Implementing the social pedagogic approach for workforce training and education in England: a preliminary study

Implementing the Social Pedagogic Approach for Workforce Training and Education in England is a study that was developed in conjunction with DfES and the Social Exclusion Task Force. It focuses on the potential for introducing training for social pedagogy in England, with special reference to children in care. The report covers (i) care leavers’ perspectives on their carers, including the carers’ need for training; (ii) summaries of 4 studies of social pedagogy conducted at TCRU; (iii) the perspectives of stakeholders from children's services and training institutions on the introduction of social pedagogy and on other proposals advanced in Care Matter; (iv) differences between Danish qualifications in social pedagogy and English social care NVQs and social work degrees and (v) a framework for introducing pedagogy education, in England, and a discussion of costs

Review of Nomadism in Iran: From Antiquity to the Modern Era by Daniel T. Potts

Book details Daniel T. Potts Nomadism in Iran: From Antiquity to the Modern Era, Hardcover: 592 Pages, 21 illustrations, 3 maps Publisher Oxford University Press, New York; 1 edition (1 April 2014) Language: English ISBN-13: 978019933079

Cultural Evolutionary Paradigms and Technological Transformations from the Neolithic up to the Indus Urban Period in South Asia

Studies of Indus ceramics, especially considerations of raw materials, manufacturing tools and techniques, have tended to argue for a) local technological developments within South Asia and b) linear evolutionary trajectories that played out across thousands of years. The concept of a linear evolution of ceramic technologies in particular has had a significant impact on research at several levels, and in a previous paper we addressed issues concerning the theoretical frameworks adopted for the interpretation of archaeological data in South Asia.1 We noted that culture historic paradigms remain prevalent, and that there has been a tendency to focus on certain styles and types of artefacts to build seriations and identify archaeological ‘cultures’, which are often equated to ethnic groups or major phases of socio-political transformation. This paper aims to take the theoretical debate one step further, by looking at studies of technological transmission and transformation and considering the underlying tendency among researchers to adopt demic diffusion-based interpretations. The first part of this paper reviews the development of ceramic technologies from the Ceramic Neolithic up to the Indus urban period to understand how certain themes have developed. It will particularly discuss how more ‘evolved’ technologies are typically seen to have been adopted, homogenously replacing older and less sophisticated manufacturing methods, mostly in view of possible functional or economic gains. The second part will focus on ceramics from northwest India, and will explore evidence for variable regional technologies and resistance to innovation. Our broader aim is to strengthen theoretical mindfulness in this field of research and thus to stimulate dialogue, rather than provide solutions

Final report of the social pedagogy pilot programme: development and implementation

In 2008, the government commissioned Thomas Coram Research Unit, Institute of Education University of London to develop and implement a pilot programme in order to determine the impact of, and best method for, introducing a social pedagogic approach in residential children’s homes in line with the Care Matters White Paper’s commitment (DCSF 2007). The intentions were modest - to make some ‘ripples’ in the world of residential childcare. This report is of the development and implementation part of the pilot programme. There are around 2,000 children’s homes in England, run by private for profit, independent and public sector employers and around 6,500 young people are in residence at any one time (SFR 2009). Since 2002, children’s homes, as with other services for children, have been regulated by, and inspected against, national minimum standards, which, although not intended to be a benchmark of practice, or representing standardisation of provision (DH 2002), arguably implied just that. Clough, Bullock and Ward (2006) viewed the requirement to meet bureaucratic standards as risking the undervaluing of important and complex issues of quality and process. It was in this context that the pilot programme took place. As an established tradition in continental Europe, social pedagogy is often understood as ‘education in its broadest sense’ (Petrie et al. 2009) - an educational approach to social issues. Its breadth can be seen in its concern for the whole person as emotional, thinking and physical beings, promoting their active engagement in decisions about their own lives and as members of society. It is a discipline that takes account of the complexity of different social contexts. In continental European countries social pedagogues typically have a bachelor’s degree, combining academic knowledge, with practical, organisational and communication skills and often, the expressive arts and/or outdoor adventure/ environmental activities. Social pedagogues working in residential care in continental European countries expect to exercise a range of responsibilities both inward looking to the home itself and outward looking to the interface between the children’s home and the wider society to which the young person belongs. The pilot programme was designed around three groups of children’s homes or ‘pilot sites’ with differing social pedagogic input, ranging from social pedagogues trained overseas but working to residential care worker job titles, to social pedagogues working to social pedagogue job titles with, in addition, part of their time devoted to training and awareness raising activities. Children’s homes were selected for their stated support of the programme objectives and their willingness to learn about social pedagogy from the social pedagogues. Forty eight social pedagogues were recruited through employer’s recruitment procedures although some left before the end of the programme period

Revisiting Settlement Contemporaneity and Exploring Stability and Instability: Case Studies from the Indus Civilization.

"Map overestimation," or "the contemporaneity problem," derives from the assumption that settlements identified during surface surveys were occupied throughout individual periods. Inductive and simulation analysis have been used to ascertain the degree of contemporaneity in surface survey data sets, as variation in settlement location is critical for understanding population density and demography, which inform social, economic and political interpretations. This paper revisits the inductive approach to interrogating survey data developed by W. M. Sumner and the simulation model approach developed by R. E. Dewar to explore the survey data from two regions within South Asia's Indus civilization. This analysis demonstrates the strengths and weaknesses of these approaches. It also highlights the variability in settlement systems in different areas within the Indus civilization and shows that consideration of stability and instability within settlement systems is an important factor when considering dynamics of resilience and sustainability.ER

Towards a social pedagogic approach for social care

The term ‘social care’ has come to be applied in England to a variety of policies and services for children and adults deemed, for a variety of reasons, in need of support and assistance. The field to which it is applied is widely recognised to be in crisis, as demand grows, funding lags and a poorly qualified, low-paid workforce shows increasing signs of strain. The article argues that a further dimension to the crisis is the very term ‘social care’. It has little substance and is of limited value in addressing the practice involved in working with children, young people and adults, while its continued use has encouraged a simplified and commodified understanding of what this work entails. The article introduces an alternative concept – social pedagogy – long established and well developed in continental Europe, which, it is argued, could provide a more substantial basis for everyday practice, and a strong foundation for future policy, including reforming the workforce. The conclusion questions whether ‘social care’ can play any useful role in the evolution of policy and practice, discussing some issues that a turn to a social pedagogic approach might raise

Pedagogy - a holistic, personal approach to work with children and young people, across services: European models for practice, training, education and qualification

Today, provision for children and young people is developing rapidly at the level of policy, organisation, training, education, and qualifications. Research in these areas, carried out at the Thomas Coram Research Unit (TCRU), has included cross-national studies on service provision and its quality, the daily practice of staff, their training, education, qualification, recruitment and retention in the workforce. A central interest has been what, in continental Europe, is often called ‘social pedagogy’, a distinctive way of working with children and the basis for policy development

Feeding ancient cities in South Asia: Dating the adoption of rice, millet and tropical pulses in the Indus civilisation

© Antiquity Publications Ltd, 2016.The first direct absolute dates for the exploitation of several summer crops by Indus populations are presented here. These include rice, millets and three tropical pulse species at two settlements in the hinterland of the urban site of Rakhigarhi. The dates confirm the role of native summer domesticates in the rise of Indus cities. They demonstrate that, from their earliest phases, a range of crops and variable strategies, including multi-cropping, were used to feed different urban centres. This has important implications for understanding the development of the earliest cities in South Asia, particularly the organisation of labour and provisioning throughout the year