Positioning children with a vision impairment as knowledge producers and change agents

‘The ability to collaborate on both a small- and large-scale is becoming one of the core requisites of postmodern society’ (Fullan, 1993, p.5). Yet it is ‘still relatively rare for children...

BERA ECR Network symposium: A personal reflection on constructive feedback

In October 2019 I travelled to the US to explore the benefits of oracy-centred teaching strategies and expeditionary learning for the development of the speaking, listening, reading and writing...

Problematising resilience during times of change

As we move into the post-pandemic world, one word is becoming increasingly prevalent as a measure of people’s preparedness: resilience. Within a populist paradigm, the ability to ‘bounce...

As “PE With Joe Wicks” comes to an end, a BERA Blog highlights the marginalisation of PE within the Curriculum

In a BERA Blog this week,Julie Stirrup, Oliver Hooper, Rachel Sandford, Jo Harris,Ash Casey and Lorraine Cale from Loughborough University argue that the marginalisation of PE within the...

‘PE’ with Joe (Bloggs): The rise and risks of celebrity ‘teachers’

Long before Covid-19 altered the way learning and teaching takes place, the subject of physical education (PE) was somewhat marginalised in the school curriculum. Within the UK, as elsewhere,...

Online education: What will we keep as lockdown ends?

Teachers across the world have never had to work so hard or so creatively. As a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, professional development that would otherwise have taken years has been crammed...

Curricular breadth in Scottish secondary schools: Access and inequality

Curriculum policy in many countries in the period since the 1960s has aimed to provide a broad, liberal programme to all students as a route into common citizenship. My recent paper (Paterson,...

2020 typology of free web-based learning technologies

It is critical that educators have a comprehensive understanding of technologies if they are to effectively integrate technology into their teaching (Koehler, Mishra, Kereluik, Shin, & Graham,...

Decolonisation of the curriculum from the sidelines? Responsibility transfer and neo-nationalism

The tragic events in Minnesota with the death of George Floyd have given rise to mass waves of protest around the world, setting at the forefront of public debate the workings of racism,...

Covid-19 and schooling for uncertainty

Covid-19 reveals an urgent need to focus on an area of worldwide educational significance: the importance for schools of engaging with uncertainty as a key facet of education. In recent decades, a...

Virtual teaching for children with dyslexia: The realities and disturbing absence of research

Covid-19, education and educational research

I am writing this post from both a parental and scientific perspective. Firstly, from a parental stance, SARS-CoV-2 and subsequent coronavirus 19 has undoubtedly driven us into situations that...

#BlackLivesMatter and racial justice in education: Contribute to a special series of the BERA Blog

The structural inequalities faced by Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities have been deepened by a decade of austerity. We are in the midst of a global pandemic and, following yet another...