Violence and aggression against mental health professionals is a global concern with well-documented consequences. In the UK, mental health care is increasingly delivered in the…
Abstract
Purpose
Violence and aggression against mental health professionals is a global concern with well-documented consequences. In the UK, mental health care is increasingly delivered in the community, yet little research has explored practitioner experiences of workplace violence (WPV) outside of inpatient settings. This study aimed to explore how mental health professionals in a UK community mental health team (CMHT) perceive, experience and cope with WPV.
Design/methodology/approach
Face-to-face semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten multidisciplinary professionals based in a CMHT in a UK city. Data was analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis.
Findings
Three interconnected themes emerged. WPV was accepted as inevitable: participants carried on working despite its impact, and feeling unheard by management they gave up on change, perpetuating the perceived inevitability of WPV. Peer support and organisational resources like debriefing, counselling and occupational health improved coping. Stigma and ideas of professional responsibility were barriers to access.
Originality/value
To mitigate against the negative consequences of WPV, CMHTs could offer peer support initiatives, improve communication and availability of organisational resources and involve staff in post-incident decision-making. Recommendations are made to shift the attitude of acceptance of WPV and encourage help-seeking.
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Writing performance is an international issue and, while the quality of instruction is key, features of the context shape classroom practice. The issues and solutions in terms of…
Abstract
Purpose
Writing performance is an international issue and, while the quality of instruction is key, features of the context shape classroom practice. The issues and solutions in terms of teacher practice to address underachievement need to be considered within such a context and the purpose of the chapter is to undertake such an analysis.
Design/methodology/approach
Data from five different research projects (national and regional) of the author and colleagues, and two studies of the author’s doctoral students, are synthesized to identify both common and specific elements of primary/elementary (years 1–8, ages 5–13) teacher practice in writing. These data provide an indication of the practices which appear to be the most powerful levers for developing writing and for accelerating student progress in the context in which the teachers work. These practices are discussed.
Findings
The identified practices are: (1) acquiring and applying deep knowledge of your writers; (2) making connections with, and validating, relevant cultural and linguistic funds of knowledge; (3) aligning learning goals in writing with appropriately designed writing tasks and ensuring that students understand what they are learning and why; (4) providing quality feedback; (5) scaffolding self-regulation in writers; (6) differentiating instruction (while maintaining high expectations) and (7) providing targeted and direct instruction at the point of need. A discussion and a description of writing-specific instantiations of these help to illustrate their nature and the overlaps and interconnections.
Practical implications
As much of the data are drawn from the practices of teachers deemed to be highly effective, classroom practices associated with these teachers can be targeted as a means to improve the quality of instruction more widely in the particular context.
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Viviane M.J. Robinson, Helen S. Timperley, Judy M. Parr and Stuart McNaughton
New Zealand schools are now managed by parent‐elected trustees whoserole is to work in partnership with school staff to formulate andmonitor aspects of school policy. A sample of…
Abstract
New Zealand schools are now managed by parent‐elected trustees whose role is to work in partnership with school staff to formulate and monitor aspects of school policy. A sample of those involved in the partnership (principals, teachers, chairpersons and parents) were asked what role they thought the Board should play in three different types of school policy decision. The results showed that, while there were some differences between primary and secondary respondents, most respondents believed the Board should play a far less influential role in educational than in administrative decisions. Overall, less than 50 per cent of both the professional and lay groups expressed opinions about the Board′s role that were consistent with current government policy on the management of New Zealand schools.
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It will be recalled that in May, 1935, the Minister of Health and the Secretary of State for Scotland appointed an Advisory Committee “to enquire into the fact, quantitatively and…
Abstract
It will be recalled that in May, 1935, the Minister of Health and the Secretary of State for Scotland appointed an Advisory Committee “to enquire into the fact, quantitatively and qualitatively, in relation to the diet of the people, and to report as to any changes therein which appear desirable in the light of modern advances in the knowledge of nutrition.” This appears to be the first occasion in history that a survey dealing with the diet of a whole nation has been set on foot by any government; yet no one can question the prime importance of the subject from a national standpoint.
Viviane M.J. Robinson, Stuart McNaughton and Helen Timperley
The purpose of this paper is to evaluate two recent examples of the New Zealand Ministry of Education's approach to reducing the persistent disparities in achievement between…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to evaluate two recent examples of the New Zealand Ministry of Education's approach to reducing the persistent disparities in achievement between students of different social and ethnic groups. The first example is cluster‐based school improvement, and the second is the development of national standards for literacy and numeracy across the primary sector.
Design/methodology/approach
The evaluative framework used was derived from recent international analyses of the characteristics of school systems, which are either high performers or successful reformers on recent international surveys. Policy documents and evaluation reports provided the evidence on which the evaluation of the two New Zealand (NZ) examples is based.
Findings
The six criteria associated with high system performance and/or reform success were: system‐wide commitment to educational improvement; ambitious universal standards; developing capacity at the point of delivery; professional forms of accountability; strategic resourcing; and institutionalizing the improvement of practice. The present analysis of the NZ reform examples suggests that while there is a broad commitment to more equitable outcomes, a new resolve to introduce and report against national standards, and a high level of espousal of professional accountability, there are significant contradictions between school self‐management and the work that needs to be done to reduce achievement disparities.
Originality/value
This paper's evaluation of these two examples raises important policy questions about the assumptions that are made in the NZ self‐managing system about teacher and leader capability and about where responsibility for school improvement lies.