Developing Age-Friendly Cities: Case Studies from Brussels and Manchester and Implications for Policy and Practice

Author(s):  
Tine Buffel ◽  
Paul McGarry ◽  
Chris Phillipson ◽  
Liesbeth De Donder ◽  
Sarah Dury ◽  
...  
1990 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 233-239 ◽  
Author(s):  
David K. Cohen ◽  
Deborah Loewenberg Ball

Policymakers in the U. S. have been trying to change schools and school practices for years. Though studies of such policies raise doubts about their effects, the last decade has seen an unprecedented increase in state policies designed to change instructional practice. One of the boldest and most comprehensive of these has been undertaken in California, where state policymakers have launched an ambitious effort to improve teaching and learning in schools. We offer an early report on California's reforms, focusing on mathematics. State officials have been promoting substantial changes in instruction designed to deepen students' mathematical understanding, to enhance their appreciation of mathematics and to improve their capacity to reason mathematically. If successful, these reforms would be a sharp departure from existing classroom practice, which attends chiefly to computational skills. The research reported here focuses on teachers' early responses to the state's efforts to change mathematics instruction. The case studies of five teachers highlight a key dilemma in such ambitious reforms. On the one hand, teachers are seen as the root of the problem: their instruction is mechanical, often boring, and superficial. On the other hand, teachers are cast as the key agents of improvement because students will not learn the new mathematics that policymakers intend unless teachers learn that math and teach it. But how can teachers teach a mathematics that they never learned, in ways they never experienced? That is the question explored in this special issue.


2021 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
pp. 253-259
Author(s):  
Dudley Reynolds

Abstract Questions asked as part of phenomenographic research are used to critically synthesize findings from the case studies in this issue of English-medium instruction (EMI) in transnational higher education (TNHE). With respect to whether EMI in TNHE can be considered a phenomenon, it is suggested that the phenomenon is more discursive than empirical. Student and instructor perceptions of the phenomenon reveal a critical awareness of the policies that structure the learning environment and agency that takes advantage of the policies’ discursive nature to create alternative, multilingual language practices and improve learning. A gap between policy and practice that allows for negotiation of the E’s in EMI and TNHE, English and education, is hence called for.


2014 ◽  
Vol 34 (1/2) ◽  
pp. 35-46
Author(s):  
Emma Davies ◽  
Elizabeth Rowe

Purpose – The aim of this paper is on what the authors learnt from negotiating the difficult terrain linking, or separating, research from policy advice and the political process. Design/methodology/approach – This paper outlines two case studies from New Zealand to examine what confounds and what bridges gaps between research, policy, politics and practice. The case studies were predicated on the belief that interagency and cross-sectoral actions were necessary to align actions and achieve good outcomes in social policy. Findings – Interagency processes are not the Holy Grail. More attention needs to be paid to the impact of the context in which researchers, public servants and politicians operate and of the research and policy-making processes within their organisations. Politics within and between organisations and politics on the national stage must also be understood if the gap between research, policy and practice is to be narrowed and successfully navigated. Originality/value – These are original case studies. Researchers often bemoan the failure of their findings to influence policy and practice; policy makers complain that researchers are unaware of “real world” timeframes and policy concerns, and politicians grow impatient with advice that takes little heed of political imperatives. Therefore, these case studies will be of particular interest to students and practitioners of social policy and researchers who wish to see their findings influence policy.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Justin Avery Aunger ◽  
Ross Millar ◽  
Joanne Greenhalgh ◽  
Russell Mannion ◽  
Anne Marie Rafferty ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Inter-organisational collaboration is increasingly prominent within contemporary healthcare systems. A range of collaboration types such as alliances, networks, and mergers have been proposed as a means to turnaround organisations, by reducing duplication of effort, enabling resource sharing, and promoting innovations. However, in practice, due to the complexity of the process, such efforts are often rife with difficulty. Notable contributions have sought to make sense of this area, however further understanding is needed in order to gain a better understanding of why some inter-organisational collaborations work when others do not, to be able to more effectively implement collaborations in the future. Methods Realist review methodology was used with the intention of formulating context-mechanism-outcome configurations (CMOCs) to explain how inter-organisational collaborations work and why., combining systematic and purposive literature search techniques . The systematic review encompassed searches for reviews, commentaries, opinion pieces and case studies on HMIC, Medline, PsycINFO, and Social Policy and Practice databases and further searches were conducted using Google Scholar. Data were extracted from included studies according to relevance to the realist review. Results Fifty-three papers were included, informing the development of programme theories of how, why, and when inter-organisational collaborations in healthcare work. Formulation of our programme theories incorporated the concepts of Partnership Synergy and Collaborative Inertia and found that it was essential to consider mechanisms underlying partnership functioning, such as building trust and faith in the collaboration to maximise synergy and thus collaborative performance. More integrative or mandated collaboration may lean more heavily on contract to drive collaborative behaviour. Conclusion As the first realist review of inter-organisational collaborations in healthcare as an intervention for improvement, this review provides actionable evidence for policymakers and implementers, enhancing understanding of mechanisms underlying the functioning and performing of inter-organisational collaborations, as well as how to configure the context to aid success. Next steps in this research will test the results against further case studies and primary data to produce a further refined theory. Review registration This review is registered at PROSPERO with ID CRD42019149009. Keywords Collaboration, partnership working, integration, healthcare, improvement, realist review, realist synthesis, context, programme theory, implementation


Author(s):  
Gareth Wall

This ambitious and highly informative volume is premised on both the seismic shift in the perceived developmental role of local government across the globe, and the challenges that local governments will face as their key role in achieving the post-2015 sustainable development goals is increasingly being recognised within the global policy fora. New Century Local Government brings together an impressively wide geographic spread of country case studies from across the four regions of the Commonwealth, and pulls together work by leading scholars of local government who are all members of the Commonwealth Local Government Research Advisory Group (CLGF-RAG). It provides a plethora of detailed country case studies arranged around three themes: decentralisation in the Caribbean, Pakistan and England, local government finance and local economic development in India, South Africa and Tanzania, and new approaches to governance in Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Not only do the papers provide detailed accounts of the changes in policy and practice within their focus country cases – but many of them, notably the papers by Brown, Reid, McKinlay and Sansom include a comparative perspective with developments from Commonwealth countries in other regions, which is one of the key strengths of the volume. It is also the raison d’être of comparative work across the countries of the Commonwealth, given the shared legal and administrative histories and the dominance of English as the academic and often administrative lingua franca. It would have been great to see more of the cross-regional and cross-country lessons being drawn out from across the contributions in a final concluding chapter, but the editors leave this to the reader – possibly to ensure they read the volume in full.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles Gaherity ◽  
Philip Birch

Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine looting behaviour during natural disaster incidents. As a consequence, this study considers looting in the context of two case studies: a Tsunami and a Bushfire. The study offers an exploration into the types of and motivations for looting, as well as reflecting on prevention measures. Design/methodology/approach The methodological approach of a rapid evidence assessment (REA) is used to examine looting behaviour within the context of two natural disaster incidents, drawing on a thematic analysis, as outlined by Braun and Clarke (2006) to support the presentation of findings. Findings The findings of the REA yield three themes. The first theme, Theme 1, focuses on the types of offenders – looters, while Theme 2 focuses on the motivations for offending behaviour – looting. The final theme, Theme 3, presents crime prevention responses: looters and looting. Each theme is further illustrated through a number of sub-themes, and while the two case studies centre on two distinct natural disaster incidents, there are similarities that exist between them offering insights for why looting occurs and consequently how to respond to looting. Research limitations/implications Previous research has recognised how incidents such as bushfires enable and create opportunity for looting behaviour. Yet, arguably, little has been achieved in successfully preventing such behaviour. This study offers evidence for why looting occurs during natural disaster incidents and considers the prevention measures that can lead to a reduction in this offending into the future. The need for more detailed and primary research into looting during natural disaster incidents is a research implication engendered by the current study. Practical implications This study considers crime prevention approaches in the form of situational crime prevention and social development crime prevention that have direct relevance on crime prevention policy and practice. The practical implications are worthy of attention from law enforcement agencies and other first/emergency responders. Social implications This study seeks to offer evidence for policy and practice initiatives that can increase public safety and reduce further threats to community safety during natural disaster incidents. Originality/value After the terrorist attacks of 9/11, a concerted effort for swifter and more effective responses to emergency management incidents has occurred. However, the focus of such responses has typically overlooked looting during natural disaster incidents. This study goes some way in addressing that gap in the literature and connects the current scientific knowledge to prevention strategies, informing future policy and practice responses to addressing looting during such incidents. This study provides a stimuli for further research into looters, looting and natural disaster incidents.


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