Special Interest Group
The transition from elite to mass higher education systems is a significant global development that forms the broader context for educational research that seeks to understand the experiences of Higher Education students, academics, teaching teams, change agents, leaders, departments, subject disciplines, professional fields, and institutions. There is a need for perspectives and analyses that not only critique but also challenge current policy frameworks and evolving practices within and across Higher Education. Within the universalising tendencies of the neoliberal regime, contradictions exist within – and between – the increasing dominance of managerialist principles, the standardisation of learning and practice (under the banner of ‘quality assurance’), consumer-based practices and expectations. The aim of the Higher Education special interest group is to contribute towards and enhance critical debates and perspectives on higher education policy, pedagogy and practice. This is a broad remit that embraces interdisciplinary research with critical research methodologies, theories and philosophies.
Recent research papers and symposia presented by SIG members have included the following themes:
The SIG aims to create a supportive network of educational researchers through building symposia for the main conference, through smaller scale activity during the year, by supporting new and early career researchers, and by building links with other higher education research networks.
Senior Lecturer in Education at Liverpool John Moores University
Craig A. Hammond is Senior Lecturer in Education at Liverpool John Moores University; prior to moving to LJMU, Craig taught across further education and college based higher education (CBHE) for 18 years. From 2015 to 2017 Craig was the Research...
Research Fellow at University of Exeter
Sanja Djerasimovic is a research fellow at the University of Exeter, where she studies the broad but interconnected areas of higher education policy, academic identity and practice, particularly among early career academics, and citizenship. More...
Research Assistant at Birmingham City University
Dr Julia Everitt is a Post-Doctoral Researcher at Birmingham City University (BCU) and has worked in higher education as a researcher since 2014. Julia was awarded her doctorate in 2018 and as a researcher has been involved in over 30 research...
Senior Teaching Fellow at University of Warwick
Dr Kate Mawson is Associate Professor at Warwick University; prior to moving to Warwick in 2014, Kate taught in secondary education for 14 years. Kate teaches on Warwick's postgraduate ITE programme, being module lead for Professional Enquiry as...
Problem Many British and Sino-British universities offer postgraduate programmes in education to contribute to internationalisation in higher education. These programmes have recently been...
Continue readingAlthough there is a well-established literature on the international student experience (Schartner & Young, 2020), we know relatively little about what ‘being an international student’ has...
Continue readingCall for SIG Convenor The transition from elite to mass higher education systems is a significant global development that forms the broader context for educational research that seeks to...
At many British universities, foundational and pathway programmes are the generic terms to describe the preparatory courses for international students prior to their UK degrees. A pathway refers...
Continue readingInclusion is arguably an ethical obligation, grounded in notions of equity and social justice for all groups and at all stages of education (Ainscow, 2020). With a growing number of students from...
Continue readingThe purpose of this blog post is to share our experiences as part-time, remote Doctor of Education (EdD) candidates. We hope this will be enlightening for educational professionals who are...
Continue readingAcademic leaders in higher education (HE) have faced a sustained period of unprecedented and complex change due to Covid-19. Leadership capability and adaptability has been tested, and there have...
Continue readingThis blog post discusses how some families and supporters pay considerably more than others to attend UK graduation ceremonies. This much we already know: higher education is costly. According to...
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