Current trends, figures and challenges in out of home child care: An international comparative analysis

AbstractThis article closes the special issue of this journal about an international review of out-of-home child care, principally family foster care and residential care, tough several aspects related to adoption were included as well. Although a comparison on some data about residential and foster care, or kinship and non-kinship care, is carried out, the article tries above all to make a reflection on the implications of several themes that have emerged as more interesting or important. Matters such as the use of residential care and its role in the current child care system, the overrepresentation of ethnic minorities in foster care in several countries, the situation of unaccompanied young people asylum seeking, the use of adoption as a permanent solution, the challenges of the transition to the adulthood from care, the relevance of the professionalization and models based on social pedagogy, the evaluation and planning based on data, and the current financial crisis and its impact on child care systems are some of the remarkable topics that will be reviewed

Acolhimento Familiar em Portugal e Espanha: Uma Investigação Comparada sobre a Satisfação dos Acolhedores

Este estudo apresenta uma comparação entre as experiências de famílias de acolhimento de Portugal e Espanha, avaliando-se a sua satisfação com a informação recebida antes do acolhimento; a preparação da criança para o acolhimento; os apoios técnico e fi nanceiro; e a evolução do processo de acolhimento. Pretende-se contribuir para melhorar e promover a medida de acolhimento familiar nos dois países. Os processos de acolhimento familiar dependem de fatores históricos e culturais que produzem diferenças importantes nos diversos contextos internacionais. Assim, foram realizadas entrevistas em duas amostras aleatórias constituídas por 52 famílias de acolhimento em Portugal e 46 na Espanha, cujos resultados foram comparados através de testes estatísticos paramétricos e não paramétricos. Os acolhedores, em ambos os países, mostraram um elevado grau de satisfação com o processo de acolhimento. No entanto, em Portugal, existe maior preocupação com o fraco apoio fi nanceiro, as informações não fornecidas pelos serviços de acolhimento ou a má preparação da criança para o acolhimento. Por fi m, são apresentadas sugestões para a melhoria da gestão e implementação desta resposta social. Palavras-chave: Bem-estar da criança, acolhimento familiar, satisfação dos acolhedores, estudo comparativo.This study provides a comparison between experiences of Portuguese and Spanish foster families and evaluates their satisfaction with the information received before the host; the preparation of the child for the foster care; the technical and fi nancial support; and the evolution of the foster care process. It aims to contribute to improving implementation and development of this social response in both countries. The foster care processes depend on historical and cultural factors that have signifi cant differences in various international contexts. Thus, two random samples of 52 foster families in Portugal and 46 in Spain were interviewed, and the results were compared using parametric and non parametric statistical tests. The carers, in both countries, show a high degree of satisfaction with the foster care process. However, in Portugal there is greater concern about the poor fi nancial support, information not provided by the foster care services or poor preparation of the child for childcare. Finally, the study presents suggestions for improving the management and implementation of this social response

Características y desarrollo del acogimiento familiar en dos países con fuerte tradición de acogimiento residencial: España y Portugal

Los procesos de acogimiento familiar que se producen en cada país dependen de factores históricos y culturales que dan lugar a grandes diferencias internacionales. A pesar de que las comparativas internacionales ofrecen un medio de intercambio de experiencias, lo que permite el aprendizaje mutuo y la transferencia de buenas prácticas, a menudo encontramos enormes barreras para su realización debido, entre otros factores, al limitado acceso a los datos sobre la práctica de la protección infantil. Frente a estas limitaciones, este artículo ofrece una investigación comparativa realizada en España y Portugal cuyo objetivo ha sido la evaluación del acogimiento familiar en dos países donde la investigación en el ámbito de la protección infantil ha sido tradicionalmente desatendida. Sobre una muestra de 357 casos en España y 289 en Portugal se realizó un estudio del perfil de características de los niños acogidos, las familias de origen y los acogedores, así como de los procesos de acogida en ambos países. La comparativa reveló importantes diferencias relacionadas con la mayor edad al inicio del acogimiento de los niños en España; el perfil de los acogedores, con edades más avanzadas, un bajo nivel educativo y llevando a cabo acogidas de más de un niño simultáneamente en Portugal. El estudio comparado nos ha permitido identificar áreas que requieren mayor atención en ambos países, como la renovación generacional del banco de acogedores en Portugal o la necesidad de acelerar los procesos de toma de decisiones para la entrada en acogimiento familiar en España. Se pretende que este artículo sirva de aliento para la recogida de datos y comparación con otros países iberoamericanos.InED - Centro de Investigação e Inovação em Educaçã

Influence of the thermomechanical processing on the superplastic forming of Mg-Al alloys

The aim of this paper is to study the influence of the initial microstructure of several Mg–Al alloys on their superplastic formability and on their post-forming microstructure and mechanical properties. Various thermomechanical processing routes, such as annealing, conventional rolling, severe rolling and cross rolling, were used in order to fabricate AZ31 and AZ61 alloys with different grain sizes. These materials were then blow formed into a hat shaped die. It was found that the processing route has only a small effect in the formability of Mg–Al alloys or on the postforming microstructures and properties due to rapid dynamic grain growth taking place at the forming temperatures. Nevertheless, good formability is achieved as a result of the simultaneous operation of grain boundary sliding and crystallographic slip during forming.The authors are thankful to Comunidad de Madrid for funding this work under grant GR-MAT-0715-2004. FS is grateful to CSIC for a postgraduate grant. JAV acknowledges support from a Ramón y Cajal contract awarded by the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science.Peer reviewe