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Social Action in Schools in public higher education. Understanding the impacts and processes of adaptation resulting from the cuts in Social Support for Schools, in the experiences and expectations of Coimbra University students.
Researcher in charge: Cristina Albuquerque
General goals:
- Analysis of legislative developments in the field of social action in schools in higher education since 1974 (phase 1);
- To identify and compare, over three academic years, the level, dimensions and qualitative changes of the difficulties / readjustments experienced by Coimbra University Students in the current context of economic and financial crisis and of restrictions on social action in schools.
Duration:
1st phase (exploratory, 1 year) - Survey of a representative sample of students from UC-FPCE.
2nd phase (2 years) - extension to other UC Faculties.
Social entrepreneurship, innovation and sustainability. Osmosis between social and commercial principles?
Researchers: Cristina Albuquerque, Helena Almeida Neves, Clara Cruz Santos
General Goal:
- To identify and understand the models of economic sustainability and of articulation between social mission, strategic thinking and sources / resource guarantee processes of social non-profit organisations in the district of Coimbra.
Duration: 1 year
Imaginary - Relationship between social skills and inclusion issues of children in school context (Reference: 7022.2.D.2011), funded by the European Youth Foundation (Strasbourg).
Researcher in charge: Clara Santos Cruz
General goals:
-To apply the game "Imaginary", using new information and communication technologies;
-To apply, for diagnosis, the ‘MESSY ‘ perception evaluation tool for children’s social skills (Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters);
- Increase students’ awareness in the field of human rights.
Motivation for Volunteering: approaches, assessment and implications for active citizenship
Researcher in charge: Maria do Rosário Moura Pinheiro
General goals:
- To identify personal and social factors associated with volunteering (including the motivation of contact and social support, experience of active citizenship, the attitudes and expectations regarding volunteer work, the decision, the commitment, the benefits and satisfaction of volunteering);
- To validate and apply evaluation measures of motivation, commitment, benefits and satisfaction of volunteering;
- Understanding the relationship between motivation for volunteering and the personal and social characteristics of the volunteer or volunteer candidate.
Duration: 1 year
Impacts of the introduction of ICT in Public Social Services. Social workers’ and leaders’ conceptions of the potentialities and constraints of ICT in effectiveness, efficiency and quality of service to citizen-beneficiaries.
Researcher in charge: Cristina Albuquerque
General goal:
- Understanding, from the perspective of social workers and leaders, the constraints and potentialities associated with the recent introduction of ICT in public social services.
Duration:
30 months
Contexts and Practices of Social Community Mediation
Researcher in charge: Helena Neves Almeida
Goals:
The main goal is to assemble a team that contributes to advancing knowledge of social and community mediation, with participation of multiple professions and target populations involved in this field, and to provide an organised structure to advise work teams in the community. Thus, the following objectives are defined:
a) To establish a database (mapping) that crosses different contexts and experiences of social and community mediation. This goal stems from the proliferation of a mediation culture among professionals and organisations in a communitarian context. The intention is to identify and characterise the initiatives of the mediation, in the form of projects, informal propositions or formal organisations. A framework will be established to set out and specify their characteristics (aims, conflict / problems typology, resources, infrastructure, functioning, actions, evaluation).
b) To train local staff on national and European procedures, methods and strategies of social and community mediation. Social and Community Mediation implies specific knowledge, such as: human relations, mediation values and methodology, conflict dynamics, community work and networks, social change, advocacy and empowerment, strategic planning. This project proposes both to organise a set of practice courses, and to train staff working in the community.
c) To develop an online platform for the dissemination of practice. The dissemination of practice exercises of mediating action will be achieved through an online platform, where completed research will be transcribed and aggregated with regard to target population, and the actions and procedures of mediation.
d) To build and disseminate scientific and educational resources resulting from the work, action and research developed. An end product of the project will be a Handbook of Social and Community Mediation: Experiences and Models, the result of interactive work involving researchers, professionals and the community, working in partnership together.
e) To provide scientific and methodological supervision to the partners involved in the field. The project seeks to assemble a scientific and professional team to support both the community and the organisations or individuals (professionals and community) who operate in loco.
Duration: 2 years