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This paper reports the findings of a mixed-methods study which investigates the socio-cultural impacts of UK gendered school sport uniform and the role uniform plays in shaping female school sport experiences. Drawing on an extensive analytical survey with over 400 women of all-ages and 8 interviews with women aged 18–24, it explores how school sport uniform directly impacts female sporting experiences and participation in physical activity, and how uniform policy could be changed to promote greater female sport participation. Gendered school sport uniform continues to operate as a socio-spatial mechanism that names, frames and positions young people in heteronormative school sport spaces. This paper assesses how gendered school sport uniform contributes to the disciplining of the 'ideal feminine body' in schoolgirls and the construction of behavioural gender binaries in sport. The data reveal gendered sport uniform influences the development of a 'fear of masculinisation' in sport and common athletic-feminine identity tensions in teenage girls. The research finds gendered school sport uniform plays a major role in the high drop-out rates of teenage girls in school sport and offers practical insight into how policy could be changed to promote inclusivity, comfort and greater female sport participation. This paper proposes redesigning traditional gendered school sport policy to focus on 'enabling' participation has huge potential to transform female embodied and psychological experiences of school sport and increase school sport participation and enjoyment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Across Eastern Germany, many castles and stately homes were used as shops, schools or community buildings during the GDR. Since the 1990s, many of them have been turned into museums. This paper discusses the challenges of dealing with the history of socialist reuse in East-German heritage buildings comparing the former Prussian castles of Schönhausen (Berlin) and Rheinsberg (Northern Brandenburg). The comparison is based on five in-depth semi-structured interviews providing insights into the considerations of curatorial decision makers. It shows that there is still a high sense of uncertainty in how to address the GDR past, in particular when the role of the building was not clearly political. Personal recollections of the recent past lead to uneasiness in addressing this part of history. At the same time, the paper shows how attitudes have changed over time. Today, the GDR past is increasingly seen as an opportunity to connect to a wider audience and foster a more participatory and democratic memory culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In contemporary discourse, sexuality is being presented as something fluid, with research persisting in framing sexuality as negotiable to some extent. This way of examining sexuality is problematic because as one discovers how identity changes, a certain terminology, such as 'trend' or 'phase' becomes prominent giving the illusion Lesbian Gay Bisexual Trans + (LGBT+) pupils with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) are easily influenced and too immature to form LGBT+ identities because of their SEND. Educators viewing sexuality and gender identity as a phase/trend can result in providing limited support due to the misconception that information about LGBT+ concepts is unimportant for pupils with SEND or that one can simply stop being LGBT+. This paper discusses Special Educational Needs (SEN) teachers' views involving their pupils' ways of exploring their LGBT+ identities and examines how this links to the misconception of their sexuality and gender as a phase/a trend due to their SEND. The paper is framed by intersectionality which allows for a detailed analysis of how identities interact when used as an analytic tool. The paper calls for more nuanced thinking of sexuality and gender in the lives of LGBT+ pupils with SEND, which will help to decrease inequality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As homophobia, transphobia and biphobia continue to permeate local and global contexts, the role of allies has been recognized as beneficial in supporting equity for LGBTQI+ communities. The concept of LGBTQA+ allyship has also been controversial, with some stakeholders disagreeing about who is an ally and what this role entails. In the academic literature, there is also a scarcity of knowledge examining the interrelation between LGBTQA+ allyship and activism. This paper focuses on deepening historical and cultural understandings regarding the nexus between LGBTQA+ allyship and activism. Underpinned by queer, trans, feminist and intersectional lenses, the paper delineates the LGBTQA+ ally movement and the importance of moving beyond reductionist paradigms to adopt a systemic approach to inclusion, especially in school communities. The paper unpacks diverse definitions of allyship, from those associated with mobilizing the power and privilege of straight, cisgender individuals, to the concept of allyship which includes resilient leadership within LGBTQA+ communities, as well as those, which negotiate and transform fixed and reductive boundaries of gender and sexuality. Recommendations are made for developing LGBTQA+ ally intersectional programmes, characterized by collaborative, expansive and affirmative work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasingly, there are expectations internationally that schools will use research to inform their improvement initiatives. Within this context, this paper brings together findings from two large-scale Australian studies – the Monash Q Project and the University of Newcastle's Quality Teaching Rounds Project – to explore educators' patterns of engagement with research. The combination of these studies provides data from a larger and more diverse sample (n = 774) than other recent Australian studies, and integrates insights from direct and indirect approaches to investigating educators' research engagement. The analysis highlights several common themes associated with educators' research use including: the perceived credibility of different sources; the relevance and usability of research; and affordances of access to research and time to use it well in practice. Newer and more nuanced insights include: the interrelationships between collaborative and directed research use; the need for research to be convenient in terms of access and usability; the role of trusted colleagues in helping to bridge gaps between research and practice; and educators' distrust of research itself. The paper argues that these insights provide important cues as to how systems and school leaders can help educators to increase and improve their use of research in practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Addressing sexting in sexual health education classrooms is one way of supporting young people to become good sexual citizens and to emphasise respect and consent in their sexual practices and in their lives. While a fair amount of research has worked with youth to understand their motivations for sexting, less research has been conducted with in-service teachers to understand their perspectives, pedagogical approaches, and beliefs regarding young people and sexting. Set in this context, this paper discusses findings from interviews with Canadian teachers who were teaching a new Ontario Health and Physical Education curriculum that included discussions of sexting. Our findings suggest that many teachers are still engaging discourses of risk, shame and blame when they talk to their students about sexting. Likewise, longstanding gender norms and stereotypical sexual scripts are evident in the ways in which many teachers both understand and teach sexting. Some teachers, however, are engaging in more promising pedagogical practices that frame sexting as having a range of uses, outcomes, and purposes, painting a more holistic picture of young people's sexting landscapes. Findings from this paper may be useful for educators and policymakers creating sexting curriculum for young people in educational settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The focus of this paper lies in our special interest in women leaders and those aspiring to leadership positions in schools and other educational contexts within Australia. Leadership is a gendered concept, and due to a myriad of factors including conscious and unconscious bias, and the challenges of balancing career with other life commitment, the reality is that women's career journeys are different from men's. Women's unique career trajectories have implications for achieving their leadership potential. In addition to reviewing some of the extant literature in the area of women in educational leadership, we share our experiences and reflections based on our research and the leadership development programmes we have run for women mainly in Australia. These programmes have reinforced to us their value, place, and contribution to enhancing women's capacities for leadership. In this paper, we address the following four key questions as they pertain to women leaders within the Australian context: (1) Why a focus on gender and leadership? (2) What are some of the barriers impeding women leaders? (3) Why is it important to have multiple faces of leadership? (4) Why is women's leadership development everyone's responsibility? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The AV1 robotic device has a growing evidence base, both internationally and in the UK, for supporting pupils with physical/emotional health needs. The device allows pupils to access their school lessons remotely through telepresence technology. Previous papers have highlighted the growing relevance to the education field, although, to date, there is no published UK academic research. In consideration of this, the purpose of the present paper was to explore the views of school staff who have trialled the AV1 device in the UK. Semi-structured interviews were held with 10 staff members from different school settings before data were analysed thematically. Key themes related to potential for impact, opportunities/challenges, and wider socio-economic considerations. Implications are considered in relation to (1) future research and professional practice, and (2) the introduction of a proposed implementation framework to support practitioners when trialling the AV1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper problematizes the experience of temporality in school education and explores its potentialities, examining the implications for educational justice in and for qualitative research. In a first stage, we develop a pars destruens of how the experience of temporality takes place as a transversal dimension of school activities. Using phenomenological perspective as theoretical and critical lens, we show that the objective of this approach is to organize time and experience in a standardized, contradictory, and tense manner; at the same time, we describe a pars construens of the experience of temporality, endowed with a horizon of possibilities: the school as free time that contributes to questioning certain aspects in relation to temporality as a project of progress in education, without failures, without different rhythms. These approaches propose a link between experience of temporality and educational justice that we discuss in the conclusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How do we teach for human dignity in a context where life is, generally speaking, not treated as precious? How do we carve spaces for humanity amidst inhumane contexts? In this paper, five experienced teachers share how they work from the cracks to expand spaces for human dignity in their schools. They write and act as teacher-philosophers, dually considering it means to teach for human dignity and practically speaking how it can be done. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractAlthough environmental education (EE) scholars celebrate the diversity of organizations that engage in this work, the challenge remains how to bring these organizations together. Over the last decade, scholars have called for building bridges, but we still know very little about organizational networking and integration processes in EE. In this paper, I analyzed a case study of the first local education office (LEO) to manage an EE network in California. Drawing on institutional theory, I found that the LEO cultivated a local EE organizational field through three complementary strategies of relational work: enabling connections, aligning the field, and holding space. These three strategic tools enabled EE organizations to connect, develop a shared meaning system, and grow their capacity to serve schools. Based on my findings, I propose a model for managing local EE networks, as well as theoretical constructs for understanding organizational processes within the evolving EE landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

School engagement is a luxury not often afforded to children involved in the child welfare system. Current definitions of school engagement largely center around three micro-level foci: behavioral, emotional, and cognitive. These definitions rely heavily on the student and their participation in school in prescribed ways that can exclude system-involved youth, leaving little room to consider how life experiences and developmental trajectories interface with how students show up in educational spaces. This perspective of school engagement also lacks socio-ecological considerations that may impact children in the child welfare system, such as frequent school moves, trauma reactions, systemic racism, and insufficient access to structural resources. Each of these influences may affect how a child engages with school and how a school engages with children and families. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the conceptual misalignments of the current approaches to measuring school engagement for youth involved in the child-welfare system and its subsequent implications for practice and research. We present recommendations that may lead to more inclusive and equitable measures of this important "determinant of life success." [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to explore how social work students can support lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning (LGBTQ+) young people in schools. Drawing on the reflective practice portfolio documents of four students who worked with LGBTQ+ young people in a school as part of a social workers in school (SWIS) student placement project, the article uses thematic analysis to identify how the students were able to support young people identifying as LGBTQ+. The article subscribes to a poststructuralist theoretical framework which sees gender and sexual identities as multiple, fragmented and constructed in relation to others and within the systems of knowledge and power that exist in schools. The article demonstrates the benefit to schools of having social work students on practice placement. The students' own reflections critically contemplate the way in which they were able to spend more prolonged periods of time with young people than the teachers could, both with individuals and LGBTQ+ groups. The students' reflective portfolios show the value of the school placements to their own development of knowledge and skills [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teachers in Lady Agatha's Boarding School (Lady Agatha's) find teaching Sex and Relationships Education (RSE) uncomfortable. This paper investigates one aspect of the discomfort that they feel, namely the impact RSE has on their professional status as teachers. I use focus group data to reflect on the professional and personal location of teachers at Lady Agatha's and to explore their understanding of RSE through the recurring themes of professionalism and professional reputation as symbolic capital; deprofessionalisation and risk as symbolic violence; and the connects and disconnects between the doxa and illusio of the school. Findings suggest that by interrogating the sites of symbolic violence which generate RSE discomfort, we can start to unpick the fabric which creates discomfort about RSE, allowing both for a deeper understanding of RSE discomfort in teachers and an opportunity to address this discomfort as a barrier to RSE delivery at Lady Agatha's. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A large literature documents that there are significant academic and non-academic differences between the youngest and oldest students in a school cohort. This paper investigates if being the youngest in a cohort has any impact on an individual's propensity to commit crime by utilizing a data set that contains over 4 million arrest records spanning a 20-year period in California. While I find no persistent effect on the probability of arrest, the youngest students in a cohort have a higher risk of arrest for certain offenses at age 14, corresponding to the age when they would transition to high school. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents a framework for school guidance in the twenty-first century that focuses the guidance approach, on promoting lifelong learning and takes into account the impact of VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity). It outlines the goals, objectives, and key players involved in guidance approach and provides a structured approach based on six levels: actors, devices, practices, main issues, objectives, and general aim. Four types of practices are defined to address four main societal objectives, which are linked to current challenges facing society. The framework aims to provide a tool for schools to implement and structure an educational approach to guidance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports on the findings of a study that involved collaborative action research with primary schools (5–11-year-olds) in one city in the South of England. The study focused on exploring how inclusion in schools can be promoted through an engagement with student voice. Data analysed involved detailed lesson observations, fieldnotes from meetings between teachers and children, interviews with teachers and children and notes from network meetings. The findings of the study suggest that inclusion can be promoted in schools when (1) a dynamic process of making students heard is employed by: using participatory student voice activities; valuing what students say through a process of dialogue; and moving into actions; and (2) when adult mindsets are open to such ideas and make these mindsets explicit through specific behaviours. The paper concludes by arguing that primary school children are not only able to be engaged in such processes, but more importantly, can throw a different light to collaborative efforts to become more inclusive in schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Character education has enjoyed renewed interest both in the United Kingdom and in other parts of the world. However, to date, few studies have examined how character education is enacted 'in situ'. Drawing on data from a study in three English secondary schools, this paper traces how political and scientific discourses on character are mobilised in educational practice. Employing a discourse analytic reading of teachers' and school managers' interview accounts, the paper examines how different semantics of character were drawn upon, negotiated, and assembled with a focus on the construction of the subject. It was found that, depending on the school context, the participants foregrounded an ethical-culturalist or psycho-economic semantics or blended both. While the construction of a strong and self-steering subject was prominent, normative ideas of what it means to be a good person were also highlighted and suggest that local enactments of character education go beyond mere instrumentalist aims of shaping a productive workforce. The paper concludes with some reflections on the opportunities and dangers of an intensified focus on the reflexive capacities of the individual. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Few notions seem to capture the imagination of education policymakers today as completely as digitalization and leadership. Through these two, schools are believed to become transformed, and in turn, these transformed schools will transform people and society. This paper critically analyzes a Swedish official digital policy instrument that materializes digitalized school leadership practice. The policy instrument is made available as a 'helpful tool' by a Swedish official education agency. The paper scrutinizes the policy knowledge process set to work within the instrument by the agency. Particularly, how the instrument may influence people to come to know and change schools, and how responsibility and risk of digitalization in schools seems to first be transferred to, and then between, people in schools. The paper is concluded by a discussion of how (a) three knowledge phases interact in the knowledge process of the instrument, (b) the technical – rather than social – solution that digitalized school leadership practice is found to be, and (c) implications for digitalization in schools as a social, cultural and historical phenomenon of interest to research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Covid-induced lockdowns have increased the importance of technology in education. Though access to technology as well as availability of the internet remain a major concern for a lot of children in the global south, children with intellectual disabilities are disadvantaged even more as most of the e-content is developed keeping in mind the average learner. Unstructured interviews were conducted with children with intellectual disabilities studying in government schools in Haryana as well as their teachers and parents. Thematic analysis of the interviews was conducted to understand the use-patterns of mobile phones by children with intellectual disabilities. Findings suggest that these children are learning to use mobile phones on their own or with some support and are able to navigate the complexities of these smartphones quite well. They use these devices mostly for their entertainment. This paper then reflects on the need and strategies to develop these technologies in ways that they can be used as effective tools for teaching children with intellectual disabilities, especially in the inclusive education system in developing countries. The paper reflects on the need to develop technology and tools using flexible and exploratory designs to enhance the learning processes for children with intellectual disabilities from the lower income strata. This study highlights the importance of being able to use mobile phones by children with intellectual disabilities belonging to low income families. Following this, the article argues for designing of mobile phones suitable for use by children with intellectual disabilities using playfulness and explorations, and Building e-content keeping the elements of playfulness and exploration which can enhance the learnings of this group of students which is often ignored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues that more should be done to draw on the views of children and young people when using collaborative action research to promote inclusion in schools. Drawing on the findings of a collaborative action research study which explored how primary school students (  4-12-year-olds) could take on the role of researchers, through Inclusive Inquiry, an approach that focuses on the development of inclusive practices and thinking in schools, the paper throws light on the potential of this approach. Building on earlier research carried out with secondary schools, the findings reported here are based on work carried out in 30 primary schools in five countries. The analysis of data generated through these experiences suggests that collaborative action research approaches that involve children as researchers in schools can increase students’ confidence, make them more engaged in lessons, and facilitate stronger relationships with their teachers. It is argued that these features can also lead to the development of student agency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Child neglect is a problem that presents many challenges to learning and teaching in schools. Children are unable to learn if their basic needs are not met. Neglect is the second most common reason for a child to be on a child protection plan in Wales. Given the universal nature of their provision within the community, and the prevalence of neglect, schools are well-placed to notice and intervene early and provide support to children that promotes their health and wellbeing. In fact, staff in schools have the opportunity to observe children's behaviours, and their interactions with other pupils and family members up to five days a week over an extended period of time. However, little is known about the specific ways in which staff in schools respond to neglect and what factors help them to provide effective school-based support to families. This paper presents findings from thirty interviews with staff in six mainstream primary and secondary schools in Wales. Findings identify three factors that support neglect-practice within the school-setting (i) a whole-school proactive approach to child neglect; (ii) a positive learning and development environment for staff members; and (iii) relationships between staff and the child(ren)'s family. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines school management and policies in Germany and Australia during the Covid-19 pandemic. The study, which is comparative and qualitative, explores the interrelationship between different levels of governance and the responses of teacher unions. The inquiry is informed by the perspectives of historical institutionalism and path dependency, and the document analysis is conducted by utilising the justification categories of value, collective, and formal and procedural driven arguments. We argue the contestation which occurred between different levels of school governance and the teacher unions amidst the pandemic created the potential for changes in policy settings and influence over the administration of schooling. However, there is no indication of fundamental shifts in the organisation, policy direction or control over schooling in Germany or Australia. Instead, there is a conformity to established institutional arrangements and path dependencies, which secure and protect the vested interests of the different policy actors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Schools are critical spaces for young men from refugee backgrounds. They play an integral role in literacy development, educational attainment, and providing a sense of belonging. Inclusive education practices for this group are largely absent in Australian schools. Research shows focusing on these young men from a non-deficit position assists with inclusivity. There is a lack of research exploring the agentic practices of young men from refugee backgrounds within schools. This paper explores the symbolic value of swagger for a group of young men from refugee backgrounds at a high school in Australia. A Bourdieusian theoretical framework guided critical awareness of power in schools. This research shows how a group of young men found a meaningful way to acquire social and cultural capital. Despite the school's constraints, this group developed a group identity reflected in their clothing and embodied dispositions referred to here as swagger. Our findings demonstrate the complex power relations at work, including the opportunity for the young men to resist and be included. In the spirit of Bourdieu's concern for reflexivity our findings point to the need for schools, teachers, and education policy makers to consider the workings of power in schools in more considered ways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The introduction of computers in Indian schools runs parallel with the development of a digital divide in the country. In addition to the formal ways in which government policies shape access to computers in schools, deeper informal cultures of the state and schools shape opinion about these technologies. In this paper, we examine three levels of these informal cultures: political cultures and their perceptions of technology; bureaucratic cultures, which are distanced from schooling realities; and classroom teaching-learning practices, where digital inequalities add to pre-existing educational inequalities. For examining the interplay of the informal cultures, we scale down from the national level to examine the case of West Bengal, a state in eastern India. The state has been one of the strongholds of Left politics in India. Drawing upon its experiences, we explore the linkage between political ideology and the social embedding of resistance to computers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Experiencing bereavement as a child or young person (CYP) can have long-lasting effects. The societal and environmental burdens of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic exacerbated the experience of loss and grief for many CYP, who were unable to access their usual the support networks. However, it is still unclear what is currently known and not known about the experiences of CYP bereaved during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. This review used the framework of Arksey and O'Malley and included five stages: (1) identifying the research question; (2) identifying relevant studies; (3) study selection; (4) charting the data; (5) collating, summarizing, and reporting the results. The methodological quality of the included studies was also assessed using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme tool. The PRISMA framework was used for reporting the results. The electronic databases Medline, PsychINFO, CINAHL, and PubMed were searched for relevant articles. A total of three papers meeting the inclusion criteria were included in this review and two main themes identified: (1) support (which included sub-themes; social isolation and the impact on support; support from family and friends; wider support networks); (2) Emotional impact of bereavement during a pandemic. Access to support networks is crucial for CYP to understand and process their emotions relating to their bereavement experience. The pandemic meant that many usual support networks such as family and friends were inaccessible to CYP, who struggled to deal with their experience of grief during this time. Schools are a valuable support mechanism and can help CYP understand their emotions through open discussions about their bereavement. The limited empirical evidence currently available in this area of research demonstrates an important need to further understanding of the long-term impacts of dealing with pandemic-related loss in childhood [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Different countries have different histories, traditions, cultures, and practices of student voice and are currently at different stages of their student voice journeys. This paper investigates how student voice is coming to be used in relation to classroom practice in different school types and socio-economic settings in the Irish education system. Ireland is a country without a strong tradition or history of student voice and particularly in relation to teaching and learning matters and it is envisaged that this paper will be of strong interest to those in countries where student voice is not yet prominent, but there are also wider implications. This research shows that students are now being consulted in relation to classroom practice in a variety of ways but that even within single school systems consultations are very much connected to school context with voice being used to different extents in different schools in different settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How might those of us located within post-secondary institutions support students who have experience of the mental health system in a meaningful way? Drawing on scholarship in social movement studies and a case study in Ontario, Canada, I distinguish between the prevailing mental health and wellness offerings of educational institutions and distinct forms of grassroots organising led by and for mad-identified students. This paper reflects on my past engagement with mad student intra-university organising in Ontario. Sifting through archival materials, personal writing and correspondence, I contemplate how my involvement as a past organiser in a radical student-run peer support and advocacy group has shaped and informed my scholarship within the field of Mad Studies. Connections are made between the activist knowledge-practices fostered within mad student groups and the growth of Mad Studies in Canada. Building from social movement studies, I argue for supporting and engaging in activism alongside politicised students who are organising on campuses to confront inequitable social relations, on their own terms. Doing so requires critically unpacking white dominant hegemonic ways of thinking about what constitutes 'mental health and wellness' from a student perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The broad, contested notion of vulnerability is one of the areas of education in which concerns with the mental health and wellbeing of young people come together. This paper examines the theoretical and socio-political development of the 'vulnerability Zeitgeist' in recent years and the extent to which it has been applied to both young people and teachers in schools. We outline how the instrumental and negative views of vulnerability, which dominate policy discourse, run counter to the more expansive and ambivalent understandings familiar from sociological and psychoanalytic theory and use two cases drawn from studies undertaken in England and Germany to highlight their deleterious effects. Our analysis suggests that a more relational and collaborative approach, which explores vulnerability from the perspectives of both teachers and students, is necessary to improve support for the most vulnerable young people. We suggest that there are benefits to focusing on the vulnerability of young people and teachers, which research has until now examined separately, together conceptually and in practice to help to build trust and change attitudes to mental health and wellbeing in schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to share new knowledge about tensions in establishing a new school in a marketised educational landscape, with a special focus on teachers' experiences of enacting a highly profiled vision. The paper is based on a single case study using observations, surveys, interviews and document studies. To cover the complex enactment process, we have created a multilayered enactment triangle to analyse the enactment process of the school and strategies the teachers use to realise the vision. To be able to hold on to the vision when the first generation of students arrive, the teachers in this study connect the vision to a more abstract 'future school'. Meanwhile, in the daily practice in the 'present school', they perceive difficulties in working in line with the vision. The relations between teachers and vision and the relations between teachers and students, respectively, become parallel lines. It seems then, that for visionary work to function from the start in a newly established school, all the relations in the enactment triangle, i.e. between the vision and the teachers, the vision and the students, and the teachers and the students, need to be there. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

School self-evaluation is a low-stakes policy recently mandated in Ireland and while schools are becoming more consistent in engaging in this internal mode of evaluation, their engagement has not been uniform. This paper provides new ways of thinking about, understanding, and explaining how school self-evaluation plays out in Irish schools. Subscribing to the view that policies are not simply implemented but enacted through the creative processes of interpretation and translation, this paper shows how school self-evaluation is performed in Irish schools in various ways by various people. We identify numerous policy actors in our qualitative data: narrators, entrepreneurs, outsiders, transactors, enthusiasts, translators, critics, and receivers. This assortment of actors helps to bring school self-evaluation to life but as it comprises heterogeneous entities with varying characteristics, levels of experience, and motivations it is simply not possible for this policy to be implemented in schools as policymakers envisage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global commitments to the education of children with disabilities, have led to progressive policy developments in India, and a surge in the enrolment of children who were traditionally excluded from the formal education system. This paper examines the perceptions and practices of mainstream teachers in rural government schools, within the context of increased learner diversity, focusing on how teachers understand, and respond to, the needs of children with disabilities. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with teachers and classroom observations, in six primary schools, in three districts of Haryana. Our findings suggest that deficit-oriented views dominated teacher thinking, but they showed a readiness to engage with disability issues, recognising the value of education for all. However, they struggled in their classroom practices in relation to meeting diverse learner needs and exclusionary practices were further amplified for children with disabilities. Teachers were unwilling to take responsibility for the learning of children with disabilities, expressing significant concerns about their own preparedness, while highlighting the lack of effective and appropriate support structures. The paper concludes by drawing attention to the pressing need for effective teacher professional development opportunities and other support structures, to provide quality education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores English schools' engagement with 'internationalisation' in the context of funding cuts and a highly pressured audit culture. The broader literature suggests two reasons why schools might partake in 'internationalisation'. The first concerns the 'strategic cosmopolitan' – schools are complicit in facilitating cosmopolitanism amongst the pupil body so that young people may attain 'positional advantage' in a crowded international or global labour market. The second invokes a deeper sense of ethics and a more equal 'exchange' of ideas. We use 'art' as a lens to explore this latter conception: proposing that artistic pursuits enable a more dialogic notion of internationalisation to develop. Focussing on international exchanges between schools in the Global North and Global South that foreground specifically artistic projects (involving drama, literature, fashion, textiles, art, creative writing, film making, dance and music), we illustrate a potentially more ethical, rich and meaningful form of 'internationalisation', which does not obviously conform to the notion of inherent and demonstrable (capitalised) value. We propose that educational value might be understood differently: in non-strategic, intrinsic and more essential ways, and that, furthermore, internationalisation can be fun. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Post-apartheid, South Africa has come a long way in making the inclusion of gender and sexuality equality explicit in its Constitution. To make schools more inclusive for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ+) identifying learners, the Department of Basic Education has developed what it claims are South Africa's first guidelines regarding sexual orientation, gender identity and sex characteristics (SOGIESC). Despite the emphasis on equality in South Africa's post-apartheid policies, which set out to protect the rights of LGBTIQ+ individuals, there has been a backlash from conservative advocacy groups, many with links to the US Christian Right. This paper argues that contrary to the disinformation being propagated by anti-LGBTIQ + groups, it is queer and transgender individuals who experience extreme levels of violence and marginalisation in schools. The empirical research makes explicit the bullying and exclusion that transgender and gender-diverse youth experience in school; however, this evidence is neglected in conservative claims that SOGIESC (SOGIESC) guidelines and Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) endanger other learners. Notably, and in stark contrast to those advocating for measures to make schools safer for LGBTIQ + learners, far-right advocacy groups have no empirical basis to support their claims. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Paulo Freire's concept of 'inédito viável' or untested feasibility, refers to the exploration of possibilities to transcend limiting situations and transform realities. In this paper, we examine how this idea is related to the counter-hegemonic pedagogical proposal of popular education by the Florestan Fernandes National School (ENFF), an organisation founded by the Landless Workers' Movement (MST) in Brazil. We argue that the ENFF is not just a set of techniques and methodologies but a formative process that runs through the concrete reality of the subjects involved in the struggle for societal change. We conclude by proposing that the 'inédito viável' that constitutes the ENFF gains meaning from a broad, collective, and dynamic vision of concrete utopia involving a clear and mobilising orientation towards the future, a strong sense of agency, reflection, experimentation, and praxis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Details findings from a project on the potential for arts activities and art therapy to support the mental health and wellbeing of children living in Kashmir. The intervention engaged 30 school children over the course of one year who produced various forms of artwork and performances. In this paper, we report on project impacts, drawing on some of our qualitative measures including observations and interviews. Our research details impacts and improvements in areas of emotional expression, belonging, and agency. We also found an important role for schools to create safe, secure, and caring spaces to allow students to express themselves and work through traumatic feelings in a non-judgemental way. School-based arts interventions can play an important role in the mental health and wellbeing of children. Critical here, however, are dedicated space, time, and resources to provide a supportive environment and to sustain activity in long-term. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper highlights an emergent form of gender inequality within schools, set against the backdrop of a perceived mental health “crisis” amongst young people in popular and media narratives. We present interview data collected in a qualitative study with students and staff in secondary schools in England. Through a Foucauldian analytic lens, we interrogate the discourses participants mobilised when discussing girls’ and boys’ experiences of mental ill/health. We demonstrate how girls are paradoxically celebrated for their emotional openness and maturity, yet simultaneously positioned as unfairly advantaged and likely to receive “more” mental health support. In contrast, boys are understood as likely to mask their emotional distress through silence or disruptive behaviours, with fears that their needs might be missed and that boys are an “at risk” group. We also illustrate how girls’ manifestation of emotional distress (e.g. crying, self-harm) becomes feminised and diminished. We ultimately call for increased awareness of gendered discourses surrounding mental health in education and resultant inequalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Covid-19 pandemic positioned digital education in a new light. The need for educational institutions to develop strategies, standards and establish quality assurance across digital education became even more evident. This paper describes the four-step process of designing an interactive European Union (EU) Digital Education Quality Standard Framework and Companion Evaluation Toolkit to guide the design, delivery and evaluation of effective digital education. (1) A review of literature of existing digital education frameworks and models is presented. (2) Variables and sub-variables inherent in designing, delivering and evaluating effective digital education are identified. (3) Next the variables and sub-variables in the framework are defined. (4) The process of designing the interactive framework diagram is described with the companion evaluation toolkit outlined. The proposed framework is flexible and applicable to entities and audiences regardless of where they are in the online learning adoption process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For several decades now, there have been calls for the creation of inclusive learning environments within regular classroom settings. Teachers and other practitioners involved in this task need various types of guidance to assist them. While general principles deduced from empirically-based positivist studies are valuable, micro-sociology based constructions of teacher 'types' can also be helpful, particularly in helping stakeholders to clarify their views on their work and suggesting possible approaches worthy of being put to the test of practice. Unfortunately, various existing typologies are couched in the language of the social scientist rather than that of practitioners, thus not making them very user friendly. This paper is offered as an attempt at addressing this deficit. Fourteen teachers drawn from 10 different Western Australian schools participated in the study. The analysis led to the generation of five 'types' of teachers in terms of their perspectives on how they have responded to the demand for inclusive learning environments: 'abstainers', 'doggie paddlers', 'splashers', 'pre-squad members' and 'squad members'. The study would be of interest in its implications for educators involved in creating school cultures and professional development related to inclusion, and also, as an ideographic work of theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

School principals must play a vital role in facilitating homeplace and Black joy by promoting, modeling, and holding educators responsible for their roles in contributing to homeplace. We argue that principals can enact homeplace by embodying the tenets of culturally responsive school leadership (CSRL). The purpose of this paper is to make meaning of the concept of homeplace, conceptualized by bell hooks, through storytelling and explanation of an acrostic. Homeplace creates Holistic Opportunities for Meaning, Expectations on high, Purpose, Love, Achievement, and Community Engagement. We explain each construct by including: (1) a story that connects to one of our personal experiences; (2) a general overview of how we make sense of the construct; (3) how we connect the construct to extant research about homeplace, joy, and CRSL; and (4) possibilities for application of the construct by school principals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antisemitism is one of the oldest forms of prejudices. It is hatred against Jewish people based on stereotypes that leads to persecution and oppression. As such, it threatens social justice and the security of people and community. Social work with its focus on social justice and promoting diversity has an obligation to confront antisemitism which, unfortunately, continues to increase. However, it is seldom included in social work education or in DEI programs. This paper reports on the findings of a national survey of social workers that details their experiences with antisemitism in school, in practice, and in the community. The findings show that Jewish respondents were more aware of antisemitic incidents in the community and in schools than the non-Jewish respondents. However, both groups very strongly believed that antisemitism was a significant problem and that it should be a concern for social work. Recommendations based on these findings are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we investigate the working lives of three Australian teachers in the hardest-to-staff schools as they tell their stories of how teacher attrition has impacted them and others. Drawing on Zavelevsky & Shapira-Lishchinsky's ecological framework (2020) we analyse their work-stories to better understand issues impacting the teaching workforce in a time of extreme teaching shortages. Part of a larger study on teachers who remain in hard-to-staff schools, here we focus not only on the challenges facing the education workforce but also on the insights that may lead to better strategies to retain teachers in the schools that need them most. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Disasters can result in poor psychosocial outcomes for adolescents. One pathway to mitigate these risks and foster resilience is via schools, where teachers can offer students support. However, existing research lacks consideration of the role schools and teachers play from the perspective of students, particularly those from marginalized populations. Therefore, this study examines adolescents' representations of the role of schools and teachers after a major disaster in Indonesia using a free association interview technique. Thematic analysis of adolescents' interviews (N = 46) yielded two salient themes: 'the school as a place of recovery' and 'the school as a place of risk'. While the school and teachers were conceptualized positively in that they promoted students' recovery, students also identified aspects of the post-disaster school environment that produced uncertainty, loss and discomfort thereby heightening their sense of risk. The paper concludes with recommendations for resilience-building, such as ensuring teachers receive relevant training. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The curriculum development process is complex and developing a worthwhile process to support curriculum inception is a valuable endeavour. This paper explores the experiences of the curriculum development process through the lens of an expert advisory committee charged with developing a post-primary curriculum for publicly managed schools in line with their ethos and the national lower post-primary curriculum. The research employed semi-structured interviews with a group of curriculum developers (n = 10) involved in this curriculum development process. Following thematic analysis, four primary themes were identified: Purpose of the Advisory Committee, Focus of the Curriculum Expression, Balance of Voice, and the Role of the Curriculum Lead. These themes offer insights into the complexities of the curriculum development process including the importance of focusing, not just on the teacher's voice, but also on the conditions that support teachers to engage fully with such processes. The findings also highlight the importance of embracing strategic leadership and democratic practices throughout this process and how the perceived focus of curriculum needs to be explicitly considered so as to unearth hidden assumptions of the curriculum developers. This study contributes to the broader understanding of how curriculum development can be enhanced to meet the needs of diverse stakeholders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes how, in the wake of a spate of fatal knife crime in one London borough, the council, Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) got together to think about how to improve outcomes for their young people. Starting with schools and pupil referral units, the CAMHS and educational psychology service were commissioned to work with whole staff groups, from senior leadership to lunchtime monitors and playground staff, to embed trauma informed policy and practice. The aim was to spread understanding about complex developmental trauma; what it is, how it affects the behaviour and experience of children and families, and how to work with it. Given how widespread trauma is, the objective was also to think about what might need to change in the environment and ethos of the borough's schools as a result. Following the project's initial success, its scope and remit were expanded to support services on a policy level, while also working with their staff to think about the impact of trauma, and how best to support children and families who have been affected by it. As well as teaching about trauma, the project is primarily an experiential one. This paper explores the impact on staff who were involved in the project; what came out of it for them personally in terms of changes to their thinking and outlook, and what they saw as the changes for the children and families they worked with. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused major disruption to education and highlighted the importance of effective leadership during times of crisis. This paper considers the impact of the pandemic on school leaders in Australia, Fiji, and New Zealand. A secondary analysis of data from five interpretivist, qualitative studies was conducted. The aim of the study was to investigate the similarities and differences between the leaders' experiences across school settings, states/provinces, and countries. Our findings place renewed importance on understanding the role of schools within the community and the vital role school leaders play in helping schools respond to volatile and dynamic circumstances. The findings show how leaders' roles and responsibilities adapted to respond quickly and effectively to the urgency of the crisis, regardless of the context. Furthermore, common practices such as attending to wellbeing and providing clear and timely communication were revealed. The analysis also revealed some interesting nuances in the leaders' responses because of the duration of the crisis, the particular needs of the community, and government requirements. Papers like this provide insights into what leaders do and how schools and systems might prepare and support leaders to lead during times of crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers how facial recognition technology is coming to find a place in contemporary schooling. Drawing on the 'script analysis' approach from the field of Science and Technology Studies, the paper examines the development of a facial recognition-based classroom recognition system by an Australian start-up company – 'AutoRoll'. Drawing on a range of primary and secondary data, the paper details the ongoing negotiations and mechanisms of adjustment between start-up founders, developers, marketers, policy and education actors as this socio-technical object progresses through successive phases of scripting, deinscripting and rescripting. These accounts illustrate how an initially contested technology enters a local educational system and begins to be sold to schools. In particular, the paper considers the ways in which a spirit of tech industry 'solutionism' is used to manufacture trust and legitimacy in the face of the disjointed governance and limited oversight of ed-tech by government and other public agencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the significance of schools' data infrastructures as a site of institutional power and (re)configuration. Using 'infrastructure studies' as a theoretical framework and drawing on in-depth studies of three contrasting Australian secondary schools, the paper takes a holistic look at schools' data infrastructures. In contrast to the notion of the 'platformatised' school, the paper details the ad hoc and compromised ways that these school data infrastructures have developed – highlighting a number of underlying sociotechnical conditions that lead to an ongoing process of data infrastructuring. These include issues of limited technical interoperability and differences between educational requirements and commercially-led designs. Also apparent is the disjuncture between the imagined benefits of institutional data use and the ongoing maintenance and repair required to make the infrastructures function. Taking an institutional perspective, the paper explores why digital technologies continue to complicate (rather than simplify) school processes and practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Early identification of children and youth who engage in problematic sexual behavior is important for all parties involved, such as children who exhibit and are impacted by the behavior. There are several reliable and valid identification tools that can be used to recognize problematic sexual behavior in children and youth (PSB-CY) in clinical practice; however, professionals who work with children in non-clinical settings (i.e., child development centers, youth programs, and schools) often have limited resources and tools when they encounter PSB-CY. This paper describes the development, content, and user feedback of a referral tool (RT) that was designed to help identify incidents of PSB-CY for use with military agencies and schools. Specifically, the RT was designed to help professionals, who may have observed or who may have been made aware of sexual behaviors in children and youth, organize their observations of the behavior in alignment with evidence-based information about PSB-CY and consistently document these occurrences. The RT guides users in determining if the observed behavior is normative, cautionary, or problematic and promotes informed decisions about whether the behavior needs to be referred to those who have experience using clinical tools for further review and the identification of next steps for supporting the children and families involved. Early adopters provided feedback on the use of the RT. The feedback suggested that the tool was user-friendly, understandable, and helpful as they made objective decisions about how to identify and handle referrals of PSB-CY. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper outlines a qualitative exploration of the experiences of Youth in Charge (YiC), a 3-year pilot programme. YiC was designed to promote early, immersive community participation for students with physical disabilities, and was co-developed/co-hosted by three agencies (hospital, community rehabilitation, school board). To better understand the experiences of the youth, parents, and staff involved in this broad intervention, observation of 10 programme sessions and annual semi-structured interviews with youth (n = 5), parents (n = 4) and staff (n = 6) were undertaken. Qualitative results comprise six themes based in the two major thematic areas of participation-related experiences and programme considerations. Results indicate the need for community-based experiences, measured risk-taking, long-term engagement, parental involvement, and greater interagency collaboration and integration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]