“A beginner reader is not a beginner thinker”: student publishing in Britain since the 1970s1

Act one: fairy tales are more than true About a century ago, noted British author and novelist, Gilbert Keith Chesterton, who had a gift for using proverbs, metaphors and allegories, wrote: 'Fairy tales are more than true: not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten' (Chesterton in Medley 2012: 1). Chesterton's pithy sentence celebrates the potential that lurks in stories: the power to attract our attention, spark our imagination, and paint new scenarios of hope; the power to experience vicarious struggles and epic wins; the power to demonstrate how 'monsters'--whether personal or societal--can be overcome, vanquished. It distils the essence of the entertainment-education (EE) strategy in communication, capturing its purposive intent to vanquish societal 'monsters' like gender inequality, domestic violence, malnutrition, and suffering from HIV/AIDS. Chesterton's observations about the power of stories have stood the test of time. For millennia, storytelling, music, drama, dance and various folk genres have been used in societies for recreation, devotion, reformation and instructional purposes. The idea of purposive EE thus is not a new invention--it is timeless. However, EE as a purposive communication strategy is a relatively new concept in that its conscious use in print, radio, television, popular music, films and digital gaming has received attention only in the past few decades (Singhal & Rogers 1999; Singhal, Wang & Rogers 2013). Consider what might happen if 'fairy tales' hitch a ride on popular radio and television genres. Between 1969 and 1971, when Peru broadcast its 448-episode-long telenovela (television novel), Simplemente Maria (Simply Maria), millions of viewers followed the unfolding Cinderella-like tale. Maria, the main character, a poor migrant woman from the Andean region, worked as a maid in a rich city household, barely making ends meet. Seduced by a rich playboy, Maria became pregnant, lost her job and struggled to survive, but retained her 'never-say-die' attitude. She found another job, worked during the day, enrolled in adult literacy classes in the evening, and burned the midnight oil to sharpen her sewing skills with a Singer sewing machine (Singhal, Obregon & Rogers 1994). Slowly but steadily, Maria's struggles turned into small victories and, eventually, into a triumph of epic proportions. Maria became the country's leading fashion designer and married the love of her life--her literacy teacher, Maestro Esteban, to live happily ever after. All in a fictional story! Remarkably, in reality, Simplemente Maria attracted record audience ratings in Peru, making heavy profits for PANTEL, the programme's Peruvian producer. The sale of Singer sewing machines boomed in Peru. Unbelievably, the number of young girls enrolling in adult literacy and sewing classes rose sharply (Singhal & Rogers 1999). When Simplemente Maria was broadcast in other Latin-American nations, similar effects occurred. Audience identification with Maria was strong: she represented a Cinderella-like fairytale model for upward social mobility. What may have explained the audience popularity of Simplemente Maria? The character of Maria, some have argued, embodied the archetypical Cinderella-like heroic struggle against 'human monsters, ill-fortune, and poverty' (Singhal & Rogers 1999; Svenkerud, Rahoi & Singhal 1995). A hero in the classical Jungian sense, Maria does not let the monsters devour her; instead, she subdues and overcomes them. If G.K. Chesterton were to have witnessed the raging Simplemente Maria fever in Latin America in the 1970s, and its unsurpassed popularity with Eastern European audiences in the late 1980s and early 1990s, he would likely be smiling. For in the bowel of such fairy tales, some audience members find the nuggets, the scripts for vanquishing 'monsters'. …

The structural elements of special education, that is the way that teaching is organized, the principles of teaching and the selected groups, are social products which must be viewed in terms of the social and political context, and of the social functions, which the special education activity plays in that particular context. Furthermore, acknowledgement of the social and political conditions of special education calls for a wide concept of intervention, which does not restrict special education to methods of individual help, but also includes social innovation and social action. The problems associated with the implementation of the principles of integration and normalization clearly show the constraints put upon special education by the social context and make the need for social action paramount.

Biliteracy and Second-Language Learners

Recent scientific advances in early literacy assessment have provided schools with access to critical information about students' foundational beginning reading skills. In this article, we describe how assessment of early literacy skills can help school psychologists promote beginning reading success for all children. First, we identify key skills in early literacy and describe a comprehensive assessment system, Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS), developed to assess essential beginning reading skills. Next, we present a conceptual framework for thinking about early literacy assessment across four distinct purposes: (a) screening, (b) diagnosis, (c) progress monitoring, and (d) student outcomes. Finally, we provide school‐based examples that illustrate how DIBELS can be used to assess students' early literacy skills across each of these four purposes and facilitate informed and ongoing instructional decision making. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Psychol Schs 43: 33–43, 2006.

Neighborhood Associations, Social Movements, and Populism in Brazil, 1945–1953

Learners with dyslexia are likely to be over-represented in adult literacy classes because of the convergence in perceptions, causes and understanding of literacy problems and dyslexia. Given the great amount of apprehension about practitioners’ and policy makers’ understanding of dyslexia itself, it is important to carry out an exploration of the perceptions of literacy teachers, who increasingly have responsibility for teaching learners with dyslexia. This study reports such an exploration. It employed a questionnaire survey and a focus group interview to collect data on the perceptions of literacy teachers on issues around the teaching of learners with dyslexia. The data collected were analysed using the conceptual analysis strand of concept analysis. It found that their perception of dyslexia and their approaches to teaching learners with dyslexia were informed by a dominant discourse which derives from a deficit model of dyslexia and which concurs with the metaphor of dyslexia and illiteracy as a form of disease. Furthermore, participants in this research revealed that they had limited confidence in the long-term value of the tuition they provide to their learners. The study concludes by highlighting that there is a need to explore alternatives in terms of perceptions and approaches if learners with dyslexia are to succeed in literacy classes.

The project “Comparative Studies into Teaching Approaches for Mathematical Modelling” (CoSTAMM) has so far involved a total of 453 participants in four studies, all focused on fostering students’ mathematical modelling competency through different learning environments, consisting of the same five-lesson modelling unit and two different teaching styles (“method-integrative” versus “teacher-directive”) which represent certain elements of quality teaching. All studies followed the same pre-post-test intervention design with the same instruments but differing in their educational contexts. Three studies were implemented at the tertiary level in South Africa, and one study at the secondary level in Germany. Against this background, this paper examines the question to what extent differential effects of the interventions may be explained by the implemented specific learning environment or by the specific educational context. For this purpose, all studies were integrated into a comparative linear mixed model and analysed at once. An additional qualitative evaluation of the participants’ responses to the test items was carried out to supply deeper insights. Overall, the modelling unit proved to be effective independently of the educational context, and more effective for the groups that followed the method-integrative teaching style. This paper thus provides empirical evidence that an educational intervention can effectively be transferred from one context to another while yielding simultaneously positive learning gains.

Teacher-researcher communities constitute an imporant forum for change in the educational reform movement. yet little is known about the construction of these communities in special education contexts. in the early literacy project, we found that the discourse inthe teacher-researcher community provided a public space in which participants constructed new literacy meanings. a more careful examination of the discourse revealed that talk related to six issues: theoretical principles, teaching practice, problem solving about difficulties related to curricular enactments, the effects of the literacy curriculum on students, case studies of particular children, and references to prior events in the community. further, talk about principles and teaching practice formed a tightly woven braid ofmeaning that came to represent common assumptions about ways-of-doing and ways-of-thinking about literacy.

Background: In the context of English as a second language (ESL) education in Pakistani universities, understanding the professional identity construction and negotiation of university lecturers is crucial. Objective: The current study aims to explore the complex dimensions of professional identity among non-native English speaking (NNES) multilingual Pakistani university lecturers. Theoretical Framework: This research aims to address the research gap by providing a nuance exploration of the experiences of Pakistani university lecturers by relating sociocultural theory proposed by Lev Vygotsky (1978). As this theory describes how individual’s cognition is associated with linguistic, cultural, institutional and social contexts, therefore, the focus of the sociocultural perception is on involvement in social interactions Method: Employing the qualitative research approach, the study seeks to investigate the multifaceted aspects that influence the professional identity of the lecturers. Six lecturers were purposively selected on the basis of their linguistic backgrounds and work experiences for classroom observations and in-depth interviews. Results and Discussion: The findings shed light on the challenges and opportunities faced by Pakistani university lecturers in shaping their roles within the ESL teaching domain. Research Implications: The study offers valuable insights into the evolving landscape of ESL education in Pakistan, providing various perspectives of how professional identity is negotiated and constructed within this specific educational context. Originality/Value: The relevance of this study lies in its potential to profoundly influence both academic discourse and educational practices. By delving into the subtle processes of professional identity construction, the study offers valuable insights into the dynamics of teaching and learning in diverse linguistic and cultural settings. It also highlights the critical need for continuous professional development for lecturers to enhance the quality of education.

Educational context plays a role in promoting and maintaining multicultural competence. Whereas in the past decade psychology has considered the impact of multiculturalism in educational training; however, less attention has been paid to the institutional contexts that house these efforts. In this paper, four professional psychologists with expertise in multicultural education enumerate the barriers they encountered as they attempted to establish culture-centered educational contexts. Focusing on three specific educational contexts (a psychology department, a training clinic, and a medical setting), they provide insightful and compelling narratives that educators can relate to and apply to their own institutions. The article concludes with recommendations.<br />

The Achievement of Potential: an Exploration in Educational and Social Contexts outlines a qualitative study conducted in the North East of Scotland within the context of Scottish Education. This study had four purposes: (1) to explore the meaning of the concept of potential; (2) to consider the factors affecting the achievement of potential; (3) to explore the conditions necessary to enable all children achieve their potential; and (4) to identify implications for Scottish education policy and practice. The concept of potential presented in the literature was diverse - different constructs were generated at different historical times and within different disciplinary frameworks. Common features suggest that potential is something that everyone is born with and everyone achieves to some extent. It is suggested that potential can change throughout life because of influences from social contexts, personal relationships and cultural factors. Those who participated in the empirical study had a complex and rich understanding of the term. They understood the concept to refer to people maximising the development and use of a range of capabilities. The three key factors identified and which interacted were: the children themselves with their capabilities, aptitudes and attitudes, the schooling system and the home and wider social, cultural context. With respect to teachers and parents, differences in their values, perceptions of the purposes of education, power differentials and community identity emerged as aspects of the educational and social contexts impinging on relationships with pupils and their level of school engagement. The conditions necessary for the achievement of the fullest potential for all children and the barriers preventing an increasing proportion of children achieving their potential within the established educational system are identified and discussed. Educational strategies to promote the greatest possible amount of shared perceptions and values and harmonious interaction among the children themselves, their educational context and their social context to allow the children to develop a secure identity are suggested.

The article explores the experience of ageing in cohort of a group of women that has received scant attention: teaching Sisters (nuns / women religious). The authors argue that the stages of ageing, and in particular the stages which follow menopause and precede final decline and death, were blurred within convent communities. Especially in the time before the Second Vatican Council, as they aged, teaching Sisters experienced very few changes in their daily routine. They were often as active in their sixties and seventies as they had been in their thirties and forties. Often, they often started new careers once they retired from teaching. When they finally withdrew from an active life, or became infirm or ill, the presence of their convent community reduced the possibility of loneliness and lack of mental stimulation. Aging Sisters were also assured of comforts that were often denied to others: they would be nursed; they would be comforted by the prayers of their community; they would be given a dignified burial in the convent cemetery. Through an interrogation of archival evidence, the article offers some insights into the impact of senescence within a specific educational and social context.

Learning takes place in a particular social context and in interaction with others. One of the tools of mediation between the learner and the subject to be learned is talk. In a teacher training context, it is through the use of particular talk that trainers can guide and scaffold their trainees towards learning, and the basic premise is that thinking and higher cognitive development occur through social interaction. At the same time, the talk must be studied in its very specific educational and cultural context. It is challenging to describe and evaluate scaffolding since there are many dimensions of the teaching and learning context which influence the success of the scaffolding process. This research paper reports on a study which analysed the talk between trainer and trainee in a post-observation feedback conference. Using Maybin, Mercer, and Stierer’s six features of scaffolding as a basic framework, the author describes two excerpts from two feedback sessions. The talk is deconstructed with reference to the context in order to describe what scaffolding looks like in a particular pre-service teacher training context.

Teacher professional identity (TPI) is a characteristic of a teacher, which should be developed in a long, consistent, and progressive process and usually shapes in any specific educational and social context. In addition to several factors influencing TPI, such as university education and empowerment courses, experience seems to play a significant role. Moreover, the role of psychological factors is highly undeniable in the formation and development of TPI. Attributional style (AS) is defined as the consistent way by which people can explain the reasons for the occurrence of good or bad events. Besides considering ASs as one of the crucial variables for academic success, it can be regarded as one of the aspects of shaping one’s identity in general and the teacher’s identity in particular. In order to study the relationship between AS and TPI of teachers regarding their experience, two questionnaires were distributed among 317 Iranian English as foreign language (EFL) teachers, and about 80% returned them. The researchers ran correlational analyses and they came up with a positive and significant relationship (p = 0.04) between TPI and teacher attributional styles (TASs) of teachers. Moreover, experienced teachers proved to have a significant difference from novice teachers regarding their TPIs. The findings of this study would hopefully be advantageous for teacher educators to educate pre-service teachers by ways of constructing identity, and they may be applicable for Iranian EFL teachers to know and focus on different aspects of their professional identity. Moreover, they learn how to manage the intervening factors and shape and empower different domains of their PI, such as teaching experience, by means of exploring and knowing their ASs.

Background: Incentives have been proposed as a method to improve attendance in adult literacy classes. In the UK, several areas have piloted the use of incentives to promote attendance at adult literacy classes. To date no rigorous evaluation of this policy has been undertaken. This paper describes (as far as we are aware) the only UK‐based randomised controlled trial to evaluate the use of financial incentives in order to promote attendance in classes for adult learners. Methods: We used a cluster‐randomised design. Twenty‐nine adult literacy classes were randomised in two groups using minimisation. Intervention group learners received £5 (US$10) for each class attended. The main outcome was class attendance; the secondary outcome was literacy scores. Results: After allocation, one class was found to be ineligible for the study. In the 28 remaining classes there was a statistically significant reduction of about 1.5 sessions (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.28, 2.79; p = 0.019) attended by the intervention group compared with control, after adjusting for cluster size and baseline scores. The difference in reading scores between the intervention and control group, conditioned on baseline scores, was −2.38 (with controls scoring higher than the intervention group), but this difference was not statistically significant (95% CI −7.40 to 2.57, p = 0.33). Conclusion: Payments to attend adult literacy classes had an adverse effect on attendance. This trial needs urgent replication, ideally with a larger incentive, before this approach is widely used by policy makers.