Scottish secondary education from a critical community psychological perspective: power, control and exclusion

摘要: of Thesis Entitled: Scottish Secondary Education from a Critical Community Psychological Perspective: Power, Control and Exclusion This research examines problematic taken for granted issues in Education, critical community psychological perspective. Young people are positioned as central to the research, particular young experiencing exclusion being most disempowered group education, fully understand problems they experience thesis develops standpoint with people. Methodologically is grounded approach praxis. reflection, action knowledge construction all influence one another cyclically complex relationships, at times conflicting others developing together dialogically these relationships embraced reflected upon carefully. Power viewed inextricably linked knowledge, what legitimated within certain frame reference ‘truth’ or ‘reality’, constructed by dominant groups power do so. Ethnography was carried out three educational settings: mainstream High School; Special School city centre catering exclusion; Youth Project where permanently excluded were on an alternative curriculum. Qualitative methods used varied tailored way each setting included Participatory Action Research work people, interview teachers, active participation settings leading fieldwork notes, collection textual information. Analysis involved careful examination wide variety material, drawing various discourse analysis. The material analysed ways which education made possible placed limits legislation, social practices, speaking being. assumption that adults must be control found absolute pervasive, stemming societal ideas but also perpetuating them. emerged throughout my practices school available Inclusion, while often spoken relation equality justice, practice conditional, re-positioned this form control. described expelled suspended, repositioned more generally learning peers, argued inherently problematic. Problematic, institutional, placing speaking, such reflection secondary becomes very difficult Ways examined demonstrate imposes being, find opportunities resist reconstruct. examined, between settings, account performance resistance compliance developed. draws multi disciplinary use theory, literature, methodology methods, doing so constructs people’s experiences based By grounding interests particularly those exclusion, it challenges assumptions dominance have implications whole operating within.