Arts councils,policy-making and “the local”

ABSTRACT

In the British Isles, national policies for the arts are primarily viewed as the responsibility of arts councils with statutory duties to distribute state funding that meet the requirements of both “arms-length” principles and national strategic frameworks. This paper explores the tensions between policy making for the nation-state and for “the local” through comparative research on the arts councils (and equivalent bodies) in Scotland, England and Northern Ireland. Drawing on in-depth qualitative interviews with senior representatives from these organisations, it explores their notions of, responsibilities to and affiliations with “the local”. Findings suggest that despite their different models and relationships to the nation-state, and the disparities in the scale of investment, these national policy bodies commonly rely on networked governance to facilitate their relationship to “the local” which risks reproducing national interests, limiting the localised agency of place-based approaches and contributing to a culture of competition within cultural policy.     

Special educational needs and inclusion,moving forward but standing still? A critical reframing of some key issues

This article draws together my thinking in relation to special educational needs and inclusion that have dominated my practice. The article, through the concept of embodiment, revisits, reviews and reframes the key issues of the construction of special educational needs, inclusion and the ideology that binds them together. Through this exploration, I argue we often seem to move forward with policy while in reality standing still in ensuring the ‘success’ of all of our pupils. By critiquing and reframing taken‐for‐granted assumptions and the sacred words ‘success’ and ‘achievement’, this article maps out the future directions of inclusive education. It concludes with a reflection on my first days as a ‘teacher of special educational needs’ and my work to support Kenny, a student with cerebral palsy. This personal reflection maps out a different form of educational success that perhaps could provide a forward momentum to develop more successful inclusive education policy and practice.     

Being bullied at school as a child,worse health as an adult? Evidence from China

This paper examines the long-run relationship between school bullying exposure and later adult health using a nationally representative household survey data from China. Our results show that victims are more likely to have low self-reported health, chronic diseases, physical functional limitations, and mental health problems even after several decades. The negative health consequences are more concentrated on the disadvantaged who come from low-income households or lack family support. The main findings are also consistent with qualitative evidence of our online survey.     

Between business and morality: cultural politics in independent bookshops in China

ABSTRACT

This article investigates how cultural businesses may facilitate contentious political activity in authoritarian contexts. Existing research in Western liberal democracies has shown the widespread political activism of actors in the cultural and creative industries. Whether such activism exists in authoritarian society, how it may differ in character and form, and what implications this will have for our understanding of relations between business, politics, and culture in authoritarian countries remain to be addressed. Drawing on data collected from 55 ‘independent bookshops’ in China, I illustrate how these organisations perform ‘cultural politics,’ a type of political participation in which actors employ mainly symbolic means to express social and political concerns. The organisations’ economic relations and conditions facilitate their efforts to create spaces in which contentious questions can be raised, sensitive topics explored, and alternative ideas expressed, despite the Chinese state’s political regulation of the cultural sphere. The finding of the economic embeddedness of cultural politics sheds new light on our understanding of the political economy of cultural businesses in contemporary China.     

党在提高社会管理科学化水平中的主导作用

2011年2月19日胡锦涛在省部级主要领导干部社会管理及其创新专题研讨班开班式上明确提出了＂提高社会管理科学化水平＂的重大命题。党作为社会的领导者,通过主导政策探索、管理格局、党群关系、基层基础、社会组织、虚拟社会、核心价值,事实上在创新社会管理、提高社会管理科学化水平中发挥着主导性作用。     

建国前中国共产党资本主义观的回顾与思考

1919年五四爱国运动爆发，中国开启了新民主主义革命的进程。然而与一般的资本主义国家不同，在半殖民地半封建社会时期。中国的资本主义和资产阶级有着很大的特殊性。作为代表中国最广大人民根本利益的中国共产党从1921年成立到1949年新中国建立这近三十年的时间内，不可避免地与资本主义及其资产阶级发生了千丝万缕的关系，并在不同历史阶段采取了不同的策略。总结党在这一时期的历史经验对当下中国经济社会发展仍然有很大启示和教育意义。     

试论中国古典音乐的崇高美——以《十面埋伏》为例

艺术作品的崇高美,是指艺术作品本身蕴含着庄严伟大的思想,强烈激动的情感、雄奇远大的意象、激越高昂的格调、慷慨激昂的旋律、跳跃夸张的结构、恢宏阔大的场面、饱满奔放的语言。中国古典音乐中崇高美质的最大作用是振奋人们的精神。     

Change management and the SENCo role: developing key performance indicators in the strategic development of inclusivity

This article follows an earlier publication highlighting the changing role of special educational needs co‐ordinators (SENCos) in England. SENCos are now required to manage change strategically and deliver inclusive school cultures. School‐based action research undertaken by a teacher studying for the postgraduate National Award for SEN Co‐ordination (NASENCO) is featured in the article; a strategic review of resource allocation increased the availability and quality of interventions for students with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). The commentary which frames the study acknowledges that many SENCos are not yet members of a senior school management team (SMT) despite their mandated strategic whole‐school remit. Featuring the process through which one SENCo has strived to enhance SEND provision and develop context‐specific key performance indicators brings official guidance on the SENCo's role in strategic change management into sharp focus, raising questions that should concern both SMTs and non‐SMT SENCos.     

中巴建交六十年:双边关系回顾与思考

自1951年中国与巴基斯坦建立外交关系以来,至2011年,双边关系迎来了60周年。回顾过去跨世纪的60年,中巴关系在几个发展阶段都呈现出一些共同的特征,无论双方国内政治格局如何变动,无论国际风云如何变幻,中国和巴基斯坦都经受住了时间的检验,将"好邻居、好朋友、好伙伴、好兄弟"的国家和人民之间的关系不断推向更高的阶段,最终形成"全天候"和"全方位"的战略合作关系,成为当代国际关系的典范,也成为维护地区和世界和平、稳定与安全的重要力量。60年的中巴交往积累了丰富的弥足珍贵的经验,可以概括为:以"和谐世界"、"和而不同"的哲学思想为出发点,互相尊重,平等相待,高度信任;从全球化角度来审视和处理两国关系是中巴能够"以不变应万变"、长期保持"全天候"和"全方位"战略合作的最佳视域;以维护对方国家核心利益为基轴,在事关领土完整、民族安全等重大问题上相互理解和支持;与时俱进,扩大互利共赢的双边经贸合作是巩固和拓展两国"特殊关系"的基石;频繁的高端互访和各领域、各层次友好往来是中巴关系长盛不衰、保持活力的根本源泉。事实上,这种非同一般的关系已经远远超越双边和地区范畴,对全世界都有借鉴意义。