published_or_final_version / Social Work / Master / Master of Social Work

published_or_final_version / Dentistry / Master / Master of Dental Surgery

This thesis examines the perspectives and experiences of primary Initial Teacher Education (ITE) trainee teachers, of working with Looked After Children (LAC), and the implications for training and Continuing Professional Development (CPD). The thesis is within the interpretivist paradigm, using a Grounded Theory Methodological approach. The research was carried out in one post-1992 English university, with trainee teachers on a three year undergraduate BA (Honours) Education teacher training route, and a one-year Post Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) route. Feedback was sought from wider organisations and professionals working directly with LAC. LAC continue to underperform academically in comparison to their peers, and for decades have been let down by systems and support, with many entering the criminal justice system at an early age. This study examines trainee teachers’ perspectives to conclude how specific training can support teachers and in turn impact on LAC. The thesis draws out four main themes from the trainees: the negative impact of previous experience on trainee values and beliefs towards LAC as they enter ITE; the positive and negative perceptions and experiences of trainees in relation to collaborative working; the negative perceptions and experiences of trainees in relation to the behaviour and learning needs of LAC; and trainees’ and mentors’ lack of knowledge in relation to LAC. The study concludes that trainees and mentors have a lack of knowledge and skills on how to support LAC in five key areas; policy and legislation, challenging negative perceptions, emotional well-being and supportive strategies, administrative knowledge, and collaborative working. A training model to support ITE and CPD is developed, gaining feedback from key organisations and professionals working with LAC.

Few studies have explored how medical ethics works in practice specifically in terms of the social processes that result in a decision regarding an ethical problem. This is particularly so in the case of children’s intensive care. More than a decade of teaching healthcare ethics to both nurses and doctors prompted a study to examine how ethical problems are resolved in a children’s intensive care unit. This qualitative study addressed this question in a single large children’s intensive care unit in England. The study was guided by grounded theory in examining via individual face to face unstructured and semi-structured interviews what ethical problems were encountered and how they were resolved. Interviews were conducted mainly with doctors and nurses working on an intensive care unit. Two admitting consultant doctors and three parents were also interviewed. The analysis of data gathered in 20 interviews was developed using Strauss and Corbin’s (1998) framework. A theory emerged from the analysis of the data that revealed the most prominent ethical problems in children’s intensive care related to end-of-life situations. Most significant among these was the decision to withdraw life-preserving interventions from a child. The theory outlines a process by which health professionals involved in the care and treatment of a child in intensive care negotiated a consensus on the point at which it was no longer appropriate to continue life-preserving interventions. This consensus was then presented to parents. Parental assent to withdrawal was facilitated, when not immediately forthcoming, by a process of persuasion.

Attachment theory has implications for relational functioning across the lifespan. The attachment experience of institutionalised children in South Africa is understudied. Using a psychoanalytic perspective as an addition to thematic analysis of the ASCT, this research aims to add to the functional perspective of attachment, an internal psychic frame of reference with which to view attachment of at risk children in South Africa. Using 58 ASCT protocols, divided between children’s homes and hospitals, stories were analysed using thematic content analysis and discussed with an object relations perspective. Results suggest the inclusion of additional categories of attachment to the current classification system as well as a deeper relational understanding of the experience of insecure attachment. This has implications for the current understanding and classification of attachment.

This project aimed to explore the educational experiences of ‘looked after children’ in one local authority in England. Young people, in the care of the state, have consistently lower educational achievements than their peers who live with their birth families. This situation is not unique to the UK context; it is replicated across Europe and North America. Aiming for an ethnographic study, the project generated much needed qualitative data in order to consider the educational experiences of children in care in Devon. To date much research in this area has focussed on statistical analysis of measured outcomes, and contributory factors which show a bleak picture of underachievement and poor adult outcomes. The design allowed for a more rounded picture of the full educational experience, not just in terms of achievement, but a view of wider educational experiences, giving an in-depth insight into the value that a looked after child places on ‘education’ in its widest sense. The results of this study add to the small body of research in this area which takes a more sociological view. The researcher worked with young people and older alumni of care, with participants’ ages ranging across five decades: 11 to 59, allowing an element of temporality to be considered in a relatively short term project. Experiences were gathered by means of qualitative interviews, focussed on the present with the young people, and using a life history lens when working with adults. The findings were analysed in such a way as to identify educational themes across generations, for those young people who are in the care of the local authority. The study found that for young people in local authority care education is perceived as occurring across their life experiences, a much wider definition than that which happens within formal ‘school’ environments. This broader view of education encompassed life skills, social skills, sporting skills and digital skills. Participants storied themselves as achievers within this wider view of education. The study showed that young people in care could be reflexive in their learning, they storied themselves as agentic, and exhibited a habitus which helped them to learn who they were, and to recognise their achievements. The study adds to current understanding about the way children in care learn. A visual model of ‘Conditions for Learning’ has been developed, based around the three theoretical constructs: reflexivity, agency, and habitus. This model has the potential to be applied to larger groups and other young people, to explore the conditions which support their learning. These findings provide important insights which could inform decision-making within both the care and education professions.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Oregon, 2003. / Typescript. Includes vita and abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 150-160). Also available for download via the World Wide Web; free to University of Oregon users.

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published_or_final_version / abstract / toc / Clinical Psychology / Master / Master of Social Sciences

published_or_final_version / Dentistry / Master / Master of Philosophy