New publications

Alongside the world of everyday reality, the young child develops a rich imaginary world of child art, make-believe play, imaginary friends, fairytales and magic. This book charts the imaginative development of children, conveying the importance of art-making, pretence play and fantasy in early childhood years, and highlighting the potential that imaginative behaviours hold for cognitive, affective and aesthetic development. Adapted from publisher's description.

The authors present the stories of eight children who have experienced extreme bullying and then found their way to recovery at a Red Balloon Learner Centre, a place where children can go to continue their education and recover their self-esteem, confidence and feelings of self-worth. Their stories also act to highlight common issues which often lie behind bullying behaviour such as weight, sexuality, race and religion. Guidance is given on what teachers and parents can do to help a child who is being bullied or a child who uses bullying behaviour, and what the bullied children themselves can do. Adapted from publisher's description.

What does inclusion really mean, and what impact have inclusive approaches to education had on practice? The authors consider developments, both in current thinking about the meaning of inclusion and in terms of policies and practices, in the context of education systems across the world and their differences and inter-relatedness. Issues discussed include the increasing pressure on educators to develop a global policy agenda for inclusive education, the individual needs of children, the 'illusion of inclusivity', and the importance of local contexts in determining policy. The book's international perspective illuminates common successes, failures and concerns. It includes case studies from Australasia, Europe and the Caribbean. Adapted from publisher's description.

School choice and the forming of citizens for responsible freedom are two of the most hotly debated topics in educational policy. International comparison offers perspective on the effects of alternative policies. This book profiles – historically and currently – two countries which give strong support to parental choice (The Netherlands and Belgium) and two others that maintain a strong state role in controlling education (Germany and Austria). Adapted from publisher's description.

This report sets out broad principles and directions for expenditure in the context of the NSW Government's policies, key strategies and priorities. Six key themes emerged: devolution; partnerships, outsourcing; transparent and evidence-based decisions; workforce flexibility; collaboration and coordination; and budget constraint. Adapted from report. See also article 10 August 2012 in The Sydney Morning Herald.

Action research refers to a practical way of looking at your own work to check that it is as you would like it to be. Because action research is done by you, the practitioner, it is often referred to as practitioner-based research; and because it involves you thinking about and reflecting on your work, it can also be called a form of self-reflective practice. This booklet offers one particular approach to action research. Adapted from the text, which is available online.