Who Takes Care of Education 18 months on? A follow‐up study of looked after children's perceptions of support for educational progress

This paper represents a follow‐up publication to the findings of a previous paper by documenting the views of a follow‐up sample of 56 young people, aged 12–19 years, looked after in three English local authorities. Young people were interviewed on two separate occasions, 18 months apart, to assess their perceptions of educational progress and identify factors that might support or hinder their education. The interviews took place as part of an ongoing evaluation of the Taking Care of Education project, a development programme designed to facilitate improvements in the education of looked after children. Most young people were aware of individual project‐related activities and a number of these were seen to contribute towards educational progress. Perceptions of educational progress were significantly higher at follow‐up interview and an increased proportion of young people reported that being looked after had had a positive impact upon their education. Carers and teachers continued to be the most frequently mentioned providers of educational support, but the proportion of comments relating to educational support from social workers increased at follow‐up. The most consistent explanation given for improved educational progress was the availability of support and encouragement for educational progress and acknowledgement of young people's achievements.     

From Ethnic segregation to impact integration: state schooling and identity construction for rural Tibetans

This paper examines the context of ethnic identity formation in schools for rural Tibetan children. It reviews rural primary education within Tibet and the secondary education for Tibetans in boarding schools across China. Data are presented on policies, student recruitment, curriculum, teachers and the campus environment, as they impact on students' identity formation. Although there is little that is multicultural about the learning process in these schools, these schools do not strictly deny Tibetan culture to Tibetan children. The school architecture, sculptures, photographs, wall paintings and so forth provide representations of Tibetan culture, albeit selectively and interpreted by the state in terms of the ideological themes of national unity, patriotism, revolutionary traditions, civilised behaviour and love of Tibet. The conclusion points to a make‐or‐break opportunity for state education to support a more even‐handed cultural policy, rather than the dichotomy of segregation and impact integration.     

Urban forest and environmental inequality in Campos dos Goytacazes,Rio de Janeiro,Brazil

Social and spatial inequality regarding environmental resources and services is one of most complex issues affecting contemporary urban life. The objective of this research is to study the spatial distribution of trees in public areas in Campos dos Goytacazes, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. This research presents data gathered in ten neighborhoods in Campos. These neighborhoods were split into three distinct groups using wealth levels. Data obtained include the number of trees and private gardens and tree species diversity per neighborhood street. Our results demonstrate that the wealthier neighborhoods have both the highest tree biodiversity and number of trees. In contrast, the poorer neighborhoods present a low biodiversity level and fewer tree species. Our results also showed that age of the neighborhoods was not a factor in explaining the number of trees in public spaces. Socioeconomic and education levels of the population seem to play a more causal on tree quantity and species diversity. This inequality stresses a problem with environmental justice, a characteristic of Brazilian cities intrinsically connected to urban sustainability.     

居住社区积极应对城市人口老龄化

文章指出面对中国严峻的人口老龄化形式,城市住区的规划和发展如何配合我国核心的养老模式和对策,将社区中的老年居住问题变为社区生活和建设的有利因素。     

Additively Decomposable Segregation Indexes. The Case of Gender Segregation by Occupations and Human Capital Levels in Spain

Building upon the ideas first exposed by Theil and Finizza (1971) and Fuchs (1975), this paper presents an additively decomposable segregation index based on the entropy concept used in information theory. For any pair of classification variables in a given year, the index is decomposed into a between-group and a within-group term. To analyze intertemporal changes in gender segregation for a given partition, the index is decomposed into two terms that capture, respectively, gender composition effects, and changes in the groups' demographic importance. These decompositions are illustrated with Spanish data on occupations and human capital levels for 1977 and 1992. It is found that, in both years, the higher the educational level, the smaller is gender segregation for most age groups. Moreover, gender segregation decreases with age in all educational categories. However, most gender segregation takes place within, rather than between, age/education categories. Lastly, changes in gender composition across occupations, nearly offset by occupational mix changes, account for a decline of 2% in total gender segregation over this period.     

职业隔离的经济效应——对我国城市就业人口职业性别歧视的分析

劳动力市场中的性别歧视是较普遍的现象,其中职业隔离是性别歧视的主要形式之一.为了分析我国城市就业人口中的职业性别隔离问题,我们使用差异指数法对当前职业隔离的程度进行了测量,并且通过CES生产函数和C-D生产函数对假定消除职业隔离后,各种职业的劳动力性别构成比例、工资水平及经济总产出变化情况做出估计,以期对打破职业隔离提供一些理论依据和政策建议.     

城市人居环境建设的发展趋势

城市人居环境建设的最高追求就是以人为本,满足人不断变化的生存和发展的各种需求。新世纪人居环境建设的成功经验和发展趋势在于:高度关注生态、高度关注人、高度关注文化。     

黟县乡土民居集落及其环境浅析

徽州民居是中国民居建筑体系中一种独立形态。从结合当地的自然环境、社会环境及人工环境出发,探讨了黟县乡土民居集落的形态特征、文化特征和建筑特征与三大环境之间的相互关系。     

Managing sexually abused and/or abusing children in substitute care

This paper reports on research on the characteristics, management and therapeutic treatment of sexually abused and/or abusing children in substitute care. Of the 40 sexually abused and/or abusing young people aged 10 or over in the interview sample, two‐thirds showed sexual behaviours in the placement studied but one‐third did not. The range of sexual behaviours shown by the young people is described. Analysis of the findings shows that four key components of effective management are supervision, adequate sex education, modification of inappropriate sexual behaviour and therapeutic attention to the needs that underlie such behaviour. Supervision includes planning for safe care before placement, preparing other children in the setting, teaching young people how to keep themselves safe when out on their own, and careful monitoring of contact with birth family members. The need for a proactive approach to sex education is stressed. Effective management approaches to masturbation, sexualized behaviour and sexually abusing behaviour are discussed but the processes of denial and minimization of sexual abuse and the development of high thresholds for action when looked after children are abused or at risk are shown to present obstacles to effective care. Finally, the importance of addressing children's deeper needs is emphasized, including the importance of regular review of their need for counselling. At the end of the article two case examples from the study are given.     

Training and Supervision of Counselors at a Residential Grief Camp

Peer-based grief camps, utilizing a volunteer staff, represent one method of mutual aid support for children. Manitou Experience is an example of a week-long residential camp for grieving boys. The recruitment, training, and supervision of Manitou Experience’s camp counselors and clinical team members are explained as they relate to program development and facilitation of positive change in its campers. Strengths and challenges of group processes are explored and discussed.