Special Interest Group
The Social Justice SIG promotes dialogue on educational policies and practices at all levels in terms of supporting or inhibiting social justice. We are committed to developing a range of theoretical understandings of the concept of social justice and the interaction of particular axes of discrimination in education. Particular attention is given to discourses and material effects of social class, gender, ethnicity, citizenship and human rights, and the ways in which these interrelate. In addition, we help to develop an understanding of the opportunities and spaces that social actors in education have to promote inclusion and social justice (as well as the limits and constraints they face), and the ways in which action can be taken.
We contribute to the evaluation of research methodologies for investigating social justice. We consider the processes by which academic critique can or should influence political agendas locally, nationally and globally. Fundamentally, we provide an arena for debate, discussion and dissemination for researchers whose work addresses a wide range of social justice issues. Thus, the SIG’s intention is to bring together research from a range of specialist yet related areas to a general forum to further social justice in education.
The Social Justice organises a range of events and activities to foster research and networking in this important domain.
Reader in Access, Equality and Inclusion at Bishop Grosseteste University
Sheine Peart is a reader in access, equality and inclusion and is programme leader for the doctor of education. Her research interests include social justice and inclusion; and developing educators and trainees to work with diverse groups. Sheine...
Senior Lecturer Practitioner at Anglia Ruskin University
John Parkin is a Senior Lecturer Practitioner in Education at Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) in Peterborough. He is also the Course Leader of the BA Primary Education Studies course. Before becoming an academic in 2018, John was an assistant...
Royal College of Music
Chiying Lam is a musician-educator whose professional portfolio includes performance, composition, teaching, organizational development at charities, event management and research. She was an arts administrator and primary school teacher in Hong...
Senior Lecturer at University of Roehampton
Dr Liliana Belkin has a PhD in Educational Leadership, Administration and Policy from New York University and earned a US-UK Fulbright Core Scholar Fellowship in 2019-2020. She is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Roehampton in the School...
Join the Social Justice SIG meeting to network with colleagues, learn about the activities of the SIG and plans for 2024 and onwards. This meeting will be hosted online, where you will have the...
The BERA Conference 2023 was held on the 12th-14th September 2023 at Conference Aston/Aston University. Keynote speakers included: Professor Linda Tuhiwai Smith. The conference ended with three...
Research Intelligence issue 156: Intersectionality: Teaching & learning in UK schools
Understanding what life is like for those studying and working within universities has been of increased interest to higher education research, policy and practice over the past 15 years....
Continue reading blog postThe traditional narrative of urban–rural educational disadvantage is that urban pupils do less well in the English exam system. Decontextualised data (as exemplified in table 1 across different...
Continue reading blog postUnheard voices in education research
This series of reports presents the findings and recommendations of six research projects funded by BERA’s 2022/23 Small Grants Fund (SGF) on the theme ‘learning for all’. The projects...
Exploring the impact on children’s learning
