Young children’s imaginative play about death and violence is contentious and under-theorised, often approached in normative terms where the play represents the source of or solution for wider ‘social problems’. In contrast, this study offers insights into the complex and shifting social ecology of death/violence play in one London-based nursery and clarifies the processes through which inequitable sociospatial relations are renewed, reworked, and even transformed in such activity. Utilising a critical ethnographic approach informed by critical realism and the social studies of childhood, the study engaged with children’s and adult educators’ perspectives and practices over a period of 1½ years through semi-participant observation, interviews, and multivocal video revisiting. The initial data chapters offer an analytic description of the setting, arguing that contradictory discursive, institutional, and material relations serve to render children’s death/violence play as ‘matter out of place’, paradoxically considered partially recuperable in relation to (boys’) development. The subsequent data chapters, informed by materialist feminist perspectives, point to the way imaginary characters became mobile resources for some children whilst inequalities serve to inscribe characters, including the monstrous, on others. The chapters point to the identifications players made with characters and narratives through a process of intense dialogic embodiment, in the process renewing sociospatial relations linked to normative heterosexuality, hegemonic masculinity, propertied relations, and flexible selves. This thesis, however, contends that ludic activity offers possibilities for overturning the status quo and enacting new social imaginaries. In the study setting, the death trope served as a generative metaphor to provoke caring touch, opening up social relations beyond economic calculation and gendered and generationed aspects of care. Play, it is argued, is a site of struggle, one that can offer a space of ethical-political engagement and radical potential, with implications for pedagogical projects concerned with equality and social transformation.

Children from families which do not share the language, culture or social class of the teacher are often viewed as 'disadvantaged' when they enter school. It comes as no surprise to teachers when these children experience problems in beginning reading in the classroom. The teachers' expectations are backed up by statistics showing that children from 'non-school-oriented' backgrounds are less likely to succeed at all stages in their school careers. Explanations for lack of progress are sought in the children's linguistic, cultural or cognitive deficiency or, most recently, in their inexperience of narrative and literature from home. Within this framework, children from 'non-schooloriented' backgrounds who step quickly and easily into reading in school can be explained only as 'exceptions' whose progress is beyond the teachers' control. In this study, I examine the origins of the teachers' beliefs. Using the example of two children from 'nonschool- oriented' families who make very different progress in early reading lessons as a starting-point, I question the validity of explanations grounded in the deficit of the child and the home. I then propose a new focus of attention; the interaction between teacher and child and their negotiation of the reading task during group and individual lessons. Through ethnographic and ethnomethodological approaches to studying the interaction between a group of children, their families and the teacher during the first eighteen months in school, I argue that a child's early reading progress does not depend upon entering the classroom from a 'school-oriented' home but an ability to engage in a specific pattern of dialogue and turn-taking with the teacher during early reading lessons. Ultimately, it depends upon the child being able to negotiate a joint interpretation of the reading task with the teacher.

The English government is significantly expanding the number of free nursery places for two-year olds; but little is known about what sort of training and professional development might help early years practitioners to offer appropriate styles of early education and care for such young children. This thesis explores a project to offer professional support and development to eight early years practitioners working with two-year olds in a highly socially disadvantaged area in London. The project began with the participants being trained to use a structured child observation tool, and developed through fortnightly group meetings over a three-month period. These provided an opportunity for the participants to engage in dialogue and critical reflection about their data. The data were interpreted using a qualitative research methodology drawing on grounded theory and constructivist grounded theory. Evidence from the study suggests that the participants developed skills in “keen observation” (Dalli et al. 2009), and that they used the data they had gathered to develop their understanding of the children’s learning. The findings from the research increase the visibility of the practitioners’ theories: in particular, their theory that their work enables the children to act more autonomously in the nursery settings. Both the methodological approach used and the small size of the sample mean that no generalisations can be made from these findings. However, widely-held assumptions that early years practitioners are lacking in the capacity to reflect on and theorise their work are not supported by this research. Future studies might continue to make practitioners’ own theories about their work more visible, in order to explore them more deeply. This would enable the further development of approaches to training which engage with and enrich the practitioners’ own thinking.

Collaborative group work in the primary classroom is considered to hold academic and social benefits for pupils, in providing opportunities for them to develop thinking through interaction with others. It is widely recognised, however, that teachers find it challenging to incorporate group work into classroom practice because of the difficulties pupils often experience with this form of learning. The aim of this research is to explore psychoanalytic theory as a way of thinking about the emotions, both conscious and unconscious, that might circulate in the group and affect the ability of group members to achieve the explicit task that has been set. I present four case studies of group work, involving children in a Year 5 class; each study illuminates aspects of the emotional difficulty children might experience, for example, the tensions of belonging to a group, the frustrations of learning with others and the anxieties that might be stirred. I argue that teachers and educational leaders would benefit from attending to the emotional significance of group learning, rather than invest in the ‘fantasy’ that suggests affect and cognition can be kept separate in encounters with learning and with others.

A key finding from the research into school effectiveness is that children's educational progress is highly dependent on effective teachers (Darling-­‐Hammond, 2000; DEST, 2005; NCQT, 2011). But, the literature into teacher effectiveness offers less literacy-­‐specific evidence. Nonetheless, successful literacy learning in Grade 1 is crucial as it has long lasting consequences on children's literacy development (Riley, 1996, 2007; Tymms et al., 2009), thus making the effective teaching of literacy an important focus of investigation. Researchers have also raised the issue of the inter-­‐relationship of effective teaching and the context within which it takes place (Hopkins and Reynolds, 2001; Campbell et al, 2003). Within the specific context of Cyprus there is a paucity of evidence into teachers' literacy practices in correlation with the insights from the effectiveness research. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate this particular context and use the insights offered in order to illuminate thinking about effective literacy teaching practice. In order to do so, it draws upon relevant bodies of literature, to identify the features of effective literacy teaching in Grade 1 classrooms. By using these teachers as a lens into teaching practices, the study explores what these teachers do and also how the omissions in their practice compare with the literature in the field, as well as what they do differently and which has not, as yet, been widely recognised. In addition, the study examines what teachers report they rely on and how they claim to have learned their practice. The study is located within a qualitative -­‐ interpretive paradigm, using thematic coding to deductively and inductively analyse classroom observations and interview data from fifteen teachers who were deemed to be effective. The findings offer an agenda to re-­‐consider both the content and pedagogy of effective literacy teaching in Grade 1. Also, the implications that arise for programmes of Initial Teacher Education and Continuing Professional Development are addressed.

The current study examines the pupil, classroom and school level characteristics that influence the attainment and the progress outcomes of young Maltese pupils for mathematics. A sample of 1,628 Maltese pupils were tested at age 5 (Year 1) and at age 6 (Year 2) on the National Foundation for Educational Research Maths 5 and Maths 6 tests. Associated with the matched sample of pupils are 89 Year 2 teachers and 37 primary school head teachers. Various instruments were administered to collate data about the pupil, the classroom and the school level characteristics likely to explain differences in pupil attainment (age 6) and pupil progress. The administered instruments include: the Mathematics Enhancement Classroom Observation Record (MECORS), a parent/guardian questionnaire, a teacher questionnaire, a head teacher questionnaire and a field note sheet. Results from multilevel analyses reveal that the prior attainment of pupils (age 5), pupil ability, learning support, curriculum coverage, teacher beliefs, teacher behaviours and head teacher age are predictors of pupil attainment (age 6) and/or pupil progress. Residual scores from multilevel analyses also reveal that primary schools in Malta are differentially effective. Of the 37 participating schools, eight are effective, 22 are average and seven are ineffective for mathematics. Also, in eight schools, withinschool variations in teaching quality, amongst teachers in Year 2 classrooms, were also elicited. Illustrations of practice in six differentially effective schools compared and contrasted the strategies implemented by Maltese primary school head teachers and Year 2 teachers. A discussion of the main findings as well as recommendations for future studies and the development of local educational policy conclude the current study.

Early years provision, which combines childcare and preschool education, has been considered vital for child development by theorists and practitioners. Within early years provision pedagogy is assumed to be both an enabling and constraining factor which can shape a particular experience of childhood and, possibly, prepare children for a particular adulthood. This thesis explores pedagogical processes and practices vis-à-vis children’s experiences in three different pedagogical contexts: a corporation nursery, a private nursery and an ICDS (Integrated Child Development Services) Anganwadi centre in Chennai in Tamil Nadu (India). It explores the findings of a one year ethnographic study that involved observation/informal conversation with children and semi-structured interviews with teachers, care worker(s) and parents. The ethnographic study used methodological approaches from childhood research, adopted ethical positions from childhood studies and valued children as competent individuals that should be treated with respect throughout the research processes. The analysis of the empirical data uses the intersections of three concepts in the works of Foucault (subject), Butler (identity), Bourdieu (cultural capital) to illuminate and analyse the pedagogical processes and practices. The thesis characterises the different pedagogical contexts encountered in the study as: ‘activity centred’, ‘task centred’, and ‘care centred’. It explains that this context emerged in an on-going active process of negotiation, deliberation, reflection through ‘subjection’ and ‘resistance’. It demonstrates that children construct their embodied self-identity through everyday pedagogical/curriculum performativity and the teacher-children identities work within as well as outside pedagogical contexts. The empirical analysis identifies shame and distinction as key factors for pedagogical/curriculum performativity and argues that the embodied identities of children are fluid and contextual and that they are formed through the interaction of learning materials, academic ability/mastery, and bodily differences in the pedagogical contexts. It is argued that children employ cultural capital when (re)establishing home-nursery connections in different pedagogical contexts and that parents similarly use their cultural capital with a sense of ‘practical logic’ for decision making on matters related to early years provision, e.g. when recognising the transformative potential of children. The thesis findings suggest that there is an element of fluidity in pedagogical contexts and that the local cultural practices of teachers/care worker are reflectively integrated with minority world ideas when normative pedagogies are constructed. The thesis contributes to the development of childhood theory, by demonstrating that childhood is a complex phenomenon. At the policy level, the thesis makes recommendations for practitioners and administrators on how they can value local cultural knowledge, acknowledge reflexive practices of teachers/care workers, and equity issues in early years provision.

No description available.

Tesis para optar al grado de Magister en Educación con mención en Informática Educativa / La investigación comienza al establecer el problema existente de la enseñanza del idioma inglés en Chile. En un estudio realizado por EFI EPI (2016), los estudiantes en Chile demostraron un bajo nivel de dominio del inglés. Los resultados de este estudio fueron alarmantes para el Ministerio de Educación, ya que hubo una gran cantidad de inversiones financieras en esta área, como los programas de puertas abiertas en inglés y las oportunidades de becas de intercambio estudiantil. Ahora, en la escuela primaria, el problema es más evidente. Se ha convertido en un campo de enseñanza del inglés en constante expansión con poco apoyo del Ministerio de Educación. Por esta razón, la investigación busca analizar si un diseño de estrategia didáctica, que integra las TIC y un enfoque multisensorial, mejora la experiencia de aprendizaje en una clase de niños y niñas en segundo nivel de transición de inglés como lengua extranjera. El estudio contiene un diseño de metodología mixta con un nivel exploratorio, mediante el uso de dos grupos diferentes de niños en el jardín de infantes de la Escuela Antilen de Rengo. Antes de las cuatro intervenciones, se entrevistó al parvulario de los cursos participantes, se realizó a los niños una prueba de diagnóstico previo y se implementó un cuestionario a los padres de los niños participantes. Durante las intervenciones, las clases diseñadas se registraron para la recopilación de datos visuales y el investigador tomó notas de campo. Finalmente, se realizó una prueba posterior al diagnóstico en los niños del idioma aprendido a lo largo de las intervenciones. Los resultados de este estudio resultaron en favor de la nueva estrategia didáctica diseñada, ya que mejoró la experiencia de aprendizaje de los niños. Después del análisis de la información total recopilada, la estrategia demostró ser inclusiva y motivadora para los niños. Además, los resultados mostraron un aumento en las oportunidades de exposición del idioma dentro de cada sesión y un aumento en el vocabulario aprendido. Finalmente, una proyección futura de este estudio es profundizar en el diseño de la estrategia didáctica propuesta / The investigation begins by stating the existing problem of English language teaching in Chile. In a study done by EFI EPI (2016), the students in Chile demonstrated a low level of English proficiency. The results of this study were alarming to the Ministry of Education, since there has been a great amount of financial investments in this area, such as the English open doors programs and student exchange scholarship opportunities. Now, in primary school the problem is more apparent. It has become an ever-expanding field of English teaching with little support from the Ministry of Education. For this reason, the investigation seeks to analyze if the use of a didactic strategy design, which integrates ICT and a multisensory approach, improves the learning experience of boys and girls in an English as a foreign language kindergarten class of children. The study selected a mixed methodology design with a exploratory level, by using two different groups of children in kindergarten from Antilen School of Rengo. Before the four interventions, the student’s preschool teacher was interviewed, a pre-diagnostic test was conducted on the children and a questionnaire was implemented on the parents of the participating children. During the interventions, the classes designed were recorded for visual data collection and field notes were taken by the investigator. Finally, a post-diagnostic test was conducted on the children of the language learnt throughout the interventions. The results from this study resulted in favor of the new didactic strategy designed, for it improved the learning experience of the children. After the analysis of the total data collected, the didactic strategy demonstrated to be inclusive and engaging for the children. Also, the results showed an increase in language input within each session and a growth in target vocabulary learnt. Finally, a future projection of this study is to further elaborate on the design of the didactic strategy proposed

This longitudinal study investigates the factors at home and school that influence children's attainment and progress in writing at Key Stage 1. Sixty children between the ages of four and seven years in four Reading primaiy schools were tracked and data was collected in the term before they started school, at school entry, on a termly basis once in school and at the end of Key Stage 1. Semi-structured interviews, questionnaires, observation schedules, checklists and standardised assessments were used. Associations between measures and continuity over time were assessed using multiple regression analysis. Pre-school independent variables that were found to be significantly associated with writing proficiency at school entry included mother's educational level, family size, parental assessment of writing and a measure of home writing. Child characteristics, skills and competencies were measured at school entry and those found to be significantly associated with writing at outcome included season of birth, WPPSI-R vocabulary score, pre-reading skills and proficiency in writing their own name. The only pre-school variable that maintained its significant relationship to writing at outcome was home writing. Teacher assessments of pupil attitudes to writing were consistently found to be significantly associated with writing at outcome. Data from the termly writing samples indicated that only the handwriting assessment predicted general writing ability at seven years of age. Eight pupils were observed writing at two points in time and the records are discussed in terms of processes and products. Issues such as quality and quantity of writing generated are considered in relation to the development of component skills (e.g. handwriting, spelling, vocabulary), within the context of the curriculum and role of the teacher. The results confirm the complexity of learning to write for children at Key Stage I and developmental considerations are discussed in relation to policy and practice issues.