Classification of Horn of Africa school children: is it appropriate for the educational authorities in England to refer to them as refugees?

Drawing on evidence from a PhD study, this paper raises questions about the appropriateness of English educational authorities to continue to refer to the Horn of Africa children, most of them born in the UK, as refugees. The word refugee, in its broad definition, seemingly masks fundamental differences and may reinforce stereotypical perceptions of immigrant children. Many Horn of Africa people tend to define themselves using their respective national identities. Thus, the paper recommends that when the educational authorities want to categorize children of Horn of Africa origin, they should consider using the Department for Children, Schools and Families’ extended ethnicity codes or preferably refer to them simply as Eritreans, Ethiopians, Somalis and Sudanese.     

Teachers' Representations on Adoptive Families and Educational Practices: New Challenges in Teachers' Preparation

In Italy, as in Europe, the number of internationally adopted school-aged children is increasing. The school is the first place where they can meet their new context, enabling good achievement of the whole integration and adoption processes. The research uses a qualitative method to explore the representations and the strategies that guide the educational work of 268 teachers of eight primary schools in relation to the adoptive family. ATLAS.ti 7.0 software was used. The results show an ambivalent representation of the adoptive family, which is reflected in the contents and strategy used by teachers to address issues of adoption.     

Speaking With and Without Words—An Analysis of Foster Children’s Expressions and Behaviors That Are Suggestive of Prior Sexual Abuse

This exploratory study reports on foster children’s informal self-disclosures of previously unknown histories of sexual abuse. Data were collected from 40 children’s files, and an inductive thematic analysis of verbal and behavioral expressions was conducted. Findings suggest that foster children’s self-disclosures can be fragmented, spontaneous, narrative, or triggered and often occur during everyday activities in the foster family. The children disclose their past by referring to the perpetrator or the severity of the abuse or by acting out, mostly by reenacting sexual abuse experiences. In addition, some children use childish vocabulary focusing on genitals or sexual acts they were involved in or want to be involved in. Last, some foster children seem to be linguistically challenged to disclose that a female person abused them or that they were forced to reciprocate sexually. This study adds to the understanding of the complex process of child sexual abuse disclosure in the context of foster care.     

A different head? Parental agency and early intervention

This paper considers the agency and identity of parents of children with Down syndrome within early intervention. It draws upon semi‐structured, conversational interviews with nine parents and the reflections of one of the authors upon their experiences within early intervention programmes. It considers how representations of the deficit model permeate the participation of the parent in this process. It explores the multiple identities of the parents and links these to notions of parental participation within the current policy context of early intervention in England. The notion of parental agency is an implicit driver within the current early intervention programmes, yet it appears to be compromised by the nature of those programmes.     

湖南农村人口老龄化及其养老保障的对策思考

根据2000年全国第五次人口普查公布的数据,湖南省特别是农村已进入老龄化的行列,并呈现出数量大速度快、地区不均衡、家庭功能弱化等特点。目前,湖南农村养老主要形式包括家庭养老、五保供养、社会养老,其养老保障也存在着养老资金不足、医疗保健匮乏、社会服务滞后、精神生活单调、法规落实欠缺等问题。针对现实情况,我们提出相应对策:拓展多元融资渠道,老有所养;建立新型医疗体系,老有所医;增加老人社会参与,老有所为;注重农村精神慰籍,老有所乐;加大政府关注力度,老有所保。     

In‐Hospital Paternity Establishment and Father Involvement in Fragile Families

This article assesses the effectiveness of in‐hospital paternity establishment, a federal requirement since 1993. We avoid biases in previous studies by using a national sample of nonmarital births (N= 3,254), by including detailed controls for characteristics of unwed mothers and previously unavailable controls for characteristics of fathers, and by estimating reduced form models of the effects of strong paternity establishment regimes. We find that paternity establishment rates are now quite high—69%—and that 6 of 7 paternities are established in the hospital. Even after controlling for previously unavailable characteristics, establishing paternity (in and outside the hospital) is significantly and positively associated with formal and informal child support payments and father‐child visitation. These results hold up in the reduced form models.     

Parents’ awareness of lesbian,gay, and bisexual youths’ sexual orientation

This study used a sample of 293 lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth to examine factors that differentiated youth whose parents knew of their sexual orientation from youth whose parents did not know. Earlier awareness and disclosure of same‐gender attractions, greater childhood gender atypicality, and less internalized homophobia were characteristic of youth whose parents were aware of youths’ sexual orientation. Youth with aware parents reported more past verbal victimization on the basis of sexual orientation from parents, yet more current family support and less fear of future parental victimization on the basis of their sexual orientation.     

The Noncustodial Father–Child Relationship From Adolescence Into Young Adulthood

The relationship between adult children aged 18 – 24 and noncustodial fathers was explored with longitudinal data from the National Survey of Families and Households (n = 359). Noncustodial fathers’ commitment to their adolescent children (contact, involvement in childrearing decisions) was strongly associated with father‐child relations in early adulthood. Father–adult child relations were weaker when children were born to an unmarried mother and when children had no memory of living with the father. Contrary to expectations, both mothers’ and fathers’ remarriage was associated with stronger father‐child relationships in early adulthood. The results show continuity in the father‐child relationship from adolescence into young adulthood and suggest that the life course transitions of family members influence the father‐child bond.     

Rearranging the Puzzle: Working Systemically with Stepfamilies when Parents Re‐partner

This paper develops a systemically informed tool‐kit of therapeutic ideas for working with stepfamilies. First, systemic thinking is applied to the stepfamily context, and compared to traditional stepfamily lenses. Second, an integrative frame is used to incorporate a range of systemic therapeutic practices, to match four specific stepfamily issues. These practices are demonstrated through a fictional clinical vignette weaved throughout the paper. Finally, the challenge of being flexible in integrating theory is discussed.     

美国高校与学生关系法律调整理念的转变及其启示

高校与学生关系法律调整理念对于完善中国高等教育法律具有重要指导意义。论文详细考察了美国高校与学生关系法律调整理念的两次重要转变,指出其转变过程是高校与学生之间的权利义务关系随政治经济背景的变化达到的一种新的平衡。且在美国高校与学生关系法律调整理念变化中有一条不变的主线,即始终承认高校与学生之间是一种特殊关系。通过分析美国的经验,厘清了中国当前存在的对高校与学生法律关系的认识误区,提出了适合中国国情的高校与学生关系法律调整理念。