Utilization of social sciences in public discourse: Labeling problems

This article reports the main results of an empirical research project on the utilization of social sciences in the field of labor market and educational policy in West Germany since the 1960s. The research interest focused upon utilization of social science knowledge in public discourse paralleling policy decisions. The analysis shows that the social sciences are used extensively for labeling social problems. The use made of social science knowledge can be described as a certain combination of instrumental and conceptual utilization. In the concluding section of the article, the innovation problem of social science utilization is considered. Dr. Matthias Wingens is senior research associate with the Sociological Research Center “Social Problems” at the University of Bremen. His main research interests include the utilization of social science knowledge, the sociology of knowledge, and educational research. Dr. Ansgar Weymann is chair of the Department of Sociology and head of the Sociological Research Center “Social Problems” at the University of Bremen. His main research interests include sociological theory, utilization of social research, research on education, labor market, and employment, and research on socialization and life-course.     

Organizational learning and climate as predictors of self-efficacy

This study broadens organizational contextual considerations by examining organizational learning, participation in organizational learning activities and organizational climate as possible predictors of self-efficacy. As schools have been studied as organizations (Handy, 1986, Understanding schools as organizations, Harmondsworth: Penguin; Ostroff, 1993, Organization Behavior and Human Decision Process, 56, 56–90; Ostroff & Schmitt, 1993, Acadamy of Management Journal, 36(6), 1345–1361), this study provides regression results from n = 679 teachers and indicated that organizational climate and organizational learning were significant predictors of teacher self efficacy, controlling for several individual level variables (i.e., participation in organizational learning, personal self-efficacy, and teaching efficacy). Differences between results from the sample of teachers and n = 734 non-teachers (e.g., principals, assistant principals, administrators, counselors, paraprofessional, custodial, food service, and transportation staff) were examined with regard to predictor variables for teaching efficacy. For teachers, both organizational learning and personal self-efficacy were significant predictors of teaching efficacy, whereas for the group of non-teachers, they were not. In both groups, however, participation in organizational learning was a significant predictor, while organizational climate was not (contrary to Taylor & Tashakkori, 1995, Journal of Experimental Education, 63(3), 217–230). Overall, findings provide evidence for extending the research beyond schools and including organizational learning as a potentially important variable in further studying individual outcomes and organizational effectiveness. Dr. Timothy J. Tobin is Director of Training and Development at Beers & Cutler PLLC. He is responsible for designing, implementing, and evaluating the firm’s organizational climate and learning organization initiatives. He is also an adjunct professor at Trinity University and The George Washington University where he teaches organizational behavior, human resource management, and training courses among others. He is the recipient of Human Capital Magazine’s Future Human Capital Leader Award. His current research interests include the interplay between organizational culture, identity, and learning. Dr. Ralph O. Mueller is professor of educational research and of public policy and public administration at The George Washington University, Washington, DC, and former Chair of its Department of Educational Leadership. His scholarly interests include proper applications of and reliability assessment in structural equation modeling (SEM). He is the author/co-editor of two SEM textbooks, among other writings. Ralph is past chair of the American Educational Research Association’s special interest group on SEM, serves on the editorial boards of several methodological and applied research journals, and conducts regular SEM training sessions for national and international audiences. Dr. Lauren M. Turner is senior lecturer at Northeastern University in the College of Arts and Sciences and the School of Professional and Continuing Studies. Current teaching focuses on leadership studies. Lauren also facilitates in the Vogt Leadership Program with The Boston Consortium for Higher Education. Work-based learning, including action learning and facilitation, is at the core of her efforts to combine classroom and workplace learning. Research interests include self-directed learning and meaningful work, specifically the intersection of these two disciplines as they relate to a construct for meaningful work.     

What is the appropriate level of redundancy in federally sponsored education dissemination programs?

Educational policy is often based on the assumption that redundancy is a negative factor in dissemination and should be eliminated in order to achieve cost effectiveness. This article examines issues of redundancy in three dissemination contexts: knowledge acquisition and storage; knowledge synthesis; and knowledge utilization. Knowledge utilization and implementation, ultimately the goals of federally supported dissemination efforts, should rely on processes of planned and targeted redundancy of knowledge syntheses to various users. Barbara Lieb is research director, Research Applications Division of the Office of Educational Research and Improvement, U.S. Department of Education, where she formerly managed the the Regional Educational Laboratory Program. Having published and taught extensively in the areas of interpersonal, organizational, and instructional communication, she brings a communication perspective to issues of knowledge utilization. In addition to managing other federally supported dissemination programs for the National Institute of Education, she has served in executive capacities for both the Speech Communication Association and the American Society for Medical Technology, dealing with issues of professional development and knowledge use.     

Learning from others. Japan's role in bringing psychology to China

Recent research by Chinese and Japanese historians of psychology and education suggests that it was educational reformers' copying of Japan's education system in the 1st decade of the 20th century that provided the context for developing modern psychology in China. Psychology, although not well understood by those reformers, was thought to be useful in teacher training. In 1902 Japanese psychology teachers came to China and some textbooks were translated. Chinese students studying in Japan also brought back psychological knowledge in translations. However, the Chinese attraction to study in Japan declined after 1906. As the United States opened new universities and provided opportunities for Chinese students to study in U.S. schools, it became a more attractive option for later generations of Chinese, who saw psychology become established as a separate discipline.     

Information dissemination in early childhood education

Trends and issues in the dissemination of knowledge are discussed in terms of current trends. The general trends include the rapid rate at which new journals and documents are produced and increasing specialization in the field. Among the issues discussed are the optimum information hypothesis, optimum conceptual size of information, vividness and propitiousness of the information, and orientations to knowledge of subcultures within a professional field. The field of early childhood education is used as the example of each trend and issue. Lilian G. Katz is Professor of Early Childhood Education at the University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign) where she is also Director of the ERIC Clearinghouse on Elementary and Early Childhood Education. She is currently President of the National Association for the Education of Young Children. Professor Katz is author of more than one hundred articles, chapters, and books about early childhood, teacher education, and parenting. Her most recent book isEngaging Children’s Minds: The Project Approach (with Sylvia Chard).     

Young Offenders with Disabilities: Legal Requirements and Reform Considerations

Delinquency rates have been a persistent concern in the United States with juveniles involved in almost a third of arrests for major crimes in 1993. Further, a disproportionate number of youths incarcerated have a disability. Because youths with disabilities in correctional facilities present legal and educational challenges, we explored the parameters of providing appropriate services based on individual needs. Despite applicable federal legislation, the juvenile correctional system often fails to meet the educational needs of those with disabilities (i.e., some youths are denied special education services, services are often inferior to those provided by public schools, and teachers are often inadequately trained). According to federal legislation, juvenile facilities must observe procedural safeguards afforded to those individuals and provide needed services even for pre trial detainees (services, however, may be balanced against legitimate security concerns). Ultimately, state educational agencies have the responsibility for ensuring that youths with disabilities receive a free appropriate education. Promising practices applicable to all youths may include Positive Peer Culture, aggression replacement training, aftercare programs, and research validated instructional interventions.     

The development and dissemination of Council of Europe policy on education about religions and non-religious convictions

This article, written from an insider perspective, and in a personal capacity (the author has been involved with the Council of Europe’s work on religion and education since its inception in 2002), gives an account of the developing interest in the study of religions (and latterly non-religious convictions) in publicly funded schools by the Council of Europe, one of several international institutions to have focused on the place of religions and beliefs in public education in recent years. Particular attention is given to the 2008 Recommendation from the Committee of Ministers (the Foreign Ministers of the 47 member states of the Council of Europe) on teaching about religions and non-religious convictions in schools, and to current work on its dissemination. In 2011, the Council of Europe and the European Wergeland Centre set up a joint committee to produce a document (Policy and Practice for Teaching about Religions and Non-Religious Worldviews in Intercultural Education) to assist policymakers, schools and teacher trainers in implementing the Recommendation, adapted to different contexts across Europe. The present author has written the text on behalf of the joint committee. Signposts was published by Council of Europe Publishing in September 2014 (Jackson, R. 2014. Signposts: Policy and practice for teaching about religions and non-religious worldviews in intercultural education. Strasbourg: Council of Europe Publishing.). The article details the Council of Europe’s approach, includes an explanation of the process of consultation with various stakeholders, and summarises key issues to be addressed in the document. The general approach covered enables member states to increase competence of students to engage in the field of religions and beliefs, in ways that potentially contribute to various aspects of their personal and social development. It is hoped that the document will stimulate and contribute to constructive discussion, policymaking, teacher training, classroom practice and community links in different parts of Europe, and perhaps beyond.     

Teacher Job Stress and Satisfaction in Urban Schools: Disentangling Individual-, Classroom-, and Organizational-Level Influences

Schools remain among the most frequent providers of children’s mental health services, particularly in low-income urban settings. Several decades of research have focused on training teachers to implement evidence-based interventions for minimizing disruptive behavior. Studies consistently demonstrate robust improvements in student behavior and learning; however, the impact on teachers’ work-related stress or satisfaction is not well understood. Six urban, high-poverty elementary schools were randomly assigned to a school mental health services model (Links to Learning; L2L) for referred, disruptive students or to services and professional development as usual (SAU). Teachers (n = 71, K-4 general education teachers) in L2L schools participated in professional development and consultation in two universal and two targeted interventions to reduce disruptive behaviors and promote learning. Teachers (n = 65) in SAU schools participated in professional development as usual. Multiple regression models examined teacher reports of individual-level self-efficacy, classroom-level student functioning, and school-level organizational health as predictors of stress and satisfaction. Findings revealed no significant difference between conditions on teacher work-related stress or satisfaction. Organizational health was the strongest predictor of stress and satisfaction. Training on and implementation of evidence-based classroom interventions did not appear to significantly impact teachers’ work-related stress or satisfaction. Instead, findings point to organizational climate and teacher connectedness as potential levers for change, supporting prior work on teacher stress and satisfaction in schools. The significance of targeting organizational factors may be particularly significant in urban school districts.     

Disseminating and using research knowledge

As a field of study, “research utilization” (RU) has addressed the gap between research and practice for some 80 years, providing conceptual scaffoldings, empirical findings, and periodic syntheses. The core problem, however, is that many social and educational dilemmas are there in the first place not because of absence of knowledge, but because of conflicting interests. As a result, the “soft technology” developed by RU specialists has had an uneven impact. At the same time, the paradigms of the RU field itself are undergoing change, with a greater appreciation of practitioner-generated research, the ascent of postmodernism and the tenets of critical theory. The articles in this special issue cover this territory, with concerns ranging from the epistemological level to new arrangements for exchanging research findings between social scientists and professionals. Michael Huberman has been Visiting Professor of Education at Harvard University since 1991, where he teachers research methodologies and conducts research on knowledge dissemination. He is also Senior Research Associate at the Network, Inc. Miriam Ben-Peretz was born in Germany and educated at the Hebrew University, Jerusalem. Professor Ben-Peretz served as chair of the Department of Teacher Education from 1978 to 1985, and as Dean of the School of Education of the University of Haifa from 1988 to 1993. She has been appointed president of the Academic College at Tel Hai, Israel. She has published widely, including numerous books, chapters in books, as well as many articles published in scholarly journals. Among her books is “The Teacher Curriculum Encounter” (SUNY Press, 1990).     

How can the federal government help education-related clearinghouses?

A survey of 100 education-related clearinghouses reveals that most are supported by the federal government; there is a great deal of redundancy among them in content and types of information covered; and that with the exception of the ERIC system clearinghouses, there is little coordination among them. This article suggests how Congress and the Department of Education can influence and coordinate clearinghouse activities to make it easier for educators to acquire the information they need to cope with the knowledge explosion expected to continue into the 1990s. Susan S. Klein is a senior staff member in the Office of Educational Research and Improvement, U.S. Department of Education, where she has worked with the ERIC Clearinghouses. Dr. Klein is now providing technical assistance on dissemination issues to the Select Education Subcommittee of the House of Representatives. Over the years she has helped manage research, evaluation, and dissemination programs in the National Institute of Education and the U.S. Office of Education. She has published in the areas of educational equity, dissemination, and evaluation, and recently edited and contributed to a special issue ofKnowledge, Creation, Diffusion, Utilization on “Federal Programs in Educational Dissemination.” She is on the board of the Knowledge Utilization Society.     

Indirect cosmopolitan education: on the contribution of national education to attitudes towards foreigners

ABSTRACT

Many rich countries are witnessing the rise of xenophobic political parties. The opposition to immigration and global redistributive policies is high. How can we pursue global justice in such non-ideal circumstances? Whatever the way we want to pursue global justice, it seems that a change in the political ethos of citizens from rich countries will be necessary. They must come to internalize some genuine concern for foreigners and relativize national identities. Can education contribute to the promotion of such cosmopolitan ethos? An overtly cosmopolitan educational agenda is not likely to be endorsed in these societies where national ties and national priority may be considered fully legitimate by the majority. Nevertheless, this paper argues, some more achievable educational aims may have desirable cosmopolitan spillover effects although it is not their primary purpose. Decentration, empathy, critical thinking, understanding of social reality and social mix can be defended as necessary for a better domestic society. Yet these aims also make the widespread development of a cosmopolitan ethos more likely. This paper thus considers the arguments that can be made for these educational aims and their potential effects on citizens’ attitudes towards foreigners. Then, it discusses a possible tension with another aspect of national civic education: national integration.     

Prácticas educativas paternas que predicen la agresividad evaluada por distintos informantes

This paper analyzes the influence of parents’ educational practices on aggressive behavior during the last phase of primary education and the first cycle of secondary education, as well as the agreement between different measures of aggressiveness in a group of 326 male and female students aged 10 to 16 from a number of schools and high schools in Jaen (Spain). Educational practices analysed include affection/rejection by parents and three types of discipline-inductive, strict and indulgent. Aggressiveness in turn has been assessed from three tell-tale ways: the adolescent, their classmates and their teacher. The results of the study indicate that aggressiveness is better predicted by negative educational practices such as critique-rejection and rigid and indulgent discipline approaches. High levels of agreement are also found in aggressive behavior between different informants especially teacher and classmates.     

A postmodern critical theory of research use

The knowledge use field is in a state of conceptual disarray that has contributed to problems in the dissemination and use of knowledge. Examining the nature of knowledge in a critical realist epistemology results in a reconceptualization of knowledge use from a postmodern critical theorist perspective. This theory takes as its focus the study of research, dissemination, and use as cultural structure, ritual, and ideology; and addresses concerns about knowledge use by articulating a conceptual frame-work that triangulates among issues related to knowledge construction, power and action, and ethics and ideology, as integral to any concept of knowledge and its use. John M. Watkins is a private consultant atInquiry and Learning for Change. His primary work is in the area of action research and critical inquiry with schools and communities.     

Grouping of Pupils in Secondary School Classrooms: Possible Links between Pedagogy and Learning

Pupil groupings within classrooms are a constant social pedagogic factor which effect participation and learning. The grouping of pupils provides a dynamic relationship between learning tasks and the classroom context within which learning takes place. This paper explores types of pupil groupings found in secondary school classrooms related to themes of group size and composition, learning task, group interaction and teacher presence. The paper questions how classroom groupings may be related to the circumstances that promote or inhibit school learning. Previous studies concerning classroom grouping in secondary schools have been dominated by ability or attainment level of the child. The approach and review presented in this study advances a new and more extensive understanding of social pedagogic activity within classrooms. Empirically, a novel classroom “mapping” method with follow-up questions for teachers was used to identify within-class grouping characteristics of children aged 12 and 15 years (in school Years 7 and 10), across curriculum subjects (English, mathematics, science and humanities) in secondary schools. Maps were drawn for 250 classrooms and explained by teachers from 47 schools in England. Results identified that a variety of groupings were found in most classes. Use of particular groupings related to phase of lesson and, to some extent, curriculum. The results showed: little pedagogic association with learning task or interaction; teacher presence associated with control of knowledge; and group composition dominated by stereotypical adolescent friendships. Discussion considers the social pedagogic potential of grouping (with regard to relational capital), control of knowledge and social structure of the classroom attributed to the teacher, and patterns of grouping that may be associated with polarisation in the classroom. *Research reported was part of the GRIS (The Nature and Use of Within Class Groupings in Secondary Schools) project funded by the ESRC, grant number R000238172.     

Psychosomatic Health: The Body and the Word

Abstract

Why do men get firsts and women gets seconds? This question is currently being debated by some in Oxford University, but not elsewhere, where men's educational under-achievement - in secondary-school league tables, for instance (see, e.g., Phillips 1993) - is more often a matter of concern. Stephen Frosh (1998) has considered both issues in terms of the way young men are constructed and construct themselves through performing and acting on prevailing stereotypes about men and masculinity. These stereotypes include recklessness, not caution, which Maryanne Martin (1998) says contributes to men getting firsts at Oxford by virtue of this trait being rewarded by Oxford University's tutorial and examination system.

In the following pages I too will talk about the equation of men with recklessness. Or, more accurately, I will talk about the way in which men and women act on nightmares and dreams that often glorify men, not least as reckless heroes, in large part because, despite the gains of feminism, glory is still more often men's than women's prerogative in male-dominated society, of which Oxford University is a prime example. I too will consider how this might contribute to men more often getting firsts, and to women more often getting seconds in finals in Oxford. I will end with some implications of my findings for therapy - at least, for the kind of therapy I do as a Freudian therapist. I will therefore begin with Freud.     

Predicting early emotion knowledge development among children of colour living in historically disinvested neighbourhoods: consideration of child pre-academic abilities,self-regulation,peer relations and parental education

ABSTRACT

Emotion knowledge, the ability to accurately perceive and label emotions, predicts higher quality peer relations, higher social competence, higher academic achievement, and fewer behaviour problems. Less is known, however, about predictors of early development of emotion knowledge. This study examines emotion knowledge development among children attending pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten programmes in high-poverty urban schools. The study considers child pre-academic abilities, self-regulation, peer relations and parental education as predictors of emotion knowledge development over two years. The sample (n?=?1034) of children living in historically disinvested neighbourhoods was primarily Black (85%) and low-income (～61%). The sample was part of a longitudinal follow-up study of a cluster (school) randomised controlled trial in ten public elementary schools. Children’s emotion knowledge was assessed with a series of tasks three times over a two-year period. At baseline, parents and teachers reported on peer relations, children completed a test of pre-academic abilities, independent observers rated child self-regulation, and parents reported on their educational attainment. Results demonstrate that emotion knowledge increases over time, and pre-academic abilities, self-regulation, peer relations, and parent education independently predict children’s emotion knowledge. This study highlights multiple factors that predict emotion knowledge among primarily Black children living in historically disinvested neighbourhoods.     

What do decision models tell us about information use?

This paper develops hypotheses about the implications of different types of decision for the utilization of different types of systematically produced information: data, research, and analysis. The engineering and enlightenment models found in the knowledge utilization literature prove inadequate for this purpose. We turn to three decision models—routine, incremental, and fundamental–and determine their implied demands for information. We also examine how information might be used in scanning procedures in anticipation of decision regime shifts. The results suggest that patterns of information should differ markedly in each decision context and indicate that there may be an inherent bias against the use of research in decision. Evert A. Lindquist, a doctoral candidate at the Graduate School of Public Policy, University of Calfornia at Berkeley, is completing a dissertation onPolicy Institutes in Canada: The Organization and Relevance of Public Inquiry and will join the faculty of the Department of Political Science at the University of Toronto this fall. Organizations, public policy, and the role of information in decision making are among his primary research interests.     

Race,Exclusionary Discipline,and Connectedness to Adults in Secondary Schools

This study examines racial differences in students' connectedness to school adults and considers the possibility that disparities in exclusionary discipline practices may reduce all students' sense of connection to educators, not just those who have been disciplined or are from racial groups overrepresented in out‐of‐school suspensions. Data sources include a self‐report survey of secondary school students (n = 29,148) linked to administrative data (n = 107 schools) from a large urban district. Multilevel modeling techniques were used to estimate the relationships between students' racial background, youths' connection to school adults, and school‐level racial discipline gaps. Controlling for school racial composition, gender, grade level and other covariates, students of color were significantly less likely to feel connected to school adults than their White peers. Additionally, the racial discipline gap was significantly and negatively associated with connectedness for all students. Results indicate that strategies to improve educational outcomes for youth of color need to attend to relational dynamics between students and school adults. Research findings also suggest that efforts to reduce discipline disparities may improve all students' connectedness.