Governing the transition to higher levels of education and differences between achievement and school grades by gender

The author will explore the performance of boys and girls in external examinations in Slovenia at the beginning of upper secondary and tertiary education. These are critical points in students’ educational career at which he/she has to choose a school/university. Since both transitions are managed centrally by appropriate authorities, this is also a question of Educational Governance. Transitions between levels of education should, above all, assure fairness in selection procedures. At the point of transition to upper secondary schools we will explore differences between students’ achievements in various school subjects tested at the national assessment of knowledge (NA), and their school grades by gender. Since only school grades are used as admission criteria to upper secondary schools, this comparison of school grades with external and more objective measure of students’ achievement will show possible bias. In Slovenia admission to tertiary education usually consists of (externally assessed) Matura results and school grades in the last two years of upper secondary school. The author will compare the effects of both most commonly used measures of academic achievement on admission in view of gender differences. Study courses where selection procedure was actually applied will be of specific interest since they can show signs of (un)fairness. Results show signs of bias and build case for better Educational Governance. (DIPF/Orig.)

Recognition in programmes for children with special needs

The purpose of this article is to examine the factors that affect the inclusion of pupils in programmes for children with special needs from the perspective of the theory of recognition. The concept of recognition, which includes three aspects of social justice (economic, cultural and political), argues that the institutional arrangements that prevent ‘parity of participation’ in the school social life of the children with special needs are affected not only by economic distribution but also by the patterns of cultural values. A review of the literature shows that the arrangements of education of children with special needs are influenced primarily by the patterns of cultural values of capability and inferiority, as well as stereotypical images of children with special needs. Due to the significant emphasis on learning skills for academic knowledge and grades, less attention is dedicated to factors of recognition and representational character, making it impossible to improve some meaningful elements of inclusion. Any participation of pupils in activities, the voices of the children, visibility of the children due to achievements and the problems of arbitrariness in determining boundaries between programmes are some such elements. Moreover, aided by theories, the actions that could contribute to better inclusion are reviewed. An effective approach to changes would be the creation of transformative conditions for the recognition and balancing of redistribution, recognition, and representation. (DIPF/Orig.)

Die Banalität des Guten. Zur Begründung der moralischen Erziehung

Das pädagogische Verhältnis wird fundiert von einem sozialen Verhältnis, in dem sich Erzieher und Edukand gegenseitig als Subjekte anerkennen. Die erste Aufgabe, die ein neugeborenes Kind und seine primären Pflegepersonen zu lösen haben, ist der Aufbau eines Bereichs von Intersubjektivität, durch den erzieherische Handlungen allererst möglich werden. Erziehung als Prozeß der Beeinflussung von Subjektivität kann als sukzessive Erweiterung der reziproken Beziehung von Erzieher und Edukand verstanden werden. Damit lassen sich grundlegende moralische Kategorien im personalen und edukativen Verhältnis von Erzieher und Edukand festmachen. Denn die beiden Moralprinzipien der Gerechtigkeit und des Wohlwollens entsprechen der symmetrischen Beziehung von Erzieher und Edukand einerseits und ihrem asymmetrischen Verhältnis andererseits. Die erzieherische Situation ist selbst ein Ort moralischer Erfahrungen. Daß Kinder bereits früh zu moralischer Einsicht fähig sind, zeigen neuere psychologische Untersuchungen. Ziel der moralischen Erziehung kann es daher nicht sein, Kinder gut zu machen, sondern ihnen bei der Interpretation und Anwendung ihrer moralischen Intuitionen behilflich zu sein. (DIPF/Orig.)