LSCI Social Therapeutic Model for Working with Children/Young People in Educational Institutions in Slovenia

Specifično populacijo otrok v vzgojno-izobraževalnih zavodih imenujemo z različnimi izrazi, najnovejši in tudi najbolj primeren jih poimenuje otroke in mlade s težavami v socialni integraciji (Poljšak-Škraban, 2011). Delo v vzgojno-izobraževalnem zavodu zahteva veliko teoretičnega znanja in praktičnih izkušenj za izvajanje ustrezne pomoči in podpore otrokom in mladim. Delovno mesto vzgojiteljev in vzgojiteljic je namreč zahtevno, stresno in zelo dinamično, nenehno zahteva odziv celotne osebnosti. Iz teh in številnih drugih razlogov taka zaposlitev pogosto vodi v izgorelost in občutke nemoči, s tem pa v fluktuacijo zaposlenih (Kiehn, 1997). Na ta način otroci in mladi s težavami v socialni integraciji ne dobijo ustrezne pomoči in podpore, ki jo potrebujejo. Pogosto so žrtve sindroma vrtečih se vrat, torej večkratne hospitalizacije in ponovnega vračanja v zavod, kjer pa sistem ni oblikovan za ustrezno, celostno obravnavo otrok in madih s kombiniranimi, večplastnimi in kompleksnimi težavami. Zaradi vojn in ponavljajoče se begunske krize v Slovenijo prihajajo številni otroci in mladi, v zadnjem letu tudi tisti, ki bežijo pred vojno v Ukrajini. Doživeli so različne oblike ogrožajočih izkušenj, prihajajo polni obupa in strahu. Gre za travmatizirane otroke, mlade in odrasle, s katerimi bodo delali naši vrtci, šole, strokovne službe in nenazadnje tudi vzgojno-izobraževalni zavodi. Zato je ključnega pomena, da strokovni delavci in delavke na različnih delovnih mestih, predvsem pa v vzgoji in izobraževanju pridobijo osnovna znanja na področju travme in relevantnih metod dela. Pomemben model pri delu z navedeno populacijo je socialnoterapevtski model LSCI (angl. life space crisis intervention), ki izpostavlja pomen razumevanja celostne situacije otroka in njegovega pojmovanja svojega položaja in izkušenj. Obenem gre za upoštevanje situacije tukaj in zdaj. Socialnoterapevtski model LSCI je osnovan na pristopu, utemeljen na razumevanju travme (angl. trauma informed care). Odgovornost za pomoč in ustrezno obravnavo prenese na odraslega in ne več na otroka, ki bi se ga zaznamovalo z motnjo ali težavo (Long idr., 1998). V magistrski nalogi najprej teoretično opišem pojmovanje otrok in mladih skozi zgodovino in njihov položaj ter potrebe v naši družbi. Konkretneje se osredotočim na specifične potrebe otrok s težavami v socialni integraciji, njihov družbeni položaj in vlogo vzgojiteljev in vzgojiteljic pri tem. Postopoma preidem na pristop, ki je utemeljen na razumevanju travme v vzgoji in izobraževanju. V drugi polovici teoretičnega dela natančno opišem socialnoterapevtski model kriznega ukrepanja v življenjskem prostoru LSCI ter indikacije za njegovo uporabo v slovenskih vzgojno-izobraževalnih zavodih. V drugem delu magistrske naloge raziskujem, v kolikšni meri vzgojitelji in vzgojiteljice v slovenskih vzgojno-izobraževalnih ustanovah poznajo socialnoterapevtski model LSCI in kakšen pomen pripisujejo njegovi uporabi. Obenem me je zanimalo, kako ga vzgojitelji in vzgojiteljice vrednotijo, katere metode dela se jim zdijo najpomembnejše, v čem vidijo njihove prednosti, kje prepoznajo mesta za izboljšavo in kako poznavanje in uporaba socialnoterapevtskega modela LSCI vplivata na njihovo delo. Za preverjanje navedenih raziskovalnih vprašanj sem uporabila polstrukturirani intervju, ki sem ga izvedla z desetimi vzgojitelji in vzgojiteljicami iz slovenskih vzgojno-izobraževalnih zavodov. Pričujoča raziskava na podlagi zbranih podatkov prispeva k osvetlitvi trenutnega stanja v vzgojno-izobraževalnih zavodih v Sloveniji in je pomembna podlaga za nadaljnje raziskovanje tega področja in mesta socialnoterapevtskega modela LSCI v njem. Gre namreč za novejši in neraziskan model pri delu z otroki in mladimi s težavami v socialni integraciji v slovenskem prostoru.The specific population of children in educational institutions is addressed by various terms, the most recent and also the most appropriate implies understanding of the characteristics of children/youth as children with problems in social integration (Poljšak-Škraban, 2011). When working in an educational institution, it is necessary to have a lot of theoretical knowledge and practical experience for appropriate help and support for children/young people. The job of an educator is demanding, stressful and very dynamic, it is about working through the entire personality of the employee. For these and many other reasons such work often leads to burnout and of feelings of helplessness, and thus employee turnover (Kirhn, 1997). In this way, children/young people with social integration problems do not receive the appropriate help and support they need. They often fall victim to the syndrome of revolving doors, i.e. multiple hospitalizations and returns to the institution, which is a system that is not designed for appropriate, comprehensive treatment of children and young people with combined, multifaceted and complex problems. At this point the current situation in the world, the war in Ukraine and the recurring refugee crises should be emphasized. Children and young people who fled the war are coming to Slovenia. They have experienced various forms of threatening experiences, and they are coming in despair and fear. These are traumatized children, young people and adults, with whom our kindergartens, schools, professional services and, last but not least, educational institutions will work. Therefore, it is crucial that professionals in various jobs, and especially in education, acquire basic knowledge in the fields of trauma and relevant methods of work. An important model in working with this population is the socio-therapeutic model LSCI, which emphasizes the importance of understanding the complex situation of the child and his/her conception of his/her own position and experiences. It highlights the importance of the situation here and now and shifts responsibility to adults. The LSCI socio-therapeutic model is based on the trauma informed care approach (an approach based on understanding trauma). Responsibility for help and proper regulation is thus transferred to an adult and no longer to the child who would be characterized by a disorder or problem (Long et al., 1998). In my master\u27s thesis I theoretically describe the concept of children and young people throughout history and their position and needs in our society. More specifically, I focus on the specific needs of children with social integration problems, their social status and the role of the educator. Gradually, I move to an approach based on understanding trauma in education context, and in the second half of the theoretical part, I describe in detail the social therapeutic model LSCI (social therapeutic model, called life space crisis intervention), and indications for the use of this model in Slovenian educational institutions. In the second part of the master\u27s thesis, I research the extent to which educators in Slovenian educational institutions know the LSCI socio-therapeutic model and the importance they attach to its use. More specifically, I was interested in how educators value the LSCI sociotherapy model, which work methods they find most important, what are the benefits and where to identify places for improvement, and how knowing and using the LSCI sociotherapy model affects their work. To verify the above research questions, I used semi-structured interviews with ten educators from Slovenian educational institutions. Based on the collected data, my research contributes to shedding light on the current situation in educational institutions in Slovenia and is an important basis for further research in this area and the place of the socio-therapeutic model LSCI in it. Namely, it is a newer and unexplored model in working with children/young people with problems in social integration in Slovenia

Behaviour of cold-formed stainless steel stub columns under bending and axial loading

This paper is concerned with the ultimate load capacity of non-perforated and perforated equal-angle cold-formed steel stub columns. An experimental study has been undertaken to investigate the behavior of such members and several column specimens were tested to failure under axial or eccentric loading. The experimental results were used to establish the accuracy of a finite element model proposed in this study and the modeling was used to carry out a parametric study

Comparative investigation into buckling loads and load-bearing capacity of thin-walled columns under compression

Comparative investigation into buckling loads and load-bearing capacity of thin-walled columns under compression

Post-elastic Capacity of Thin-walled Cold-formed Steel Members

The paper presents the possibility to apply the local plastic mechanisms to characterize the ultimate strength of thin-walled cold-formed steel members subjected to eccentric compression. In previous papers [13], [14], [18], the authors have shown that, for compression or bending, the failure of such sections modelled by localized plastic mechanisms characterize better the behaviour of thin-walled cold-formed short members in Ultimate Limit State. These models are consistent with the real failure mechanism of short members and were confirmed both by experimental tests and advanced elastic-plastic FEM analyses. Selected results from these studies are summarized in Chapter 2 of the paper. The main aim of the actual paper concerns the more complex problem of members subjected to combined loadings i.e. compression and bending or eccentric compression. The failure model of slender members in eccentric compression is still an open question. In an attempt to solve this problem, the authors propose a consistent methodology which applies the General Method of EN1993 Part 1-1, in which the section resistance, prone to bending and compression, is characterized through plastic mechanism failure models.This work was supported by The Polish - Romanian Joint Research Project: Yield line theory for load-capacity estimation of thin-walled cold-formed steel members under combined loading, 2019-2021, under the agreement on scientific cooperation between the Polish Academy of Sciences and the Romanian Academy, project PN-III-CEI- EUREKA-2019/E113493 - CFSExpert - Structural design tool for cold-formed steel structures, CCCDI - UEFISCDI, Romanian Ministry of Research and Innovation and project 10PFE/2018, PERFORM-TECH-UPT - The increasing of the institutional performance of the Polytechnic University of Timișoara by strengthening the research, development and technological transfer capacity in the field of "Energy, Environment and Climate Change", PNCDI III, Romanian Ministry of Research and Innovation

Stainless steel stub columns subject to combined bending and axial loading

This paper examines the behaviour of cold-formed stainless steel stub columns where the material follows a Ramberg-Osgood stress-strain law. The stub column length is varied to examine the effects on the failure capacity when the stub columns are subjected to varying magnitudes of combined bending and axial compression loading. The paper follows the work reported by the same authors in 2003 [Macdonald, M, Rhodes J. and Kotelko M. Behaviour of stainless steel columns under combined bending and axial compression loading. Proceedings of the 10th Symposium on Stability of Structures, Zakopane, Poland. 2003], but here, three different methods of analysis are employed: (i) the Eurocode 3, Part 1.4 design code using an enhanced 0.2% proof stress combined with a full section moment capacity within the interaction formula with nominal levels of loading eccentricity, (ii) the same approach using the Polish cold formed carbon steel code PN-90/B-03200 to ascertain its applicability and (iii), the same approaches but using the true eccentricity with reference to the unsupported length of the columns. The results are compared with those obtained from a series of compression tests performed on cold-formed stainless steel Type 304 stub columns of lipped channel cross-section for the same conditions