Good Faith and Effort? Perspectives on educational inclusion

This paper considers what might ‘count’ as educational inclusion from the perspectives of six women who are both mothers of and teachers of children with special educational needs (SEN) and/or disabilities. The mother-teachers draw on their own personal and professional experiences to consider meanings of inclusion in relation to ‘their’ children. Their voices suggest that it is the detail of daily interaction and the commitment to ‘good faith and effort’ on the part of both parents and educational professionals that matters. For the purposes of this paper I shall consider the discourses of SEN, learning difficulties and disability together, although I am aware of the danger of reductionism in doing so

Gender, Narratives and Intersectionality: can Personal Experience Approaches to Research Contribute to “Undoing Gender”?

This paper examines the use of narrative methodologies as one approach to exploring issues of gender, education and social justice and particularly insights into ‘undoing gender’. Drawing on feminist beliefs in the significance of experiential evidence, the paper examines the possibilities of exploring gender and its multiple intersections in a range of global and policy contexts through the use of personal experience approaches. The ‘storying’ of lived experience is examined as a means of challenging dominant discourses which can construct and other individuals and groups in relation to many aspects of gender and education. Drawing on intersectionality, as an ambiguous, complex and developing feminist theory, the paper considers ways in which narrative can illuminate often hidden complexities while seeking to avoid simplistic generalisations and essentialisms. The difficulties of using narrative in relation to these aims are explored being mindful of the warnings of feminist writers such as Michele Fine and bel hooks. The paper briefly considers narrative as both methodology and phenomenon, and finally, drawing on critical discourse analysis, discusses the potential of intersectionality and narrative in relation to undoing gender

Mothers, gender and inclusion in the context of home-school relations

The last twenty years have seen the proliferation of policies calling for the development of home-school relations and home-school partnerships for it is argued that it is important for the educational success of all children that parents and professionals share aims, values and responsibilities. The dominant discourse around home-school relations refers to ‘parents’ as partners, maintaining that their voices are important and should be heard along with those of professionals. This is also held to be the case where children are categorised as ‘having special educational needs’ and a number of policies require that ‘parents’ are consulted wherever possible. However, this paper maintains that despite this rhetoric there is a boundary between home and school; between the professional, public space of school and the private, personal space of home, which reflects the power relations between public professionals and private parents. It maintains that the use of the gender neutral term ‘parent’ masks the gendered reality of ‘parenting’, making it easier for professionals to marginalise the individual voices of personal experience. The paper draws on research which suggests that the term ‘parent’ hides the fact that mothers are the ones generally perceived as having responsibility for their children and their relationship with school. It contends that the use of the term ‘parent’, in de-gendering the contribution of the mother, negates the voice of personal experience and prioritises the professional and expert voice. The lack of experiential knowledge is seen as especially important when children and their families are perceived as ‘different’ for example disabled children and children labelled as having special educational needs (SEN). The corollary to this argument is, of course, that while the term ‘parent’ negates the voices of mothers, it also negates the voices of fathers, despite research which strongly suggests the importance of their different but significant contribution in the lives of their children

\u3cb\u3eBook Review:\u3c/b\u3e \u3cem\u3eEngaging Departments: Moving Faculty Culture From Private to Public, Individual to Collective Focus for the Common Good\u3c/em\u3e by Kevin Kecskes, ed. (Jossey-Bass, 2006)

Excerpt: Planning a university service learning program without reading Engaging Departments: Moving Faculty Culture From Private to Public, Individual to Collective Focus for the Common Good is like starting to build a house with no tools or blueprints. And service learning programs like the ones described in this book can inspire SoTL projects on service learning

Barbara Cole

An Arkansas native, Barbara Cole has worked in child nutrition for the Arkansas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired for forty-one years. She was also a longtime member of the National Advisory Committee of the National Food Service Management Institute/Institute of Child Nutrition.https://egrove.olemiss.edu/icn_ohistories/1035/thumbnail.jp

Coping with the uncertainties of growth in Telluride, Colorado

Thesis (M.C.P.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning, 1980.MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ROTCH.Bibliography: p. 164-165.by Barbara A. Cole.M.C.P

Selected Volatile Organic Compound Emissions and Performance of Oriented Strandboard from Extracted Southern Pine

The impact of a hot water extraction procedure on select volatile organic compound emissions during pressing, as well as on properties of oriented strandboard (OSB) was evaluated. Southern pine strands were extracted with hot water using a rotating digester at 160°C for 22.9 or 53.6 min. Weight loss for the two extraction conditions was 6.3 ± 0.1% (short time) and 9.3 ± 0.9% (long time). The extract contained a mixture of hemicelluloses, acetic acid, and lignin. OSB panels were manufactured both with and without adhesive. The emissions (phenol, methanol, acetaldehyde, and formaldehyde) without adhesive present decreased from 38.2 to 24.2 mg/kg (oven-dry wood) as a result of the high severity factor (HSF) extraction. When adhesive was used, emissions totaled 22.1, 17.0, and 15.6 mg/kg (oven-dry wood) for control, low severity factor, and HSF, respectively. Water sorption and thickness swell were significantly reduced in panels made from extracted strands. Flexural modulus of elasticity of extracted panels exhibited significant increases in both dry and wet conditions. The flexural modulus of rupture and internal bond were slightly reduced in the dry condition as weight loss increased. The extraction procedure shows promise for improving a variety of properties of OSB, including performance, reduced environmental impact, and generation of a valuable chemical feedstock byproduct

From the Ground Up: Establishing Strong Core Policies for Infants, Toddlers, and Families

Because the earliest years of life are a period of incredible growth, they present an opportunity to shape strong and positive development. Good health, secure and stable families, and positive early learning environments are necessary to foster children's physical, intellectual, and social-emotional development during this significant period. Yet many young children and parents in the United States lack the needed resources to thrive, putting them at greater risk of material hardship, chronic stress, and poor health. Federal and state policies can support vulnerable families and provide a buffer against stress and instability, but most existing programs lack sufficient resources to reach the largenumbers of families who could benefit. Federal and state policymakers must be mindful of the unique needs of infants, toddlers, and families as they consider the policies and investments necessary to change the trajectories for our youngest children