People with higher support needs have been the last to benefit from the transformation of services for people with learning disabilities in the last few years. Despite often requiring expensive packages of support, this group are frequently offered services which are outdated and delivered in congregate, buildings-based and segregated settings. We…

This paper, following Somekh and Zeichner, offers a "remodelling [of] action research theories and practices in local contexts". It is an attempt, with Kemmis, to address the question "what is to be done?" and to consider the "place of action research" in the light of what Schön has referred to as "the crisis of…

The evolving role of the educational psychologist (EP) is discussed with an emphasis on the supervision provided for a team of support workers for vulnerable adolescents, working within a Local Service Team. This development is considered in the context of the Every Child Matters (DfES, 2004) agenda and the Farrell, Woods, Lewis, Rooney, Squire…

The affordances of mobile technologies are well documented (Vavoula (2004); Wali (2008); Pachler et al (2010); Cook (2011); Sharples (2013). Linked with the rapid expansion of the "SMART" phones, where users access fast/high quality information, new opportunities are offered to engage students at a time/place of their own choosing. Our…

The human desire to join and participate in communities can be seen as an attempt to satisfy some of our universal human needs. The theory of communities of practice has been widely used to explain how and why humans participate in multiple communities, and a key requirement of a community of practice (CoP) is that members engage in "joint…

This case study situates the collaborative design of learning objects (interactive online learning material) using the LOC (Learning Object Creator) software in the context of language activities external to the core learning activities of language students at a UK university. It describes the creative and pedagogical processes leading to the…

As the higher education environment changes, there are calls for university teachers to change and enhance their teaching practices to match. Networking practices are known to be deeply implicated in studies of change and diffusion of innovation, yet academics' networking activities in relation to teaching have been little studied. This paper…

This article builds on the key findings of the UK Higher Education Academy study "Transnational Education Learning and Teaching" to explore the way in which Wenger's characteristics of communities of practice could help provide a theoretical framework for improving communication and creating more effective transnational education (TNE)…

In keeping with the overarching RadioActive101 (RA101) spirit and ethos, this report is the product of collaborative and joined-up thinking from within the European consortium spread across five countries. As such, it is not simply a single voice reporting on the experiences and knowledge gained during the project. Rather it is a range of…

In the "Adults Learning" autumn issue, the journal staff asked key players in the learning and skills sector what they thought should be at the top of new skills minister Matthew Hancock's in-tray. The new minister shares that his job in the further education and skills sector is to rise to the challenge and play his full part in giving…

In the UK, as elsewhere in the world, the global financial crisis has focused attention on the cost of public services and the need to reduce expenditure, not least in respect of higher education. This, however, raises a set of prior questions: What kind of society do we want? What is important to democratic society? What kind of higher education…

The provision of blended learning strategies designed to assist academics in the higher education sector with the knowledge, skills, and abilities required for effective teaching with technology has been, and continues to be, a challenge for teaching centres in Canada. It is unclear, first, whether this is an ongoing issue unique to Canada; and,…

This paper presents a methodology developed by members of the Research Centre for Learning and Teaching (RCfLAT) to collaborate with university teaching colleagues to produce theoretically- and pedagogically-based case studies of innovations in teaching and learning. The Equal Acclaim for Teaching Excellence (EquATE) project investigates…

The UK has a strong tradition of community education and there is no better time to re-establish the school or any learning facility as a potential hub or resource for its local learning community. LearnSpace demonstrates the power of a range of professionals working together in a dynamic way that shows that learning can take place in a variety of…

This article emerged as a case study from a fact-finding mission of a joint programme between the Centre for Commonwealth Education (CCE) in Cambridge University and the Institute for Educational Planning and Administration (IEPA) in University of Cape Coast, Ghana, to embed innovative approaches to teaching and learning in the basic schools of…