The challenges facing leaders and managers in the independent special school sector: a changing agenda

This study investigates the challenges facing leaders and managers of independent special schools during the period during when inclusion of SEN students in mainstream schools has been government policy. The challenges investigated centre around ascertaining the key role of these schools at this time, the general challenges they have faced, and the implications for them in the years ahead. This has included research on how independent special schools respond to external demands and expectations and how they balance these with their own internal imperatives. The research was carried out using an empirical phenomenological approach, with the objective of gathering qualitative data through the undertaking of interviews at both the micro and meso level of the organisational structures involved in SEN education. Participants were drawn from three approved independent special schools and three non-maintained special schools from the south east regions of England. Schools represented varying medical forms of SEN such as deafness, physical disabilities, severe learning difficulties and specific learning difficulties. Interviewees consisted of the headteacher, a deputy and classroom teacher from each school and the data was triangulated through documentation analysis using the participating schools’ recent OFSTED and CSCI reports as well as interviews with three SEN Caseworkers employed by three different LEA regions. The findings revealed that a key role for independent special schools is propping up a seemingly failing national strategy. Challenges arise from educational matters when internal visions of what good special education should mean are over-ridden by external ideologies. External accountability tends to suppress innovation and change within the school by making the change process unwieldy. External accountabilities are inclined to conflict when they encroach upon the professionalism of staff, yet complement internal interests by effecting motivation to question objectives more closely. Balancing internal/external accountabilities is no problem for these leaders and managers, because their internal imperatives will always come first. Implications for the years ahead will arise from the success or failure of the national inclusion strategy to accommodate a rising number of SEN students under limited state provision

Researching Under-Represented Groups: How to Empower Students through Targeted Learning Development Support

The Scottish Government has tasked Higher Education Institutions with improving the recruitment, retention and progression of students who are classified as living within the lowest deprivation quintile according to the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivati on (Scottish Government, 2012). The Scottish Funding Council allocates ringfenced funding for this purpose and negotiates specific outcome agreements with each institution to measure and evaluate success. As an initiative funded in this way, the School of Health and Life Science’s Learning Development Centre (LDC) at Glasgow Caledonian University is required to support students from low participation postcodes. The LDC provides enhancement - led, learning support to all students in the School through a blend of timetabled, in - programme teaching, workshops and one to one appointments. Support for, and monitoring of, those identified as belonging to the ‘multiple deprivations’ category (MD20s), however, is becoming an increasing priority. Whilst clearly a desira ble aim in terms of social justice and widening participation, it is less obvious how best to target and measure support. The risks of stigmatising, alienating or even creating dependency amongst what is surely a heterogeneous group are manifold. This pape r will report on research conducted by the LDC members that attempted to better understand the diverse group of ‘MD20 students’ who attend, or potentially attend programmes within the School. The aim of the project was to provide an evidence - base on which further support activities could be built. Cognisant of the diversity of the group in question and the risk of labelling or categorising students, the project employed a narrative or biographical approach which aimed to capture and explore the individual l ife histories of students (Field, Merrill & West, 2012). In particular, it investigated the paths their lives had taken to lead them to study at university, how they felt about the MD20 focus and what kind of support, if any, would empower them to succeed in their studies. Alongside in - depth, qualitative exploration of the issues, academic performance and baseline demographic data were collected to gather as full a picture as possible of the group in question

Creating A Comprehensive Supportive Policy That Provides Equal Educational Access For The Mentally Ill Student: A Policy Advocacy Document

The purpose of this policy advocacy document is to create a comprehensive policy supporting the education of students with mental illness disorders. Critical issues of school attendance, credit recovery, reintegration, and staff professional development formed the four parts of the policy statement. An examination of critical issues impacting students with mental illness, as well as an analysis of the educational, economic, social, political, moral, and ethical issues were used to inform the creation of this policy. Stafford High School in Stafford School District (psuedonym) is highlighted as an implementer of the proposed policy, as as a model for other districts exploring implementation of the proposed policy

Incorporating An Assessment of Mastery Motivation In Elementary School Students Within A School Psychological Evaluation

The purpose of this project was to explore and determine a systematic way of measuring Mastery Motivation in students. Mastery Motivation is a dimension of intelligence that leads a student to master tasks for the intrinsic feeling of efficacy rather than for extrinsic reasons (MacTurk & Morgan, 1995). The inquiry process was an ongoing collaboration among a group of practicing elementary school psychologists. Conversations were recorded and analyzed. The result was the creation of an informal observational tool for measuring Mastery Motivation to be used a school psychological evaluation. This tool was made available for the participating school psychologists to use at their discretion to widen the scope for reporting indicators of levels of intelligence in elementary age students

AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE ROLE OF EMOTIONS, PHYSIOLOGICAL SEXUAL AROUSAL, AND EGO-DEFENSIVENESS IN MEN’S HOMONEGATIVITY

Homonegativity is a multidimensional construct that encompasses the negative affective, cognitive, and behavioural responses directed towards individuals presumed, correctly or incorrectly, to be gay or lesbian. Given the affective component of homonegativity is relatively understudied compared to the cognitive and behavioural components, two studies were designed to better understand its role in the expression of homonegativity, its association with the different functions of homonegativity, and possible physiological manifestation. The purpose of Study 1 (N = 737), which involved an online questionnaire, was four-fold: (1) to examine the prevalence of homonegativity across the cognitive, affective, and behavioural domains, (2) assess the relationships between the ego-defensive function and measures of affective reactions, (3) assess the value of the affective component of homonegativity in predicting past anti-gay behaviours, and (4) to create a sampling pool for Study 2. The majority of participants scored below the scale midpoint of the ATG and MHS-G and they most often reported engaging in subtle behaviours directed toward gay men. The self-identified heterosexual men (n = 411) reported more negative affective reactions toward gay men than the self-identified heterosexual women (n = 325) and negative affective reactions were positively correlated with the ego-defensive function. Further, stronger negative affective reactions were the best predictors of past homonegative behaviours, compared to gender and homonegative attitudes. The purpose of Study 2 (N = 40) was to examine the physiological manifestation of homonegativity using penile plethysmography and its association to affective responses and ego-defensiveness. Genital and subjective sexual arousal to the gay male videos did not significantly differ by level of homonegativity, affective reactions, or scores on measures of defensiveness. In sum, the affective component of homonegativity is associated with the ego-defensive function and has a significant impact on the enactment of homonegativity, but is unrelated to differences in sexual arousal responses. The broader clinical implications of the affective component and a proposed re-conceptualization of the ego-defensive function as it applies to homonegativity are discussed. Limitations of the study including the lower sample scores on the attitudinal measures of homonegativity, directions for future research, and possible interventions are also presented

Exploring the use and quality of Internet discussion forums in pregnancy : a qualitative analysis

The Internet is widely used as a source of health information to assist decision making in pregnancy. Concerningly, the quality of information shared on online pregnancy forums is unclear. Our objectives were to explore online pregnancy forum health-related use and evaluate quality of information shared. This retrospective qualitative study had two phases of data collection and analysis. First, thematic analysis of a representative sample (n = 480) of posts explored motivators for forum use. Second, a subgroup (n = 153) of threads with clinical content was assessed for congruence with reputable sources. Common motivators for forum engagement were a desire for lived experience, unlimited access, and the opportunity to express emotions. Of 1098 responses sharing advice, information, or experience, 601 (54.7%) were accurate; 230 (20.9%) were erroneous, incomplete, or misleading; and 267 (24.3%) lacked credible evidence. Of these, 60 (5.5%) were potentially harmful. Responses often directed women to a health care practitioner, but concerningly, failed to refer ten women in need of urgent medical assessment. Few discussions were self-regulating, with only 12 of 230 (5.2%) poor-quality messages subsequently rectified. Exchange of information and emotional support among peers are key functions of online pregnancy forums. There is a modest prevalence of poor-quality or potentially harmful information but more concerningly a lack of peer moderation. We suggest health care practitioners ensure pregnant women have a clear understanding of when clinical consultation is required. Clinicians may wish to discuss the supportive community aspects of online forums in cases where offline support is lacking. [Abstract copyright: © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Relationship between inflammatory markers, metabolic and anthropometric variables in the Caribbean type 2 diabetic patients with and without microvascular complications

BACKGROUND: Serum sialic acid and C reactive protein are the markers for inflammation. The main objective of this study was to determine the sialic acid level in Caribbean type 2 diabetic patients with and without microvascular complications and its relationship with metabolic and anthropometric variables. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: The Caribbean subjects aged 15–60 years with type 2 diabetes were recruited for the study. Fasting venous blood samples were collected from 162 subjects of which 44 were healthy individuals, 44 were of type 2 diabetes, 44 were of type 2 diabetes with nephropathy and 30 were of diabetes with retinopathy. Simultaneously urine samples were also collected from each of the subjects. All the blood samples were processed for lipid profile, glucose, HbA1(C, )C-reactive protein and sialic acid. The urine samples were analysed for sialic acid and microalbumin. RESULTS: Serum sialic acid concentrations were significantly higher among diabetic subjects (66.0 ± 11.7 mg %) as compared to controls (55.2 ± 8.3 mg %). There was a significantly increasing trend of serum sialic acid with severity of nephropathy (71.6 ± 23.6 mg %) and degree of urinary albumin excretion (794.3 ± 805.9). The diabetic retinopathy patients also demonstrated significantly higher values of serum sialic acid (77.9 ± 29.0) and urine microalbumin (351.1 ± 559.9). Elevated serum sialic acid microalbumin concentrations were associated with cardiovascular risk factors such as hypertension, increased waist to hip ratios. (P < 0.05). Sialic acid had no correlation with CRP or any component of the lipid profile. CONCLUSION: The increased serum sialic acid and microalbumin were strongly related to the presence of microvascular complications like diabetic nephropathy and diabetic retinopathy and cardiovascular risk factors like hypertension and waist to hip ratios in Caribbean type-2 diabetic patients. The serum sialic acid may be used as an inflammatory marker and possible indicator of microvascular complications in type-2 diabetic patients

Exploring the Impact of a Clinical Decision Support Tool from the Perspective of Service Users & Carers

This study was part of an evaluation of a Clinical Decision Support Tool (CDST) which was developed as the basis for the Integrated Packages Approach to Care (InPac) model for adult mental health services in South West Yorkshire Mental Health NHS Trust (SWYMHT). The study investigated the use of the CDST and its potential impact on service users and carers through the standardisation of patient’s needs assessments and care packages. Focus groups for service users and carers were held to discuss their perspective of the impacts of the CDST in routine use. Thematic analysis of the group discussions suggests that service users and carers believe the CDST has some potential benefits for service users, carers and staff, yet to date, it has had little direct impact on service users. The study identified a number of areas where service users and carers believed the tool could be improved in order to increase its effectiveness in routine clinical practice