Taking part in school life: views of children

2013 ◽  
Vol 114 (1) ◽  
pp. 20-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yetunde Olufisayo John-Akinola ◽  
Aoife Gavin ◽  
Siobhán Elizabeth O’Higgins ◽  
Saoirse Nic Gabhainn

Purpose – Child participation is increasingly a global phenomenon as stated by Article 12 of the United Nations Convention on Children's Rights. This supports the first principle, Democracy, of the Health Promoting School movement. The purpose of this paper is to facilitate a three-phase participatory research process (PRP) to document the views of children about participation in school. Design/methodology/approach – A total of 248 primary school pupils aged nine to 13 years participated: the first group of pupils answered two questions on individual coloured paper; the second group categorised these data separately, by question, assigning labels for each of the categories; and the third group used the categories to develop schema. The analysis was inductive. Findings – The most common categories for what made pupils feel a part of their school were school uniforms, sports, friends, teachers and their school/classroom environment. Increase in the number of school activities, encouraging friendship and equal participation were key indicators of how pupils would ensure that everybody felt a part of the school. The findings indicate that interpersonal relationships and belonging are in the opinion of children important for taking part in school life. Originality/value – The paper illustrates children's understanding of what taking part in school means to them. The PRP encouraged pupils to have control of the three-phase research process, and demonstrated the ability of children to work together in groups while having fun at the same time.

2021 ◽  
pp. 175797592110382
Author(s):  
Yetunde O. John-Akinola ◽  
Mary O. Balogun ◽  
Adeyimika T. Desmennu ◽  
Damilola O. Awobiyi ◽  
Saoirse Nic Gabhainn

School participation among pupils is considered a key value of the health promoting school approach. However, few studies have documented the relationship between the school participation of pupils and health and wellbeing outcomes in different geographical contexts, especially looking at developing and developed country contexts. This study investigated the perceptions of Nigerian and Irish pupils on participation in school and reported health and wellbeing. Data was collected using self-completed questionnaires among 333 and 231 primary school pupils in 4th, 5th and 6th classes across 17 schools in Nigeria and Ireland. Logistic regression analysis was used to analyse the data from both countries. There was no statistically significant difference in the mean scores for participation in school activities (NIG mean = 22.8, SD 3.5; IRE mean = 22.3, SD 3.4) and school events (NIG mean = 18.8, SD 3.7; IRE mean = 17.1, SD 3.6). However, participation in school decisions and rules (NIG mean = 17.3, SD 4.7; IRE mean = 15.8, SD 3.6) and health and wellbeing (NIG mean = 16.9, SD 1.7; IRE mean = 15.3, SD 2.4) scores were significantly higher among Nigerian pupils, while positive perception of school participation (NIG mean = 24.2, SD 4.1; IRE mean = 26.2, SD 3.4) was significantly higher among Irish pupils. The findings suggest that Irish and Nigerian pupils have positive perceptions of their schools irrespective of their location and levels of development. However, further research using qualitative approaches might be needed to better clarify dimensions of pupils’ perceptions of school life and school participation among Nigerian pupils in order to substantiate these claims.


2014 ◽  
Vol 114 (5) ◽  
pp. 378-397 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yetunde O. John-Akinola ◽  
Saoirse Nic Gabhainn

Purpose – Parental participation is important for strengthening and sustaining the concept of school health promotion but little is written on the processes involved. The purpose of this paper is to assess Irish parents’ and pupils’ views on how parents take part, or would like to take part, in school life. Design/methodology/approach – The sample was recruited from nine primary schools, three Health Promoting Schools and six matched schools. Pupils aged nine to 13 years in the 4th, 5th and 6th class groups participated in the study. Parents of all participating pupils were also invited to take part in the study. Data were collected by self-completion questionnaire, comprising three closed and one open question. Findings – A total of 218 parents and 231 pupils participated. There was general agreement between parents and pupils on parental participation in school. Overall 40.6 per cent of parents and 43.2 per cent of pupils reported that parents frequently take part in school activities. A majority of both parents (79.5 per cent) and pupils (83.6 per cent), agreed that parents were encouraged to talk about things that concern their child in school, while 73.5 per cent of parents and 65.6 per cent of pupils reported that they were made to feel a part of child's school. Qualitative data from parents and pupils suggested similar ways in which parents can best take part in school. Some respondents suggested how schools could engage with parents but most responses provided examples of how parents could act directly to take part in school life. These direct actions included doing, helping with, and watching school activities such as sports, tours, music and cake sales. Originality/value – The findings illustrate the similarity of views of parents and pupils concerning parents’ participation in school life and suggest that children may have the potential to represent the voice of their parents in school when considering how to improve parental participation in schools.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Josephine May

PurposeThe article sets out primarily to fill in some of the gaps in the biography of Lucy Arabella Stocks Garvin (1851–1938), first principal of Sydney Girls High School. As a reflexive exercise stimulated by this biographical research, the second aim is to explore the transformative work of digital sources on the researcher's research processes that in turn generate possibilities for expanded biographical studies in the history of education.Design/methodology/approachThis article encompasses two approaches: the first uses traditional historical methods in the digital sources to provide an expanded biography of Lucy Garvin. The second is a reflexive investigation of the effects of digitisation of sources on the historian's research processes.FindingsThe advent of digital technologies has opened up more evidence on the life of Lucy Garvin which enables a fuller account both within and beyond the school gate. Digital sources have helped to address important gaps in her life story that challenge current historiographical understandings about her: for example, regarding her initial travel to Australia; her previous career as a teacher in Australia and the circumstances of her appointment as principal; her private and family life; and her involvement in extra school activities. In the process of exploring Garvin's life, the researcher reflected on the work of digital sources and argues that such sources transform the research process by speeding up and de-situating the collection and selection of evidence, while at the same time expanding and slowing the scrutiny of evidence. The ever-expanding array of digital sources, despite its patchiness, can lead to finer grained expanded biographical studies while increasing the provisionality of historical accounts.Originality/valueThe article presents new biographical information about an important early female educational leader in Australia and discusses the impact of digital sources on archival and research processes in the history of women's education.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sabina Valente ◽  
Abílio Afonso Lourenço ◽  
Zsolt Németh

Conflicts cannot cease to exist, as they are intrinsic to human beings, forming an integral part of their moral and emotional growth. Likewise, they exist in all schools. The school is inserted in a space where the conflict manifests itself daily and assumes relevance, being the result of the multiple interpersonal relationships that occur in the school context. Thus, conflict is part of school life, which implies that teachers must have the skills to manage conflict constructively. Recognizing the diversity of school conflicts, this chapter aimed to present its causes, highlighting the main ones in the classroom, in the teacher-student relationship. It is important to conflict face and resolve it with skills to manage it properly and constructively, establishing cooperative relationships, and producing integrative solutions. Harmony and appreciation should coexist in a classroom environment and conflict should not interfere, negatively, in the teaching and learning process. This bibliography review underscore the need for during the teachers’ initial training the conflict management skills development.


Author(s):  
Arash Kiyoumarsi ◽  
Abolfazl Nazari ◽  
Mohammad Ataei ◽  
Hamid Khademhosseini Beheshti ◽  
Rahmat‐Allah Hooshmand

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present a 3D finite element model of the electromagnetic fields in an AC three‐phase electric arc furnace (EAF). The model includes the electrodes, arcs, and molten bath.Design/methodology/approachThe electromagnetic field in terms of time in AC arc is also modeled, utilizing a 3D finite element method (3D FEM). The arc is supposed to be an electro‐thermal unit with electrical power as input and thermal power as output. The average Joule power, calculated during the transient electromagnetic analysis of the AC arc furnace, can be used as a thermal source for the thermal analysis of the inner part of furnace. Then, by attention to different mechanisms of heat transfer in the furnace (convection and radiation from arc to bath, radiation from arc to the inner part of furnace and radiation from the bath to the sidewall and roof panel of the furnace), the temperature distribution in different parts of the furnace is calculated. The thermal model consists of the roof and sidewall panels, electrodes, bath, refractory, and arc. The thermal problem is solved in the steady state for the furnace without slag and with different depths of slag.FindingsCurrent density, voltage and magnetic field intensity in the arcs, molten bath and electrodes are predicted as a result of applying the three‐phase AC voltages to the EAF. The temperature distribution in different parts of the furnace is also evaluated as a result of the electromagnetic field analysis.Research limitations/implicationsThis paper considers an ideal condition for the AC arc. Non‐linearity of the arc during the melting, which leads to power quality disturbances, is not considered. In most prior researches on the electrical arc furnace, a non‐linear circuit model is usually used for calculation of power quality phenomena distributions. In this paper, the FEM is used instead of non‐linear circuits, and calculated voltage and current densities in the linear arc model. The FEM results directly depend on the physical properties considered for the arc.Originality/valueSteady‐state arc shapes, based on the Bowman model, are used to calculate and evaluate the geometry of the arc in a real and practical three‐phase AC arc furnace. A new approach to modeling AC arcs is developed, assuming that the instantaneous geometry of the AC arc at any time is constant and is similar to the geometry of a DC arc with the root mean square value of the current waveform of the AC arc. A time‐stepping 3D FEM is utilized to calculate the electromagnetic field in the AC arc as a function of time.


2014 ◽  
Vol 21 (5) ◽  
pp. 481-504 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mei-yung Leung ◽  
Chen Dongyu ◽  
Anita M.M. Liu

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the influence of personal values on students’ learning behaviours. Hong Kong construction students are often criticized, by both practitioners and educators, as rote learners. To improve students’ learning processes, extensive research on a variety of aspects of construction education has been conducted. However, limited attention has been paid to the influence of personal values on students’ learning behaviours. The impact of personal value factors on the learning approaches of Chinese construction students in Hong Kong is investigated. Design/methodology/approach – A questionnaire survey was conducted to ethically Chinese construction students in four universities in Hong Kong. A total of 820 questionnaires were distributed and 431 valid returns were collected. Findings – The survey identified six influential values (namely, personal integrity, conservatism, determination, discipline, interpersonal relationships, and achievement), and shows that students who emphasize the virtues of personal integrity, determination, and a positive attitude toward achievement are better able to handle their interpersonal relationships, which will eventually lead them to engage in deep learning. Originality/value – Work to develop appropriate value systems is thus recommended in freshmen courses, as is the use of cooperative learning approaches. Such value systems will have a long-term influence on the learning approaches of construction students.


2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-45 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abhigyan Sarkar ◽  
Juhi Gahlot Sarkar

Purpose Extant research shows that individual’s relationship with brand can be structurally similar to both interpersonal love relationship and religious relationship. A stream of consumer research states that individual can love a brand like a person loves another person. Another stream of consumer research postulates that individual can perceive brand equivalent to religion, and even substitute religion with brand. Research is scarce connecting these two different paradigms of brand relationship, given that interpersonal relationship is not necessarily as devotional as religious relationship. The purpose of this paper is to conceptualize the psychological process through which an individual can substitute his/her religion with brand. The basic theoretical premise of this substitution behaviour is the proposition that brand meanings can be perceived as equivalent to religious meanings. Design/methodology/approach This paper has conducted an integrative review of selected extant research related to individual-brand relationships, interpersonal relationships and religiosity. Findings This paper develops a consumer response hierarchy model showing the inter-related psychological processes through which an individual can substitute his/her religion with brand. The model forms the basis for the discussion of theoretical contributions and managerial implications. Originality/value The value of this conceptual paper lies in developing a process model for the first time in the area of consumer-brand relationship domain explaining the stage-wise psychological processes through which individual can move from mere cognitive brand satisfaction towards perceiving brand as substitute of religion.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Meagan Lacy ◽  
Alexandra Hamlett

PurposeIn most higher education institutions, information literacy (IL) instruction is usually considered the purview of librarians, not disciplinary faculty. However, a small but growing body of research indicates that students learn the research process best when these skills are taught in the context of a course or a discipline. For this reason, teaching faculty should share ownership of IL instruction — but how? In this case study, community college librarians explain how they successfully trained faculty to integrate IL into their English Composition courses and teach IL independently.Design/methodology/approachUsing a multimethods approach, the investigators draw on faculty interviews, student surveys, and content analysis of student essays to evaluate the impact of faculty-led IL instruction on student learning after one semester.FindingsFaculty reported that their instruction of IL was improved, and students work better as a result of their collaboration with the librarians. Compared to previous semesters, faculty perceived gains in terms of students’ ability to synthesize and cite evidence in their writing. Student survey results indicate perceived gains in their IL skills, but an assessment of their written work reveals a discrepancy between this perception and the actual application of these skills.Research limitations/implicationsBecause there is no control group, no conclusions can be drawn as to whether faculty-led IL instruction is as effective as librarian-led IL instruction or whether students’ academic performance improves due to faculty teaching IL. However, the purpose of this study is primarily descriptive. It addresses how other libraries may create a culture of shared ownership of IL instruction on their campuses.Practical implicationsThis study offers an alternative model to library instruction and suggests ways instruction librarians can prioritize their outreach and instructional efforts to maximize impact on student learning.Originality/valueWhile much has been written about how librarians can improve IL instruction, few studies mention the role of faculty. This case study starts the conversation.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Monowar Mahmood ◽  
Yuliya Frolova ◽  
Bhumika Gupta

PurposePersonality traits are assumed to influence cognitive processes as well as academic motivation and learning approaches of the students. Based on these assumptions, the present study investigates the association of HEXACO personality traits with academic motivation as well as influence of those traits on students' learning approaches in educational contexts.Design/methodology/approachSelf-reported measures of personality orientation, academic motivation and learning approaches were obtained from 404 respondents in a classroom environment. The SPSS 20 software was used to conduct the correlations and the hierarchical regression analyses. The Eviews 10 software was used to develop the structural equation model to find the inter-relations among the study variables.FindingsThe findings reveal the influence of personality traits on academic motivation and learning approaches of the students. Among different personality traits, consciousness appeared to have highly positive impact on deep learning and intrinsic motivation of the studies. Neuroticism appeared to have most negative impact related to surface learning and amotivation of the learning contents.Research limitations/implicationsThe findings validates the existence of HEXACO personality traits among the students in central Asian context. It future reiterated individual differences in learning strategies and learning motivation among the learners. The results may help academics and policy makers take appropriate measures to increase academic motivation and select appropriate learning approaches.Originality/valueThis is one of the pioneer studies to investigate the relationship between HEXACO personality traits, learning strategies and academic motivation. Validation of the HEXACO framework will help to understand students' personality in a more detailed and elaborative way and will contribute to the existing literature on personality and learning outcomes.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Pericles Ramón Mejía-Vásquez ◽  
Roberto Sánchez-Gómez ◽  
Sheila Serafim da Silva ◽  
Luis Vázquez-Suárez

PurposeThis research seeks to discover how the organisational form (franchising vs vertical integration) of 384 fashion stores belonging to a Spanish franchise chain influences unit-level performance measured through three key indicators commonly used in the retail literature: sales per square metre, sales per employee and service quality scores.Design/methodology/approachThe authors have analysed this research question using bivariate and multivariate analyses, with a panel dataset that includes quarterly establishment-level data covering the period from January 2018 to December 2019.FindingsThe aggregated data initially reveal weaker outcomes among franchised establishments. However, after controlling for other variables related to the fashion stores and their local markets, the authors have found that franchised establishments record higher sales both per square metre and per employee than vertically integrated stores. The findings also reveal that franchised establishments record lower service quality scores than their company-owned counterparts.Originality/valueNothing has been published on the differences between franchising and company ownership in terms of establishment-level performance in fashion retailing.


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