Evidence for setting in schools – stone, scissors, paper?

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By Dr. Elspeth McCartney- ‘Setting’, grouping children with others of similar attainment, perhaps changing groups across curriculum areas, is widely-used in classrooms. This post is not about the de/merits of setting, but the forms of evidence used to justify and contest it. In September The Guardian (3.11.14) announced the English Education Secretary’s intention of making setting virtually… Continue reading

The Crisis in Adult Education

Published on: Author: Mark Murphy 2 Comments

  By Paul Stanistreet- It won’t grab many headlines, even in the specialist education press, but there is a growing crisis in adult participation in education and training, with stark implications both for our economy and our democracy. If the trend continues it will soon be necessary to reinvent from scratch a part of the… Continue reading

Education needs a broader definition of literacy

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By Cristina Costa – Literacy was, still is and will continue to be a core mission of education. The ‘popular’ meaning of ‘being literate’ has usually been associated with the notion of being able to read and write; a fundamental skill to prevail in a society in which the written word has a massive impact… Continue reading

Find out more about the Robert Owen Centre’s work

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Our latest E Bulletin can be accessed by clicking on the link below – this has details on our latest research, recent awards and appointments, recent publications and some of our knowledge exchange activities: Ebulletin, Robert Owen Centre for Educational Change As you will gather it’s been a highly productive and regarding first year for the… Continue reading

Advancing ‘race’ and ethnicity in educational research

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By Oscar Odena and Richard Race. There is a prevailing sense that the term ‘race’, used in the past to highlight difference based on perceived ability and temperament, is no longer acceptable. ‘Race’ issues appear to be currently off the policy agenda, subsumed into ‘social justice’, ‘inclusion’ and ‘ethnicity’ topics. However ‘race’ is still a… Continue reading

Owen, music and inclusion

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By Oscar Odena. Robert Owen’s vision of education for all outlined the importance of arts education for personal development as well as for community cohesion. His vision of education comprised not just reading and writing but aesthetic appreciation, music and dancing, in order to achieve everybody’s holistic development and a sense of inclusion. His New… Continue reading

Exploring the impact of academy chains in England

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teenage school pupils

The Robert Owen Centre for Educational Change at the University of Glasgow has been working with colleagues at the University of Southampton to explore the impact of academy chains in England. This work builds on earlier work exploring the impact of federations on student outcomes (Chapman and Muijs, 2013) and qualitative studies of academy chains… Continue reading

Knowledge is the route to emancipation: Lawrence Stenhouse on teacher work

Published on: Author: Mark Murphy 1 Comment

[image (c) Todd Berman] By Clive Dimmock Since joining the Robert Owen Centre I am experiencing constant resonances with the work of a man I have admired for most of my 30-year university career. If you espouse these – teachers researching their own practice, action research, use of data to inform improved practice, the centrality… Continue reading

‘A truly postmodern condition’: The unintended side-effects of global education rankings

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[image (c) Rob Ketcherside] Post By Barbara Kehm When the invitation came (in January 2013) to give a presentation at the 5th International Conference on World Class Universities in Shanghai to celebrate 10 years of Shanghai Jiao Tong Academic Ranking of World Class Universities I felt very honoured. But I was also in a split… Continue reading