This book provides a space in which struggles for indigenous knowledge within communities are articulated, valued, heard, and responded to. The volume takes change as its focus, yet acknowledges that the origins and significance of change are frequently found to be unsettling. Contributors explore different understandings of change that forge sustainable, inclusive and just communities and examine issues related to citizenship, resistance, peacemaking, critical literacies, and second chance opportunities. The authors seek to promote advocacy of change that recognises the importance of an informed engagement with cross-cultural issues in order to foreground those missing perspectives that are often marginalised, silenced, ignored or denied. All contributors are concerned with how the process of change can bridge the gap between social justice and exclusion and develop critical understandings of the implications of changing policy and practice for those within and working with the educational organisations and communities.

This book represents an original and innovative series of insights, ideas and questions concerning inclusive education and cross-cultural understandings. Drawing on historical and cultural material, policy developments, legislation and research findings, the book provides a critical exploration of key factors including inclusive education, human rights, change, diversity and special educational needs. The contributors focus closely on how these factors are defined and experienced within particular societies.

This book shows how children's work can take on widely differing forms; and how it can both harm and benefit children. Differing in approach from most other work in the field, it endeavours to understand working children from their own perspective.

By exploring the key issues, arguments and messages that exist in the field this book provides an international, comparative look at aspects of early childhood education and care. Pedagogical practices, learning cultures and the professional development of practitioners are considered within the wider political agenda of different countries. Pertinent policy and practice issues, such as numeracy and literacy, are carefully examined. The text highlights how important it is to engage with and listen to children, to provide positive learning encounters. Divided into four parts, the book covers: - children′s learning cultures - culture of pedagogy - cultural perspectives on curriculum - cultures of professional development Chapters cover key topics such as: - multi-sensory learning - outdoor learning - children′s voice - children as mentors - literacy and mathematics With expert contributors drawn from across the world, this book is vital reading for all those studying comparative education on early years courses. Theodora Papatheodorou, PhD, is an early years educator and researcher. Janet Moyles is Professor Emeritus at the Faculty of Education, Anglia Ruskin University and an early years consultant.

Filling a significant gap in the cross-cultural and cross-disciplinary literature within the field of Pasifika (Polynesian) and Maori identities and mental health, this volume focuses on bridging mental health related research and practice within the indigenous communities of the South Pacific. Much of the content reflects both differences from and relationships with the dominant Western theories and practices so often unsuccessfully applied with these groups. The contributors represent both experienced researchers and practitioners and address topics such as research examining traditional and emerging Pasifika identities; contemporary research and practice in working with Pasifika youth and adolescents; culturally-appropriate approaches for working with Pasifika adults; and practices in supervision that have been developed by Maori and Pasifika practitioners. Chapters include practice scenarios, research reports, analyses of topical issues, and discussions about the appropriateness of applying Western theory in other cultural contexts. As Pasifika cultures are still primarily oral cultures, the works of several leading Maori and Pasifika poets that give voice to the changing identities and contemporary challenges within Pacific communities are also included.

"Cross-Cultural Communication" is a collection of essays that examines how practitioners can improve the acceptance of their documentation when communicating to cultures other than their own. The essays begin by examining the cross-cultural issues relating to quality in documentation. From there, the essays look at examples of common documents, analysing them from several perspectives. Specifically, the author uses communication theories (such as Bernstein's Elaborated and Restricted Code theory and Marwell and Schmidt's Compliance-Gaining theory) to show how documents used by readers who are not native speakers of English can be written and organized to increase their effectiveness. The principal assumption about how practitioners create their documents is that, while large organizations can afford to write, translate, and then localize, small- to medium-size organizations produce many documents that are used directly by people in other cultures-often without translating and localizing. The advantage the writer gains from these essays is in understanding the strategies and knowing the kinds of strategies to apply in specific situations. In addition, the essays can serve as a valuable resource for students and teachers alike as they determine ways to understand how cross-cultural communication is different and why it makes a difference. Not only do students need to be aware of the various strategies they may apply when creating documents for cross-cultural settings, they also need to see how research can apply theories from different areas-in the case of these essays, communication and rhetorical theories. Another value of the essays is to show the students the role standards play in cross-cultural communication; standards are written by committees that follow style rules developed by the International Standardization Organization in Geneva. Thus, both students and practitioners can find valuable cross-cultural communication advice in these essays.