Education, Indigenous Survival and Well-Being: Emerging Ideas and Programs

2003 ◽  
Vol 32 ◽  
pp. 85-100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Merridy Malin ◽  
Debra Maidment

AbstractThis paper presents a snapshot of concerns in the field of Indigenous education in the late 1960s as compared with those of today, highlighting areas of improvement. Indigenous people's aspirations are not being met and the gaps between the Indigenous and non-Indigenous populations on all major educational indicators are unacceptably large. These gaps are mirrored in other areas of social and physical well-being, including life expectancy and employment. Research demonstrates the interrelationships between education, health, unemployment, poverty, and general social disadvantage, exposing social barriers to learning. We describe two small-scale educational programs, which are tailored to the needs of the Aboriginal participants and which aim to assist families through education, mentoring and community development processes to work towards practical ways for meeting their long-term aspirations. The holistic nature of the programs helps people to overcome the social barriers, which have impeded their learning in the past. Synchronised inter-agency, inter-departmental collaboration is required by such programs, which are intensive and expensive to run. But USA Project Head Start, which is similarly intensive and expensive, has demonstrated longterm benefits to society and the participants, which far outweigh the original costs in terms of savings in the areas of criminal justice, welfare, and health.

2021 ◽  
pp. 002076402110175
Author(s):  
Roberto Rusca ◽  
Ike-Foster Onwuchekwa ◽  
Catherine Kinane ◽  
Douglas MacInnes

Background: Relationships are vital to recovery however, there is uncertainty whether users have different types of social networks in different mental health settings and how these networks may impact on users’ wellbeing. Aims: To compare the social networks of people with long-term mental illness in the community with those of people in a general adult in-patient unit. Method: A sample of general adult in-patients with enduring mental health problems, aged between 18 and 65, was compared with a similar sample attending a general adult psychiatric clinic. A cross-sectional survey collected demographic data and information about participants’ social networks. Participants also completed the Short Warwick Edinburgh Mental Well-Being Scale to examine well-being and the Significant Others Scale to explore their social network support. Results: The study recruited 53 participants (25 living in the community and 28 current in-patients) with 339 named as important members of their social networks. Both groups recorded low numbers in their social networks though the community sample had a significantly greater number of social contacts (7.4 vs. 5.4), more monthly contacts with members of their network and significantly higher levels of social media use. The in-patient group reported greater levels of emotional and practical support from their network. Conclusions: People with serious and enduring mental health problems living in the community had a significantly greater number of people in their social network than those who were in-patients while the in-patient group reported greater levels of emotional and practical support from their network. Recommendations for future work have been made.


2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-73 ◽  
Author(s):  
Megan E Graham

As the global population ages, residential care facilities are challenged to create positive living environments for people in later life. Health care acoustics are increasingly recognized as a key design factor in the experience of well-being for long-term care residents; however, acoustics are being conceptualized predominantly within the medical model. Just as the modern hospital battles disease with technology, sterility and efficiency, health care acoustics are receiving similar treatment. Materialist efforts towards acoustical separation evoke images of containment, quarantine and control, as if sound was something to be isolated. Sound becomes part of the contested space of long-term care that exists in tension between hospital and home. The move towards acoustical separation denies the social significance of sound in residents’ lives. Sound does not displace care; it emplaces care and the social relationships therein. Drawing upon ethnographic fieldwork in a Canadian long-term care facility, this article will use a phenomenological lens to explore how relationships are shaped in sound among residents living in long-term care. Ethnographic vignettes illustrate how the free flow of music through the care unit incited collective engagement among residents, reduced barriers to sharing social space and constructed new social identity. The article concludes that residents’ relationships are shaped within the acoustical milieu of the care unit and that to impose acoustical separation between residents’ living spaces may further isolate residents who are already at risk of loneliness.


2020 ◽  
pp. 002087281990116
Author(s):  
Solomon Amadasun

Human trafficking victims require holistic and long-term services if their social conditions are to be improved. This study aims to explore the nature of social work services for human trafficking survivors. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with a cohort of social workers in a statutory anti-trafficking organization in southern Nigeria and the results were analyzed using thematic analysis. While the social workers reported providing services to trafficking survivors, these services were mainly rehabilitation-driven and short-term-focused. Although the research relates to a small-scale study, it has far-reaching implications for social work professionals and the Nigerian political leadership.


2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (Supplement_4) ◽  
Author(s):  
A M G van Tintelen ◽  
S H Bolt ◽  
D E M C Jansen

Abstract Background This study aims to address the lack of information about teenage mothers in different stages of their lives by exploring how they are doing in the long term and the social support they receive. Methods From December 2018 to February 2019 teenage mothers in the Netherlands were recruited by Fiom (an expert centre for unintended pregnancy), via social media and a website for teenage mothers (n = 248). Using an online survey, data were obtained to assess various outcomes, such as well-being, education, work, income, housing and social support. Respondents were divided into three groups: 0-3 years after teenage childbearing (short-term), 4-12 years (medium-term), >12 years (long-term). Results were analysed using univariate and bivariate descriptions in SPSS. Results Almost 80% of the respondents reported that they were doing well and were satisfied with their life. 63.3% had a job, and 17.0% was enrolled in education. Short-term mothers worked fewer hours per week compared to long-term mothers (p < 0.001). 85.1% of the respondents reported that they received benefits, short-term mothers receiving more benefits than long-term mothers (p < 0.001). The majority (78.2%) was satisfied with their living conditions; short-term mothers were less satisfied than long-term mothers (p = 0.031). 36.3% of the respondents smoked cigarettes. Most support was given by family (83.1%), mainly from female relatives. About 24% of the respondents received formal support. Conclusions This study shows that teenage mothers, on average, were doing well and were satisfied with their life, in both the short and long term. Regarding income and housing, short-term mothers were in a less favourable position. These results suggest that as the years pass, teenage mothers overcome difficulties. Since the association between well-being and social support on the long term is unknown, we advise investigating the effect of social support on the outcomes of teenage childbearing. Key messages Both in the short-term and the long-term, most teenage mothers were doing well and satisfied with life. Regarding housing and income, short-term mothers function less well compared to long-term mothers.


2018 ◽  
Vol 42 (1) ◽  
pp. 38-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa Lewis

This article presents findings from a small-scale qualitative research study exploring the experiences of adoptive parents during adoption transitions – the time between when a match with a child is made until a number of months after placement. What happens during this period can have a bearing on the future success of the placement and long-term well-being of the child. The article seeks to explore the experiences of adoptive parents during this stage of the process in order for practitioners to become better informed about what can make transitions successful. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine parents to capture the narrative of their adoption transition experience. Thematic analysis of the conversations revealed five main themes: rigidity, scrutiny, support, overall reflections and the relationship with the foster carer. The findings suggest that the transition period was a significant but problematic stage in the adopters’ overall adoption journey. Considerable inconsistency in the approach taken to practice in this area affected their experiences. The research highlighted areas of practice which are out of sync with that recommended in the literature; the article concludes with recommendations for promoting consistency.


2017 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 26-38 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin N. Bortnick

Background Small scale shared housing arrangements (SHAs) is a deinstitutionalized model of care designed to resemble a typical home of <10 people and are increasingly available for persons with neurocognitive disorders of the Alzheimer's and related types (NCD). However, there is little aggregate evidence of their effect on persons with NCD thus, a literature review was performed. Methods Database searches were conducted across CINAHL Complete, OTseeker, PubMed, Ovid, Academic One File, ProQuest Nursing and Allied Health, the World Wide Web and Google Scholar using the several key words that included neurocognitive disorders, Alzheimer's, dementia, quality of life, well-being, occupational performance, activities of daily living, small scale shared housing, sheltered housing and group homes. Bibliographic references from final articles were also examined. Selection criteria involved three steps: screening perspective articles by title and abstract, assessing full text for eligibility and finally, reviewing full-texts. Results 16 studies were selected for final review where most found the association of SHAs with various occupational performance indicators unique to the NCD population better than or equal to controls (traditional models of long term care). A small minority of studies had mixed or inconclusive results. No study found SHAs necessarily worse than controls. Conclusion The SHA model has many benefits for person's with NCD and may be especially advantageous for those in the early stages of the disease process. The occupational therapy profession should continue to raise awareness of SHAs and consider ecological theory as a valid basis for their expansion.


1983 ◽  
Vol 42 (4) ◽  
pp. 851-868 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles F. Keyes

Although the Thai-Lao peasants living in rain-fed agricultural communities in northeastern Thailand have experienced some improvements in their socioeconomic situation as a consequence of the growth of the Thai economy since the mid-1950s, these peasants still constitute the poorest sector of the population of Thailand. Moreover, the socioeconomic position of the rural northeastern Thai populace has actually declined relative to that of the urban populace and that of the rural populace living in central Thailand. The economic disadvantageous position of Thai-Lao peasants is linked with a sense of being an ethnoregional minority within a polity that has been highly centralized since reforms instituted at the end of the nineteenth century. Much of the social action of Thai-Lao peasants with reference to the political-economic constraints on their world can be understood, as long-term research in one community reveals, as having been impelled by rational calculation aimed at improving the well being of peasant families. The ways in which peasants have assessed in practice the justice of these constraints as well as the ways in which they have assessed the limits to entrepreneurship must be seen, however, as being rooted in moral premises that Thai-Lao villagers have appropriated from Theravada Buddhism as known to them in their popular culture.


Author(s):  
ANNA BĄK-ŚREDNICKA

This paper addresses a problem which has been central in teacher education for several decades: how to encourage critical reflectivity in prospective EFL1 teachers. This problem is set within the larger context of the field of school, family and community partnerships. The rationale behind choosing this context is that there is a gap between the significance of various types of such partnerships for the well-being of the whole child, and a lack of deeper understanding of the issue among prospective teachers. The overwhelming majority of research in the matter, conducted mainly in the USA, covers the areas of pre-school, early school and special education (e.g. Lindberg 2014). Additionally, there are few research-based articles related to building the partnership skills of preservice EFL teachers. Therefore, in this paper we attempt to describe the cases of three prospective EFL teachers involved in the process of preparing small scale empirical projects related to the parents’ perspectives. As shown in the paper, engagement in such long term and complex enterprises does not automatically develop the subjects’ deeper understanding of the important role of various types of parent involvement in the (academic) success of children.


2006 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mike Reid ◽  
Claudia Scott ◽  
Jeff McNeill

By July 2006 all 85 local authorities expect to have their 10-year Long Term Council Community Plans (LTCCPs) signed and sealed, and passing muster with an unqualified audit report. The new Local Government Act 2002 (LGA 2002) has provided councils with general empowerment and introduced a new purpose (section 3) for local government: to ‘promote the social, economic, cultural and environmental well-being of communities now and for the future’.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document