46. årgang nr. 3 juli 2009

Beskrivelse

9. Jørgensen; Per, Schultz (Researcher in child and family areas). What Happened With the Interests of the Child? Pædagogisk Psykologisk Tidsskrift, 2009, Vol. 46, 111-119. – Two perspectives are used to analyze this question during the last decades. Seen from a judicial viewpoint the situation has improved. The individual child´s needs and rights have been entered into Danish legislation. Seen from a social political angle much has happened; the child is now included in the making of plans for his future, and there has been put much effort into preventive measures generally. However, during the last few years sanctions against e.g. criminal behavior have gained momentum at the cost of more promising measures. Generally both dimensions are extremely sensitive to the economical situation in the country at any given time. – Bjørn Glæsel

10. Juhl, Ole (Director of The Danish Center for Educational Environment). Children’s Rights in Denmark. Pædagogisk Psykologisk Tidsskrift, 2009, Vol. 46, 120-125. – In the Nordic countries there are similarities and differences as to the rights of children. Four of them have appointed a children’s ombudsman, but not in Denmark that has instead a children’s council. These constructions mirror the UN Child’s Convention from 1989, ratified in all of these countries. In the Danish School Act children are seen as important parties in a democratic tradition. They do not, however, have an independent right to make complaints. The law on working environment has few considerations about children apart from limiting the amount of work that may be demanded of children. In 2007 the 11 largest organizations in the child and youth area presented the government with a number of suggestions with the aim of having children’s rights more firmly incorporated in Denmark. – Bjørn Glæsel.

11. Juhl, Ole (Director of The Danish Center for Educational Environment). The Pupils are Experts on Teaching Environment. Pædagogisk Psykologisk Tidsskrift, 2009, Vol. 46, 126-130. – The center has gathered a large amount of information from pupils about their experiences in daily school life. 25% regularly experience negative contacts with teachers, bullying occurs involving abt. 17% , 31% feel bored quite often, abt. 25% feel stressed, 50% find school toilets disgusting, 55% report noise daily or almost daily, 27% often feel tired. If Danish politicians are seriously thinking that schooling is an important factor for the children, many of these problems if not all of them should be addressed. – Bjørn Glæsel.

12. Dahl, Rune (Head of department at the Torshov Competency Center, Norway). The Pupils’ Work Environment Law. Pædagogisk Psykologisk Tidsskrift, 2009, Vol. 46, 132-145. – In 2003 Norway passed an act, ensuring a range of conditions for pupils. Some examples to illustrate this: “All Pupils have the right to a good physical and psychosocial environment, inducing health, well-being, and learning.” “Schools must be planned, built and maintained thus that health, safety, and well-being is furthered”. These clauses ensure the rights of pupils to complain to the school system and to go to court when needed. A survey among school heads show that there is still a long way to go before the law is fully implemented. – Bjørn Glæsel.

13. Ringsmose, Charlotte (Lecturer at the Danish Educational University School). The Psychology of Special Education. Pædagogisk Psykologisk Tidsskrift, 2009, Vol. 46, 146-154. – During the last years changes are taking place in research and in debate as to how we perceive the needs of handicapped persons and their role in society. The older, positivistic focus on brain function, brain damage etc. is being supplemented by research of the healthy, normal brain in a contextual and systemic light. Positive psychology, learning styles, and flow are examples of this. The author examined inclusion of adults with handicaps in the Nordic countries. While most persons with severe special needs live and work in separate institutions, some efforts are being made to include such persons, to teach them ways to become involved, and in some instances to establish special training programs as parts of general further education and not as separate courses. – Bjørn Glæsel.

14. Poulsen; Sten, Clod (Director of Metaconsult). Can Learning Psychology be of Use in the School? Pædagogisk Psykologisk Tidsskrift, 2009, Vol. 46, 155-166. – The thinking about learning and learning theory in Denmark has been strongly influenced by politics for years. Findings from recent research have been excluded. Project learning, teamwork, and pupil-initiated work should not be abandoned, but we are ignoring the importance of some basic concepts and constructs. Memory is one instance of this: new learning disappears if pupils do not bother to have it placed in their longterm memory. Pupil attention and focus is another example: if pupils are not attentive and focused on their teachers’ presentations learning fails. Basic foundation is an absolute prerequisite of any learning constructs. – Bjørn Glæsel.

15. Rasmussen; Ole, V. (Chief educational psychologist in Ballerup). »Just in Time«. How to Outdo Diagnoses and Create Knowledge. Pædagogisk Psykologisk Tidsskrift, 2009, Vol. 46, 167-187. – Diagnoses are a long established part of psychology and psychiatry. There certainly is a need to create alternative concepts as to the needs and problems of children. Aristotle, Spinoza, and Deleuze are used to show that alternatives do exist. The diagnostic process is mirroring the organizational forms that professional meetings have taken. If the diagnostic process is to be developed, and concrete, creative thinking to be prioritized, powerful political and professional goals and categories must be established. – Bjørn Glæsel.