186 pages
226mm x 145mm
ISBN-10: 1 85856 324 0
ISBN-13: 978 1 85856 324 4
May 2004

The drive to improve educational standards has occurred just when anxieties are soaring about the consequences of exclusion. At the same time, international guidance and UK legislation carry exhortations to consider both the rights of children and also their views. This is a book for teachers, educational psychologists, child care workers, and policy makers.

It considers the competing dilemmas: how do we improve achievement in schools, reduce social exclusion and also listen to the voice of the child? It highlights the social processes in which the fundamental discourses and values of our society are played out in the lives of children - at what age, for example, can they make decisions or even participate in decisions made about their own lives?
By examining the social processes within their own professional domains the authors strive to achieve more progressive and ethical approaches. They challenge theories and practices that serve to marginalize the children with whom they work, and they provide models of intervention and practice that readers can use in their own professional practice.

We learn what children have to say about the curriculum and about school improvement. Chapters examine classroom practice, children in public care, multi-agency working, ADHD and psychostimulants, able underachievers, whether educational psychologists help or hinder, and the effectiveness of nurture groups. The contributors are: Daniela Mercieca, Richard Gamman, Jackie Lown, Stephanie James, Lynn Mackey and Tiny Arora, Lynn Turner, Keith Venables and Katie Clarke, and Brian Willis.

Dr Tom Billington is Course Director for the practitioner doctoral programmes in Educational Psychology at University of Sheffield.

Dr Michael Pomerantz is a Senior Educational Psychologist in Derbyshire and teaches on the University of Sheffield programme.
By considering the voices and experiences of young people, Children at the Margins offers fresh insights into complex issues. It is a useful contribution to a wider debate about the way we conceptualise childhood and engage with children and young people. - Book of the Week - Times Educational Supplement

'Its message is one that requires not just being listened to but acted upon.' - Children Now

'A useful and thought-provoking read for anyone interested in inclusion and in social policy generally. It captured my interest throughout'. - Young Minds Magazine

'I would recommend Children at the Margins to all EPs as a MUST READ and I think it will provide much food for thought for newly experienced EPs alike in these times of change' - Debate.