Many individuals experience a sense of déjà vu when smelling a particular scent in the air or on hearing a name or words from the past. At times even the faintest scent or sound…
Abstract
Many individuals experience a sense of déjà vu when smelling a particular scent in the air or on hearing a name or words from the past. At times even the faintest scent or sound may evoke old memories and stir the senses. This is particularly true when the names of long‐ago television and radio programs are heard. Depending on one's age and the part of the country in which one lived, people born before the “baby boom” years (1946–1964) often feel a profound sense of nostalgia about such radio programs as Mr. District Attorney and Fibber McGee and Molly or the television shows Howdy Doody and Toast of the Town/Ed Sullivan Show. These early programs are considered part of the “golden age” of radio and television broadcasting.
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This qualitative study was an exploration on the process of self-reflection on identity. The purpose of this paper is to see how mirrors could be used as a therapeutic tool and a…
Abstract
Purpose
This qualitative study was an exploration on the process of self-reflection on identity. The purpose of this paper is to see how mirrors could be used as a therapeutic tool and a meta-physical bridge to one's inner consciousness.
Design/methodology/approach
An intergenerational expressive arts group (n=12) was organized around the question of identity. Following an open-discussion around the topic of identity, participants were asked to decorate a mirror with words, images, and/or symbols while reflecting on the question, “Who am I?” A post-session interview was conducted regarding participant's experiences during the creative process.
Findings
The results indicated that mirrors can be used to connect to one's inner thoughts and feelings on the question of identity. Three core themes in the process of self-reflection on identity were revealed which included introspection and self-concern, connection and attachment to something or someone other than self, and taking action to help others.
Research limitations/implications
This study was limited not only in size, but also in cultural diversity and disparity of age range. Although this study was limited, it provided a useful indicator for identifying core themes in the process of self-reflection on identity.
Originality/value
While there have been no studies on the therapeutic use of mirrors as a tool for self-reflection and limited intergenerational studies with pre-adolescent and adolescent students and older adults, results from this study will add to the body of expressive arts literature by providing a new metaphor for mirrors as a therapeutic tool for self-reflection on identity.
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Stress and burnout in public school teachers and principals have been well documented for the past 40 years. Sources of stress and burnout are often systemic and include numerous…
Abstract
Stress and burnout in public school teachers and principals have been well documented for the past 40 years. Sources of stress and burnout are often systemic and include numerous factors from low pay to student behavioral issues to accountability pressures. Additionally, stress and burnout in the educational workforce have implications on both the efficacy of individuals' work and their intentions to leave. In a postpandemic era where record numbers of teachers and school leaders are leaving the profession, mitigating burnout and improving the sustainability of the education workforce is essential. This chapter provides strategies at multiple levels, including the individual, school, and district, to reduce negative psychological impacts of educational work and inform structural changes. Policy recommendations at both the state and federal level are also provided. And lastly, implications for educator and principal preparation programs are detailed. Approaching burnout and well-being from a multilevel perspective can rectify both direct and indirect causes of burnout, and a systematic approach is more likely to lead to meaningful, sustained change to better working conditions. Improving the US educational system in a postpandemic era will require concerted efforts to support the head, the heart, and the health of public education professionals.
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Jill M. Gradwell, Misty Rodeheaver and Robert L. Dahlgren
From labor conditions to public health and environmental justice, globalization has created an increasingly complex web of issues surrounding human rights. Research in social…
Abstract
From labor conditions to public health and environmental justice, globalization has created an increasingly complex web of issues surrounding human rights. Research in social studies education points to adolescents’ intrinsic curiosity when engaged in these multiple issues, as well as their idealistic thirst for involving themselves in social progress campaigns. Many students desire involvement and believe in the importance of human rights education within the formal educational setting, especially within social studies curriculum. We report the findings from a qualitative study conducted during a two-week intensive summer institute on human rights and genocide studies in western New York in the summer of 2011. In our study, we found while student participants felt empowered by the institute and their desire to take action was heightened during the experience, they questioned the disconnect between the genocide and human rights education in the Institute and the human rights education they experienced in their social studies classrooms. In comparing the two, they wished there were more authentic learning experiences and a higher level of academic rigor in their social studies classes. Although the New York State curricula, at the time of the study, included human rights education related topics, the interviewed student participants did not recognize its presence and felt human rights education is not a prevalent part of the enacted public school curriculum.
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Melissa Husbands and Jerome Carson
The purpose of this paper is to suggest that student-led case studies are an important way to learn about mental health problems and to highlight this by presenting a case study…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to suggest that student-led case studies are an important way to learn about mental health problems and to highlight this by presenting a case study of the comedic genius Spike Milligan.
Design/methodology/approach
Celebrities live their lives in the public eye. In recent years, many have talked about their struggles with mental health. This paper is based on a student-led case study of the celebrity Spike Milligan.
Findings
This case study suggests one previously under-emphasised issue and argues that Spike Milligan’s wartime experiences may have led to post-traumatic stress disorder. Second, that he may have developed neuro-inflammation, through contracting sandfly fever during the war. This could have been an additional trigger for bipolar disorder.
Research limitations/implications
While this is a single case study, it draws on a wide variety of research sources to back up the arguments advanced.
Practical implications
Student-led case studies provide a way of engaging students more actively with mental health problems.
Social implications
Mental illness is complex, if not more complex, than physical health problems. Case studies of celebrities like Spike Milligan can help develop a public understanding of mental illness, as they already have a working knowledge about the person.
Originality/value
The case study illustrates how Bipolar 1 disorder is a complex and unique condition and that every individual’s illness has different predisposing characteristics. It suggests that student-led case studies are a helpful learning tool.