Do early care and education services improve language development for maltreated children? Evidence from a national child welfare sample

Young children under 6 years old are over-represented in the U.S. child welfare system (CWS). Due to their exposure to early deprivation and trauma, they are also highly vulnerable to developmental problems, including language delays. High quality early care and education (ECE) programs (e.g. preschool, Head Start) can improve children's development and so policymakers have begun calling for increased enrollment of CWS-supervised children in these programs. However, it is not a given that ECE will benefit all children who experience maltreatment. Some types of maltreatment may result in trauma-related learning and behavior challenges or developmental deficits that cause children to respond to ECE settings differently. The current study uses data from a nationally representative survey of children in the U.S. child welfare system, the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being II, to assess whether young CWS-supervised children (N = 1,652) who were enrolled in ECE had better language development outcomes 18 months later than those not enrolled in ECE. We also explore whether the type of maltreatment that brought children to the CWS’ attention moderates the relationship between ECE and children's language development. After controlling for children's initial scores on the Preschool Language Scale (PLS-3), type(s) of maltreatment experienced, and child and caregiver demographics, we found that ECE participation predicted better PLS-3 scores at follow-up, with a positive interaction between ECE participation and supervisory neglect. ECE seems to be beneficial for CWS-involved children's early language development, especially for children referred to the CWS because they lack appropriate parent supervision at home.     

‘They think that if you're a teacher here … you're not clever enough to be a proper teacher’: the courtesy stigma experienced by teachers employed at schools for pupils with behavioural,emotional and social difficulties (BESD)

A wealth of literature has identified that children with behavioural, emotional and social difficulties (BESD) and their families are frequently stigmatised due to the perceived controllable and ‘invisible’ nature of this special educational need (SEN). Yet little research has considered the impact of this stigma on another group of individuals, educational practitioners employed in BESD schools. This is despite these professionals working in close contact with pupils with BESD, a heavily stigmatised group, on a regular basis. This paper therefore, details a study which explored perceptions of stigma specifically with educational professionals employed in schools for pupils with BESD. Semi‐structured interviews with nine practitioners (including head teachers and class teachers with additional responsibilities) were conducted, all of whom had worked within the BESD sector for at least 10 years, with data being analysed via Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). Findings revealed how educational practitioners employed in BESD schools experienced courtesy stigma, with many not being perceived as ‘proper’ teachers due to a discourse of care surrounding BESD. Other professionals reported much confusion from their mainstream colleagues and other individuals about how they could want to work with such ‘challenging’ pupils. This courtesy stigma was linked to the wider stigma surrounding BESD schools, which were often ignorantly perceived to be full of ‘bad boys’ or ‘absolute horrors’. This paper concludes by considering the implications of these findings for policy and practice, and provides recommendations for addressing the identified stigma towards practitioners employed in BESD schools.     

North Korean women defectors in South Korea and their political participation

This study examines the political participation intentions of North Korean women refugees. Previous literature tends to highlight the sufferings and difficulties that female refugees experience as they leave their homelands and settle in a new country. Few studies have been directed toward the political dimension of refugee life. The empirical results show that North Korean women defectors hold generally participatory attitudes toward politics and mostly liberal opinions on policy issues. Furthermore, among the socio-demographic variables, age and marital status are generally influential in the intention of political participation among the North Korean women defectors. Among the political attitudinal variables, attitude toward environmental policy consistently affects political participation intention. With respect to defector-specific variables, satisfaction with life in South Korea is influential, whereas cultural adaptation is not.     

Developing narrative skills through case-studies

This article describes the adaptation of ‘story grammar’ to developing the subject understanding and literacy of 14–16-year-old students. ‘Story grammar” analyses the structure of episodes of a typical story and it was developed through research into the narrative development of younger, frequently language-delayed, children. Reasons for expecting this story grammar to provide a helpful basis for teaching older students are summarized. An application of story grammar in teaching business studies is described through the activities designed for students and evidence from students' work. Implications for understanding of literacy in a subject context are discussed.     

Prejudices Unshelved: Variation in Attitudes toward Controversial Public Library Materials in the General Social Survey, 1972–2014

Using the General Social Survey from 1972–2014, we examine variation in attitudes toward retaining controversial materials in libraries. Previously controversial topics have become much more widely accepted. We find that other controversies remain, showing how global conflicts become intertwined in local cultural controversies, and how the perceived threat from particular groups informs public concern with disseminating information from those groups. We find that more frequent library users are somewhat less likely to want to remove controversial books from the shelves, although some of these relationships are explained by variation in the respondent’s age, race, and other characteristics.     

Tweeting Facts,Facebooking Lives: The Influence of Language Use and Modality on Online Source Credibility

The present study examines how language use (e.g., personalized vs. depersonalized language) and modality (e.g., tweets vs. Facebook status updates) influence source credibility interdependently. A total of 257 participants read personalized or depersonalized health messages embedded in mock-up tweets or Facebook status updates. The results show that users perceive depersonalized tweets as more credible than depersonalized status updates posted on Facebook. On the other hand, personalized status updates on Facebook generate higher credibility judgments than personalized tweets. The findings are discussed in light of the MAIN model as well as the preconceived user expectations and communication norms of social media.     

C语言的指针

以具体实例详细介绍了C语言指针复杂说明的理解方法;分析指针使用中的常见错误及解决方法;利用指针和动态分配函数实现程序运行中堆的自由空间的支配和释放。     

抽象绘画的艺术语言

抽象绘画是当今人类社会的审美向多元化拓宽的产物。抽象绘画应用点、线、面、体、色彩等元素。构成超越实际生活的抽象符号来表现画家自我感受，让人通过复杂的形象思维活动去体会作品中的理性美感。它是纯意识、纯形式的艺术。     

从krashen的习得/学得假说谈外语语法教学

从语言学家对krashen习得/学得假说的异议看到习得和学得并不是相互独立的,而是相互渗透、相互融合的,进而认为krashen在此理论基础上创立的自然教学法对外语语法教学的忽视是不妥的,并从语法教学的意义加以证明.     

论语言输入与外语习得

语言输入对外语习得的重要性已得到了普遍的认可.在国内外语言学家们所提出的理论和观点中,影响力最大的就是Krashen的"语言输入假设".本文主要以这一假设为理论根据,阐述了外语教学中语言输入的意义和如何进行语言输入.