Logics, rhetoric and 'the blob': populist logic in the Conservative reforms to English schooling

A lot has been written about the lasting implications of the Conservative reforms to English schooling, particularly changes made by Michael Gove as Education Secretary (2010–2014). There is a lot less work, however, on studying the role that language, strategy and the broader political framework played in the process of instituting and winning consent for these reforms. Studying these factors is important for ensuring that any changes to education and schooling are not read in isolation from their political context. Speeches particularly capture moments where intellectual and strategic political traditions meet, helping us to form a richer understanding of the motives behind specific reform goals and where they fit into a political landscape. This article analyses speeches and policy documents from prominent politicians who led the Conservative education agenda between 2010–2014 to illustrate how politicians mobilised a deliberate populist strategy and argumentation to achieve specific educational goals, but which have had broader social and political implications. Concepts from interpretive political studies are used to develop a case analysis of changes to teacher training provision and curriculum reform, illustrating how politicians constructed a frontier between ‘the people’ (commonly teachers or parents) and an illegitimate ‘elite’ (an educational establishment) that opposed change. This anti‐elite populist rhetoric, arguably first tested in the Department for Education, has now become instituted more widely in our current British politics

‘They Called Them Communists Then … What D'You Call ‘Em Now? … Insurgents?’. Narratives of British Military Expatriates in the Context of the New Imperialism

This paper addresses the question of the extent to which the colonial past provides material for contemporary actors' understanding of difference. The research from which the paper is drawn involved interview and ethnographic work in three largely white working-class estates in an English provincial city. For this paper we focus on ten life-history interviews with older participants who had spent some time abroad in the British military. Our analysis adopts a postcolonial framework because research participants' current constructions of an amorphous 'Other' (labelled variously as black people, immigrants, foreigners, asylum-seekers or Muslims) reveal strong continuities with discourses deployed by the same individuals to narrate their past experiences of living and working as either military expatriates or spouses during British colonial rule. Theoretically, the paper engages with the work of Frantz Fanon and Edward Said. In keeping with a postcolonial approach, we work against essentialised notions of identity based on 'race' or class. Although we establish continuity between white working-class military emigration in the past and contemporary racialised discourses, we argue that the latter are not class-specific, being as much the creations of the middle-class media and political elite

Ethical Issues in the Development of Readiness Cohorts in Alzheimer's Disease Research.

There is growing interest in the development of novel approaches to secondary prevention trials in Alzheimer's disease to facilitate screening and recruitment of research participants and to reduce the time and costs associated with clinical trials. Several international research collaborations are setting up research infrastructures that link existing research cohorts, studies or patient registries to establish 'trial-ready' or 'readiness' cohorts. From these cohorts, individuals are recruited into clinical trial platforms. In setting up such research infrastructures, researchers must make ethically challenging design decisions in at least three areas: re-contacting participants in existing research studies, obtaining informed consent for participation in a readiness cohort, and disclosure of Alzheimer's disease-related biomarkers. These ethical considerations have been examined by a dedicated workgroup within the European Prevention of Alzheimer's Dementia (EPAD) project, a trans-European longitudinal cohort and adaptive proof-of-concept clinical trial platform. This paper offers recommendations for the ethical management of re-contact, informed consent and risk disclosure which may be of value to other research collaborations in the process of developing readiness cohorts for prevention trials in Alzheimer's disease and other disease areas.This work was funded through the Ethical Legal and Social Implications work package of the European Prevention of Alzheimer’s Dementia (EPAD) study EPAD receives support from the Innovative Medicines Initiative Joint Undertaking under grant agreement n° 115736, resources of which are composed of financial contribution from the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) and EFPIA companies’ in kind contribution. RM was also funded through the UK National Institute of Health Research grant to the Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre

The Psy-Security-Curriculum ensemble: British Values curriculum policy in English schools

Framed as being in response to terrorist attacks and concerns about religious bias in some English schools, ‘British Values’ (BV) curriculum policy forms part of the British Government’s Counter-Terrorism and Security Act, 2015. This includes a Duty on teachers in England to actively promote British Values to deter students from radicalisation. This paper, first, traces the history of Britishness in the curriculum to reveal a prevalence of nationalistic, colonial values. Next, an ensemble of recent policies and speeches focusing on British Values is analysed, using a psycho-political approach informed by anti-colonial scholarship. Finally, we interrogate two key critiques of the British Values curriculum discourse: the universality of British Values globally, and concerns over the securitisation of education. Findings indicate that the constitution of white British supremacist subjectivities operate through curriculum as a defence mechanism against perceived threats to white privilege, by normalising a racialised state-controlled social order. The focus is on ‘British’ values, but the analytic framework and findings have wider global significance

Involving research participants in a pan-European research initiative: the EPAD participant panel experience

Abstract: Background: Including participants in patient and public involvement activities is increasingly acknowledged as a key pillar of successful research activity. Such activities can influence recruitment and retention, as well as researcher experience and contribute to decision making in research studies. However, there are few established methodologies of how to set up and manage participant involvement activities. Further, there is little discussion of how to do so when dealing with collaborative projects that run across countries and operate in multiple linguistic and regulatory contexts. Methods: In this paper we describe the set-up, running and experiences of the EPAD participant panel. The EPAD study was a pan-European cohort study with the aim to understand risks for developing Alzheimer’s disease and build a readiness cohort for Phase 2 clinical trials. Due to the longitudinal nature of this study, combined with the enrolment of healthy volunteers and those with mild cognitive impairments, the EPAD team highlighted participant involvement as crucial to the success of this project. The EPAD project employed a nested model, with local panels meeting in England, France, Scotland, Spain and The Netherlands, and feeding into a central study panel. The local panels were governed by terms of reference which were adaptable to local needs. Results: The impact of the panels has been widespread, and varies from feedback on documentation, to supporting with design of media materials and representation of the project at national and international meetings. Conclusions: The EPAD panels have contributed to the success of the project and the model established is easily transferable to other disease areas investigating healthy or at-risk populations

Spin-Orbit Splitting in Non-Relativistic and Relativistic Self-Consistent Models

The splitting of single-particle energies between spin-orbit partners in nuclei is examined in the framework of different self-consistent approachs, non-relativistic as well as relativistic. Analytical expressions of spin-orbit potentials are given for various cases. Proton spin-orbit splittings are calculated along some isotopic chains (O, Ca, Sn) and they are compared with existing data. It is found that the isotopic dependence of the relativistic mean field predictions is similar to that of some Skyrme forces while the relativistic Hartree-Fock approach leads to a very different dependence due to the strong non-locality.Comment: 12 pages, RevTeX, 4 new figs.in .zip format, unchanged conclusions, Phys. ReV.

General Practitioners’ perceptions of the stigma of dementia and the role of reciprocity

YesA qualitative exploration of the stigma of dementia reported that GPs described lack of reciprocity as one way in which people with dementia are perceived within society. This was closely linked to their perception of dementia as a stigma. In this paper, we explore whether GPs perceive people with dementia as lacking reciprocity and, so, if this is linked with societal opinions about dementia as a stigma. The implications of both perceptions of people with dementia failing to reciprocate and of stigma for timely diagnosis are explored. GPs’ perceptions of societal views of people with dementia included a perception of a lack of reciprocity. Specifically, an absence of reciprocity was linked with; failing to respond to human contact, the absence of an appropriate return on social investment and failing to contribute to, or being a burden to, society. GPs reported a link between societal perceptions of lack of reciprocity and stereotypes about advanced dementia, difficulties communicating with people with dementia and lack of opportunities for people with dementia to reciprocate. GPs occupy a key position, they can challenge stereotypes and, with support and targeted training about communicating with people living with dementia, can emphasise the ways in which people with dementia can communicate, thereby enhancing their potential to reciprocate. Such changes have implications for improved care and quality of life through the continued maintenance of social inclusion and perceptions of personhood.non

Prevalence and Predictors of Urinary Tract Infection and Severe Malaria Among Febrile Children Attending Makongoro Health Centre in Mwanza City, North-Western Tanzania.

In malaria endemic areas, fever has been used as an entry point for presumptive treatment of malaria. At present, the decrease in malaria transmission in Africa implies an increase in febrile illnesses related to other causes among underfives. Moreover, it is estimated that more than half of the children presenting with fever to public clinics in Africa do not have a malaria infection. Thus, for a better management of all febrile illnesses among under-fives, it becomes relevant to understand the underlying aetiology of the illness. The present study was conducted to determine the relative prevalence and predictors of P. falciparum malaria, urinary tract infections and bacteremia among under-fives presenting with a febrile illness at the Makongoro Primary Health Centre, North-Western Tanzania. From February to June 2011, a cross-sectional analytical survey was conducted among febrile children less than five years of age. Demographic and clinical data were collected using a standardized pre-tested questionnaire. Blood and urine culture was done, followed by the identification of isolates using in-house biochemical methods. Susceptibility patterns to commonly used antibiotics were investigated using the disc diffusion method. Giemsa stained thin and thick blood smears were examined for any malaria parasites stages. A total of 231 febrile under-fives were enrolled in the study. Of all the children, 20.3% (47/231, 95%CI, 15.10-25.48), 9.5% (22/231, 95%CI, 5.72-13.28) and 7.4% (17/231, 95%CI, 4.00-10.8) had urinary tract infections, P. falciparum malaria and bacteremia respectively. In general, 11.5% (10/87, 95%CI, 8.10-14.90) of the children had two infections and only one child had all three infections. Predictors of urinary tract infections (UTI) were dysuria (OR = 12.51, 95% CI, 4.28-36.57, P < 0.001) and body temperature (40-41 C) (OR = 12.54, 95% CI, 4.28-36.73, P < 0.001). Predictors of P. falciparum severe malaria were pallor (OR = 4.66 95%CI, 1.21-17.8, P = 0.025) and convulsion (OR = 102, 95% CI, 10-996, P = 0.001). Escherichia coli were the common gram negative isolates from urine (72.3%, 95% CI, 66.50-78.10) and blood (40%, 95%CI, and 33.70-46.30). Escherichia coli from urine were 100% resistant to ampicillin, 97% resistant to co-trimoxazole, 85% resistant to augmentin and 32.4% resistant to gentamicin; and they were 100%, 91.2% and 73.5% sensitive to meropenem, ciprofloxacin and ceftriaxone respectively. Urinary tract infection caused by multi drug resistant Escherichia coli was the common cause of febrile illness in our setting. Improvement of malaria diagnosis and its differential diagnosis from other causes of febrile illnesses may provide effective management of febrile illnesses among children in Tanzania

Sri Lankan tsunami refugees: a cross sectional study of the relationships between housing conditions and self-reported health

BACKGROUND: On the 26th December 2004 the Asian tsunami devastated the Sri Lankan coastline. More than two years later, over 14,500 families were still living in transitional shelters. This study compares the health of the internally displaced people (IDP), living in transitional camps with those in permanent housing projects provided by government and non-government organisations in Sri Lanka. METHODS: This study was conducted in seven transitional camps and five permanent housing projects in the south west of Sri Lanka. Using an interviewer-led questionnaire, data on the IDPs' self-reported health and housing conditions were collected from 154 participants from transitional camps and 147 participants from permanent housing projects. Simple tabulation with non-parametric tests and logistic regression were used to identify and analyse relationships between housing conditions and the reported prevalence of specific symptoms. RESULTS: Analysis showed that living conditions were significantly worse in transitional camps than in permanent housing projects for all factors investigated, except 'having a leaking roof'. Transitional camp participants scored significantly lower on self-perceived overall health scores than those living in housing projects. After controlling for gender, age and marital status, living in a transitional camp compared to a housing project was found to be a significant risk factor for the following symptoms; coughs OR: 3.53 (CI: 2.11-5.89), stomach ache 4.82 (2.19-10.82), headache 5.20 (3.09-8.76), general aches and pains 6.44 (3.67-11.33) and feeling generally unwell 2.28 (2.51-7.29). Within transitional camp data, the only condition shown to be a significant risk factor for any symptom was household population density, which increased the risk of stomach aches 1.40 (1.09-1.79) and headaches 1.33 (1.01-1.77). CONCLUSION: Internally displaced people living in transitional camps are a vulnerable population and specific interventions need to be targeted at this population to address the health inequalities that they report to be experiencing. Further studies need to be conducted to establish which aspects of their housing environment predispose them to poorer health

Beta decay of 115-In to the first excited level of 115-Sn: Potential outcome for neutrino mass

Recent observation of beta decay of 115-In to the first excited level of 115-Sn with an extremely low Q_beta value (Q_beta ~ 1 keV) could be used to set a limit on neutrino mass. To give restriction potentially competitive with those extracted from experiments with 3-H (~2 eV) and 187-Re (~15 eV), atomic mass difference between 115-In and 115-Sn and energy of the first 115-Sn level should be remeasured with higher accuracy (possibly of the order of ~1 eV).Comment: 9 pages, 3 figures; talk at the NANP'05 Conferenc