Performance Assessment: Moonstruck or the Real Thing?

What are the advantages of performance assessment? What are the risks of employing only performance assessments in large-scale testing programs?     

Emotion theory in education research practice: an interdisciplinary critical literature review

Educational technology research and development - In this critical literature review, we seek to understand why multidimensional, psychological measures of human emotion that have been popular in...     

Interaction and the Development of Communication in the Under Twos: Issues for practitioners working with young children in groups

This article considers the role of adult-child interaction in the communication development of children under two. It specifically investigates the situation of a family with twins, where it may be more difficult to undertake sustained, supportive interactions with two children at the same time. The study identifies strategies used by the family to support the children's language development and suggests that these could be used in care settings where early years practitioners may be working with under twos in small group contexts.     

School-psychological providers: A national survey of state departments of education

To identify professional groups that are providing psychological services in the schools, the present national survey of state departments of education was conducted. Fifty-nine percent of states currently mandate services of school psychologists by law, and a variety of allied professional groups were identified as also providing psychological services in the schools. Specific information about provider groups and service mandates is reported. Recommendations relevant to the provision of quality school-psychological services and utilization of multiple providers are given.     

Service user and carer involvement in students’ classroom learning in higher education

The following article presents a small-scale qualitative study in which the student learning experiences from service user and carer (SUAC) involvement in social work, mental health nursing and social welfare courses at an English university were evaluated for any effects on student perceptions, knowledge, skills and practice. Using focus group methodology, student participants reported positive outcomes from exposure to SUAC classroom inputs such as a greater valuing of SUAC knowledge as expert knowledge, help with the development of empathy and an appreciation of constructive challenges to mainstream curricular delivery. Notes of caution were identified, particularly in respect of the sometimes unexpected levels of emotion displayed by SUAC presenters. Recommendations for meaningful SUAC involvement in higher education are made regarding the need to involve SUACs across the whole duration of a course; the need for the preparation of both students and presenters regarding boundaries; the fit of presentations with intended learning outcomes; more partnership delivery in classrooms between academics and SUACs (possibly with a differentiation between theoretical and practice inputs); the opportunities for SUACs to present their own situations as real rather than hypothetical case studies for students and the possibilities that may result from introducing a ‘buddying’ system between students and SUACs throughout their studies. It is suggested that the insights from this small-scale study merit further exploration on a larger scale if policy and practice in the field of service and user involvement in higher education are to move forward in an inclusive manner.