Jon Swain | University College London (original) (raw)
Papers by Jon Swain
SAGE Publications Ltd eBooks, 2017
Research in Developmental Disabilities
Background: The home literacy environment plays a critical role in the development of children's ... more Background: The home literacy environment plays a critical role in the development of children's literacy and language development. Little is known, however, about the home literacy environment of autistic children, especially those with moderate-to-severe intellectual disabilities. Aims: The current study used a sequential mixed-methods design to understand how parents attempt to engage their autistic children in reading activities and support them in learning to read. Methods and procedure: First, 63 parents (53 mothers) whose autistic children attended an autismspecific special school completed a bespoke questionnaire about the home literacy environments for their children (n = 69, age range = 3-11 years, 61 boys, 8 girls). Second, a subsample of parents (n = 19, 15 mothers) participated in focus groups to understand in-depth their views and experiences of home reading with their children (n = 20, age range = 3-11 years, 19 boys, 1 girl). We used reflexive thematic analysis to analyse the focus group data. Outcomes and results: Across questionnaire and focus group methods, parents were united in considering reading to be an important life skill, a sentiment that was reflected both by their often literacy-rich homes and the ingenuity in their efforts to engage their children in shared homereading activitieseven when such engagement could be challenging. They also emphasised, however, the importance of valuing these activities as an opportunity to "catch a moment" with their child. Conclusions and implications: Parents and teachers should work together to identify ways to enhance autistic children's engagement in shared home-reading activities, listening to and learning from each other's experiences and expertise, and to show what is possible within each learning context.
Culture, Society and Masculinities, Apr 1, 2016
Times Educational Supplement, 1991
SAGE Publications eBooks, Nov 8, 2016
The aims and objectives of the study were to: ? - assess the impact of literacy and numeracy skil... more The aims and objectives of the study were to: ? - assess the impact of literacy and numeracy skills and literacy and numeracy interventions on the personal and professional development of Service personnel and on their operational effectiveness. ? - make recommendations for the most effective interventions and support for Service personnel in their first two years of service. The study focused on recruits assessed with low levels of literacy or numeracy skills on joining the Armed Forces, and the support they received during their subsequent two years in uniform.
Men and Masculinities, 2018
Masculinity and Mediated Intimacy explores the seduction community wherein seduction does not res... more Masculinity and Mediated Intimacy explores the seduction community wherein seduction does not rest on good looks or good fortune but is instead marketed as a skill men can cultivate. The seduction industry offers heterosexual men a free market solution to dissatisfaction with sexual and intimate lives. Surface critique of the seduction industry might position pickup artists or the men who purchase their services as deviant. But O'Neill refutes the notion that these men are outliers, insisting that cultural norms relating to heterosexual men's ideas about women, relationships, and intimacy are informed by the same cultural undercurrents that structure heterosexual men's knowledge outside this community. The brilliance of O'Neill's book is how she looks past the "spectacle of seduction" to uncover knowledge practices and logics embedded in seduction communities as ordinary or an amplified example of issues and attitudes beyond the community. O'Neill considers how men in seduction communities use media to work on their sexual relationships with women, but also conducted interviews and observations of seduction trainings and conferences to understand how mediated intimacy in the seduction community is lived and experienced. O'Neill found that men work hard to maximize returns on their investments. Even when men did find girlfriends, some did not want to end "the game" or lose their seduction skills by settling down. Heterosexual masculinity in the seduction community is constructed homosocially. These men come to understand and value what other men in this community have designated as successful seduction techniques while gaining desired social interactions with other men. The community constructs a space where men can talk with other men about emotions in ways that may be more widely available noncommercially to women. O'Neill argues that men's sexuality and masculinity are socially validated by other men under the pretense of camaraderie and perceived Men and Masculinities 1-2 ª The Author(s) 2018 Article reuse guidelines: sagepub.com/journals-permissions journals.sagepub.com/home/jmm
This document is also available in pdf format from NRDC's website, www.nrdc.org.uk. This is ... more This document is also available in pdf format from NRDC's website, www.nrdc.org.uk. This is the summary version of the full research report of the same name. For information on alternative formats, or to give feedback on the content and accessibility of this publication, please contact:
Journal of Early Childhood Literacy, 2017
This paper presents findings from a study of family literacy provision in England and focuses on ... more This paper presents findings from a study of family literacy provision in England and focuses on the effects of family literacy programmes on the home literacy environment. The fieldwork took place between September 2013 and December 2014 and involved 27 school-based programmes for pupils aged between 5 and 7, and their parents. The study used mixed methods, which involved observations of family literary sessions, a quantitative pre- and post-survey of 118 parents, and pre- and post-telephone qualitative interviews with a sub-sample of 24 parents. Building on previous theoretical work, the study conceptualises the home literacy environment into four areas (family resources; parental literacy behaviours and attitudes; parental beliefs and understandings; and family literacy activities and practices). The paper develops understandings of how parents translate and implement messages from family literacy into the home setting, and it shows how participation in these programmes leads to ...
This paper describes different types of femininity within one working class UK junior school. The... more This paper describes different types of femininity within one working class UK junior school. The fieldwork took place between 1998-99 and the data come from observations and a series of interviews with twelve 10-11-year-old girls. The paper attempts to go beyond using typologies and argues that femininities are more nuanced and malleable, and also temporal and situated. Although all the forms of femininity were constructed through the heterosexual matrix, the findings differ from the work of other researchers in that only two girls attempted to perform Connell's (1987) 'emphasised' form of femininity, and the others were able to resist this dominant discourse.
Men and Masculinities, 2006
This article is based on an ethnographic exploration into the construction of masculinities among... more This article is based on an ethnographic exploration into the construction of masculinities among ten-and eleven-year-old boys in three schools in the United Kingdom between 1998 and 1999. The research found that there were different patterns of masculinity both between and within each setting that drew on the resources and storylines available. The author discusses the way the research was theorized, particularly in relation to the concept of hegemonic masculinity and its link with the body. He interrogates the use of typologies and outlines the reasons why he found them unsatisfactory. Although the terms “hegemonic,” “complicit,” and “subordinate” masculinity are borrowed from Connell, the author found it necessary to propose another form of masculinity, which he calls “personalized.” This was made up from boys who appeared content to pursue their own types of identity, and did not aspire to, or imitate, the leading form. Finally, the author briefly discusses the implications of t...
Arguing that the role of informal conversations in qualitative social and educational research me... more Arguing that the role of informal conversations in qualitative social and educational research methodologies is contested but also relatively neglected, in this article we set out how the method has influenced our research approaches and practice. We use an example of a conversation between one of us and a participant to highlight their nuanced and specific nature, and to raise and interrogate a number of ethical and methodological issues that emerge. We view informal conversations as opportunities to add "context" and "authenticity" to data and argue that they can unlock otherwise missed opportunities to expand and enrich data. We also consider the role of ethical boards and ethical guidelines, and the practical effects and consequences these have for researchers when they use informal conversations during their fieldwork.
SAGE Publications Ltd eBooks, 2017
Research in Developmental Disabilities
Background: The home literacy environment plays a critical role in the development of children's ... more Background: The home literacy environment plays a critical role in the development of children's literacy and language development. Little is known, however, about the home literacy environment of autistic children, especially those with moderate-to-severe intellectual disabilities. Aims: The current study used a sequential mixed-methods design to understand how parents attempt to engage their autistic children in reading activities and support them in learning to read. Methods and procedure: First, 63 parents (53 mothers) whose autistic children attended an autismspecific special school completed a bespoke questionnaire about the home literacy environments for their children (n = 69, age range = 3-11 years, 61 boys, 8 girls). Second, a subsample of parents (n = 19, 15 mothers) participated in focus groups to understand in-depth their views and experiences of home reading with their children (n = 20, age range = 3-11 years, 19 boys, 1 girl). We used reflexive thematic analysis to analyse the focus group data. Outcomes and results: Across questionnaire and focus group methods, parents were united in considering reading to be an important life skill, a sentiment that was reflected both by their often literacy-rich homes and the ingenuity in their efforts to engage their children in shared homereading activitieseven when such engagement could be challenging. They also emphasised, however, the importance of valuing these activities as an opportunity to "catch a moment" with their child. Conclusions and implications: Parents and teachers should work together to identify ways to enhance autistic children's engagement in shared home-reading activities, listening to and learning from each other's experiences and expertise, and to show what is possible within each learning context.
Culture, Society and Masculinities, Apr 1, 2016
Times Educational Supplement, 1991
SAGE Publications eBooks, Nov 8, 2016
The aims and objectives of the study were to: ? - assess the impact of literacy and numeracy skil... more The aims and objectives of the study were to: ? - assess the impact of literacy and numeracy skills and literacy and numeracy interventions on the personal and professional development of Service personnel and on their operational effectiveness. ? - make recommendations for the most effective interventions and support for Service personnel in their first two years of service. The study focused on recruits assessed with low levels of literacy or numeracy skills on joining the Armed Forces, and the support they received during their subsequent two years in uniform.
Men and Masculinities, 2018
Masculinity and Mediated Intimacy explores the seduction community wherein seduction does not res... more Masculinity and Mediated Intimacy explores the seduction community wherein seduction does not rest on good looks or good fortune but is instead marketed as a skill men can cultivate. The seduction industry offers heterosexual men a free market solution to dissatisfaction with sexual and intimate lives. Surface critique of the seduction industry might position pickup artists or the men who purchase their services as deviant. But O'Neill refutes the notion that these men are outliers, insisting that cultural norms relating to heterosexual men's ideas about women, relationships, and intimacy are informed by the same cultural undercurrents that structure heterosexual men's knowledge outside this community. The brilliance of O'Neill's book is how she looks past the "spectacle of seduction" to uncover knowledge practices and logics embedded in seduction communities as ordinary or an amplified example of issues and attitudes beyond the community. O'Neill considers how men in seduction communities use media to work on their sexual relationships with women, but also conducted interviews and observations of seduction trainings and conferences to understand how mediated intimacy in the seduction community is lived and experienced. O'Neill found that men work hard to maximize returns on their investments. Even when men did find girlfriends, some did not want to end "the game" or lose their seduction skills by settling down. Heterosexual masculinity in the seduction community is constructed homosocially. These men come to understand and value what other men in this community have designated as successful seduction techniques while gaining desired social interactions with other men. The community constructs a space where men can talk with other men about emotions in ways that may be more widely available noncommercially to women. O'Neill argues that men's sexuality and masculinity are socially validated by other men under the pretense of camaraderie and perceived Men and Masculinities 1-2 ª The Author(s) 2018 Article reuse guidelines: sagepub.com/journals-permissions journals.sagepub.com/home/jmm
This document is also available in pdf format from NRDC's website, www.nrdc.org.uk. This is ... more This document is also available in pdf format from NRDC's website, www.nrdc.org.uk. This is the summary version of the full research report of the same name. For information on alternative formats, or to give feedback on the content and accessibility of this publication, please contact:
Journal of Early Childhood Literacy, 2017
This paper presents findings from a study of family literacy provision in England and focuses on ... more This paper presents findings from a study of family literacy provision in England and focuses on the effects of family literacy programmes on the home literacy environment. The fieldwork took place between September 2013 and December 2014 and involved 27 school-based programmes for pupils aged between 5 and 7, and their parents. The study used mixed methods, which involved observations of family literary sessions, a quantitative pre- and post-survey of 118 parents, and pre- and post-telephone qualitative interviews with a sub-sample of 24 parents. Building on previous theoretical work, the study conceptualises the home literacy environment into four areas (family resources; parental literacy behaviours and attitudes; parental beliefs and understandings; and family literacy activities and practices). The paper develops understandings of how parents translate and implement messages from family literacy into the home setting, and it shows how participation in these programmes leads to ...
This paper describes different types of femininity within one working class UK junior school. The... more This paper describes different types of femininity within one working class UK junior school. The fieldwork took place between 1998-99 and the data come from observations and a series of interviews with twelve 10-11-year-old girls. The paper attempts to go beyond using typologies and argues that femininities are more nuanced and malleable, and also temporal and situated. Although all the forms of femininity were constructed through the heterosexual matrix, the findings differ from the work of other researchers in that only two girls attempted to perform Connell's (1987) 'emphasised' form of femininity, and the others were able to resist this dominant discourse.
Men and Masculinities, 2006
This article is based on an ethnographic exploration into the construction of masculinities among... more This article is based on an ethnographic exploration into the construction of masculinities among ten-and eleven-year-old boys in three schools in the United Kingdom between 1998 and 1999. The research found that there were different patterns of masculinity both between and within each setting that drew on the resources and storylines available. The author discusses the way the research was theorized, particularly in relation to the concept of hegemonic masculinity and its link with the body. He interrogates the use of typologies and outlines the reasons why he found them unsatisfactory. Although the terms “hegemonic,” “complicit,” and “subordinate” masculinity are borrowed from Connell, the author found it necessary to propose another form of masculinity, which he calls “personalized.” This was made up from boys who appeared content to pursue their own types of identity, and did not aspire to, or imitate, the leading form. Finally, the author briefly discusses the implications of t...
Arguing that the role of informal conversations in qualitative social and educational research me... more Arguing that the role of informal conversations in qualitative social and educational research methodologies is contested but also relatively neglected, in this article we set out how the method has influenced our research approaches and practice. We use an example of a conversation between one of us and a participant to highlight their nuanced and specific nature, and to raise and interrogate a number of ethical and methodological issues that emerge. We view informal conversations as opportunities to add "context" and "authenticity" to data and argue that they can unlock otherwise missed opportunities to expand and enrich data. We also consider the role of ethical boards and ethical guidelines, and the practical effects and consequences these have for researchers when they use informal conversations during their fieldwork.