Educational inequalities in quantity, duration and type of tobacco consumption among lung cancer patients in Asturias : Epidemiological analices

Resumen tomado de la publicaci??n

Education system institutions and educational inequalities in Uruguay

This article shows how certain aspects at the secondary level of Uruguay’s public school system produce inequalities in student achievement. The 2006 edition of the Programme for International Student Assessment (pisa) (oecd, 2006a) points to three key aspects of the institutions that regulate secondary education that play a part in reproducing inequalities of origin, hindering the equalizing role that guides the education system. First, the teacher assignment mechanism has the dual effect of sending a revolving door of young and inexperienced teachers to schools in unfavourable sociocultural contexts as well as concentrating teachers with more experience in schools in favourable contexts. Second, the geography-based system for assigning students to schools reproduces the residential segregation process. Lastly, the centralized system for supplying educational and technological materials is inadequate to the needs of the schools.

Summary statistics, educational achievement gaps and the ecological fallacy

Summary statistics continue to play an important role in identifying and monitoring patterns and trends in educational inequalities between differing groups of pupils over time. However, this article argues that their uncritical use can also encourage the labelling of whole groups of pupils as ‘underachievers’ or ‘overachievers’ as the findings of group-level data are simply applied to individual group members, a practice commonly termed the ‘ecological fallacy’. Some of the adverse consequences of this will be outlined in relation to current debates concerning gender and ethnic differences in educational attainment. It will be argued that one way of countering this uncritical use of summary statistics and the ecological fallacy that it tends to encourage, is to make much more use of the principles and methods of what has been termed ‘exploratory data analysis’. Such an approach is illustrated through a secondary analysis of data from the Youth Cohort Study of England and Wales, focusing on gender and ethnic differences in educational attainment. It will be shown that, by placing an emphasis on the graphical display of data and on encouraging researchers to describe those data more qualitatively, such an approach represents an essential addition to the use of simple summary statistics and helps to avoid the limitations associated with them.

Trends in socioeconomic inequalities in cancer mortality in Barcelona: 1992–2003

Abstract Background The objective of this study was to assess trends in cancer mortality by educational level in Barcelona from 1992 to 2003. Methods The study population comprised Barcelona inhabitants aged 20 years or older. Data on cancer deaths were supplied by the system of information on mortality. Educational level was obtained from the municipal census. Age-standardized rates by educational level were calculated. We also fitted Poisson regression models to estimate the relative index of inequality (RII) and the Slope Index of Inequalities (SII). All were calculated for each sex and period (1992–1994, 1995–1997, 1998–2000, and 2001–2003). Results Cancer mortality was higher in men and women with lower educational level throughout the study period. Less-schooled men had higher mortality by stomach, mouth and pharynx, oesophagus, larynx and lung cancer. In women, there were educational inequalities for cervix uteri, liver and colon cancer. Inequalities of overall and specific types of cancer mortality remained stable in Barcelona; although a slight reduction was observed for some cancers. Conclusion This study has identified those cancer types presenting the greatest inequalities between men and women in recent years and shown that in Barcelona there is a stable trend in inequalities in the burden of cancer.

Expected and Unexpected Consequences of the Educational Expansion in Europe and the US. Theoretical approaches and empirical findings in comparative perspective

A main mechanism behind the change in European and North American societies in the second half of the 20th century is the educational expansion, i.e. the increase in educational opportunities and the higher demand for education. Whereas other abstract social processes like modernization have been widely theorized in social science literature, the educational expansion and its consequences in particular have not been well studied. Therefore the main aim of this compilation is to deal with the question of whether the demands of the educational reforms have been fulfilled and which other consequences the educational expansion has had. This book will focus on consequences of the educational expansion for individuals and their life courses as well as for the social structure and other societal areas such as culture and politics. Aspects that will be analysed in the light of educational expansion include participation in education, educational inequalities, labour market outcomes, educational returns, and gender differences as well as crime, life expectancy, and lifestyles. Countries analysed in the book include West European countries like Germany, France, Italy and Spain, East European countries (Hungary, Poland, and the Czech Republic) as well as the US.

Negotiating Chineseness through learning Chinese as a Heritage Language in Australia: The role of habitus

While education researchers have drawn on the work of a wide diversity of theorists over the years, much contemporary theory building in these areas has revolved around the work of Pierre Bourdieu. Theory as Method in Research develops the capacity of students, researchers and teachers to successfully put Bourdieu’s ideas to work in their own research and prepare them effectively for conducting Masters and Doctoral scholarships. Structured around four core themes, this book provides a range of research case studies exploring educational identities, educational inequalities, school leadership and management, and research in teacher education. Issues as diverse as Chinese language learning and identity, school leadership in Australia and the school experience of Afro-Trinidadian boys, are covered, intertwined with a set of innovative approaches to theory application in education research. This collection brings together, in one comprehensive volume, a set of education researchers who place Pierre Bourdieu’s key concepts such as habitus, capital and field at the centre of their research methodologies. Full of insight and innovation, the book is an essential read for practitioners, student teachers, researchers and academics who want to harness the potential of Bourdieu’s core concepts in their own work, thereby helping to bridge the gap between theory and method in education research.

The social patterning of health, smoking and drinking in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Finland in 1994-2004

The Baltic countries share public health problems typical of most Eastern European transition economies: morbidity and mortality from non-communicable diseases is higher than in Western European countries. This situation has many similarities compared to a neighbouring country, Finland during the late 1960s. There are reasons to expect that health disadvantage may be increasing among the less advantaged population groups in the Baltic countries. The evidence on social differences in health in the Baltic countries is, however, scattered to studies using different methodologies making comparisons difficult. This study aims to bridge the evidence gap by providing comparable standardized cross-sectional and time trend analyses to the social patterning of variation in health and two key health behaviours i.e. smoking and drinking in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Finland in 1994-2004 representing Eastern European transition countries and a stable Western European country. The data consisted of similar cross-sectional postal surveys conducted in 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002 and 2004 on adult populations (aged 20 64 years) in Estonia (n=9049), Latvia (n=7685), Lithuania (n=11634) and Finland (n=18821) in connection with the Finbalt Health Monitor project. The main statistical method was logistic regression analysis. Perceived health was found to be worse among both men and women in the Baltic countries than in Finland. Poor health was associated with older age and lower education in all countries studied. Urbanization and marital status were not consistently related to health. The existing educational inequalities in health remained generally stable over time from 1994 to 2004. In the Baltic countries, however, improvement in perceived health was mainly found among the better educated men and women. Daily smoking was associated with young age, lower education and psychological distress in all countries. Among women smoking was also associated with urbanisation in all countries except Estonia. Among Lithuanian women, the educational gradient in smoking was weakest, and the overall prevalence of smoking increased over time. Drinking was generally associated with young age among men and women, and with education among women. Better educated women were more often frequent drinkers and less educated binge drinkers. The exception was that in Latvian men and women both frequent drinking and binge drinking were associated with low education. In conclusion, the Baltic countries are likely to resemble Western European countries rather than other transition societies. While health inequalities did not markedly change, substantial inequalities do remain, and there were indications of favourable developments mainly among the better educated. Pressures towards increasing health inequalities may therefore be visible in the future, which would be in accordance with the results on smoking and drinking in this study.

Fracasso escolar e adolescentes infratores: a vulnerabiblidade social de adolescentes de baixa escolaridade

O presente trabalho investigou a relação entre a baixa escolaridade e a prática de atos infracionais, procurando entender alguns fatores associados ao fracasso escolar de adolescentes que passaram pela Vara da Infância e da Juventude de Duque de Caxias. Em especial, buscou entender o fenômeno da exclusão social como elemento relevante relacionado ao tema fracasso escolar: em que medida é possível afirmar que a baixa escolaridade coloca estes adolescentes em situação de vulnerabilidade em relação a práticas ilícitas? Os dados da pesquisa foram obtidos por meio de um questionário e de entrevistas aplicados aos adolescentes infratores seus responsáveis. No total, a pesquisa trabalhou com as respostas de 262 adolescentes infratores que tiveram passagem pela Justiça Infanto-Juvenil de Duque de Caxias, no período compreendido entre maio de 2006 e maio de 2008. Esta pesquisa teve por base principal as idéias de Maria Helena Patto, a respeito da construção do fracasso escolar; Miriam Abramovay, com sua contribuição sobre vulnerabilidade social; Aldaíza Spozati e Miguel Arroyo, que alertam para as questões relacionadas ao acesso, permanência, sucesso e não-fracasso na escola; Alex Eduardo Gallo e Lúcia Cavalcanti de Albuquerque Williams, a respeito do perfil dos adolescentes infratores. A pesquisa revelou que a baixa escolaridade coloca os adolescentes em situação de vulnerabilidade social e que a escola pode ser um fator de proteção à criminalidade.

Desigualdades educacionais no ensino médio brasileiro: avanços e persistências

Com a presente tese, buscou-se investigar as desigualdades educacionais que permeiam o ensino médio, principal gargalo do sistema educacional brasileiro. Inicialmente, questionou-se o papel central da educação como legitimadora das desigualdades sociais nas sociedades democráticas. Apresentaram-se os estudos pioneiros da Sociologia da Educação que procuraram explicar as desigualdades educacionais para, então, abordar as hipóteses teóricas elaboradas sobre as tendências da desigualdade de oportunidades educacionais (DOE) ao longo do tempo. Em seguida, testaram-se empiricamente essas hipóteses a partir de modelos de regressão logística sequenciais que permitiram estimar a evolução do efeito das características da família de origem nas chances condicionais de entrada e conclusão do ensino médio durante um período de mais de vinte anos. Observou-se de forma inédita, de 1986 a 2009, que a DOE relativa ao ingresso e à conclusão desse nível de ensino se manteve significativa e relativamente constante, mesmo no período mais recente no qual as taxas de transição no ensino médio vivenciaram seu maior crescimento. Esses resultados corroboram aqueles previstos pela hipótese da Desigualdade Maximamente Mantida (MMI) e aqueles encontrados por estudos anteriores. Incluiu-se também uma análise das mudanças qualitativas da DOE, evidenciando-se um significativo crescimento, entre o ano de 1982 e a década de 2000, no impacto das variáveis que medem o capital cultural e econômico dos estudantes nas chances destes frequentarem a rede de ensino médio particular. Logo, a estratificação entre a rede pública e particular no ensino médio está cada vez mais marcada pela desigualdade na seleção dos seus respectivos alunos, reforçando a dualidade de desempenho que caracteriza essas duas redes de ensino, conforme previsto pela hipótese da Desigualdade Efetivamente Mantida (EMI). Além dessas análises da evolução quantitativa e qualitativa da DOE no ensino médio, investigou-se o quadro geral de desigualdades que incidem sobre o ensino médio técnico à luz das experiências internacionais, tendo em vista que essa é uma modalidade ainda incipiente no Brasil, mas cuja rede está em rápida expansão. Diferentemente do que ocorre na maioria dos países, os jovens de origem menos privilegiada não são os maiores beneficiários dessa modalidade. Apesar de a mesma ser propagada como principal solução para a falta de qualificação juvenil, a ampliação desse tipo de ensino deve ser avaliada com cautela, tendo em vista o público que está sendo efetivamente atingido e o potencial impacto negativo em termos de estratificação educacional observado nos países que seguiram esse caminho.

Somos tão jovens: estudo geracional sobre juventude na EJA no município de Mesquita

As desigualdades sociais e educacionais contribuem para a reprodução das classes no Brasil. A juventude se encontra no cerne dessa questão como um dos grupos mais atingidos por essa distribuição desigual. Partindo do princípio de que existem diferentes formas de se experimentar a juventude na contemporaneidade e que as classes sociais seriam um importante fator para se pensar as diferentes formas de transição para a vida adulta, este trabalho objetiva discutir a questão da juventude e dos jovens no contexto da desigualdade. Para tanto, foi realizada uma pesquisa quantitativa com jovens alunos da Educação de Jovens e Adultos (EJA), no município de Mesquita (RJ), acerca de suas características e modos de vida; buscando, entretanto, uma possibilidade de generalização desse caso particular do possível. Foram abordados os conceitos de condição e posição juvenil, a fim de se construir um mapa da desigualdade e posicionar esse jovem aluno. Os resultados indicam que há diferenças entre os coortes geracionais que compõe a juventude com relação a suas trajetórias escolares (jovem-adolescente de 15 a 17 anos, jovem-jovem de 18 a 24 anos e jovem-adulto, de 25 a 29 anos de idade). A hipótese é de que essa juventude apresenta indicadores distintos pelas imbricações que implicam as políticas educacionais em vigor, em suas determinadas épocas de entrada e permanência na escola regular. Dessa forma, pensar a juventude nesse contexto pode contribuir para entender melhor quem é o novo público que ocupa os bancos escolares da EJA nos últimos anos e, ainda, tentar interpretar o impacto das políticas de correção de fluxo no plano concreto: na vida desses jovens.

Irish language education and the national ideal: The dynamics of nationalism in Northern Ireland

Since the beginning of the Northern Ireland conflict in the late 1960s, Irish nationalism has been identified as a prominent force in the political culture of the state. Recent studies have suggested, however, that the ‘Nationalist’ population has become increasingly content within the new political framework created by the peace process and the aspiration for Irish unity diminished. In placing the Northern Ireland situation within the theoretical framework of nationalism, this paper will analyse how these changing priorities have been possible. Through an analysis of Irish language study in Northern Ireland's schools, the paper will examine how the political ideals espoused by the nationalist Sinn Féin Party reflected the priorities of the ‘nationalist community’. It will be contended that the relationship between the ideology and ‘the people’ is much more complex than is often allowed for and that educational inequalities are a significant contributing factor to this.