Bumper Crop of New Research

There have been several new reports in recent days which may interest visitors to this site, so without further ado:

• The Cabinet Office has today published Early Intervention: Smart Investment, Massive Savings. This is a report from Graham Allen MP which calls for more money to be spent improving the lives of children from deprived backgrounds.
• New DfE research has concluded that a shortage of high quality childcare could disrupt the roll-out of free places to disadvantaged two-year-olds. The full report for the study can be accessed by clicking here.
• Too Old to Care? is the title of a new report from the Grandparents Plus charity, which argues that many social workers consider grandparents over the age of 65 too old to raise their grandchildren.
• The latest report from the EPPSE Project is entitled Performing Against the Odds, and examines how parents of disadvantaged children can play a role in helping their achievement.
• The DfE has also just published Investigating the Role of Language in Children's Early Educational Outcomes, which examines the impact of the early communication environment in the first two years of a child's life.

Finally, it's National Childhood Obesity Week. To mark the event, research carried out by the University of Worcester has found that many parents are overestimating the amount of exercise that children take.

Eat Your Breakfast!

A new study from the University of Essex has drawn a link between child obesity and breakfast - basically, the researchers concluded that those children who skip breakfast before going to school were more likely to be obese.

The research has been published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, under the snappy title of 'Associations between habitual school-day breakfast consumption, body mass index, physical activity and cardiorespiratory fitness in English schoolchildren.' UCB students can access this article in full via the Gale service in Athens.

Something for Everyone

Bear with me, today's update is going to be a monster. I've been away for a week, during which it seems that the childcare sector has gone into overdrive, so here's a simple update of significant news stories and new research with summaries where available:

• Today the government have announced a review of the Early Years Foundation Stage, which could have wide-ranging implications for all professionals who work with young children. Yet the results of research published today by the Daycare Trust show that the EYFS has strong support among childcare providers.

• A brief research report looking at free schools in Sweden (the model for the proposed changes to many schools in the UK) argues that they have no impact on the achievement of poor or immigrant children. The summary of research evidence by Rebecca Allen of the Institute of Education can be read here.

• This week (Monday 5th July - Sunday 11th July) is National Childhood Obesity Week. To find links to previous research on this topic, take a look at the 'Hot Topics' section in the right-hand column and click on 'Child Obesity.'

• Eurydice has published a new, extensive report entitled Gender Differences in Educational Outcomes: Study on the Measures Taken and the Current Situation in Europe.

• ICT bods may be interested in new research from the NFER entitled Children and Young People's Views on Web 2.0 Technologies.

• The National Centre for Social Research has published Characteristics of Bullying Victims in Schools, which assesses the relative importance of a range of factors that can lead to the bullying of young people.

• Engaging for their Futures and our Society is the title of a new report from the Children's Communication Coalition, and examines how to improve the life chances of children with speech, language and communication needs.

• The Centre for Policy Studies has published Cutting the Children's Plan, a report which suggests areas where savings in children's services can be made in the forthcoming public sector cuts.

• The latest official set of statistical data on children with special educational needs has just been released; very useful if you have an interest in this area!

• Teaching enthusiasts may find Behaviour for Learning useful; this is a research anthology which examines the different learning styles of pupils and teachers' attitudes towards them.

• The National Childminding Association (NCMA) has launched a free childminder engagement tool, to enable childminders and children's centres to collaborate more closely.

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Children

Today's post may be the longest this blog has ever seen; last months issue of OnTheWeb (see this previous post for details of this excellent service) was packed with reports that students may find useful, covering topics such as mathematics, child obesity, preschool education, play, and much more. So without further ado, here's a list of new publications that may be worth a look:

• Mathematics: Understanding The Score is a new report from Ofsted which looks at how maths is currently being taught in UK schools
• Schemes to Promote Healthy Weight among Obese and Overweight Children in England examines the different ways in which the issue of overweight children is being addressed
• How to Halve Child Poverty by 2010: Options for Redirecting Resources to Reduce Child Poverty is a new report from Barnardo's
• 'Fun and Freedom' is the latest report from the Children's Commissioner's Office, and looks at what children have to say about their play experiences and the facilities available to them
• PreSchool Education and it's Lasting Effects: Research and Policy Implications is an interesting new publication from Arizona State University in the UK
• The OECD has published Raising Education Achievement and Breaking the Cycle of Inequality in the United Kingdom
• The Centre for Policy Studies has recently issued some research entitled Youth Mentoring: A Good Thing?
• Working with Challenging and Disruptive Situations in Residential Child Care: Sharing Effective Practice is a new publication from the Social Care Institute of Excellence (SCIE)
• Literacy Changes Lives: An Advocacy Resource is a National Literacy Trust report which looks at the relationship between a child's literacy ability and their achievement later in life
• The latest official statistics on Drug Use, Smoking and Drinking Among Young People in England are now available from the NHS
• Grief Matters for Young Asylum Seekers and Refugees examines the support services available for children who have lost parents or siblings while moving between countries
• For All Ages: Bringing Different Generations Closer Together is a new report from the '4 Children' charity
• Early Intervention: Good Parents, Great Kids, Better Citizens is the latest publication from the Centre for Social Justice

Phew! Normal service will be resumed tomorrow...

Child Nutrition

The issue of healthy eating has been back on the agenda this week, first with a story on Tuesday that cooking lessons will shortly be compulsory for secondary school children. This has been followed by today's announcement that headteachers are being asked to design new lunch box policies, which will outline to parents what constitutes a healthy dinner.

To see previous posts and find links to reports about this subject, why not use the 'Child Obesity' and 'School Dinners' links which are in the 'Hot Topics' list on the right of this page? You may also want to look at the 'School Meals' section of the Guardian website, which brings together various relevant news stories from the last year or so.

Child Obesity

One of the most common enquiries from students is requests for information on child obesity, so no doubt many readers will be interested in today's news story that the Department of Health is considering sending warning letters to parents of children who are found to be overweight.

Other sources of information on this topic are plentiful, so there really is no excuse for not finding useful materials. There are plenty of relevant, up-to-date articles and reports which can be accessed in full through the College's Athens services, or for further suggestions for items accessible through the internet try looking at this previous post.

Obesity

After a quiet couple of months, stories about childhood obesity are once more in the media, after two new studies have highlighted new areas of concern where children's weight is concerned. The first piece of research has recommended that children should not be put on low-fat diets, as their energy needs differ from those of adults. In the second study, researchers working with a group of rats (charming!) have suggested that mothers who eat junk food during pregnancy may unintentionally influence the eating habits of their offspring in later life.

To read the full version of the first study, click on this link. The second article regarding pregnancy can be found in hard copy in Summer Row Library - the reference is below:

Erhuma, A et al. (2007) Prenatal Exposure to Undernutrition and Programming of Responses to High-Fat Feeding in the Rat.
British Journal of Nutrition, Vol. 98, No. 3, pp. 517-524.

Listening to Families / Obesity

If you currently work in a nursery then you may soon be looking at changes to your working hours. A new report entitled Listening to Families was published yesterday by the Daycare Trust, and recommends that nurseries should open at weekends and in the evenings to suit parents whose jobs don't follow the traditional 9-5 working day. The DfES initially funded the research, and appears to have accepted its findings. At present the report doesn't appear to be available online, but I'll be a posting a link when it finally appears so watch this space!

Another story making the headlines today regards the increasing prevalence of obesity becoming a factor in child protection cases. For more information on this subject try looking at this previous post from February.

Child Obesity / Healthy Eating

The issue of child obesity has reared its head again, with the story of an eight year old boy who may be taken into care due to his excessive weight. If this were to happen, it would be a first in a case of this kind.

Anyone with an interest in this topic has plenty of recent literature to explore. Last month the Department of Health published Obesity Guidance For Healthy Schools Coordinators & Their Partners, while 2006 saw reports from Ofsted - Healthy Schools, Healthy Children - and the National Audit Office - Tackling Child Obesity: First Steps. A further selection of useful reports and research can be accessed in full through the Childlink service via Athens.