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Education staff wellbeing and workload:‘Causing Concern’ in the proposed Ofsted Inspection Toolkits
No full textWe, like many of you, have been very interested in Ofsted’s current consultation on proposed changes to their inspections in England, following the biggest consultation Ofsted have ever undertaken; the 2024 ‘Big Listen’. The proposals relate to inspections of early years (EY), schools, further education (FE) and skills providers and initial teacher education (ITE). Proposals include the introduction of inspection toolkits, and grades for a range of areas, on a 5-point scale from causing concern (red) through to exemplary (black). which you can see in draft here https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/improving-the-way-ofsted-inspects-education.In this blog, we are taking a ‘deep dive’ into a specific area of the proposed Inspection Toolkits; staff wellbeing and workload, which appears in the school, early years and FE toolkits in the Leadership and Governance section. Here we are using the ITE toolkit for our ‘deep dive’ as our own wellbeing research has been in this sector (Wood & Quickfall, 2024). In the ITE toolkit, staff wellbeing and workload are covered in the final section entitled ‘Professional behaviours, personal development and well-being’
Followership identity construction:an insight on the non-profit sector
No full textPurpose - The purpose of this study was to understand and examine the relationship between follower self-identity and organisational commitment, with an examination of how trust indirectly influences the relationship between follower self-identities and organisational commitment. Design/methodology/approach - To test the established hypotheses, partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) was utilised. The data were obtained from 612 European board members in the non-profit sector from organisations in the UK, France, Germany and Switzerland. Findings - The results show that the relationship between follower identity factor with trust and commitment are positive and significant. Results also show follower identity had an indirect effect on commitment through trust. The presence of a strong level of follower identity can help reinforce the trust between the chief executive and the governors/board members in the organisation. Originality/value - This study is innovative in the sense that it seeks to gain a better understanding of the mediating role of trust between follower identify and commitment in the non-profit sector
Predicting marital adjustment in cancer patients:the impact of attachment styles, disease type, and stage on marital duration
No full textIntroductionThis study examined the interplay between marital relationships and individual adjustment to cancer, considering the influence of attachment styles and marital duration under high-stress conditions.ObjectivesThis research aims to elucidate how these factors modulate the marital quality and the psychological well-being of individuals and their partners.MethodsA total of 312 participants, comprising 223 cancer patients and 89 partners, completed the Golombok-Rust Inventory of Marital State and the Adult Attachment Inventory. Linear mixed-effects models were used to analyze the relationships between marital adjustment, attachment styles, and marital duration.ResultsThe findings indicated that females diagnosed with cancer reported significantly poorer marital adjustment compared to their male counterparts (both p < .05). Notably, secure attachment was significantly positively associated with better marital adjustment (β = .18, p = .016), while ambivalent attachment was significantly negatively associated with worse marital adjustment (β = -.11, p = .029). These patterns persisted across both patients and their partners, with no significant differences based on sex. Additionally, the impact of attachment styles on marital adjustment did not vary significantly with marital duration (all p > .05).ConclusionsThese results underscore the complexity of the marital dynamics among couples confronting cancer. The data reveal that secure attachment enhances marital stability, whereas ambivalent attachment detracts from it, irrespective of the sex of the respondent or marital duration. This study adds to the body of literature by highlighting the nuanced ways in which attachment styles influence marital dynamics under the strain of cancer. The implications for clinical interventions emphasize the importance of fostering secure attachment behaviors in couples therapy, particularly in contexts involving significant health challenges
From surface to depth:resolving two problems in the grammar of belief
No full textIn Between Knowledge and Certainty, I argued that Wittgenstein’s distinction between knowledge and certainty is not just epistemological but grammatical (Ellis 2025). This paper revisits that claim in light of two potential challenges: first, that a statement can express certainty only if it expresses a true knowledge claim; second, that belief-in God’s existence depends on belief-that God exists. I argue these are not genuine epistemological problems, but grammatical misunderstandings resulting from a failure to distinguish surface from depth grammar
A difficult start for the UK Labour government, but time is still on their side
No full textThe newly elected Labour Government in the United Kingdom promised change. However, the first 10 months have been disappointing, characterized by misjudged announcements regarding the Winter Fuel Allowance and Employers' National Insurance contributions. Yet, there is still time to get back on track with welfare reform and create a new welfare state that other countries can replicate. To this end, this commentary argues for a shift from means-testing to universalism across welfare provision. It further contends that a basic income should be gradually introduced based on affordability and public support. Additionally, it proposes that these changes be funded through taxation on wealth, particularly targeting online billionaires profiting from automation. Welfare reform represents an opportunity for Labour to make a difference and regain public trust and support, as evidence indicates public backing for restoring our public services. With the election of a Labour Government in the United Kingdom, there is a once-in-a-generation chance to address welfare reform and establish a new welfare state that other countries can admire. So far, the Labour Government's rhetoric and actions have been aligned with dampening expectations. The new government has experienced a disappointing first 10 months, marked by controversy after controversy stemming from inexperience and incompetence. Moreover, they have begun using antiwelfare rhetoric, such as the threat to remove driving licenses from benefit fraudsters. Therefore, we argue that Labour needs to be reminded of its mission to restore public services
"It Should be Equality for All." Sustaining Engagement in Women's Amateur Football: A Qualitative Study
No full textObjectives: Despite the resounding benefits of sport for physical (e.g., fitness), mental (e.g., self-esteem) and social (e.g., belonging) well-being, women are significantly underrepresented in amateur football compared to men (e.g., under 25% of women have ever played on a football team compared to 61% of men). The reasons behind this disparity are not known. Our work aimed to address this gap, exploring the capabilities, opportunities, and motivations for women playing amateur football.Design: Informed by a relativist ontology, social constructionist epistemology, and the COM-B model, a cross-sectional qualitative inquiry was conducted. Method: We conducted semi-structured interviews (Mduration = 50 minutes) and a photovoice task with four purposively sampled women who play amateur football. Data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis.Results: Three themes were created and presented via composite vignettes providing an authentic account of what it means to be an amateur female footballer. The vignettes detail: the importance of consistent access to football; the need for investment and visibility; and football as a vehicle for female identity.Conclusions: Our findings demonstrate that amateur women’s football can foster sustained physical, mental, and social well-being. However, there is a need for more sufficient financial (e.g., improved facilities), social (e.g., increased representation) and emotional support (e.g., accommodating individual needs). These insights may allow practitioners to understand the vital role they play in empowering women by helping to instigate the positive changes needed within male-dominated sports. The findings could also guide governing bodies in creating more engaging spaces for female football to flourish. Content Note Guidance: The exploration of women’s experiences of playing amateur football, through a qualitative inquiry and reflexive thematic analysis about an under-represented population, could emotionally resonate with delegates. However, there is not expected to be any sensitive content discussed or represented in the poster
How to engage students with (open) science:make it relevant, in-depth, and proactive
No full textCritically engaging undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral students in science means, according to the Structure of Observed Learning Outcomes, developing their relational and extended abstract level scientific literacy. Consequently, we invite the reader to join us - four fellow educators - on a journey as we share and reflect on three case studies from our teaching practice where we have facilitated scientific literacy: i) introducing students to open science through the use of existing datasets to explore sensitive topics, ii) evaluating the evidence behind bold media claims, and iii) discussing publication bias and its influence on evidence synthesis. In practice, educators can adopt these case studies; but we go further in reflectively outlining a useful set of commonalities and practices across them that can be used by educators in developing relevant, in-depth and proactive teaching and learning activities to promote relational and extended abstract level scientific literacy
Diagnosing hydraulic directional valve spool stick faults enabled by hybridized intelligent algorithms
No full textThe hydraulic directional valve represents a fundamental component of a hydraulic system. The severe operating environment could cause undesirable faults, with the spool stick being the particular concern. It will lead to a reduction in the overall performance of the operating system, even with the potential for failure. To address this issue, this study presents a hybrid intelligent algorithm-based diagnostic approach for the hydraulic directional valve spool stick fault to facilitate timely industrial inspection and maintenance. Firstly, the monitoring signals on hydraulic directional valves are denoised using wavelet packet denoising (WPD). Then, the denoised signals are decomposed via sparrow search algorithm (SSA) optimized for variational mode decomposition (VMD) in order to obtain a typical fault feature vector. Finally, a combined model of the convolutional neural network (CNN) and the long short-term memory (LSTM) is employed to diagnose the valve spool stick fault. The results of this study indicate that the proposed approach can reduce the signal processing time by 56.60%. The diagnostic accuracy of the approach is 97.01% and 96.24% for sensors located at different positions, and the accuracy of the fusion sensor group is 99.55%. These fault diagnostic performances provide a basis for further research into hydraulic directional valve spool stick fault and are appliable to other hydraulic equipment fault diagnosis applications.</p
Disclosing sexual abuse:an exploration into why female victims do not report
No full textThis research explores the complex interplay of psychological, cultural, and systemic factors influencing victims’ experiences of sexual violence, with a focus on delayed reporting, non-reporting, and withdrawal of complaints. Employing a mixed-methods approach, this study integrates qualitative and quantitative data to provide a nuanced understanding of victim behaviour and societal trends. The findings highlight the pervasive impact of victim-blaming attitudes, cultural and religious pressures, and systemic barriers within the criminal justice system, which collectively deter survivors from seeking justice