Social Worlds / ICT

It's been a while since I recommended any publications from the Centre for Research on the Wider Benefits of Learning, so today's post contains details of two reports which they have recently released:

• The Importance of Social Worlds: an Investigation of Peer Relationships examines children in primary schools, and how they form relationships with those around them. The wide ranging report looks at friendships, bullying, and how a child's early development can influence their ability to interact with their peers.
• Use of ICT by Young People in England was published in May, and investigates whether socioeconomic or demographic factors can impact upon young people's usage of ICT, and the effect that this may have on their future career prospects or role as citizens.
  

Leading to Excellence

Ofsted has today published Leading to Excellence: a Review of Childcare and Early Education Provision 2005-08; the detailed report pays particular attention to leadership and management within the sector over this time.

If you'd like to read the whole report or various summarised versions and supporting literature, then you can take a look at the website which Ofsted has set up by clicking here; summaries of the main findings are also available from the BBC and the Guardian.

Homes Fit for Families

The Family & Parenting Institute has recently published a discussion paper entitled Homes Fit for Families. The report looks at how the physical environment of home and neighbourhood can affect children and their families, and suggests some solutions to potential housing problems.

OnTheWeb - Reports from July (Part Two)

Continuing from yesterday's post:

• Anti-Social and other Problem Behaviours among Young Children is a Home Office report which examines risk factors that can lead young people into developing problem behaviours
• Comparison of the Core Primary Curriculum in England to those of Other High Performing Countries has been published by the DCSF, and should be of interest to students who are researching international education
• White Boys from Low-Income Backgrounds: Good Practice in Schools details the outcomes of a small scale Ofsted survey
• Barnardos has just published Family Minded: Supporting Children in Families Affected by Mental Illness; this is a fairly brief leaflet but it does contain some useful information and suggestions for further reading on the topic
• The London Development Agency has released Listening to Parents of Children with Disabilities and Special Educational Needs; a further report on the views of childcare providers is also expected shortly
• Young People and Social Networking Services is a fascinating report from Childnet International which evaluates how such online tools can be used effectively in education, as well as highlighting some of the difficult issues that using them can raise. Suggestions for further reading are also included.

OnTheWeb - Reports from July

I've just received the latest issue of OnTheWeb (see previous post for details), which as usual is packed with details of useful research which has been published in the last month. This month's edition seems to be overflowing with useful stuff, so I'll spread the juicy bits over two posts. Here's the first instalment:

• You Feel Like You're Nothing is the name of a joint publication from the NSPCC and Children's Right's Alliance for England which builds on a 2006 UN Study into violence against children. The report describes children's experiences of suffering violence, and what needs to be done to reduce the problem.
• Also new from the NSPCC is "I Can't Tell People what is Happening at Home"; this investigates the topic of abuse within South Asian communities towards women and children.
• Achieving Change for Children is a Save The Children report that details the work which the charity has been doing in 31 countries during the period April 2007 - March 2008.
• Childline publishes an occasional Casenotes series, which provides insights into the problems that young people can face, based on the calls that Childline deals with. The latest edition looks at the theme of family relationship problems.

Knowing Where to Look

The Young Minds charity has recently published an excellent booklet entitled Knowing Where to Look. The booklet is aimed at people who work with services that address the issue of children's mental health, and points readers towards a wide selection of organisations and websites that contain useful information. Also, the booklet contains useful search tips and advice on how to make sense of materials once you have found them. Strongly recommended.

DCSF Research

The DCSF has been busy again, by recently publishing a number of new research reports; here are two which may interest some of you:

Training and Development Needs of Leaders of Children’s Services contains the findings of research which was carried out between October 2007 and February 2008. The study looked at professionals working in various different areas, and contains a number of recommendations as to how such individuals can be better supported in the short, medium and long term.

Voluntary and Community Sector Services - Their Role in Supporting Parents and Families is a detailed investigation into how voluntary and community services are helping to support objectives which are set out in the Every Child Matters agenda. Again, the study lists a number of recommendations where provision in this area should be reviewed.

Gender Equality

A book which is being published in the UK today already seems to be creating something of a stir; Women and Employment: Changing Lives and New Challenges is the title of a new study from Cambridge University academic Jill Scott, which suggests that support for gender equality regarding women in the workforce is actually declining in the UK.

If you're interested in this topic then this article from the Guardian summarises many of the book's conclusions. You will also find an audio interview in which the author discusses her findings.

Parenting

Those of you with a yen for parenting issues may be interested in two recent research reports from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation:

• Parenting in Ordinary Families: Diversity, Complexity and Change explores parenting in Britain in different social and cultural groups. The report is in two stages; Part 1 is a literature review looking at related material from the last decade, while Part 2 examples a sample of parents living in Bristol.
• Parenting ‘Mixed’ Children: Negotiating Difference and Belonging in Mixed Race, Ethnicity and Faith Families argues that we are now beginning to learn more about children who are brought up in such families, but know little about the parents involved. The report investigates a number of issues relating to mothers, fathers and carers in such situations.

Internet for Children / Guidance for EYFS Practitioners

The two reports in today's post both contain similar subject matter to other documents which some of my recent posts have referred to. So without further ado:

Harmful Content on the Internet and in Video Games is the title of a new report from the cross-party Culture, Media and Sport Committee in the House of Commons. The report covers similar grounds to Tanya Byron's recent research in this area (see previous post for details) and examines how children can best be protected from exposure to inappropriate online material.

Also new from the DCSF is the lengthily-titled Supporting Children with Speech, Language and Communication Needs: Guidance for Practitioners in the Early Years Foundation Stage. If you work in a school with young children, then you may also use the Teachernet site to order a free copy of this guidance which comes with a free, interactive DVD.