities and which offers the possibility of an integration project to everyone concerned with special needs. The paper stresses the importance of the voluntary organizations and their new cooperative relationship with the institutions, and of the role of the universities in professional training. The paper ends with a discussion of the barriers and supports to integration, together with some conclusions about the significance and future of the programme.     

No yoga for Eric: lifelong learning from a small firm's perspective

An emphasis on lifelong learning as a route to economic competitive advantage forms the basis for current governmental policies directed at both firms and individuals. Since small firms are seen as vital for economic growth and development, this sector is a major target for lifelong learning based programmes. However, the views of those in this sector on lifelong learning are less well known. This study of 128 small firms explored the views of owner managers and key staff in these firms about lifelong learning. Despite the hype, owner managers still seemed unsure about the concept, showing the same resistance to embracing learning for all staff seen in earlier studies. However, whilst not recognizing its value for their company to achieve business needs, it was described as important in their own lives, particularly to achieve personal rather than business aims. Examples were also given of transfer of ideas and skills from leisure to work environments. Staff designated as ‘key’ by their managers saw learning as a continuous process, vital for their own future development. These staff had been the main participants of formalized firm learning and had also taken part in learning outside work for personal development. Further research would be needed to identity whether non-preferred staff shares this positive view of learning.     

The new ‘market‐state’ and education

This paper argues that changes at all levels of education and training (i.e., learning) policy exemplify a new capitalist state formation. This has been aptly named by US political scientist Philip Bobbitt (2002) ‘the new market‐state’, particularly with reference to its administration or ‘governance’. It can be seen especially in the governance of education and training where a new centralized system of contracting or devolving provision to ‘non‐governmental agencies’ has all but replaced the previous ‘national system locally administered’ (Ainley, ). The latter typified the administration of the classic post‐war welfare state, which Bobbitt calls the ‘nation‐state’. Like the former welfare state, the new ‘market‐state’ is also a capitalist state and, therefore, also the means to rule for a persisting capitalist ruling class (Roberts, , pp. 169–192). The new state formation is, however, as different as the former welfare state was in turn from pre‐war capitalist state forms in England. This is particularly clear when the new ‘settlement’ of education and training, imposed by the 1988 Education and 1992 Further and Higher Education Acts, is contrasted with the former welfare state ‘settlement’ established by the 1944 Education Act. In conclusion, implications for opposition to the ‘new market‐state’ are discussed.     

PRESERVICE TEACHER APPLICATION OF DIFFERENTIATED INSTRUCTION

Successfully implementing the practice of inclusion by differentiating instruction depends on both the skills and attitudes of general education teachers. New general education teachers who are entering the field are particularly vulnerable to the demands and stress of the profession, and teacher education programs must prepare preservice teachers to meet the needs of all students by teaching the skills needed to make appropriate lesson adaptations, accommodations, and modifications. This study investigates the manifestation of differentiation for special education students in work sample lesson plans written by preservice teachers working toward an elementary school credential. The research examined the nature, characteristics, and types of instructional adaptations included in the work samples prepared by a sample of preservice teachers resulting in six distinct themes and recommendations for teacher education programs.     

The average IQ of sub-Saharan Africans assessed by the Progressive Matrices: A reply to Wicherts,Dolan, Carlson & van der Maas

Wicherts, Dolan, Carlson & van der Maas (WDCM) (2010) contend that the average IQ in sub-Saharan Africa is about 76 in relation to a British mean of 100 and sd of 15. This result is achieved by including many studies of unrepresentative elite samples. Studies of acceptably representative samples indicate a sub-Saharan Africa IQ of approximately 66.     

Distance education for the gifted and talented: An interactive design model

In 1994, the New South Wales Board of Studies, Australia, introduced three high level Distinction Courses for gifted and talented students: comparative literature, cosmology, and philosophy. All are offered by distance education but the cosmology course employs an interactive design model and an extensive communication system that differentiates it from the other two. This article explains the model and the way it is used in practice to organize, sequence and deliver the course. Discussion addresses ways in which the model might be used to design a wider range of courses for gifted and talented students.     

The Principalship in Transition

Many individuals enter administration not fully prepared for their roles. This is because many preparatory programs have persistent weaknesses in the linkage between theory and practice, are irrelevant and grossly inadequate for the current responsibilities of the principalship, and overlook teaching the social realities of administrative roles. Along with aligning administrative programs with standards of effective leadership, the social side of administration must be considered and addressed.     

Judgment‐Based Scoring by Teachers as Professional Development: Distinguishing Promises from Proof

The engagement of teachers as raters to score constructed response items on assessments of student learning is widely claimed to be a valuable vehicle for professional development. This paper examines the evidence behind those claims from several sources, including research and reports over the past two decades, information from a dozen state educational agencies regarding past and ongoing involvement of teachers in scoring‐related activities as of 2001, and interviews with educators who served a decade or more ago for one state's innovative performance assessment program. That evidence reveals that the impact of scoring experience on teachers is more provisional and nuanced than has been suggested. The author identifies possible issues and implications associated with attempts to distill meaningful skills and knowledge from hand‐scoring training and practice, along with other forms of teacher involvement in assessment development and implementation. The paper concludes with a series of research questions that—based on current and proposed practice for the coming decade—seem to the author to require the most immediate attention.