Kidulthood

The Action for Children charity has been busy lately, with the publication of several research projects. A couple should be of particular interest to our students:

• Kidulthood: Life as a Pre-Teen in the UK Today is a detailed study of what life is like for pre-teens in the UK today, and howpolicy can best be shaped to meet the needs of these children.

• Backing the Future: Why Investing in Children is Good for Us All is the final report of the Happiness Counts project, and argues a case for higher funding of support services for young children, with the result that savings will be made in other areas such as dealing with the costs of crime etc as the children reach maturity.
  

New DCSF Research

The latest batch of research reports from the DCSF have just been published; here are two which may interest our readers:

If you're interested in Religious Education, a new report entitled Materials used to Teach about World Religions in Schools in England takes an in-depth look at the topic, as well as containing useful information relating to the ongoing debates surrounding faith schools. A summary version is also available.

Also new is Parental Opinion Survey 2009, the latest annual publication which researches parents' confidence in their own skills, and their thoughts about the support services available to them. Again, a summary version is also available.

Disadvantage and Childcare

New research from the DCSF has found that disadvantaged families in the UK are failing to access childcare even when it is offered to them for free. The report, entitled Families Experiencing Multiple Disadvantage: Their Use of and Views on Childcare Provision, also highlights issues surrounding lack of information regarding available services.

Economic Inequality in the UK

A government-commissioned report entitled An Anatomy of Economic Inequality in the UK has largely made headlines for its finding that the gap between rich and poor is in the UK is wider than 40 years ago. However, the research covers a wide range of social issues including education, children's services and family issues, so students may well find some useful material within the report. Click here to go to a page offering access both to the full document and various summaries

Understanding Children's Well-being

The last couple of years have seen a great deal of discussion around the concept of children's well-being, with the concept being written into the Every Child Matters strategy and the EYFS principles. Now the Children's Society has published what it claims is "the first comprehensive investigation of childhood well-being – or happiness - from a young person’s point of view."

The full report, entitled Understanding Children's Well-Being: A National Survey of Young People's Well-Being is available from this link. A summary version is also available, while this BBC article discusses some of the issues raised by the research.

Family Information Directory

Today sees the launch of the government's Family Information Directory, a 'one stop shop' for information on schools, childcare and family services in a given area. Simply type a town's name or postcode into the search box, select the type of service you are interested in, and the site will list all of the relevant providers in the area, together with contact details, links to Ofsted reports etc. Very useful!

Parentchannel.tv

First there was Teachers TV, then recently saw the launch of Social Care TV... now Parentchannel.tv is the latest new online channel with relevance to the early years and family sectors.

The free site is aimed at parents and contains short films on various aspects of parenting, for example the use of positive discipline, or helping with homework. The films are targetted at different age groups - (5-9, 9-14, 14-19), so parents with children of all ages should be able to find suitable advice on a given topic. Although the site is quite new, it already has an impressive number of films available, and it is endorsed by the DCSF and Parenting UK.

For a taste of the site, here's a clip about improving communication with younger children:

ICT Handbook for Primary Teachers

In case you haven't heard, UCB lecturer David Hall has recently published a book entitled The ICT Handbook for Primary Teachers, which is designed to "help all those involved in primary education, whether in training, teaching or leadership roles, to develop the ICT knowledge, understanding and skills required to enhance children's learning in the classroom." Copies of the book can be found in Summer Row Library at 371.334 HAL, though you may need to reserve a copy as it's already proving popular.

The book also has a number of associated online resources which are hosted on the PrimaryICT website; they can be accessed from this link.

Support for All: Families and Relationships

A quick politics lesson: a 'Green Paper' is the name given to a document containing proposals which is issued by a government; while it doesn't change the law, it is often the case that after consultation and feedback from relevant bodies and other political parties, a Green Paper is revised and subsequently turned into legislation.

Today sees the launch of Support for All: the Families and Relationships Green Paper, which contains government plans to help prevent family breakdown, support the roles of fathers and grandparents, and improve flexible working options for parents. You can read a summary of the proposals in this BBC article, while the full text of the Paper is available here.

Wellbeing & Creative Learning

A few new items which have come to light over the weekend...

A new report from the Young Foundation details a study which concluded that children's outcomes were greatly improved when schools ran a programme focused on boosting wellbeing. The report, entitled The State of Happiness, argues (among other things) for the teaching of resilience to schoolchildren, and can be read online. On a similar theme, the DCSF has just published Promoting the Emotional Health of Children and Young People, which is a guidance document that sets out the core support and services which children, young people and families require.

Also new is a piece of research from Ofsted investigating the impact of creative approaches to learning. The report examines 44 different schools and concludes that creative approaches to learning have a positive impact on pupils' personal development and preparation for life beyond school. For a link to the research, click here.