Based on extensive research, and grounded in everyday classroom practice, the authors of this book explore important issues surrounding play in the early years curriculum. The book presents children’s views on, and response to their role-play environment, alongside examples of good classroom practice, and addresses vital questions such as: Will structuring role play replace children’s own attempts to create scenarios that grow out of their interests and relationships? Has an over-emphasis on subjects like literacy and numeracy eclipsed the important processes inherent in children’s social play? How we can ensure that provision for role play fully benefits all young children? Critically, the authors present the child’s perspective on play in schools throughout, and argue firmly against a formal, inflexible learning environment for young children. This book will be fascinating to all students on primary education undergraduate courses and early childhood studies. Researchers and course leaders will also find this book a ground-breaking read.

This book provides contemporary knowledge on school effectiveness and proposes strategic interventions for enhancing it. It focuses on improving academic leadership for enhancing the effectiveness of schools and discusses how national education policies are helpful in providing a vision towards improving school effectiveness. It highlights the role of teachers as academic leaders in the implementation of policy recommendations at school and classroom levels. It offers methods and mechanisms for academic leaders to measure the learning of students for school assessment. The author also discusses how academic leadership involves creating a vision and mission based on science and research data for the organisation, inspiring innovation and creative ideas, developing teamwork, and a safe environment for staff to express their views. While providing an understanding of school as an organization, the volume outlines its management functions such as processes and quality of planning, management of curriculum, learner evaluation, institutional networks, and human resource management, among others. The volume is a guidebook for training and capacity building for school-level practitioners and leaders in education management. Embedded with real-life cases and episodes, this volume will be of interest to teachers, students, and practitioners of education, management, and education management. It will also be useful for academicians, educationalists, practitioners, management professionals, educational leaders, and policymakers.

Abstract: This paper provides an overview of recent work on quality measurement of medical care and its correlates in four low and middle-income countries-India, Indonesia, Tanzania, and Paraguay. The authors describe two methods-testing doctors and watching doctors-that are relatively easy to implement and yield important insights about the nature of medical care in these countries. The paper discusses the properties of these measures, their correlates, and how they may be used to evaluate policy changes. Finally, the authors outline an agenda for further research and measurement.

Makes the case for systems thinking in an easily accessible form for a broad interdisciplinary audience, including health system stewards, programme implementers, researchers, evaluators, and funding partners.