This book's unique child-centered perspective provides an easy-to-follow model for teaching research methodology to children to participate actively in their own education.

Encouraging young children to create and carry out their own social research projects can have significant social and educational benefits. In addition, their research may help them to influence local and national policies and practices on issues that matter to them. To support this, Developing Children as Researchers acts as a practical guide to give teachers – and other adults who work with children – a set of structured, easy-to-follow session plans that will help children to become researchers in their own right. Comprising of ten session plans that have already been tried and tested in schools, this guide will assist you in supporting child researchers while helping you to develop the techniques for teaching research skills effectively. The session plans also ensure that children’s views are heard and reflected by encouraging their active curiosity and investigation of issues that they may be concerned about. Forming a step-by-step guide, the ten sessions cover themes such as: starting the research process and identifying a research topic; the three key principles of research: be sceptical, systematic and ethical; choosing research participants and drawing up a research plan; the range of data collection and analysis methods; reporting the results of, and reflecting upon, a research project. Children’s research has often depended upon the support of academic researchers to provide resources and training. By making the research training and facilitation process more widely accessible, this guide will help remove the psychological and practical hurdles that teachers and others who regularly work with children might feel about helping children’s research themselves.

This Third Edition of Doing Research with Children is practical introduction to the process of designing, doing and writing up research with children and young people. At the centre is a commitment to engaging with children and young people as active research participants rather than as passive subjects. In the new edition, you′ll find up to date information on the fast-changing political and ethical debates around research with children and young people as well as guidance on how to carry out research yourself. Divided into three sections, the new edition covers: -the main theories and approaches of research with children and young people -expanded guidance on research ethics -techniques for conducting both qualitative and quantitative research -more on analysing your research -a brand new chapter on communicating your research findings. This is a must-have guide for students and practitioners who are engaging in research with children and young people.

′This text will be of great use to postgraduate researchers in education, social work and nursing, and any practitioner involved in carrying out research with children and young people′ - CPD Update ′[T]here is a sense of newness and innovation about the book, whereby the reader is treated to insight into the life and work of collaborators who wrote each case study....[T]he book is highly accessible for students at graduate and undergraduate level, for example BA (Hons) Early Childhood Studies students′ - ESCalate Researching with Children and Young People covers every stage of the process of doing a research project, from research design and data collection, through to analysis and writing up. The book is divided into three sections, in which the authors cover: - Introducing research and consultation with children and young people - Collecting and analysing data - Whole-project issues. Each chapter includes activities, discussion questions, tips and extended case studies to help the reader to engage with the material and investigate the practical implications. This text will be of great use to postgraduate researchers in education, social work and nursing, and any practitioner involved in carrying out research with children and young people.

Thought-provoking, pertinent and engaging, this book provides an overview of every aspect of carrying out research with children. It is unique in its particular focus on vulnerable groups of children such as those with mental-health problems, physical health problems and learning disabilities, along with young offenders and looked after children. The book helpfully addresses each stage of the research process: -Part I introduces the main elements of doing research with children, including seeking ethical approval for sensitive research topics. -Part II guides the reader through the initial stages of the research project including recruitment issues and communicating with gatekeepers. -Part III outlines the data collection, data analysis, writing up and dissemination stages of research and covers both quantitative and qualitative methods. Filled with practical advice and useful activities for each chapter, this book is an essential resource for any student, academic or professional working with, or doing research with, children.

Children are already learning at birth, and they develop and learn at a rapid pace in their early years. This provides a critical foundation for lifelong progress, and the adults who provide for the care and the education of young children bear a great responsibility for their health, development, and learning. Despite the fact that they share the same objective - to nurture young children and secure their future success - the various practitioners who contribute to the care and the education of children from birth through age 8 are not acknowledged as a workforce unified by the common knowledge and competencies needed to do their jobs well. Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth Through Age 8 explores the science of child development, particularly looking at implications for the professionals who work with children. This report examines the current capacities and practices of the workforce, the settings in which they work, the policies and infrastructure that set qualifications and provide professional learning, and the government agencies and other funders who support and oversee these systems. This book then makes recommendations to improve the quality of professional practice and the practice environment for care and education professionals. These detailed recommendations create a blueprint for action that builds on a unifying foundation of child development and early learning, shared knowledge and competencies for care and education professionals, and principles for effective professional learning. Young children thrive and learn best when they have secure, positive relationships with adults who are knowledgeable about how to support their development and learning and are responsive to their individual progress. Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth Through Age 8 offers guidance on system changes to improve the quality of professional practice, specific actions to improve professional learning systems and workforce development, and research to continue to build the knowledge base in ways that will directly advance and inform future actions. The recommendations of this book provide an opportunity to improve the quality of the care and the education that children receive, and ultimately improve outcomes for children.

Early childhood practitioners often experience challenges in being confident enough to make high quality judgements about young children's own constructions of knowledge. This book presents research findings suggesting how everyday activities undertaken by young children expose the many ways they construct knowledge and understanding, and the similarities between their learning behaviours and those of professional researchers. It gives practical suggestions to create opportunities to identify, value and facilitate young children's own constructions of knowledge and understanding within early years settings, not only in terms of statutory requirements but far beyond them.