BERA UK Podcast

This podcast is the sixth and final instalment in the series commissioned by the Research Methodology in Education Special Interest Group to showcase the variety of methodologies and methods being undertaken by researchers in education. In this episode, Dr Bukola Oyinloye, co-convenor of the RME SIG, is in conversation with Dr Kathryn Spicksley. They discuss corpus assisted discourse analysis, an approach which uses computer programmes to explore patterns of grammar and vocabulary in selected text or corpora. They discuss its main element, discourse analysis, including its more critical type, and compare with other ways of interrogating text such as thematic analysis. Dr Spicksley recommends Hansun Zhang Waring’s book ‘Discourse Analysis: The Questions Discourse Analysts Ask and How They Answer Them’ as a helpful introduction to discourse analysis, as well as Norman Fairclough (Discourse and social change) and James Paul Gee (An introduction to discourse analysis) for useful frameworks on discourse analysis. In her article, ‘The very best generation of teachers ever’: teachers in post-2010 ministerial speeches, Dr Spicksley applies corpus assisted discourse analysis to government speeches in the UK.

This podcast is the fifth in a series commissioned by the Research Methodology in Education Special Interest Group to showcase the variety of methodologies and methods being undertaken by researchers in education. In this episode, Dr Bukola Oyinloye, co-convenor of the RME SIG is in conversation with Dr Rebecca Jesson and Dr Mei Kuin Lai. They discuss the learning schools approach, an approach where researchers and practitioners work in partnership to co-design rigorous research and development to sustainably solve urgent and shared problems of practice.They discuss the main tenets of the approach, their work with schools and communities in the Pacific Islands, how the approach counters the global learning crisis, and some challenges of the approach. You may read more about the learning schools approach in their book, Research-practice Partnerships for School Improvement: The Learning Schools Model. You may also read more about their work with indigenous communities in the Pacific Islands here.

This podcast is the fourth in a series commissioned by the Research Methodology in Education Special Interest Group to showcase the variety of methodologies and methods being undertaken by researchers in education. In this episode, Dr Bukola Oyinloye, co-convenor of the RME SIG is in conversation with Louise Haxwell and Dr Julie Ovington. They discuss posthumanist methodologies, a way of transcending anthropocentric ways of doing research to consider how humans exist in relation to and in connection with non-humans, materialities, and human feelings, emotions, etc. They reflect on the possibilities of using these methodologies, including how it is an approach which does not leave the researcher unchanged, and the challenges they’ve encountered. They also offer some suggestions for those who seek to explore the approach in their work. Julie and Louise are part of the Bag Ladies collective, and have collectively written on posthumanist methodologies, including a chapter in the Routledge Encyclopedia of Research Methods. The Bag Ladies share their thoughts-feelings-doings on their website here.Julie and Louise would also like to give special thanks to Katie Strom, Nikki Fairchild and Carol Taylor, amongst many others, for continuously informing their thinking.

This podcast is the first in a series commissioned by the Research Methodology in Education Special Interest Group to showcase the variety of methodologies and methods being undertaken by researchers in education. In this episode, Dr Bukola Oyinloye, co-convenor of the RME SIG is in conversation with Dr Martin Johnson, Senior researcher at Cambridge University Press & Assessment. They speak about his use of the solicited diary method within the context of a multi-method study on teacher wellbeing during COVID-19. They discuss what solicited diaries are, their linkages with teacher wellbeing, how they were used in the study, as well as some of their challenges. To read more about the study, please click here. 

This podcast is the third in a series commissioned by the Research Methodology in Education Special Interest Group to showcase the variety of methodologies and methods being undertaken by researchers in education. In this episode, Dr Bukola Oyinloye, co-convenor of the RME SIG is in conversation with Claire Hedges and Tom Power, Co-Investigator and Principal Investigator respectively, of the Mobile Learning for Empowerment of Marginalised Mathematics Educators research project in Bangladesh, also known as 3M Power. 3M Power project is a large-scale EdTech Hub-funded research project on technology enhanced teacher education for marginalised mathematics educators. They discuss an innovative approach to the evaluation of the project, Participatory Ethnographic Evaluation Research or PEER. They highlight the approach’s similarities with and difference from ethnography, what makes it participatory, and the opportunities and challenges the approach offers.

This podcast is the second in a series commissioned by the Research Methodology in Education Special Interest Group to showcase the variety of methodologies and methods being undertaken by researchers in education. In this episode, Dr Bukola Oyinloye, co-convenor of the RME SIG is in conversation with Dr Elke Van dermijnsbrugge, Lecturer-Researcher in International Teacher Education at NHL Stenden University of Applied Sciences, the Netherlands. They speak about punk ethnography, including what it is not, its philosophical assumptions and anarchist principles, the methods that can be employed, and how it can be analysed. They also discuss its challenges and Dr Elke provides some suggestions for those who might be interested in adopting the approach. Dr Elke writes and curates the Punk Ethnography website. You may also read more about her work on punk ethnography in the book 'Punk Pedagogies in Practice: Disruptions and Connections'.

In this episode John Parkin, Mabel Encinas and Saima Salehjee chat to Heidi Safia Mirza, IOE, UCL’s Faculty of Education & Society.Heidi Mirza achieved prominence with the publication of "Young, female and black" (1992) and later became one of the UK’s first Black female professors. In this BERA podcast, Heidi explains intersectionality and what inspired her to research race,gender and identity.

This episode of the BERA Podcast explores the role of contemporary music style and practice in promoting inclusivity in music education. Adam Hart is joined by Pete Dale and Pam Burnard, convenors of the AHRC Contemporary Urban Music for Inclusion Network (CUMIN), and Haleemah X, PhD student exploring identity as a Muslim female rap artist. The discussion includes how contemporary music practices can lead to a more inclusive creative education, how the curriculum might accommodate this, and the influence of contemporary music on practice-based research in higher education.

On this week's episode  Nick Johnston the Chief Executive  introduces some of the best moments from season 4 of the podcast. This episode contains clips of all the interviewees throughout the season.

Dr Miro Griffiths is a Leverhulme Research Fellow in Disability Studies, in the School of Sociology and Social Policy, at the University of Leeds. His research primarily explores disabled people’s resistance practices in challenging marginalisation and oppression, and the intersections between activism and policy-making. He is a respected adviser on disability policy to the UK Government, UK Equality and Human Rights Commission, Liverpool City Region Metro Mayor, European Commission, and various Civil Society Organisations across Europe.In today's episode Miro discusses Disability Activism with Nick Johnson the Chief Executive of BERA. The discussion focuses on how to get young people involved in disability activism and Miro's experience as a person with a disability.

Maarten Koeners studies and teaches integrative physiology at the University of Exeter. He integrates insights in the physiology of play and playful learning with his academic practice. Recently he established The Playful University Club, an exciting initiative funded by the Educational Incubator, to form global connections on the creation of holistic pedagogic practices for both students and educators. He aims to enable individual and institutional play and playfulness to foster a culture that supports joyous, authentic transition to the co-creation of knowledge and skills, while counteracting a number of barriers to creativity and wellbeing.In todays episode Maarten speaks to Nick Johnson the Chief Executive of BERA about how to engage learners using 'playful' techniques, while giving examples and the theory behind them.

Dr Achala Gupta is a lecturer at Southampton Education School, University of Southampton. Her research focuses on investigating educational issues sociologically. Achala’s current interests include education delivery systems (formal and ‘shadow’) and schooling practices in Asia, and students’ aspirations and transition into higher education in Europe. She has published research on the heterogeneity of middle-class advantage, teacher entrepreneurialism, social legitimacy and the organisational arrangements of private tutoring in India. Her work has also focused on how students are made sense of by policymakers, staff, the media and students themselves in higher education settings in Denmark, England, Ireland, Germany, Poland and Spain.On this episode she is interviewed by Nick Johnson, BERA's Chief Executive on the 'Shadow Education' phenomenon discussing her research using different cultural and class perspectives. 

In this episode multiple and multidimensional transitions in education are reflected on through a post-lockdown lens. Jonathan Glazzard interviews Beth Hannah about developing a framework for compassionate transition while Michelle Jayman discusses with Claire Fox the unique challenges for children transitioning to secondary school during a global pandemic and some of the lessons learned to inform a more emotion-focused approach. Emma Harvey and Ben Broadhurst share first-hand accounts of HE student experiences of the sudden shift to online learning and Anthea Rose concludes with a powerful take home message for all learning communities as they transition beyond lockdown.

Daniel Vanello is Leverhulme Early Career Research Fellow in the Philosophy Department at the University of Warwick where he is pursuing the project “Shaping Our Moral Identity” (2020-2023). Vanello was awarded his PhD at the University of Warwick (2017) where he researched the role of the emotions in our learning moral value. He was previously Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Geneva (2017-2018) and Government of Ireland Postdoctoral Research Fellow at University College Dublin (2018-2020). His research interests lie in the intersection between ethics and the philosophy of mind and psychology. In particular, he is interested in the question of what moral understanding is and how do we acquire it with a special focus on the role of the emotions, social interaction and communication.Catriona Card is an experienced early years teacher and Religious Education subject leader who currently teaches a Reception class at a large primary school in Scunthorpe. She is a member of the executive of the National Association of Teachers of Religious Education (NATRE) and has presented locally and nationally on early years RE.Catriona is currently undertaking research in the field of RE in the early years and also has a keen interest in young children’s emotional development.In this episode Daniel and Catriona are interviewed by Nick Johnson the Chief Executive of BERA on their research into Moral Understanding and its impacts on both teaching and learning.

Gihan Ismail is an Associate Lecturer in Sociology at Oxford Brookes University and a teaching assistant in Education at the University of Bath. She is also a Ph.D. candidate at the Department of Education and her study explores the experiences of international doctoral students in UK universities, using a framework that draws on the theories of Critical Pedagogy and Critical Race and Capabilities Approach. She focuses on the complex relationship between knowledge, power and ethics.  Anna Robinson-Pant is Professor of Education at the School of Education and Lifelong Learning, University of East Anglia, UK. She holds the UNESCO Chair in Adult Literacy and Learning for Social Transformation, working with university partners in Nepal, Ethiopia, Malawi, Egypt and the Philippines. Her ethnographic research in Nepal - Why eat green cucumber at the time of dying? Exploring the link between women’s literacy and development - received the UNESCO International Award for Literacy Research in 2001.  Since moving into UK higher education, she has been active in developing methodological approaches to researching across languages and cultures, and received the BMW Group Award for Intercultural Learning (Theory Category) 2007. Her current research focuses on adult literacy, gender and sustainable development; the geopolitics of academic writing and the internationalisation of higher education. As former editor of the journal Compare, she set up the BAICE/Compare Writing for Publication Programme in 2008 with Theresa Lillis and Anna Magyar. This programme is still running, and alongside mentoring for junior scholars now includes institutional capacity strengthening activities, based on academic literacies research with journal editors, writers and reviewers in the Global South. Pat Thomson PSM PhD FAcSS FRSA is Convenor of the Centre for Research in Arts, Creativity and Literacy (CRACL) at the University of Nottingham.  Pat is known for her interdisciplinary engagement with questions of creative and socially just learning and change. She is an Adjunct Professor at the Free State University, South Africa; Visiting Professor at the University of Iceland; a Visiting Professor at Deakin University, Victoria and The University of South Australia, Australia and a visiting Associate in the School of Education, University of Western Ontario. Pat chairs the research group of the APPG for Art Craft and Design. They will publish a major report Art Now later in 2022.  Today’s episode is an edited version of a 50 minute online conversation hosted by Gihan on inclusive academic writing . The guests give advice about submitting to journals, and speak of the pitfalls as women and for people outside the anglosphere.    

Dr Lorna Arnott is a Senior Lecturer and Director of Early Years in the School of Education, University of Strathclyde. Lorna's main area of interest is in children's early play experiences, particularly in relation to technologies, social and creative play. She also has a keen interest in research methodologies, with a specialist focus on consulting with children and methods derived from pedagogy. Lorna is the convener for the Digital Childhoods, STEM and Multimodality Special Interest Group as part of the European Early Childhood Educational Research Association. She is the Deputy Editor for the International Journal of Early Years Education and Assistant Editor for the Journal of Early Childhood Research.Today on the podcast she speaks to Nick about some of the key challenges and achievements of her recent work. There is a focus on discussing children's voice in research

Dr Lynda Dunlop is a Senior Lecturer in Science Education and a member of the University of York Science Education Group (UYSEG). Her research focuses primarily on the philosophical and political aspects of science education, and on youth perspectives and experiences of environmental interventions. This research has been funded by, amongst others, the Education Endowment Foundation, the Gatsby Foundation, and the Wellcome Trust. Dr Elizabeth Rushton lectures in Geographic Education at Kings College London. Her research interests are focused on geography and science education, specifically the professional development of teachers, student participation in research, and environmental education. Prior to joining King’s, Elizabeth was Director of Evaluation for the Institute for Research in Schools where she oversaw the evaluation of school science education programmes that involved over 300 schools and 25 universities. Elizabeth and Lynda have lead BERAs latest Research Commission into Environmental Sustainability. Their innovative work has included co-creating a state of the art manifesto on the topic. To do this, their commission made five participatory workshops for students and teachers, drawn from the four parts of the UK, who helped co-author the manifesto. In today’s episode they discuss the process  with BERAs Chief Executive Nick Johnson.   

On this week's episode  Nick Johnston the Chief Executive  introduces some of the best moments from season 3 of the podcast. This episode contains clips of all the interviewees throughout the season.

Yinka Olusoga is a historian of childhood and education in the School of Education at the University of Sheffield. Herr research focuses on the discursive construction of children and childhood in the educational policy, political debate, art and popular culture, in the present and in the past.Kate Cowan is an early years specialist researching children’s play and communication from a multimodal perspective. Based at UCL Knowledge Lab, her research covers areas including literacy, creativity and digital technologies. Kate’s work also involves developing multimodal methodologies, video-based methods and participatory approaches with children. In this weeks podcast Yinka and Kate are interviewed by BERA Chief Executive Nick Johnson, on how children's play has changed over the pandemic.

Natalia Kucirkova is Professor of Early Childhood Education and Development at the University of Stavanger, Norway and Professor of Reading and Children’s Development at The Open University, UK. Natalia’s work is concerned with social justice in children’s literacy and use of technologies. She is the founder of the International Collective of Children’s Digital Books that connects research and design in children’s e-books and literacy apps and Chair of the Children’s Digital Book Award that is the first award judged entirely by teachers. Her research takes place collaboratively across academia, commercial and third sectors.On this week's episode Natalia speaks to Nick Johnson (BERA chief executive) on adapting literature to make it more personal for children.