Wellbeing and smart textiles: reflecting on collaborative practices and the design process

This paper reports on an inter-disciplinary, EPSRC funded research project, 'An Internet of Soft Things' (IoSofT) which seeks to bring soft surfaces, smart textiles and wearable technologies to join the Internet of Things debate. The project involves researchers from academic disciplines: design, computing and mental health in collaboration with a project partner, the Nottinghamshire network of the mental health charity, Mind. This paper will reflect upon the research project and specifically the approach the authors have taken to collaborative textile practice and how this has impacted upon the design process. This project was conducted through a number of practical workshop activities with Mind service user groups. The workshops focused upon the crafting of personalized textile objects with soft switches and various output and also recorded the clients' descriptions of their sense of ownership, awareness of their own and others' emotions and behaviours. The workshops included the researchers' reflections and observations to enable further understanding of how this community invests meaning in material things and modes of expressive output. The aim of the research project is to use textile craft practice and smart materials alongside therapeutic approaches to contribute to the development of a wellbeing and mental health toolkit to support future client work for Mind

Fit for purpose? Pattern cutting and seams in wearables development

This paper describes how a group of practitioners and researchers are working across disciplines at Nottingham Trent University in the area of Technical Textiles. It introduces strands of ongoing enquiry centred around the development and application of stretch sensors on the body, focusing on how textile and fashion knowledge are being reflexively revealed in the collaborative development of seamful wearable concepts, and on the tensions between design philosophies as revealed by definitions of purpose. We discuss the current research direction of the Aeolia project, which seeks to exploit the literal gaps found in pattern cutting for fitted stretch garments towards experiential forms and potential interactions. Normative goals of fitness for purpose and seamlessness are interrogated and the potential for more integrated design processes, which may at first appear ‘upside down’, is discussed

Models of SEND: the impact of political and economic influences on policy and provision

The content and direction of policy can be impacted upon by broader political and economic influences that are of central concern to the government in office. With regard to education, the concepts of inclusion and SEND are at the forefront of professional pedagogy and provision. These concepts, although well-established educational practices, may be impacted by these influences. This article has two aims. Firstly, it will identify and critically evaluate potential factors that may have an impact upon the implementation of these concepts. This analysis will focus on the effects of national and international financial instability, the standards agenda and the use of attainment data. The second aim is to critically examine existing and new models of SEND and evaluate how they may be affected by broader political and economic influences and thus reflect current political values. This article will also present a table that summarises each model of SEND and the political and economic influences that may impact upon them. A conclusion is drawn that the potential to achieve inclusive educational practice is affected, not by the models of SEND impacting upon policy and practice, but by political and economic influences acting at both national and international levels.Key words: inclusion, special educational needs, disabilities, medical model, social model, biopsychosocial model, state influenced market model, financial crisis mode

Countering Extremists on Social Media:Challenges for Strategic Communication and Content Moderation

Extremist exploitation of social media platforms is an important regulatory question for civil society, government, and the private sector. Extremists exploit social media for a range of reasons-from spreading hateful narratives and propaganda to financing, recruitment, and sharing operational information. Policy responses to this question fit under two headings, strategic communication and content moderation. At the center of both of these policy responses is a calculation about how best to limit audience exposure to extremist narratives and maintain the marginality of extremist views, while being conscious of rights to free expression and the appropriateness of restrictions on speech. This special issue on "Countering Extremists on Social Media: Challenges for Strategic Communication and Content Moderation" focuses on one form of strategic communication, countering violent extremism. In this editorial we discuss the background and effectiveness of this approach, and introduce five articles which develop multiple strands of research into responses and solutions to extremist exploitation of social media. We conclude by suggesting an agenda for future research on how multistakeholder initiatives to challenge extremist exploitation of social media are conceived, designed, and implemented, and the challenges these initiatives need to surmount

Development of inclusive education in England: Impact on children with special educational needs and disabilities

This is an accepted manuscript of a book chapter published by Springer Routledge in the Handbook on Promoting Social Justice in Education, available online: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-74078-2_151-1 The accepted version of the publication may differ from the final published version. Please refer to the publisher's terms and conditions for re-use.This chapter considers a historical account of the development of inclusion in England and the changes made to the education of children with SEND since the 1940s. The chapter details the development of inclusive education, the complexity of defining inclusion, and what inclusion has come to mean in current practice. This historical account is considered alongside the development and dominance of the standards agenda. In considering inclusion in this manner, the original intentions of its agenda are questioned against the practical implementation of inclusive education in current practice. The chapter concludes by proposing that significant progress has not been made with inclusion because it has not been possible to accommodate it within the competing political agendas replete in England’s education system

To what extent do frameworks of reading development and the phonics screening check support the assessment of reading development in England?

The purpose of this article is to question the suitability of the phonics screening check in relation to models and theories of reading development. The article questions the appropriateness of the check by drawing on theoretical frameworks which underpin typical reading development. I examine the Simple View of Reading developed by Gough and Tunmer and Ehri’s model of reading development. The article argues that the assessment of children’s development in reading should be underpinned and informed by a developmental framework which identifies the sequential skills in reading development

Averting the Crisis in Trainee Teacher Well-being – Learning Lessons across European Contexts: A Comparative Study

Teacher well-being is frequently high-lighted as a significant contributor to poor retention rates. Whilst there remains a focus on the well-being of serving teachers and pupils, there is a paucity of research directly focusing on the well-being of trainee teachers. This pilot study sought to compare the experiences of trainee teachers from three European countries, in an attempt to identify the resources and challenges faced by teachers during their training. Through the use of interviews and visual approaches, key factors, which appeared to influence trainee teachers’ well-being, were identified. Through shifting the focus of training onto the development of communities of practice, the development of interpersonal skills, and supporting the development of strong relationships, it is hoped that Initial Teacher Training (ITT) programmes in England can draw on some best practice from other European contexts to better support trainee teachers’ well-being