Breastfeeding is known to confer benefits, both in the short term and long term, to the child and also to the mother. Various health-promotion initiatives have aimed to increase breastfeeding rates and duration in the United Kingdom over the past decade. In order to assist in these endeavours, it is essential to understand the reasons why women…

The increasing recognition that children and young people should be consulted and involved in decision-making about their lives is reflected in national and international legislation. A great deal of this legislation, stemming from the UN convention on the Rights of the Child (1989), requires education authorities to consult children and young…

A research review examined information sources used by British youth in making college choices. Sources differed by gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status (SES), and attainment. Assessment of the feasibility of college application varied by ethnicity, gender, SES, attitudes, and location. Results reveal the socially embedded nature of college…

Asks 12 conservation management experts by interview and 34 science teachers using questionnaires as to the essential underpinning concepts of biological conservation. Identifies 45 biological concepts as contributing to a good understanding of conservation management with the teachers emphasizing ecological concepts at the expense of fundamental…

Two decades ago Wilf Carr and Stephen Kemmis published "Becoming Critical". Its impact upon burgeoning action research, particularly in the field of education, has been substantial and sustained. However, times have changed. The purpose of this article is to revisit this influential text and explore its currency today. The article is…

Recent developments, such as passage of the Children Act 2004, subsequent implementation of "Every Child Matters: Change for Children" and increase in funding to councils for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS), the Local Government Association (LGA) asked the NFER to examine the funding mechanisms and priorities in…

Using data for 2,722 British adolescents explores whether work-related skills and career role models are associated with career maturity when sociodemographic characteristics, family support, and personal characteristics are controlled. Having work-related skills and having a career role model were positively associated with career maturity.…

A study investigated the attitudes of British first-year polytechnic or university students (n=38) and employed graduates (n=80) in science and technology fields up to age 30, concerning their choice of science/technology or nonscience/technology fields. Results indicate why some students are deterred from science/technology. (Author/MSE)

Reviews the literature on local school management, especially the latter's potential for influencing school efficiency and effectiveness. Explores three areas: formula funding effects, resource allocation, and changing patterns of influence in school decision making. Local school management may enhance efficiency or economy without substantially…

The costly National Grid for Learning initiative embodies the fast-growing influence of both market and technological forces in UK education. An initial study reveals that the NGFL does not represent a radical shift toward business-dominated educational policy-making, but reflects New Labour's "healthy pragmatism" toward policy…

The article reports from a qualitative study of family group conferencing in Wales. Family group conferences are meetings of extended family networks that are convened in order to plan for a child's care and welfare. They are an attempt to enable families to have a greater say in welfare decisions and often particularly encourage children's…

A seminar held on a kibbutz in Israel in which educators from the United Kingdom, Canada, and Israel discussed school-based curriculum development is described. (RM)

Discusses a postal survey of British primary headteachers showing that most principals have senior management teams (SMTs). Makes comparisons with secondary-school SMTs; summarizes heads' accounts of their teams' origin, structure and role; and presents tentative models of team decision making. Describes heads' criteria for judging team…

The Parental and School Choice Interaction (PASCI) study is investigating how English secondary schools are responding to an environment characterized by heightened competition and increased parental choice and how school decisions affect parental choice decisions. Plans to study four consumer empowerment models (competitive market, personal…

Institutional research as a tool for supporting management decision making has a relatively short history in the United States and is much less prevalent in the United Kingdom, especially in colleges. This paper outlines the principal roles and functions of an institutional research office, discusses staffing issues, and suggests practical roles…