Articles
This section of the site contains a range of articles which may be of interest in respect of the work you do with young people who are disaffected or excluded from school.
Articles featured on the PINS site do not necessarily reflect the views of The Pupil Inclusion Network Scotland.
- Behaviour
- Schools
- Families
- Additional support
- Young People looked after away from home
- Mental health
- Substance misuse
- Children’s services
- Young people's voices
In this section we only provide links to articles which can be read in full. We also provide brief summary information from articles which have been sourced from e-journals. To read the full text of these articles you will need to have an online subscription or make a single article purchase from the particular e-journal. Alternatively, you might want to contact your local library service or the National Library of Scotland who hold copies of the journals featured.
Behaviour
In this section you will find articles regarding children and young people’s challenging behaviour.
New! - Teacher Verbal Feedback Directed Towards Secondary Pupils with Challenging Behaviour and its Relationship to their Behaviour, J. Swinson and R. Knight, Educational Psychology in Practice, Vol 23 No.3 (2007)
In this study teacher verbal behaviour that was directed towards those pupils that the teachers had nominated as being especially difficult to teach was examined. Teachers tended to give more attention to the designated pupils in the form of positive feedback directed towards their work, but also negative attention directed towards their behaviour. The results are discussed both in terms of strategies used by teachers but also the effect that labelling of the pupils might have on the behaviour of the teachers and the pupils themselves.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to the Educational Psychology in Practice or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland http://www.nls.uk/
New! - Restorative Justice: two examples from New Zealand schools, J. Wearmouth R. McKinney and T. Glynn, British Journal of Special Education, Vol 34 No.4 2007
This article discusses two examples of restorative justice in practice to illustrate how community norms and values can help encourage more socially appropriate behaviour. Both examples come from a New Zealand Maori context and interventions undertaken with young men whose behaviour was of concern in school and in the local neighbourhood. The interventions operated by shifting focus away from individuals on to the whole community in order to focus on ‘putting things right’ between all those involved in the wrong doing. These examples show how restorative justice can resolve tensions, make justice visible and re-establish harmonious relations between the individuals, the school and between members of the community.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to the British Journal of Special Education or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland http://www.nls.uk/
New! - Making sense of disengagement in the primary classroom: a study of pupil, teacher and parent perceptions, J. Ravet, Research Papers in Education, Vol 22 No.3 Sep (2007)
This paper is based upon findings of an interpretative, school-based study of pupil, teacher and parent perceptions of disengagement within the primary classroom. It examines how pupil and parent perceptions support or challenge professional discourses about pupil behaviour, raising questions about the nature of disengagement and the intervention strategies used to manage it. The central finding of the study is that pupil, teacher and parent perceptions show a striking lack of inter-subjectivity. It is argued that the underlying lack of shared meaning between teachers and pupils skews classroom interaction and obfuscates teacher intervention, accounting for the poor relationships, and the break down of teaching and learning, in the classroom observed.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to the Research Papers in Education or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland http://www.nls.uk/
Exclusion and Marginalisation in Adolescence: The Experience of School Exclusion on Drug Use and Antisocial Behaviour, Patrick McCrystal Andrew Percy and Kathryn Higgins, Journal of Youth Studies, Vol 10 No 1 (2007)
This paper reports on part of the Belfast Youth Development Study and investigates the link between school exclusion and the onset and development of adolescent drug use. The findings show higher levels of drug use and antisocial behaviour among school excludees, lower level of communication with their parents/guardians, higher levels of contact with the criminal justice system and increased likelihood of living in communities characterised with neighbourhood disorganisation.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to the Journal of Youth Studies or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland http://www.nls.uk/School exclusions and masculine working class identities
This paper considers the experience of boys who have been marginalised by school in that they have been formally excluded for periods of between three days and four weeks.
Read the article here.
City of Glasgow nurture group pilot scheme evaluation, Brendan Gerrard, Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties, Volume 10 Number 4 (2005)
This article provides an overview of the City of Glasgow nurture group pilot scheme. The article provides an overview of the project and the outcomes are described as positive.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland.
Bad, mad or sad: constructions of young people in trouble and implications for interventions, Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties, Gale Macleod, Volume 11 Number 3 (2006)
This paper examines the history of policy relating to pupils with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties in Scotland, noting the continued co-existence of both punitive and welfare approaches. This paper argues for a revitalisation of approaches to young people in trouble which are grounded in a more welfarist approach.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland.
Helpful and unhelpful practices in meeting the needs of pupils with emotional and behavioural difficulties: a pilot survey of staff views in one local authority, British Journal of Special Education, Peter Lloyd Bennett, Volume 33 Issue 4 (2006)
Respondents in this survey were asked to identify the practices and forms of additional support which, in their view, resulted in successful and less successful outcomes for pupils. The author presents ideas about staffing, strategies, training, multi-agency work, provision and the role of parents.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to the British Journal of Special Education or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland.
Re-engaging disaffected youth through physical activity programmes, British Educational Research Journal, R Sandford, K Armour and P Warmington, Volume 32 Number 2 (2006)
This paper reviews key literature, focusing particularly on disaffected young people and physical activity interventions in the school context, and identifies six key issues that warrant consideration when planning physical activity programmes to en-engage disaffected young people.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to the British Educational Research Journal or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland.
An evaluation of a short cognitive-behavioural anger management intervention for pupils at risk of exclusion, Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties, Neil Humphery and A Brooks, Volume 11 Number 1 (2006)
The aim of the current study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a short cognitive-behavioural anger management intervention in reducing problem behaviours in school, and to identify factors that may facilitate or impede participant progress on such a programme
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties (Taylor Francis Group) or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland.
Re-engaging disaffected pupils in learning: insights for policy and practice, Improving Schools, Kathryn Riley, Volume 9 Number 1 (2006)
This article summarises findings from an ongoing research and development project. Key features of which include: involving the students themselves as change agents; enabling them to experience learning in an active outdoor education environment; creating time and opportunities for staff to work with their students in new ways; and developing strategies which will remove the barriers to learning for disaffected students.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to Improving Schools or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland.
‘Over to You’: Group work to help pupils avoid school exclusion, Educational Psychology Practice, Sheila Burton, Volume 22 Number 3 (2006)
This paper describes the support of secondary pupils at risk of school exclusion through a course of group work designed to promote individual responsibility for behaviour.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to Educational Psychology in Practice or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland.
Schools
In this section you will find articles which consider trends within schools and how they could potentially impact on young people’s education.
Social capital, social inclusion and changing school contexts: A Scottish perspective, McGonigal et al, British Journal of Educational Studies, Vol 55 No 1 (2007)
This paper offers a collaborative review of social capital theory, with particular regard for its relevance to the changing educational landscape within Scotland. The review considers the common and distinctive elements of social capital, developed by the founding fathers – Putnam, Bourdieu and Coleman – and explores how these might help to understand the changing contexts and pursue opportunities for growth. The article suggests schools need to reinstate values of trust and norms of co-operation and that discussion of these values should take place in the staffrooms, departmental bases and classrooms.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to the British Journal of Educational Studies or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland http://www.nls.uk/Families
In this section you will find articles regarding information on families.
New! - An approach to understanding school attendance difficulties: pupils’ perceptions of parental behaviour in response to their requests to be absent from school, A. Sheppard, Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties, Vol 12 No.4 Dec (2007)
This small scale study collected data on parent-child interaction immediately prior to school absence to examine how such interaction influenced the development of attendance difficulties. School absence requests were significantly more frequent among the poor attenders, who gained more absence and whose parents were inconsistent in their responses to the requests. Education social work/welfare services and school pastoral staff need well-formulated methods if they are to work effectively with parents and young people and substantially raise their low attendance.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to the Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland http://www.nls.uk/
Additional support
In this section you will find articles which engage with the issue of working with young people with additional support needs.
Taking a Line for a Walk: Including School Refusers, George Head and Sandy Jamieson, Pastoral Care, September (2006)
This article explores the experience of a group of young people who experience difficulty attending school. Young people’s reasons for not attending school and the support provided for them by teachers are examined. An analysis based on a shift in identity from school refuser to effective learner is offered as an explanation for the student’s success in coping with school. In this approach the focus shifts from an emphasis on participation to learning. In other words, the focus of priority shifts from the teacher and the school to the pupil. This shift allows pupils to challenge identities of themselves based on helplessness and the reason for their absence from school. It also promotes a framework of decision making, action and self help which encourages the pupil to construct another identity for themselves based on learning and efficacy.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to the Pastoral Care or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland http://www.nls.uk/
Pupils perceptions of an alternative curriculum: Skill Force, Hallam et al, Research Papers in Education, Vol 22 No 1 (2007)
This research explored pupils perceptions of participation in Skill Force and the perceived impact on their motivation, attitudes to school, attendance, exclusions, behaviour and attainment. The findings demonstrated that the programme was successful in meeting the needs of many disaffected students, improving their motivation, confidence, communication and social skills. It reduced exclusions, improved behaviour, attendance, attitudes towards education and attainment and also provided students with a range of practical, vocational qualifications.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to the Research Papers in Education or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland http://www.nls.uk/
Evaluating Circle Time as a support to social skills development – reflections on a journey in school-based research, British Journal of Special Education, Catherine Canney and Alison Byrne, Volume 33 Number 1 (2006)
The purpose of this study was to investigate the merits of Circle Time as a classroom intervention aimed at improving the social skills of students with a mild intellectual disability.
http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1467-8578.2006.00407.x
Young people looked after
Here you will find articles relating to information regarding young people who are being looked after away from home.
New! - Looked After Children: Non-local authority placements and meeting educational needs, A. Thomson, Educational Psychology in Practice, Vol 23, No.3 Sep (2007)
The following research reports on an investigation of educational psychologists views on the educational implications of non-local authority residential placements for 12 young people. The findings show that non-local authority residential placements were usually precipitated by care crises and tended to have a negative impact on the extent to which educational needs were met. Action implications for local authorities and educational psychology services are given regarding casework, working with other agencies, local commissioning of establishments and areas for further research.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to the Educational Psychology in Practice or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland http://www.nls.uk/
Mental health
In this section you will find articles relating to young people, mental health and school.
‘Part of Who we are as a School Should Include Responsibility for Well-Being’: Links between the School Environment, Mental Health and Behaviour, Jenny Spratt, Kate Philip and Cate Watson, Pastoral Care, September (2006)
Drawing on a Scottish Study, this article examines ways in which the school environment can impact upon the well-being of pupils and their associated behaviour. The authors argue that in many cases, schools attempt to address mental well-being by bolting fragmented initiatives onto existing systems. They suggest a more fundamental review of values, policies and practices throughout the school is needed. Schools should draw on the skills and understandings of interagency workers not just to work with the most troubled pupils but to build new cultures throughout the school for the benefit of all children and young people.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to Pastoral Care or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland http://www.nls.uk/
Emotional Intelligence and Education: A Critical Review, Humphery et al, Educational Psychology, Vol 27 No 2 (2007)
This article discusses what we mean by emotional intelligence. What impact would improved emotional intelligence have on learner’s emotional health and well being, academic achievement, and other key adaptive outcomes? And, can emotional intelligence be taught? The article suggests that more convincing evidence from high quality studies is needed to better understand the link between emotional intelligence and education.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to Educational Psychology or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland http://www.nls.uk/
Substance misuse
Articles relating to young people and substance misuse.
New! - Pre-teenage Children’s Experiences with Alcohol, J. McIntosh F. MacDonald and Neil. McKeganey, Children & Society, Vol 22 Issue 1 Jan (2008)
This article reports on the drinking experiences and motivations of 77 pre-teenage children. A number of causes for concern are identified in this article. These include the frequency of the children’s drinking and the volume of alcohol consumed by some of them; their tendency to combine different types of alcoholic drink in the same session; the unreliability of measures undertaken by the children to reduce risk and ensure their safety and the ease with which alcohol could be obtained. These findings emphasise the need for drug education programmes to alert children to the dangers of alcohol consumption and equip them with the skills to deal effectively with peer pressure. There is also a pressing need to improve the leisure facilities for young people as alternatives to drinking and other problem behaviour.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to the Children & Society or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland http://www.nls.uk/
Children’s services
In this section you will find articles which engage with the issue of delivering effective children’s services.
Collaborative working across children’s services: Where are we now? Gillian Barclay and Claire Kerr, Educational and Child Psychology, Vol 23 No 4 (2006)
This study explores how collaborative working across child and adolescent mental health and psychological services is developing in Edinburgh. The results supported much of the literature surrounding this issue. Good communication, improved resources and resource management, informal links and a better understanding of the roles of others leads to better collaborative working.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to the Educational and Child Psychology or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland http://www.nls.uk/
Young people's voices
In this section you will find articles which document the experiences of young people regarding their education and other issues which affect them.
New! - Enabling pupil participation in a study of perceptions of disengagement: methodological matters, J. Ravet, British Journal of Special Education, Vol 34 No.4 (2007)
This article explores the methodological issues raised by a study of pupil perceptions of their disengagement in the primary school classroom. The article details the array if interpretative methods used throughout the study with a particular focus upon a sequence of practical, activity based interview formats designed to enable pupil communication and participation. The article closes with a call for pupils to be more effectively involved in reflecting upon the processes of participative research and in meaningful partnerships for school improvement.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to the British Journal of Special Education or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland http://www.nls.uk/
To attend or not to attend? Why some students chose school and others reject it, Support for Learning, John Dwfor Davies and John Lee, Volume 21 Issue 4 (2006)
The authors address the issue of why certain students, who apparently will gain little from school, in terms of certification, continue to attend school. They argue that ignoring the reasons why students actually attend school is a major oversight in current research.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to Support for Learning or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland
Exclusion and excluded pupils, British Education and Research Journal, Pamela Munn and Gwynedd Lloyd, Volume 31 Number 2 (2005)
This article draws together the views of a small sample of pupils excluded from school. The article concludes that, while many individual schools and teachers try hard to sustain difficult and challenging pupils in mainstream school, the problems faced by both are intractable. The focus on school policy and practice distracts attention from broader social and economic problems requiring solutions.
To read this article in full you will need to subscribe to the British Education and Research Journal or make a single article purchase. This journal is also available through the National Library of Scotland
