Leadership as dance : a consideration of the applicability of the ‘mother’ of all arts as the basis for establishing connoisseurship

This article follows the lead of several researchers who claim there is an urgent need to utilize insights from the arts, aesthetics and the humanities to expand our understanding of leadership. It endeavours to do this by exploring the metaphor of dance. It begins by critiquing current policy metaphors used in the leadership literature that present a narrow and functional view of leadership. It presents and discusses a conceptual model of leadership as dance that incorporates key dimensions such as context, dance and music and includes Polyani’s concept of connoisseurship. This article identifies some of the tensions that are inherent in both notions of dance and leadership. The final part of the article discusses the implications the model raises for broadening our understanding of leadership and school leadership preparation programmes. Three core implications raised here are (i) making space for alternative metaphors in leadership preparation programmes; (ii) providing opportunities to students of leadership to understand through alternative learning approaches and (iii) providing opportunities for engagement in alternative research agendas.

How can universities support beginning teachers?

Many beginning teachers struggle in teaching, consequently, tertiary education has been criticised for not preparing preservice teachers well enough. This qualitative study uses interviews and questionnaires to investigate 10 first-year teachers’ understandings of how universities can support them more effectively. The findings indicated that university preparation needed more literacy (particularly reading and spelling), numeracy, catering for lower socio-economic students, understanding behaviour differentiation, and communicating with parents. A two-prong approach may support beginning teachers: (1) timely induction and mentoring within school settings, and (2) research for advancing teacher education coursework to ensure currency of addressing beginning teachers’ needs.

Students with AD/HD-related behaviours : Saudi mainstream teachers' knowledge and attitude towards inclusion

This study investigated Saudi mainstream primary teachers' knowledge of AD/HD and their attitudes towards the inclusion of students with AD/HD-related behaviours. The study also explored the relationships among teachers' attitudes towards inclusion, knowledge of AD/HD, efficacy beliefs for teaching students with behavioural problems, and relevant background factors such as teacher age, training and experience, and class size. In the first phase of the study, more than 200 Saudi teachers completed a four-part self-report questionnaire while in the second, 8 teachers completed semi-structured interviews. Findings from both phases of the study indicated that although teachers' knowledge of AD/HD was somewhat limited, they generally held positive attitudes towards the inclusion of students with AD/HD-related behaviours in regular classrooms. Additional significant influences on teachers' attitudes included class size as well as teachers' training and self-efficacy beliefs.

Why trust the head? Key practices for transformational school leaders to build a purposeful relationship of trust

Trust is widely recognized as one of the key qualities that a successful leader needs to bring about change within his/her organization. Literature has also shown that trust plays a pivotal role in effective school leadership. However, little research has been undertaken to identify specific actions of a transformational school leader enabling him/her to develop purposeful relationships of trust with his/her staff and Chair of the school’s governing body. Using a theoretical framework of transformational leadership in the context of the independent schooling sector in Australia, a multicase study of four highly trusted, transformational school leaders revealed 10 key trust building practices in the Head–staff dyad and three practices in the Head–Chair dyad. These practices were independent of the leader’s personal attributes. The study also revealed an inextricable link between trust and transformational leadership.

"We don't tell people what to do": An ethnography of health promotion with Indigenous Australians in South East Queensland

This thesis contributes to the decolonisation of health promotion by examining Indigenous-led health promotion practice in an urban setting. Using critical ethnography, the study revealed dialogical, identity-based approaches that centred relationship, community control and choice. Based on the findings, the thesis proposes four interrelated principles for decolonising health promotion and argues that Indigenous-led health promotion presents a way to bridge the rhetoric and practice of empowerment in Australian mainstream health promotion practice.

Steady compressible flow of granular materials through a wedge-shaped hopper: The smooth wall, radial gravity problem

A continuum model based on the critical state theory of soil mechanics is used to generate stress and density profiles, and to compute discharge velocities for the plane flow of cohesionless materials. Two types of yield loci are employed, namely, a yield locus with a corner, and a smooth yield locus. The yield locus with a corner leads to computational difficulties. For the smooth yield locus, results are found to be relatively insensitive to the shape of the yield locus, the location of the upper traction-free surface and the density specified on this surface. This insensitivity arises from the existence of asymptotic stress and density fields, to which the solution tends to converge on moving down the hopper. Numerical and approximate analytical solutions are obtained for these fields and the latter is used to derive an expression for the discharge velocity. This relation predicts discharge velocities to within 13% of the exact (numerical) values. While the assumption of incompressibility has been frequently used in the literature, it is shown here that in some cases, this leads to discharge velocities which are significantly higher than those obtained by the incorporation of density variation.

Steady compressible flow of cohesionless granular materials through a wedge-shaped bunker

A continuum model based on the critical-state theory of soil mechanics is used to generate stress, density, and velocity profiles, and to compute discharge rates for the flow of granular material in a mass flow bunker. The bin–hopper transition region is idealized as a shock across which all the variables change discontinuously. Comparison with the work of Michalowski (1987) shows that his experimentally determined rupture layer lies between his prediction and that of the present theory. However, it resembles the former more closely. The conventional condition involving a traction-free surface at the hopper exit is abandoned in favour of an exit shock below which the material falls vertically with zero frictional stress. The basic equations, which are not classifiable under any of the standard types, require excessive computational time. This problem is alleviated by the introduction of the Mohr–Coulomb approximation (MCA). The stress, density, and velocity profiles obtained by integration of the MCA converge to asymptotic fields on moving down the hopper. Expressions for these fields are derived by a perturbation method. Computational difficulties are encountered for bunkers with wall angles θw [gt-or-equal, slanted] 15° these are overcome by altering the initial conditions. Predicted discharge rates lie significantly below the measured values of Nguyen et al. (1980), ranging from 38% at θw = 15° to 59% at θw = 32°. The poor prediction appears to be largely due to the exit condition used here. Paradoxically, incompressible discharge rates lie closer to the measured values. An approximate semi-analytical expression for the discharge rate is obtained, which predicts values within 9% of the exact (numerical) ones in the compressible case, and 11% in the incompressible case. The approximate analysis also suggests that inclusion of density variation decreases the discharge rate. This is borne out by the exact (numerical) results – for the parameter values investigated, the compressible discharge rate is about 10% lower than the incompressible value. A preliminary comparison of the predicted density profiles with the measurements of Fickie et al. (1989) shows that the material within the hopper dilates more strongly than predicted. Surprisingly, just below the exit slot, there is good agreement between theory and experiment.

Agentes comunitários de saúde e os desafios da educação permanente: reflexões sobre a experiência do Programa Telessaúde Brasil Núcleo Rio de Janeiro

Este estudo traz uma reflexão sobre os desafios de educação permanente dos Agentes comunitários de Saúde inseridos no projeto Telessaúde/Rio de Janeiro. Temos como objetivo geral discutir o processo de educação permanente desses colaboradores inseridos no Projeto Telessaúde, Núcleo Rio de Janeiro, ressaltando os usos reais e potenciais das ferramentas da educação à distância, na perspectiva da educação crítica. Os objetivos específicos são: descrever o perfil demográfico de utilização de ferramentas de educação permanente a distância de Agente comunitário de saúde (ACS) do Estado do Rio de Janeiro inseridos no Telessaúde RJ, segundo as regiões administrativas do Rio de Janeiro; descrever e analisar a participação dos ACS no Telessaúde RJ durante o ano de 2009 nas atividades de teleconferências; discutir, com base na participação dos ACS no Telessaúde RJ, o papel da mediação da internet e das ferramentas do Telessaúde RJ no seu trabalho, na perspectiva pedagógica crítica. A metodologia utilizada é quali-quantitativa, no intuito de descrever, quantificar e classificar os dados em relação aos ACS que estão inseridos no Telessaúde. A coleta de dados se deu a partir de um relatório das oficinas presenciais e da análise de 100 formulários preenchidos pelos ACS nos workshops realizados nas regiões administrativas do Rio de Janeiro e no registro de teleconferências. Resultados: o relatório das oficinas nos mostrou que os ACS vêem no Telessaúde não só um espaço para troca de experiências, mas também para a educação permanente em serviço. Foi evidenciando na análise dos formulários, que a faixa etária na amostra de 100 dos ACS é de 23 a 38 anos com 59 ACS. Além disso, observou-se que os ACS utilizam a internet diariamente, com predominância do vinculo empregatício por CLT, acessam SIAB e DATASUS com frequência, realizam trabalho multidisciplinar com médicos e enfermeiros, propõem temas para capacitações pelo Telessaúde, em relação à assistência às teleconferências de 555 ACS no ano de 2009. Concluímos que a inserção do ACS no Telessaúde, com vistas à educação permanente, é uma real possibilidade e o estudo nos mostrou que eles vêem esta proposta do Ministério da Saúde como inovadora e viável.

Serviço Social e sistema penitenciário: um estudo sobre a possibilidade de materialização das diretrizes do atual projeto ético-político do Serviço Social brasileiro.

O presente estudo abordou a possibilidade de materialização do atual Projeto Ético-Político do Serviço Social brasileiro na direção social impressa no trabalho dos assistentes sociais que atuam na Secretaria de Administração Penitenciária do Rio de Janeiro (SEAP), com vínculos trabalhistas precários. Selecionamos os profissionais com contratos temporários, ou seja, precários, por entendermos que a fragilidade do vínculo trabalhista pode ser um importante fator de acirramento e de agudização da tensão inerente ao trabalho profissional do assistente social nesse campo sócio-ocupacional, impactando prejudicialmente não só nas condições de trabalho dos profissionais, mas, de modo importante, na qualidade dos serviços prestados aos usuários e, por conseguinte, nas possibilidades e limites de materialização do atual Projeto Profissional crítico. Daí por que considerarmos necessários estudos que se voltem aos profissionais com vínculos trabalhistas precários, especialmente profissionais que atuam em locais complexos como a Secretaria de Administração Penitenciária. Destacamos a relevância de investigações que se atenham ao trabalho profissional, na medida em que se constitui locus privilegiado de contato entre o assistente social e aqueles que atende, tendo em vista o caráter interventivo da profissão. A pesquisa empírica foi realizada por meio de entrevistas com assistentes sociais que trabalham na SEAP, com o perfil selecionado, ou seja, vínculo trabalhista precário. Utilizamos, ainda, nossa experiência como assistente social, as observações no campo e as conversas informais com os entrevistados. Esta investigação foi orientada pela teoria social crítica, ou seja, o materialismo histórico e dialético.

The politics of hazard: imminent critique and deconstruction of ecological modernisation in Ireland

This dissertation sets out to provide immanent critique and deconstruction of ecological modernisation or ecomodernism.It does so, from a critical social theory approach, in order to correctly address the essential issues at the heart of the environmental crisis that ecomodernism purports to address. This critical approach argues that the solution to the environmental crisis can only be concretely achieved by recognising its root cause as being foremost the issue of material interaction between classes in society, and not simply between society and nature in any structurally meaningful way. Based on a metaphysic of false dualism, ecological modernisation attributes a materiality of exchange value relations to issues of society, while simultaneously offering a non- material ontology to issues of nature. Thus ecomodernism serves asymmetrical relations of power whereby, as a polysemic policy discourse, it serves the material interests of those who have the power to impose abstract interpretations on the materiality of actual phenomena. The research of this dissertation is conducted by the critical evaluation of the empirical data from two exemplary Irish case studies. Discovery of the causal processes of the various public issues in the case studies and thereafter the revelation of the meaning structures under- pinning such causal processes, is a theoretically- driven task requiring analysis of those social practices found in the cognitive, cultural and structural constitutions respectively of actors, mediations and systems.Therefore, the imminent critique of the case study paradigms serves as a research strategy for comprehending Ireland’s nature- society relations as influenced essentially by a systems (techno- corporatist) ecomodernist discourse. Moreover, the deconstruction of this systems ideological discourse serves not only to demonstrate how weak ecomodernism practically undermines its declared ecological objectives, but also indicates how such objectives intervene as systemic contradictions at the cultural heart of Ireland’s late modernisation.

Sehzwang als Blindheit - Versuch zum 'diagnostischen Blick' in der Sonderpädagogik

Der diagnostische Blick ist einserseits notwendige Voraussetzung zur Festellung von sonderpädagogischem Förderbedarf bzw. entwicklungsspezifischen Förderangeboten, andererseits verengt sich eben dadurch professionelle Wahrnehmung. Sonderpädagogen entgehen dieser Aporie nicht. (Autor)

Beyond homo economicus: Recognition, self-realization and social work

This paper builds on Ferguson's important contribution to the debate on personalization in social work that appeared in the British Journal of Social Work in 2007. Whereas Ferguson approached the topic through the lens of political philosophy, the account below draws on critical social theory to examine not only the nature of personalization, but also its supportive pillar of individualization. In particular, Axel Honneth's critique of individualization in modern society is presented before setting out his ideas on the need for self-realization through inter-subjective recognition. The implications of Honneth's position are then considered in terms of four interrelated dimensions of social work practice, namely: (i) social work as symbolic interaction; (ii) social work as care; (iii) social work as respect; and (iv) social work as validation. It is argued that this constellation of practices poses a direct and necessary challenge to a social work of personalization.

Mandated prevention in child welfare: Considerations from a framework shaping ethical inquiry

Summary: This article outlines a framework for approaching ethical dilemmas arising from the development, evaluation and implementation of child welfare policies. As such, it is relevant to policy-makers, social researchers and social workers. The central tenets of the framework are developed by drawing on ideas from moral philosophy and critical social theory. These ideas are presented as axioms, theorems and corollaries, a format which has been employed in the social sciences to offer a rational justification for a set of claims. • Findings: This process of reasoning leads to four principle axioms that are seen to shape the ethical scrutiny of social policy: 1) problematizing knowledge; 2) utilizing structured forms of inquiry to enhance understanding; 3) engendering enabling communication with those affected by the ethical concern; and 4) enhancing self-awareness. • Applications: The four axioms are then applied, by way of example, to the current and contentious, 'third way' policy of mandated prevention in child welfare, where the aim is to obviate deleterious outcomes in later life. It is argued that the framework can be applied beyond this specific concern to other pressing, ethical challenges in child welfare.