bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
School Absenteeism and Aspirations: a non‐recursive path model1
Authors: Crespo Manuel
Published: June 2007

Using the two‐stage least squares method in conjunction with path analysis, this paper tests, within the framework of the status attainment process model, the existence of possible reciprocal influences between school absenteeism and educational and occupational aspirations. The sample consists of 1046 Francophone students (52.7% male and 47.3% female) in secondary III, IV and V classes from five comprehensive high‐schools situated in low, middle and high income areas of Montreal. An aggregated model reveals the existence of a feedback loop between school absenteeism and educational aspirations, but not between the former variable and occupational aspirations. When a control for sex is introduced, the feedback loop appears to exist only for females for both educational and occupational aspirations. A tentative interpretation of some of the findings is provided and a few suggestions for future research given.
Professional Learning and Researcher Intervention: an action research perspective
Authors: Day Christopher
Published: June 2007

This paper attempts to address three questions fundamental to research on teachers' thinking — what ways do teachers learn, why do they change (or fail to change), and what is the role of the researcher as intervenor in this process of teachers' thinking and behaviour? I will argue that if research is to make a significant contribution to teacher learning and change, researchers must move away from the notion of themselves as prime designers and interpreters of the motivations, thoughts and actions of others towards a more interdependent role in which collaboration, consultation, and negotiation are first principles. If they are to achieve success, they must be prepared not only to talk with teachers about practice, but to observe teachers in their behavioural settings. This is based on the assumption that, ‘in order to understand teaching, teachers' goals, judgements and decisions must be understood, especially in relation to teachers' behaviour and the classroom context…’ (Shavelson & Stern, 1981).

While there is a good deal of recent and well‐documented research on various aspects of teachers' thinking—their pedagogical thoughts, judgements and decisions ‐there is as yet very little empirical evidence concerning the relationship between this thinking and classroom practice (behaviour).
Computer‐assisted Learning, Computer‐based Guidance and the Teaching of Educational Research Methods
Authors: Goodyear Peter
Published: June 2007

The microcomputer has made a considerable impact on the teaching of social research methods—through its capacity to save repetitive labour and its flexibility as a vehicle for computer‐assisted learning. This paper begins by describing some of these more conventional uses of the microcomputer, with reference to the teaching of educational research methods. It goes on to outline a new role for the computer as educational catalyst; a role which arises from a recognition that many of the forms of interaction which occur between man and computer can be characterised as processes of learning. By focusing on research as learning, and on the potential of computer‐based aids to research and learning, a powerful reflexive approach to the teaching of educational research method can be adopted.
Common‐core Curriculum: a Piagetian conceptualisation
Authors: Smith Leslie
Published: June 2007

Piaget's account of formal operational thinking and Further Education Unit proposals for a common‐core curriculum share twin assumptions: there are general abilities and such abilities are transferable. Piaget's account is reviewed and the commitment to both assumptions is shown. The family of six general abilities which underlie formal operational thinking is reviewed as well as six types of cognitive constraint which restrict the actual transfer of general ability. Criticisms of Piaget's account are evaluated and it is argued that Piaget's competence account is not primarily an account of cognitive performance. The implications of this interpretation for pre‐vocational education are considered, including the cognitive development of young people, instructional objectives, learning‐methods and assessment. The central conclusion is that Piaget's account is one intellectual resource which may be used in the context of pre‐vocational education.
Ruling‐class Classification and Framing
Authors: Walford Geoffrey
Published: June 2007

This article discusses the relationships between school, higher education and work for pupils at public boarding schools. It uses the concepts of classification and framing developed by Basil Bernstein to illuminate the continuities and contradictions in experience of these pupils as they pass from school to university and into their careers.

The role of these schools in the reproduction of the ruling class is shown to be related to the ability that these public boarding schools have to offer a mixture of both an integrated and collection type code. Finally, speculations are made about the possible effects of recent changes within these schools.
Construing Classrooms and Curricula: a framework for research
Authors: Yorke D. M.
Published: June 2007

In recent years personal construct theory has become increasingly used to underpin research into teachers' thinking, and a number of researchers have opted to give methodological prominence to the repertory grid.

This paper points to the limitations of the theory in respect of research outside the domain of psychotherapy and to some of the problems associated with repertory grid studies. It is argued that repertory grids are inherently positivistic and are thus in philosophical tension with the theory on which they are based, a tension that is not removed by researching in a ‘conversation paradigm’.

The importance of events in personal construct theory is discussed, and it is suggested that an emphasis on events requires the researcher to adopt an approach that is informed by phenomenology and the philosophy of history.

Finally, a return is made to the level of research practice, and a methodological approach is outlined which is—to a greater extent than the repertory grid—consistent with the main thrust of personal construct theory. Stress is given to the importance of the quality of the relationships between constructs, since these have implications for connections between construing and action—an issue which is of crucial importance is the study of teachers' thinking.
Teaching Processes in Social Studies Classrooms and Prescriptive Instructional Theories
Authors: Hacker R. G. , Carter D. S. G.
Published: June 2007

An exploratory study of teaching styles in 40 social studies classrooms was described. Observational data were cluster‐analysed and three teaching styles were described. It was found that inexperienced teachers favoured an informational teaching style. The implications of the study for the possible empirical testing of prescriptive, instructional theories were discussed, and it was suggested that sufficient variance of teaching style could be found in natural, intact classrooms to justify optimism about the feasibility of using these classrooms in such empirical tests.
Ethnic Differences in Science Choice, Attitudes and Achievement in Britain
Authors: Kelly Alison
Published: June 2007

The science choices, attitudes and achievement of Asian and black children were compared with those of white children. When allowance was made for background and school factors there was very little difference between the ethnic groups in the extent to which they enroled in science courses in fourth and fifth year. Asian boys were slightly more likely than other boys to choose physics; they also expressed greater liking for science and greater interest in learning about physical science than other boys. White girls were less interested in physical science than other girls and white boys were less interested in biology. Black and Asian pupils scored lower than comparable white children on science tests on entry to secondary school. However by fifth year Asian boys were out‐performing white boys, while black pupils achieved as well as white children from similar backgrounds and schools.
Government Control of the Curriculum: some archive and recent evidence
Authors: Proctor Nigel
Published: June 2007

The current moves by the Government to establish a National Curriculum will be directed and managed by the civil servants in the Department of Education and Science. Their present deliberations are highly confidential, but the control they exercised over the curriculum in the early decades of this century can be gauged through a study of confidential internal memoranda of the Board of Education in the Public Record Office. Two case studies‐of geography in secondary schools, and of geography as an advanced subject‐are presented before comparisons are made with the successful campaign to gain recognition for the subject within the Government's National Curriculum.
School Administrators Write About Burnout: individual and organisational implications
Authors: Sarros James C.
Published: June 2007

This qualitative study examined work situations contributing to burnout as identified by over 120 school‐based administrators in a large Western Canadian separate school district. Both organisational and individual features such as interpersonal relationships, work load, and need for recognition contributed differentially to each form of burnout as defined by Maslach & Jackson (1981a, b). The findings suggest that an improvement in human relations and time management skills, and increased positive feedback could promote self‐esteem and lessen experiences of burnout in school administrators. In addition, future research may examine the idiosyncratic nature of school organisations as a potential influence on the severity and typology of administrator burnout.
Critical Paradigms: some problems of implementation
Authors: Brigley Stephen
Published: June 2007

This article considers a growing movement in educational research which accepts the phenomenological arguments for collaborative approaches but wishes to press co‐operation further into a form of social and political critique. Drawing on a collaborative case study of school governors, the author shows how his decision to gather evidence which would lead to a similar critique was essentially political in character. The field of research into governorship was marked by intractable social conflict, in which local governor‐LEA disputes were directly fuelled by a national re‐alignment of governors' powers. Research methods, relationships and reports were necessarily conditioned by this political scenario, and researchers were unable to divorce deliberations on such matters from reflections on their own political stance. Their attempts to sustain research collaboration in this case were limited by disagreements among the participants. Because of this, it is claimed that the insights of phenomenological and critical paradigms may be difficult to reconcile in practice, perhaps providing an indication of theoretical paradoxes within this methodology.
Gender Differences and Computing in Course Choice at Entry into Higher Education
Authors: Durndell Alan , Siann Gerda , Glissov Peter
Published: June 2007

A sample of beginning students (387) who had just entered Higher Education were asked why they had made their course choices, and what their views were of the situation where low numbers of females were entering computing and technological areas. Whilst males in general were more instrumental in their course choices than females, computing students of both sexes appeared attracted by extrinsic awards perceived to go along with computing, and tended to deny that they were especially suited to study in their area. Potential female students of computing appeared to be put off by the prospect of harassment in predominantly male groups, and by problems linked to images of unfemininity. Whilst it was generally thought that females had the ability to study computers, school teachers were widely criticised for putting schoolgirls off technological subjects.
Pupils' Perceptions of ‘Effective Disciplinarians’
Authors: Munn Pamela , Johnstone Margaret , Holligan Chris
Published: June 2007

This paper reports the perceptions of 543 pupils about the strategies used by their teachers which get the class to work well. The pupils were in four secondary schools and aged between 12 and 16. Twenty‐one categories of effective strategies were derived from pupil comments. However, no single category dominated the data. Examining what we have called ‘pupils’ constructs of effective strategies’ revealed that a wide range of strategies were perceived as effective. Not only was a variety of strategies seen as effective, pupils in each school identified over 75% of the staff as being best at getting the class to work well.
Action Research: some methodological and political considerations
Authors: Chisholm Lynne
Published: June 2007

Action research enjoys an established position in educational thinking and practice. Feminist theory and praxis has inspired and guided anti‐sexist educational policy and practice. However, ‘anti‐sexist’ and ‘mainstream’ action research in education draw on divergent methodological and political discourses. This is revealed in the sense of distance/difference the two traditions can experience when they encounter each other in the educational community. We might alternatively approach the issues raised in such encounters by considering the contradictory elements built into action research itself. These oppositions mirror the dualism of our accustomed ways of thinking. Some characteristic shortcomings of action research projects result from avoiding rather than confronting these contradictory elements. The problems they entail may be ultimately irresolvable, but they cannot be circumvented if action research is not to become increasingly vulnerable to political ‘actionism’.
Imitatio Physiccœ
Authors: Preece Peter F. W.
Published: June 2007

The physical science paradigm, particularly the use of mathematical models and the formulation of general principles, is defended as a method of enquiry in education. Examples of algebraic and topological models are described, and a particular model relating learning to the pace of instruction is discussed in some detail. Two broad generalisations—the Quantitative and Qualitative Principles of Teaching (‘more teaching leads to more learning’ and ‘learning is largely unaffected by differences in teaching style’)—are also discussed.
An Investigation of Some English Primary School Teachers' Understanding of the Concepts Force and Gravity
Authors: Kruger C. J. , Summers M. K. , Palacio D. J.
Published: June 2007

In light of an increased role for conceptual understanding of science in English primary schools, the research reported here investigated the views of force and gravity held by 20 primary teachers, using the ‘interview about instances’ technique. Results are reported in sections dealing with definitions of force; gravity and weight; views of friction; combinations of forces and the concept of a resultant force; reaction forces; force and motion; and finally, the teachers' use of scientific language. Nearly all of the teachers had views of these concepts that were not in accord with generally accepted scientific interpretations—most held views similar to those of children reported by other researchers. Some implications of the findings are discussed.
Pre‐school Reading‐related Skills and Later Reading Achievement: further evidence
Authors: Blatchford Peter , Plewis Ian
Published: June 2007

This paper extends, to the end of junior school, associations between preschool reading skills and later reading attainment reported earlier. It also presents, from a second study, associations between letter naming and letter sounding at the end of reception, considered separately, and reading attainment one year later. The earlier findings on the correlations between letter identification and reading attainment at the end of infant school still hold at the end of junior school. The results from the second study give no support to the hypothesis that it is letter sounding rather than letter naming which predicts later reading attainment. Implications of the results for practice in the reception year are discussed briefly.
Children's Responses to Touch‐a questionnaire study
Authors: Neill Sean R. St J.
Published: June 2007

Children's responses to six types of touch were assessed at five ages between nine and 17 by questionnaire. The questionnaire was oriented to the types of touch and toucher occurring in classrooms and other public places, with a view to assessing their implications for education. The type of touch, the part of the body touched, and the familiarity and sex of the toucher all had strongly significant effects on children's responses, as did the child's own age and sex. The status of the other person (adult/peer, teacher/non‐teacher) had weaker effects. The implications of the results are discussed.
Underachievement: a case of conceptual confusion
Authors: Plewis Ian
Published: June 2007

Although the word underachievement is frequently encountered in educational writing, it is not a well‐defined concept. This paper presents alternative operationalisations of underachievement, one based on a discrepancy between attainment and IQ and generally used by psychologists, the other based on relative position and used more by sociologists. Particular attention is paid to technical aspects of the psychologists' definition, and it is shown that an apparently straightforward approach based on a regression model has many drawbacks. The paper ends by suggesting that educational researchers consider dropping underachievement from their vocabulary.
Playing it by the Rules: the politics of research in ‘race’ and education
Authors: Connolly Paul
Published: June 2007

Abstract This article offers an examination of the interplay between politics, ethics, theory and methodology as they impact upon social research, through a critical analysis of the ethnographic study conducted by Peter Foster. It will be argued that his highly contentious claim, to have found no manifestations of racism (either direct or indirect) throughout his study of an inner‐city, multi‐ethnic comprehensive school was, in the last analysis, both misleading and inaccurate. It will be contended that such claims were based upon a research design and methodology which were ultimately determined by his own political orientation and the ethical and theoretical positions which he developed as a consequence.
Developing the Curriculum for Pupils Experiencing Difficulties in Learning in Ordinary Schools: a systematic, comparative analysis
Authors: Ireson Judith , Evans Peter , Redmond Patrick , Wedell Klaus
Published: June 2007

Abstract A comparative analysis of the process of curriculum development in a sample of 10 primary and 10 secondary schools is presented. Interview reports and school documentation were analysed through the construction and application of a set of grounded data categories. These categories were grouped into a model in order to represent the process of curriculum development. The analysis revealed differences between schools which were associated with the organisation of provision for children experiencing difficulties in learning. The interplay between the organisation of provision and the process of curriculum development is discussed.
Active Learning in Secondary School Mathematics
Authors: Kyriacou Chris
Published: June 2007

In recent years there has been widespread advocacy for a greater variety of learning activities to be used in the teaching of mathematics in secondary schools, and in particular calls for greater use of active learning. In essence, active learning may be described as the use of learning activities where pupils are given a marked degree of ownership and control over the learning activities used, where the learning experience is open‐ended rather than tightly pre‐determined, and where the pupil is able to actively participate in and shape the learning experience. The term ‘active learning’ has commonly been applied to a diverse range of learning activities, such as practical work, computer‐assisted learning, role play exercises, work experience, individualised work schemes, small group discussion, collaborative problem‐solving and extended project work. In the first phase of the study, seven categories of learning activities used in mathematics lessons were identified. One activity was considered to describe traditional teaching, and the other six activities to describe types of active learning. In the second phase of the study, heads of mathematics departments completed a questionnaire in which they estimated the frequency of occurrence of these seven activities. The findings indicate that active learning is fairly commonplace now, but in most schools, only for a minority of lessons. In addition, the replies indicate a marked shift towards greater use of active learning in recent years, particularly in the use of investigational tasks, small group discussion, computer‐assisted learning and extended project work.
An Investigation of the Mathematical Knowledge and Competencies which Young Children Bring into School
Authors: Aubrey Carol
Published: June 2007

This paper describes an investigation of the mathematical knowledge, strategies and representations of one small reception class of 16 children. The data suggest that children bring into school a range of competencies which pose some challenge to the conventional reception class curriculum. Further examination of children's strategies suggests that, as in language acquisition, a rule‐governed approach is operating from the start. The necessity to provide for children to move gradually through different stages of mathematical representation, where they can learn the interrelationships among ideas and link these to their own informal knowledge and strategies, is considered in the context of the National Curriculum.
Reflection: a necessary but not sufficient condition for professional development
Authors: Day Christopher
Published: June 2007

Few discussions on professional development occur without some reference to the central role that reflection plays in the learning life of the teacher. It is thesine qua nonof the ‘teacher‐researcher’, ‘action research’ and ‘reflective practitioner’ movements. During the last 20 years there has been a growing body of literature and practices which has sought to identify different levels of reflection in which involvement is essential, it is claimed, for the maximising of teacher growth. Yet much of this has failed to consider the need for reflection to be accompanied by confrontation if development is to occur, and alongside this, the negative and positive roles that organisational culture may play in the provision for different kinds and levels of reflection and confrontation. Two key issues are addressed in this paper. The first relates to our understanding and use of reflection—an essential part of the learning process; and the second, to the need for partnerships and coalitions within collaborative organisational cultures which are necessary to support opportunities for the different kinds of reflection so necessary to learning, and thus contribute to the development of individual professional learning cultures in the 1990s.
The Implications of Bioethics for Teachers and Teacher Researchers
Authors: Lovat Terence J.
Published: June 2007

The teacher as researcher movement has, among other things, increased awareness of the human interventionary nature of teaching. In turn, in a day and age of heightened ethical consciousness, the human interventionary nature of teaching has thrust the profession into the forefront of those requiring ethical direction. To the extent that the teacher role is one of human intervention, the question of its ethical parameters must be posed. The human interventions of regular classroom practice must be seen as being subject to the same ethical scrutiny which inveighs in professional life generally. Even more so, when the teacher role moves closer to that of researcher, involving intervention with students, parents, consultants and the community which goes beyond normal classroom interaction, the ethical constraints pertinent to all human research intervention must apply. In either case, albeit differently, new sensitivities and legal trends in many Western countries are impinging on ethical consciousness in the teaching profession. The paper proposes that the principles of bioethics, a subdiscipline which has impacted particularly on the medical profession, may well offer suitable guidelines by which the human interventions of the teacher and the teacher researcher might be evaluated for their ethical suitability and propriety.
Clusters: inter‐school collaboration in meeting special educational needs in ordinary schools
Authors: Norwich B. , Evans J. , Lunt I. , Steedman J. , Wedell K.
Published: June 2007

This article reports the findings and discusses the implications of a research project on school clusters, a system of inter‐school collaboration to meet special educational needs (SEN) in ordinary schools. The project was in two stages. The first stage involved detailed qualitative case studies of four different kinds of cluster arrangement. These were analysed in terms of antecedents, processes and outcomes based on documentation and interviews with key participants as informants. The second stage surveyed a wider sample of cluster arrangements in three regional meetings using a group interview methodology. The overall findings are summarised in terms of the conditions and factors which promote SEN inter‐school collaboration and the outcomes for schools, teachers, local education authorities (LEAs) and support services. The significance and implications of these forms of inter‐school collaboration are finally discussed in terms of the current changes to the school system and the education of pupils with SEN.
The Reliability and Validity of the ‘Smiley’ Scale
Authors: Davies Julie , Brember Ivy
Published: June 2007

The ‘Smiley’ scale was devised to measure primary school children's attitudes to school as part of the Junior School Project by the Inner London Education Authority in 1986. It appeared potentially useful, in both content and format, for our purpose. It was found that no reliability or validity study had been carried out on it. To rectify this, one was done. Internal consistency reliability was found to be satisfactory when tested on 641 Year 2 and 585 Year 6 children. Test‐retest reliability was considered by readministering the scale to 172 Year 2 and 155 Year 6 children after a 1 week interval. The Year 6 children showed more consistency in their responses than the Year 2 children. The correlation coefficients of the totals on the two occasions were 0.71 and 0.87 respectively. The validity of 172 Year 2 and 167 Year 6 children's responses was tested by comparing them to the teachers' perceptions of the children's attitudes using the ‘Smiley’ scale. Results showed very few significant correlations between the children's and teachers' responses for the Year 2 children although there were more significant correlations for the Year 6 children. This may be due to teachers' lack of awareness of children's attitudes to school.
Teacher Knows Best: a solution to the marks‐to‐levels problem in National Curriculum testing
Authors: Morrison Hugh , Healy John , Wylie Caroline
Published: June 2007

Criterion‐referenced tests are now widely regarded as important instruments in monitoring pupil progress, diagnosing strengths and weaknesses, evaluating the success of instruction, and reporting the performance of pupils, teachers and schools against defined ‘standards’. National Curriculum assessment has strayed a long way from its criterion‐referenced beginnings, and advocates of adjustments such as rollback would argue that criterion‐referenced measurement makes such demands of pupils as to be unworkable. This article argues that the adoption of the Angoff standard‐setting methodology to convert test scores to levels could facilitate a return to full criterion‐referenced assessment. The Angoff procedure is outlined together with the statistical measures used to monitor the reliability with which standards are set. The contribution which simple tests with Angoff‐determined qutscores can make to the dissemination of standards and to the moderation of teacher assessment is presented.
Towards a Collaborative Approach to Teacher Empowerment
Authors: Lally Vic , Scaefe Jon
Published: June 2007

This paper outlines a project based on an approach to teacher empowerment through collaborative action research. Using accounts from teachers involved in the project, the conditions necessary for the development of collegiality on in‐service courses are explored. The nature and significance of agenda setting and ways of introducing tools for empowerment are described. The use of collaborative autobiography (CA), interpersonal process recall (1PR) and a general supervisory framework (GSF) are analysed in detail. The paper concludes with comment on the extent to which teachers are empowered by these tools to reconstruct the complex relationships between power, knowledge, ideology and schooling which dominate much of their working lives.
How Is Action Research Helping to Develop My Role as a Communicator?
Authors: Chiswell Kathleen
Published: June 2007

Throughout the first two years of my study as a part‐time university student but a full‐time teacher involved in critical action research, I was acutely aware of the threatening nature of the task I had undertaken. My willingness to expose my own teaching methods and organisation to critical examination needed the co‐operation of others who may fail to appreciate the relevance of my research. Analysis within my own classroom was one thing, but later 1 needed to extend the research beyond that and into the wider school and even into certain areas of the curriculum. In order to achieve this I knew I would have to depend on the co‐operation of colleagues, and their willingness to participate in interviews, completing questionnaires and at times, even acting as observers. Their continued response over a period of time prompted me to trace my development as a communicator; from the isolation of my own classroom communicating with my pupils to whole school and staff communication.
The National Curriculum: can small schools deliver? Confidence and competence levels of teachers in small rural primary schools
Authors: Hargreaves Linda , Comber Chris , Galton Maurice
Published: June 2007

Recent calls for primary schools to provide specialist expertise across the curriculum have presented a particular challenge to small schools (roll < 100) whilst other survey evidence has shown low levels of confidence amongst primary teachers in several curriculum areas. One strategy adopted by small schools to increase access to such expertise has been the formation of clusters. This paper, based on data from two rounds of questionnaires to headteachers and teachers, relates small schools’ teachers’ confidence and competence self‐ratings, and choices of curriculum support strategies to four levels of cluster commitment. Confidence and competence ratings were generally high but the expected positive relationships between self‐ratings and cluster levels were only partially supported by the data. Explanations based on the process of cluster development are offered.
Telling Transitions: boundary work in narratives of becoming an action researcher
Authors: Maclure Maggie
Published: June 2007

The paper explores the handling of ‘boundary phenomena’ within modernist and post‐modernist research perspectives, via a reading of the autobiographical narratives of 10 people who have been influential in developing and promoting teacher action research. These stories of transitions — from teacher, to action researcher, to academic — address boundary issues that are rehearsed within action research itself: between theory and practice, school and academy, insider and outsider. The paper examines attempts to solve boundary problems occurring at a key transition point in these stories — the leaving of teaching. While modernist discourses seek resolutions of boundary dilemmas and transcendence of contradictions, post‐modernist discourses resist resolution and embrace ‘in‐between‐ness’. The paper considers the implications for action research of taking seriously — or even playfully — post‐modern notions of boundary work as transgression rather than transition. Vampires, cyborgs and ‘the abyss’ audition for cameo roles in this reading, which also attempts to show how deconstruction might be brought to bear on spoken texts — a relatively underdeveloped topic.
Educational Research and Teaching: a response to David Hargreaves’ TTA lecture
Authors: Hammersley Martyn
Published: June 2007

David Hargreaves has argued that educational research fails to provide a sound evidence‐base for teaching: it does not generate a cumulative body of knowledge; and it is not geared to resolving the classroom problems that teachers face. As a solution, he recommends that teachers play a more central role in setting the agenda for research and in carrying it out. I accept much of Hargreaves’ criticism of educational research as failing to develop cumulative knowledge, but I suggest that the problems involved in this are more difficult than he acknowledges, and that what he proposes is likely to worsen rather than solve the problem. I also question whether research can fulfill the direct role in relation to practice which Hargreaves envisages. He appeals to the example of evidence‐based medicine, but I suggest that this is problematic even in its own context. I conclude by raising questions about the sort of central planning of research that Hargreaves recommends.
Policy Sociology and Critical Social Research: a personal review of recent education policy and policy research
Authors: Ball Stephen J.
Published: June 2007

The paper undertakes two related exercises; one substantive and one meta‐analytical. The first concerns changes in public sector provision. It is argued that the public sector has been ‘transformed’, in Jessop's terms, from a Keynsian Welfare State to a Schumpeterian Workfare State. This transformation involves fundamental changes to forms of provision, patterns of access, forms of work, client — worker relations, inter‐institutional relations and values and ethics. The constitution of citizenship has also been affected. The second concerns the conception of and engagement with social policy by educational researchers. A template for examination of the ‘surface epistemology’ of education policy research is presented — that is the relationships between conceptualisation, research design and conduct and the interpretation of data. It is argued that there is a basic tension at the heart of education policy research, between a commitment to the pursuit of efficiency and a commitment to the pursuit of social justice.
Home — School Relationships: ‘the swarming of disciplinary mechanisms’?[1]
Authors: Vincent Carol , Tomlinson Sally
Published: June 2007

This article examines a number of connecting themes concerning home‐school relations over the last 20 years. We argue that the position of parents in relation to the education system can be seen as an instructive case study for the broader trends and shifts in the relationship between citizens and public sector institutions. As such we conclude that the important developments, upon which future analysis should concentrate, are those where parents seek to define for themselves new understandings of what constitutes an ‘appropriate’ parental role, rather than being captured within a hegemonic discourse of ‘good’ parenting. The incursions of consumerism into public sector institutions is obviously a major theme throughout the paper, and we seek to highlight some flaws in the notion of parent as consumer. In particular, we argue that the apparent agency embedded in the role of consumer does not necessarily influence parents’ relationships with teachers once a choice of school is made. At school level notions of ‘partnership’ are still dominant. We examine the ways in which ‘partnerships’ are played out in practice, and argue that the concept is increasingly used to justify mechanisms, such as home‐school contracts, which seek to control the behaviour of parents and their children. The third theme within the paper explores the possibilities for parental agency and activity, using examples drawn from parents’ groups organising around special education. The final section considers the potential for future research on home‐school relations.
Children's Attitudes to the National Curriculum at Key Stage 1
Authors: West Anne , Hailes Jean , Sammons Pam
Published: June 2007

An investigation of the attitudes of children aged 6‐7 (Year 2) from a variety of different backgrounds towards specific curricular areas is reported. The quantitative analysis revealed that using the computer was the most positively rated of all the activities examined. It was also found that girls had more positive attitudes than boys in a number of areas, particularly in relation to English and ‘coming to school’. Children from ethnic minority groups and those with English as a second language also had more positive attitudes in some areas. The qualitative findings indicate that three key dimensions can be used heuristically to conceptualise children's attitudes towards school activities — interest versus boredom, the level of difficulty, and success versus failure. The results are discussed in terms of current psychological perspectives on children's motivation and of the policy implications of the findings.
The Subject‐matter of Educational Research
Authors: Wilson John , Wilson Nicholas
Published: June 2007

‘Educational research’ is here considered not as a cultural phenomenon or practice but as a sui generis enterprise with a certain logic of its own. The subject‐matter of such research must, logically, be learning: the promotion of a certain kind of good (knowledge and mastery) which must be distinguished from political or social goods. It is argued that effective learning depends primarily on the personal qualities of the educator: that should be the main area or subject‐matter for research, and it requires a mixture of conceptual analysis and psychological insight. Questions about the value of different kinds of learning are also central to educational research, though now commonly neglected by researchers. All this suggests a radically different agenda for the enterprise.
Research for Sale: moral market or moral maze?
Authors: Bridges David
Published: June 2007

This article considers some of the moral and social issues which are raised as the funding and character of university research in education shifts increasingly in the direction of ‘contract research’ and as those purchasing such research claim increasing ownership and control over its conduct and its publication. The article formulates these proprietorial rights as a set of propositions and then seeks to challenge them. It advances, first, an epistemological challenge based on considerations of ‘epistemic drift’; second, a moral argument against restrictive ownership of educational knowledge and then a political case based on the principles of liberal democracy. However, the article acknowledges that there are moral complexities which disturb an oversimple conclusion to the debate. It offers the reader alternative pathways to a conclusion which can be read as ending either on the resounding note struck by Roszack's defence of ‘the delinquent academy’ or on a more ambivalent note of moral complexity.
Ethnic Group, Sex and Economic Disadvantage: associations with pupils’ educational progress from Baseline to the end of Key Stage 1
Authors: Strand Steve
Published: June 2007

Very few studies have explored the associations between ethnic group, sex, economic disadvantage and school attended on pupils’ progress during their earliest years at school (age 4‐7). The present study reports an analysis of the educational progress made by over 5000 pupils between Baseline assessment at age 4 and national end of Key Stage 1 (KS1) tests at age 7. There were marked differences in pupil attainment associated with ethnic group, sex and economic disadvantage, both at Baseline and at the end of KS1. In general, differences between groups of pupils tended to increase rather than decrease over time. Pupils entitled to free school meals (FSM) made less progress in all subjects than pupils not entitled to FSM, girls made more progress than boys in reading and writing but less progress in mathematics and Caribbean pupils made less progress, and Chinese pupils more progress, than English, Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish (ESWNI) pupils. There were, however, significant interactions between the pupil factors. Caribbean and Black Other boys, African and Caribbean pupils with high Baseline attainment and ESWNI pupils entitled to FSM all made less than expected progress. The results confirm previous research indicating the particular primary school a pupil attends has a significant effect on their progress during the early years. However, there was no evidence of significant differential school effectiveness in relation to ethnic group, sex or economic disadvantage. Thus, the same schools that were most effective for either ESWNI, girls, or economically advantaged pupils were also most effective for either Caribbean, boys, or economically disadvantaged pupils.
Do You Like What You See? Self‐perceptions of Adolescent Bullies
Authors: Johnson David , Lewis Geraldine
Published: June 2007

This paper reports an attempt to increase our understanding of adolescents who exhibit bullying behaviour, by focusing on their self‐perceptions. The findings, which confirm those in the literature, establish that the typical bully has a relatively positive self‐concept in the social domain and in self‐esteem. It is proposed that these findings have implications for early preventative approaches to bullying. These may include an awareness of how temperament traits might interact with a child's environment to produce certain behaviours, including a tendency to bully. Parenting programmes may be a suitable vehicle, and it is also posited that parenting styles and basic elements of child development may be included in ante‐natal care.
Mathematical Model of Airflow in the Lungs of Children II: Effects of Ventilatory Parameters
Authors: Guan X. , Segal R. A. , Shearer M. , Martonen T. B.
Published: June 2007

In an effort to develop more effective aerosol therapy procedures, we examined airflow patterns in the lung of a child (age four years). In particular, we were concerned with how ventilatory parameters (i.e., breathing rate and tidal volume) affected the patterns of airflow around tumors. To conduct the study, a computational fluid dynamics package, FIDAP was used to define a model lung. The results of simulations show the extent to which changing ventilatory parameters can affect flow patterns in the neighborhood of the tumors as well as drug distribution throughout the lung.
Abstract Action Potential Models for Toxin Recognition
Authors: Peterson James , Khan Taufiquar
Published: June 2007

In this paper, we present a robust methodology using mathematical pattern recognition schemes to detect and classify events in action potentials for recognizing toxins in biological cells. We focus on event detection in action potential via abstraction of information content into a low dimensional feature vector within the constrained computational environment of a biosensor. We use generated families of action potentials from a classic Hodgkin–Huxley model to verify our methodology and build toxin recognition engines. We demonstrate that good recognition rates are achievable with our methodology.
Scheduling Medical Procedures: How One Single Delay Begets Multiple Subsequent Delays
Authors: Sonnenberg Amnon , Crain Bradford R.
Published: June 2007

Background: Delay is a common feature of medical disease management. Delays occur because schedules are filled, patients forget their appointment, equipment is unavailable, or because medical and non‐medical complications interfere with the planned procedure. The aim of the present analysis is to model how one single delay can lead to multiple subsequent delays.

Methods: The consecutive stream of delays is analyzed in terms of a stochastic process comprising of a random sum of random time periods. Any untoward event causes a procedural delay, which provides a time window of opportunity for yet another delaying event to occur.

Results: The stochastic model explains why even a single initial delay can easily lead to a multitude of subsequent delays. The expected overall delay is always longer than the initial delay caused by the deferment of the initial procedure. The analysis demonstrates how in individual patients an initially short delay may subsequently expand into days or weeks.

Conclusion: Because a single delay can easily burgeon into a lengthy series of multiple delays, the primary goal should be to avoid the precipitating delay at the onset.
Multimodal Imaging Techniques for the Extraction of Detailed Geometrical and Physiological Information for Use in Multi‐Scale Models of Colorectal Cancer and Treatment of Individual Patients
Authors: Pitt-Francis Joe , Chen Dan , Slaymaker Mark , Simpson Andrew , Brady Michael , van Leeuwen Ingeborg , Reddington Fiona , Quirke Phil , Brown Gina , Gavaghan David
Published: June 2007

A vast array of mathematical models have been proposed for all stages of cancer formation across a wide range of spatio–temporal scales. Attention is now turning to coupling these models across scales and building models of “virtual tumours” for use in in silico testing of novel drugs and treatment regimes. This leads naturally to the requirement for detailed knowledge of the underlying geometry and physiological properties of individual tumours for use in: (i) multi‐scale mathematical models of in vivo tumour growth and development; (ii) fusion of multi‐scale, multimodal medical imaging techniques to improve the diagnosis and treatment of individual patients; and (iii) training of cancer specialists and surgeons.
A Survey of Cell Population Dynamics
Authors: Arino O. , Sánchez E.
Published: June 2007

A Survey of cell‐population models is presented. The so‐called cell cycle is discussed, including some models which are not population models but which contribute to the better understanding proliferation of cell dynamics. Classical linear models of structured cell‐population models are described with a review of classical results and a comparison between different approaches. Finally, some non‐linear models are also developed.
The Challenge of Complex Dynamics for Theoretical Models of Cardiac Activity
Authors: Kunysz Arkady , Shrier Alvin , Glass Leon
Published: June 2007

Electrical stimulation of excitable cardiac tissue results in a variety of rhythms similar to those clinically recorded. Simplified momlinear equations and ionic models give complementary descriptions of the dynamics in cardiac preparations. Nonlinear midels often capture the essential dynamical features of the experimental observations but do not properly describe the underlying ionic mechanisms. Ionic midels are descriptive, complex, and despite their general sucess in reproducing the cardiac action potential, seldom undergo extensive testing against experimentally determined rhythms. We review work from our group devoted to the modeling of cardiac rhythms, including nonlinear models and the Shrier‐Clay ionic model of electrical activity in embryonic chick heart cell aggregates. Since sustained stimulation may have long lasting consequences on the intrinsic excitability of the tissue, we also discuss recent advances in modeling the stimulation history‐dependent aspects of pacemaking.