Literary criticism of children's literature asserts a one-directional view of power with the adult writer constructing the child reader. Using "aetonormativity"-- adult perceptions of normality -- this paper explores what happens when children co-construct publishable fiction. Our analysis of drama and creative writing workshops shows…

Writing experiences have a crucial role in the wellbeing of academics and PhD researchers and this paper seeks to extend a body of work on writing retreats, by exploring them from a wellbeing perspective. Drawing from literature on wellbeing and the practical experience of developing and delivering writing retreats, it highlights wellbeing…

This article is based on an investigation of the experiences of six native Chinese teachers working in British schools through the Confucius Institute and the British Council programmes. This qualitative study is located in the interpretivist tradition. It reveals that the target group of teachers construct their professional identity by means of…

"In areas like ours, everything we've ever had we fought for. It wasn't just handed to us," says Anna Hutchison, a community activist and one of the founders of the North Edinburgh Social History Group. For decades, Anna tells the author, the community has had to struggle for the basic amenities others in the city take for granted,…

During his quest for leadership of the English Conservative Party, David Cameron declared his intention to turn Britain into a Big Society. In May 2010, having gained office as Prime Minister, he unveiled a string of policies to bring his vision to fruition. After five years, however, talk of the Big Society has withered in public debate such that…

There is an increasing focus within Higher Education on the wider student experience. Student engagement and a well-developed community are associated with greater levels of retention, student satisfaction and success. Whilst creating opportunities for students to engage with each other and staff may be easier in a face-to-face environment, the…

The professional identity of career counselling and employment practitioners is somewhat fragile. Balancing tensions like meeting targets that exist around funding, whilst attending to the individual needs of the clients they serve, can prove challenging. Maintaining professionalism is increasingly also challenging for practitioners because they…

This article is a collective writing experiment undertaken by philosophers of education affiliated with the PESGB (Philosophy of Education Society of Great Britain). When asked to reflect on questions concerning the Philosophy of Education in a New Key in May 2020, it was unsurprising that the effects of the coronavirus pandemic on society and on…

Supervisors play a crucial role in helping doctoral students to successfully complete their degree. Current practice in the development of doctoral supervisors is mostly focused on regulatory issues rather than on pedagogical topics. Existing research suggests a range of successful strategies for supervisor training including the development of…

Background: We present a unique study of adventure sports coaches teaching lead climbing. Expanding existing work on judgement and decision making, we examine the coaching process and the decision making employed to manage the pedagogical and security needs of climbers when they are being introduced to lead climbing. Research design and data…

This paper presents a novel conceptualisation of the school context by examining the 'personal' (emotional wellbeing), the 'political' (everyday political actions and power relations) and the 'Political' (the Political system, including electoral politics and governmental policy) and how these interrelate. Informed by literatures from a range of…

Critical policy analysis (CPA) is a means by which to critique policy and promote agency, equity, and justice. However, most CPA scholars examine political discourse from a distance rather than actively participate in political processes. Meanwhile, there is a growing interest in community-engaged research whereby academics partner with community…

The need for research support in U.K. universities is growing at a fast pace and a number of different professional and academic units within universities are involved in the process. This case study takes place in a post-92 higher education institution and discusses the benefit of utilizing a cross-university Community of Practice (CoP) approach…

The purpose of this study is to explore close friendships and intimacy practices of Malaysian students in the context of living abroad. Some of the new close friends, specifically co-national friends in the UK, are perceived as "family" although some of them have not yet acquired family-like qualities in their relationships. Due to the…

This timely book features rich examples of students and teachers, defined as learning partners, disrupting hierarchy in education by collaborating on social change projects. At the book's core is Paulo Freire's theorization of students and teachers working together toward co-liberation. Co-written by learning partners, each chapter in this…