"Using your profanisaurus" derives from a project, "The Production of University English", whose earliest findings were published in "Arts and Humanities in Higher Education" in 2005. By analysing "ordinary" discussions in "ordinary" English Literature classes in diverse universities, the project…

In response to the article by Dan Moulin it is argued that the representation of Christianity in British religious education relies on central beliefs and practices that are widely shared. In contrast to Moulin we consider that the teaching of doctrine is important in order to prevent serious misunderstanding of Christianity. Focussing on a…

This article describes an ecological study in Eastside, a particular area of Rotherham, a town in the north of England, UK. The purpose of the study was to collect information about literacy practices in a community setting, focusing on a library. The researchers used an ecological approach to data collection. The methodology included approaches…

Drawing on research on complementary schools in the United Kingdom, this presentation considers some of the issues in the research method used in studying this after-school community site. Processes of analysis employed by the ethnography team are disclosed so as to illuminate the dynamics of theory building in a large research team. (Contains 2…

Childhood research has long shared a bio-political terrain with state agencies in which children figure primarily as "human futures". In the 20th century bio-social dualism helped to make that terrain navigable by researchers, but, as life processes increasingly become key sites of bio-political action, bio-social dualism is becoming…

Emergency preparedness can be considered to be a form of lifelong learning and public pedagogy with implications for race equality. The paper is based on an ESRC project "Preparedness pedagogies and race: an interdisciplinary approach" considering the policy process around the construction of the "Preparing for Emergencies"…

The metaphor of "monoculture on the intellectual landscape" is used to analyse the effects of large-scale research management regimes. The metaphor of "monoculture on the intellectual landscape", derived from Shiva's "monocultures of the mind", is developed and illustrated with respect to gender and ethnicity. The…

Len Barton is acutely aware of the power of the academy to either enhance critical thinking or to depress it. He is a true academic, never accepting the received wisdom or perspective of any given sociological standpoint, no matter how powerful or fashionable it was at the time. He has encouraged and promoted a unique blend of professional and…

This article will start with a description of a small, pedagogic event: a snippet of conversation recorded in a classroom as part of a research project on working in groups with postgraduate students. I will use these few minutes of data to illustrate several of the arguments I wish to make about the policy of increased international student…

This article explores concepts of student support in higher education. It draws on findings from a research project that considered what students understood by "support" and what for them was, or had been, more or less helpful. The project drew on the perspectives of five cohorts of undergraduate and postgraduate students, based in three…

This article offers an account of a doctoral insider research project that became problematic. The project was investigating mathematics teaching in a university in the UK, and by contrasting the research account with research diary entries pertaining to two interviewees, different interpretations of the interview data are evident. These…

This article offers an overview of the method of narrative inquiry and explores competing trends in the use of the approach. It not only examines the theories relating to the method but also offers practical guidance on using narrative inquiry, including an exploration of what might count as a narrative and ways of analysing narrative data. The…

There is a moral panic in the US about youth civic engagement because data show decreasing rates of involvement in organized groups and with voting. There are multiple interpretations of what this means for democracy and about young people. One major reading is that interest in civic life is decreasing and this is seen to be related to…

Self-evaluation is a concept replete with paradox and ambiguity. It suggests a spontaneous impulse but connotes a political mandate. It posits an individual act of self-reflection but is a meaningless notion without some social reference point. Its application may be personal, social or institutional, its purpose summative or formative. It may be…

To clarify dominant perspectives on women in adult education publications, ethnographic content analysis was used to examine 112 journal articles in 4 major adult education journals. Articles analyzed were from two North American journals ("Adult Education"/"Adult Education Quarterly" and "Adult…