The fall of the Berlin Wall launched the transformation of government, economy and society across half of Europe and the former Soviet Union. This text deals with the process of change in former Communist bloc countries, ten of which have become new European Union (EU) democracies while Russia and her neighbours remain burdened by their Soviet legacy. Drawing on more than a hundred public opinion surveys from the New Europe Barometer, the text compares how ordinary people have coped with the stresses and opportunities of transforming Communist societies into post-Communist societies and the resulting differences between peoples in the new EU member states and Russia. Subjects covered by Understanding Post-Communist Transformation include: Stresses and opportunities of economic transformation Social capital and the development of civil society Elections and the complexities of party politics The challenges for the EU of raising standards of democratic governance Differences between Russia’s and the West’s interpretation of political life Written by one of the world's most renowned authorities on this subject, this text is ideal for courses on transition, post-communism, democratization and Russian and Eastern European history and politics.

Product Description: This second edition is revised and updated to take full account of recent developments in special needs. The core of the book focuses on planning for well-differentiated curriculum implementation. It describes a variety of models that explore progression, continuity, relevance and inclusion for pupils with special educational needs...read more

Product Description: The Professional Primary Teaching Assistant is the first title in the new series “The Professional Teaching Assistant”, written to guide teaching assistants in the UK through the new standards for Higher Level Teaching Assistants...read more

(view table of contents)

(view table of contents)

(view table of contents)

This book incorporates an international perspective of research related to special education across all phases of education. It draws upon the experience and expertise of recognized researchers and practitioners in special education. As a research handbook for practicing teachers this book provides exemplars of good classroom based research practice addressing a broad range of special needs issues. Methods are presented which can be generalized to situations beyond the case studies immediately presented. (view table of contents)

In the days when Winston Churchill and Clement Attlee faced each other in the House of Commons, there was disagreement about whose hands should be on the Mace, the symbol of power at Westminster. Everyone assumed that the hands on the Mace would be British. In the past half century, the Prime Minister's power at Westminster has increased greatly, but it has diminished in the worlds beyond.In Westminster, the Prime Minister is now first without equal. But in councils of the European Union, he or she is only one among fifteen national leaders. In a shrinking world the chief issues facing Downing Street today are 'intermestic', an amalgam of domestic politics and international concerns. Tony Blair may say that he is batting for Britain, but cricket skills are no match for an American president playing hard ball, and policy-making in the European Union is definitely not cricket.In an era of television politics, the faces and voices of Margaret Thatcher and Tony Blair are familiar to every voter, and the press cooperates in turning politicians into media celebrities. But what you see on the box is politics; it has little to do with the policies of British government. Old-school leaders such as Harold Macmillan devoted as much time to policy as to politics. But new-style prime ministers put politics first.Tony Blair wants to speak for all the British people, but the result is 'managed populism', for his voice travels down a one-way street. In Whitehall, Blair's Third Way blunts the cutting edge of policy, leaving officials puzzled about what to do when hard choices arise, especially about Europe.Anyone interested in politics and current affairs, whether a student or a thoughtful reader and viewer, will find insight and illumination in a book that draws on the author's unrivalled first-hand knowledge of British politics over the past half century.Richard Rose's work has been recognized by a lifetime achievement award from the Political Studies Association. He is a Fellow of the British Academy and director of the Centre for the Study of Public Policy at the University of Strathclyde. (view table of contents)

Product Description: The International Encyclopedia of Elections is the first and only definitive work to survey elections in independent nations and describe the varied systems and processes in clear language understandable to any interested reader. The encyclopedia will be most useful to undergraduate and graduate students, journalists, political activists, and scholars seeking information outside their specialties or their own countries...read more