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Ernest Boyer's The Basic School: A Community for Learning (1995) aligns with other important research and programs that encourage parent involvement to maximize each child's educational potential. The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand and to document the first steps undertaken by one school as it began to address Boyer's school as community priority by reaching out to an uninvolved parent population. Meaning was constructed from the perspective of the researcher who was an active participant in the process. Research questions included: 1) What happened when one school began to address the needs of its at-risk population by intentionally reaching out to involve the parents of these students in the life of the school? 2) How was this accomplished within the context of a school beginning to address the priorities of a "Basic School?" 3) What structures were created to facilitate the process and guide its progress? Teachers in the School as Community Family at Kizer Elementary School were the initial focus of this study. Additional groups with related purposes became part of the inquiry as the process unfolded. Transcripts, field notes, and related documents were collected from all relevant group meetings and outreach activities from June of 1997 through January of 1998. The process of data analysis yielded descriptive conceptual models and an interpretive narrative case study that follows a modified chronology of the communicative action steps undertaken by a group of educators readying themselves for outreach to an alienated parent population. This study produced practical implications for schools wishing to begin the steps toward increasing the level of family and community engagement with student learning. A case was made for self-reflective action to create opportunities for authentic conversation that can empower families to take greater initiative in the public education of their children. If schools can learn to build, support and sustain relationships with parents, particularly their at-risk populations, they might expect a greater level of success in educating their children. / Ed. D.

Individual differences in temperament can be a risk or a protective factor for a child, especially for children at-risk who possess single or multiple risk factors that may interfere with their educational success and affect their healthy development and their life-long outcomes. This research study examined the concurrent and longitudinal relationships between temperament, school adjustment, and academic achievement in children at-risk. Seventy-seven children, ages five to 11 years, were reassessed two years after an initial study. Their teachers completed the Temperament Assessment Battery for Children (TABC), the Behavior Assessment System for Children (BASC), and reported on the children's academic achievement. The results for the concurrent relationships showed significant relationships between the children's temperament and their school adjustment; negative emotionality significantly correlated with and predicted school adjustment. Children's temperament was also found to have a significant relationship with academic achievement; persistence and activity level had significant correlations with academic achievement. Persistence, however, was the only predictor of academic achievement. In contrast, the longitudinal relationship between the children's temperament and their educational outcomes in terms of both school adjustment and academic achievement showed no significance. The concurrent relationships were found to be consistent with previous research; whereas the longitudinal relationships were found to vary from previous research. Implications for practice and considerations for future research directions are discussed.

Baksidestext Barnmisshandel är ett omfattande folkhälsoproblem med långsiktiga negativa konsekvenser för den enskilda individen och för samhället i stort. Förebyggande insatser kan vara livsavgörande för de utsatta barnen. Denna avhandlings övergripande syfte var att öka kunskapen om barn som riskerar att fara illa i sin hemmiljö samt att identifiera utmaningar i ett förebyggande perspektiv. Två områden har studerats: (1) Våld mot barn med långvarig sjukdom/funktionsnedsättning (2) Förskolan som upptäckande och stödjande arena Gemensamt för inriktningarna är att barn med långvarig sjukdom/funktionsnedsättning och barn i förskoleåldern utgör särskilt sårbara grupper, som löper ökad risk att fara illa i sin hemmiljö. De har också unik kontakt med professionella med möjlighet att upptäcka och agera vid oro. Avhandlingen bygger på fyra delstudier; en nationell kartläggning riktad till skolelever, en intervjustudie med föräldrar samt två förskolestudier. Resultaten från studierna diskuteras utifrån identifierade utmaningar i ett förebyggande perspektiv. Utmaningarna inkluderar emotionella hinder samt behov av ett mer nyanserat och proaktivt förhållningssätt för att kunna utveckla tidiga insatser till barn och föräldrar. / The aim with this thesis was to increase the knowledge about children at risk of maltreatment and to identify challenges in a preventive perspective. Two areas have been studied; Physical abuse of children with chronic conditions/disabilities and Detection and support within the pre-school environment.  Four data sets were used: a national survey of school children (I), an in-depth interview study with parents (II) and two pre-school studies (III, IV). I-II: Chronic conditions in children increase the risk for physical abuse, but vary with socio-economic circumstances. The highest risk for physical abuse was found among children with chronic conditions born outside Sweden. The subsequent study revealed direct risk factors related to parent and child (emotional demands in precarious situations), and indirect risk factors related to parent and professional (gradual shift in responsibility and emotionally closed environment) and social norms (taboo on talking about abuse). III-IV: Preschool staff suspected child maltreatment for two percent of the preschool children. In less than half of the cases, the parents were informed and a report to social services was made in a third of the cases. The most common reason for not making a report was that the staff believed that the pre-school had sufficient resources to help the child. In the subsequent study, preschool teachers’ concerns about the child’s home environment were explored in a broader perspective over a one year period. The study showed that concern for the children’s home situation related to increased concern for several aspects of children’s health and development, increased need of special support in preschool, insufficient contact with parents, and lower parental socioeconomic status. The results are discussed according to identified challenges in a preventive perspective. These include emotional obstacles for prevention and a need for a more nuanced and proactive professional approach to enable early support to children at risk of maltreatment and their parents.

Šalies statistika rodo, kad ne visos šeimos užtikrina vaikų gerovę ir tinkamai atlieka vaikų ugdymo ir socializacijos funkciją. Vaikai, augantys rizikos grupei priklausančiose šeimose, dažnai stokoja socialinių gebėjimų, kurie jiems leistų užmegzti ir palaikyti draugiškus santykius su bendraamžiais, konfliktus spręsti socialiai priimtinais būdais, dalyvauti įvairioje, socialiai prasmingoje veikloje. Neturėdami tinkamai išugdytų socialinių gebėjimų rizikos grupės vaikai dažnai linkę save nuvertinti, jie dažniau nei kiti vaikai patiria mokymosi, adaptacijos sunkumus, linkę užsiimti nusikalstama veikla. Šiame magistriniame darbe bandoma atskleisti rizikos grupės vaikų socialinių gebėjimų ugdymo ypatumus įgyvendinat „Savęs pažinimo“ programą. Tai svarbu vertinant šios grupės vaikų socialinių gebėjimų plėtotę juos įtraukus į socialines pratybas. Tyrimo tikslas: išnagrinėti ugdymo programos „Savęs pažinimas“ taikymo ypatumus rizikos grupės vaikų socialinių gebėjimų ugdymui. Rizikos grupės vaikų socialinių gebėjimų ugdymo ypatumams išnagrinėti buvo pasirinktas ugdymo projektas, kuriame dalyvavo septyni 9-12 metų vaikai, lankantys prevencinių programų studiją „Rafaelis“. Vieną mėnesį iki ugdymo projekto pradžios vaikai buvo stebimi įvairioje veikloje. Stebint buvo renkami duomenys apie vaiko psichosocialinius ypatumus. Remiantis surinkta informacija, vaikai suskirstyti į keturias grupes: 1 grupė - „tyleniai“ - tylūs, savimi nepasitikintys, nedrąsūs, neryžtingi vaikai; 2 grupė –... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / The statistics of the country indicates that not every family guarantees the welfare of their children and carries out the function of children education and socialization in a proper way. The children being brought in families at risk very often lack social skills allowing them to establish and maintain friendly relations with their peers, to solve the arising conflicts in socially acceptable ways, to take part in various socially meaningful activities. Lacking properly educated social skills, the children at risk very often tend to devalue themselves, more often than other children they face learning difficulties or adaptation difficulties; tend to be involved in criminal acts. This final Master’s thesis tries to reveal the peculiarities of the education of social skills of the children at risk in the implementation of the programme “Self-cognition”. This is very important for the evaluation of the development of social abilities of these particular children after their involvement into social trainings. The aim of the research is to analyze the peculiarities of the application of the programme “Self-cognition” for the development of social skills of the children at risk. To analyze the peculiarities of the education of social skills of the children at risk an educational project was chosen which involved seven children aged between 9-12 and attending the club of preventive programmes “Rafaelis”. One month prior to the beginning of the educational project the children... [to full text]

This final work of postgraduate studies of educology is commited to the analysis of learning difficulties between children in the at-risk group both in the city and country schools in Lithuania. The goals of this work are to analyse scientific literature (pedagogical, psychological and sociological) about children at-risk and their learning difficulties, to complete practical research of these difficulties – to carry out practical survey (inquiry) about learning difficulties both in schools which are in the city and in the country, to analyse empirical data of survey (inquiry), to give conclusions and recommendations. The main scientifc methods which were used to complete this work were analysis of scientific literature and other documents (legal documents which describe status of children in the at-risk group). Also an empirical method - inquiry of children and their teachers – was used. Answers to the questions of this inquiry were processed with the help of computer programmes SPSS_10 and MS Excel. It is necessary to mention that the main results of this work are that it gives broad description of children in the at-risk group, describe their individual qualities, measure not attending of school as one of the most important pedagogical and psychological problems of children in the at-risk group, according to the statistical data describes a degree of this problem and also gives recommendations how to solve this problem. The work also gives analysis of influence of the... [to full text]

The purpose of this study is to describe and analyse how school and social service in the city of Malmö cooperate regarding children at risk and what they do in order to meet their needs. We also aim to explore the view and knowledge of the personnel and their experience of the guardians’ impact during collaboration. The empirical data was collected by personal interviews with personnel from the school and social service. The results have been analysed from a theory of organizational culture and symbolic interaction.The study shows that the organizations have various forms of cooperation, whereof the majority occur in individual cases, and that preventative work is not a priority due to reorganisations and changes in society. One of the central aspects regarding collaboration is intervention in an early stage to meet the childrens needs. We question if this could be done if preventative work would be a low priority. Both parties experiencing frustration from the personnel of the other organization, which mainly occurs from lack of trust and knowledge about the working situation of the other. The personnel from school and social service consider themselves to have an understanding for the personnel of the other organization. However, this is not a comprehension, which the personnel are experiencing from the personnel of the other organization. The view of the personnel between school and social service differs, which could be explained by “language differences” seen from a perspective of symbolic interaction. The differences might decrease and result in a better understanding between the parties if preventative work were to be prioritized for creating networks and strengthen their relations. The results also show that the guardians have a significant impact concerning the organizations to be able to cooperate in individual cases. This is because the confidentiality needs to be removed in order to enable cooperation between the parties. One conclusion based on the results is that visions and guidelines are not conformed in what is possible to integrate in the daily practical work of the personnel. Furthermore, several political decisions have to be made in order to give the personnel in school and social service adequate conditions for cooperation.

The aim of this dissertation is to examine approaches to social work dealing with children at risk and their families. Of particular interest to this examination are the processes of social work practice, support of vulnerable children, family's effect upon child's endangered situation as well as the role of family in the process of social work practice with the child. Further subjects of investigation are specific methods and instruments of social work practice with children in need, competence and role of social workers along with legal standards in this field of social work. The first part of the work describes general and theoretical structure of social work practice with socially endangered children. Following part consists of social work methods applied in Mezipatro Children's Centre. The research part includes an analysis of semi- structured interviews conducted with social workers from Mezipatro Children's Centre and is focused on efficiency and risks of social work tools used in Mezipatro Children's Centre.

Tyrimo objektas: Rizikos grupės vaikų požiūris į olimpinį judėjimą ir kilnų elgesį sporte olimpinio ugdymo kontekste; Tyrimo tikslas – išsiaiškinti rizikos grupės vaikų požiūrį į olimpinį judėjimą ir kilnų elgesį sporte olimpinio ugdymo kontekste. Siekinat atsakyti į tyrimo tikslą, buvo keliami šie uždaviniai: išnagrinėti olimpizmo idėjų sklaidą mokykloje olimpinio ugdymo kontekste; įvertinti rizikos grupės vaikų žinias apie olimpines žaidynes olimpinio ugdymo kontekste; nustatyti mokykloje vykdomos olimpinio ugdymo programos poveikį rizikos grupės vaikų požiūriui į olimpinį judėjimą ir kilnų elgesį sporte olimpinio ugdymo kontekste; Tyrimu tikrinama hipotezė, kad mokyklos, kurios vaikai dalyvauja olimpinio ugdymo projekte požiūris į olimpinį judėjimą ir kilnų elgesį sporte pozityvesnis nei mokyklos, kurios vaikai minėtame projekte nedalyvauja. Tyrimo metu, taikant netikimybinę tikslinę atranką bei apklausos raštu metodą buvo apklausta 120 rizikos grupei priklausančių vaikų (60 vaikų iš mokyklos, kuri dalyvauja olimpinio ugdymo programoje bei 60 vaikų iš mokyklos, nedalyvaujančios minėtoje programoje). Taikyta dalis Olimpinio klausimyno (Olympic Questionnaire, Telama et al., 2002). Apklausa parodė, kad mokyklos, kurios vaikai dalyvauja olimpinio ugdymo projekte požiūris į olimpinį judėjimą ir kilnų elgesį sporte pozityvesnis nei mokyklos, kurios vaikai minėtame projekte nedalyvauja. Nustatyta, kad žinių apie olimpines žaidynes rizikos grupės vaikai pirmiausia gauna... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / Research object: Children‘s at risk attitude about Olympic Movement and noble behavior in sports in the context of Olympic education; Goal of research – to find out children‘s at risk attitude about Olympic Movement and noble behavior in sports in the context of Olympic education. On purpose to reach the goal of research, the following objectives have been raised: to analyze the dispersion of Olympism ideas in school in the context of Olympic education; to evaluate children‘s at risk knowledge about Olympics in the context of Olympic education; to determine the influence of Olympic education program in school for children‘s at risk attitude about Olympic Movement and noble behavior in sports in the context of Olympic education. The hypothesis, evaluating by research is, that the attitude about Olympic Movement and noble behavior in sports in school, in which children participate in the Olympic education project is more positive than in school, in which children don‘t participate in the earlier mentioned project. During the research, using non-stochastic objective selection and the method of written survey, 120 children from at-risk group (60 children from school, which participates in Olympic education program and 60 children from school, which is not participating in mentioned program) were interviewed. There was a part of Olympic Questionnaire used (Olympic Questionnaire, Telama et al., 2002). A survey showed, that the attitude about Olympic Movement and noble behavior in... [to full text]

The diploma work processes the present issues if it is important or even necessary keeping the institutional care for the children under 3 years of age or if it can be replaced by short term foster care. The research was done by quantitative strategy and with the method of forms. The forms were addressed to fosters [short term and long term fosters] and to the child care institutions for children under 3 years of age under the direction of Ministry of Health. The data from ÚZIS also served the research these data confirm that about 85% of children return to their own or substitute families. The return to biological families did not go under 50% between 2011 and 2015. The inquiry also revealed the different view on the issue of short term foster care where fosters [long and short time] prefer the short time foster care method, while the child care institutions for children under 3 years of age under the direction of Ministry of Health mention the risks connected with the foster [short term] deficiency. The work also shows the problem that short time foster care is not convenient for disabled children and children from different ethnic groups, the institutions see a big problem in this too. The ways how the children are distributed into substitute family care are also connected with above mention. The children come to short time foster care generally from social issues and to institutional care mostly from health-social issues. The fosters themselves mention the situations when they would fear doing the care. These situations mostly correspond with the cases of children placed to the institutions with special care. Finally it is obvious the short time foster care and the institutional care play their own irreplaceable role in the substitute family care system. Together they make the necessary balanced system for children at risk and they complement each other. Well, not every child is suitable for institutional care and otherwise. For example the children hardly disabled or children from repetitively non-functional families would be in high risk of failing again in the foster care. That is the reason, why the planned closing down of the special facilities should be discussed and reconsider again.