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Theoretical considerations on precarity
No full textIn his latest book, John Holloway (2022: 5-7) asks us to start again, “not from fear, but from hope”. Or “better, start from antagonism, from struggle”. Critically understood, the antagonistic society is the material force that moves the theoretical understanding of the social process. Rather than being the “foundation” of the argument proposed here, the antagonistic society is the drive for understanding social phenomena and must be placed at the start of the exposition of issues around precarious employment, precarity, job insecurity and the suffering around these social conditions. So, the starting point may be an indefinite ‘people in job insecurity’, rather than precarity as a social phenomenon, even if the two are interlinked. To use critical terms, we can frame individuals in job insecurity as ‘living labour power’ that needs to be sold as a commodity in exchange for wages, where ‘living labour power’ does not immediately mean neither individual personhood nor a precise group of people. Rather, this commodification signals the social pressure on the generality of working people and it is a social pressure that let emerge an inherent class antagonism, because individuals have to struggle to attain a certain degree of security of income through the security of employment. It is from this social existence within the antagonistic society that we will try to frame precarity as the immediate pressure to turn work into wages. The starting point then would be the social existence of human beings, but the division and the struggle they are subjected to, cannot be fully expressed through the work-logos in cognition (Bloch, 1986: 256
Rethink the Way of Conducting Research: It is Time to Change to the Artificial Intelligence Era for Reliable Outcomes
No full textTechnological advancements have occurred over the last decade. Many of these advancements became an essential part of academic and scientific work. ChatGPT represents a significant advancement in the digital age that may have revolutionised changes inside and outside the academic society. This conceptual paper aims to discuss the role of ChatGPT in changing our view of the effective way of conducting research. This conceptual paper projects a future reform in research structure using “Advanced” ChatGPT and demonstrates critical changes that will influence the research structure using a step-by-step approach. This conceptual study demonstrates the transformative potential of “Advanced” ChatGPT in addressing entrenched research challenges, offering time-saving solutions, and delivering high-quality outcomes. Unlocking the full potential of this AI can significantly bolster research endeavours. This conceptual study stands among the pioneering papers emphasizing the critical need to revolutionize conventional research methodologies through the integration of artificial intelligence technologies. A major contribution of this conceptual paper is its overview of the research and development efforts that have been endeavoured in the field and the potential advantages and disadvantages of using ChatGPT
Embedding social justice in MA TESOL programme design
No full textEnglish is the most widely spoken language in the world. English language proficiency is often synonymous with access to resources and opportunities, not least due to the colonial backdrop of the spread of English, making it a social justice matter. Yet the number of people using English as a second or foreign language today vastly exceeds that of so-called native speakers. With an ever-growing number of English language learners, teachers of English as a foreign language are globally in high demand, and as a consequence, there is an increasing need for programmes that equip graduates with the skills to become inclusive and mindful English language teachers.With this in mind, we have developed a new MA programme on Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) that aligns with the principles of the Curriculum for Social Justice. Students will engage with questions of how linguistic knowledge can enhance social justice, what English is and whose English is being taught (or not), and the programme seeks to embed opportunities like working with charities supporting asylum seekers.In this presentation we will give an account of how social justice issues lie at the heart of TESOL and Applied Linguistics and how studying these subjects can foster socially aware and responsible professionals. We will then reflect on how we have designed the new MA TESOL programme and its assessments to maximise inclusivity and provide space to address and critique contemporary global issues, such as native speakerism and linguistic discrimination in the English language teaching sector, and injustices related to language and the law. We will conclude by opening the floor to discussions of how we can further enhance inclusivity and social justice in our provision
Nobody's Memoir:An unreliable history of fragments
No full textIn this essay, the authors discuss the possibilities of partial and fallible memories to provide source material for creative memoir, and the abnegation of individual authorial control as a key element of creative process. Considering Jonathan Gottschall’s characterisation of narrative as central to human experience, the authors explore the way in which their own fragmented and discrete personal narratives, when ‘recycled into mutant strains,’ as Gareth E Rees puts it, may be combined and shaped into what they describe as ‘a shared psychogeography of memories,’ which belongs to both writers, and to neither. They illustrate how, in practice, this creates a narrator who is, as other collaborative writers have acknowledged in the past, an independent third entity, and that this speaker adopts the role of a psychopomp, leading both writers and readers through a strangely familiar landscape that, ultimately, is nobody’s creation but its own
A conspiracy of silence:child sexual abuse and cultural complicity in Britain’s Pakistani diaspora
No full textThis paper explores the systemic silencing of child sexual abuse (CSA) within British Pakistani communities, situating these dynamics at the intersection of colonial legacies, diasporic migration, and contemporary cultural and geopolitical pressures. It examines the limitations of official statistics and the pervasive underreporting of intra-community abuse, showing how entrenched social, familial, and cultural structures hinder disclosure and perpetuate cycles of denial. Drawing on postcolonial theory, intersectionality, migration, and gender studies, the analysis demonstrates how colonialism distorted interpretations of Islam and how the instrumentalization of communal ‘honour’ (izzat) sustains environments that protect perpetrators while silencing survivors. Importantly, the paper resists deflecting internal accountability onto colonial trauma or Islamophobia, emphasising that authenticjustice requires confronting abuse and challenging the patriarchal norms that enable harm. The paper further conceptualises silence as a form of knowledge production, showing how patterns of denial, moral gatekeeping, and erasure shape what is acknowledged about abuse within families and communities. It advocates for survivor-centred, decolonial approaches to justice and healing, emphasising the reclamation of narratives to serve victims rather than feed prejudices. By foregrounding critical self-reflection, accountability, and transformative cultural reckoning, the paper argues that only when Pakistani communities confront internal harms can they engage in effective collective action to dismantle broader injustices such as racism, Islamophobia, and social inequalities
Supporting primary teachers to address loss and death in the classroom::a case study of an interdisciplinary, creative pedagogical intervention using education, children’s literature, architecture/design and the arts
No full textSchools inevitably face difficult discussions with children about loss and death, irrespective of whether it is factored into formal teaching. A range of societal factors in many countries, not least a lack of training, compound to leave many teachers unprepared to manage these sensitive issues. Whilst resources and guidance are widely available, there is a gap in generating pedagogical tools which are underpinned by solid theoretical grounding. This article addresses that gap, reporting on a case study of staff (n=12) working in an infant school in England, where an interdisciplinary project was implemented to explore whether creative pedagogies could empower staff to address these difficult topics with young children. Contextualised within thanatology, (the study of death and its social practices), an intervention was designed and co-created with teachers synthesising education, literature, architecture/design and the arts. The paper details its theoretical and practical development, and the participants’ responses to it. The article concludes that despite initial ambivalence among some school staff about using creative pedagogies, responses at the end of the study were positive and confidence had increased. The need for theoretically sound approaches is supported as part of the long-advocated calls for mandatory death/life education, although the potential dissonance between academics and practitioners’ views about the value of theory is acknowledged. However, the paper argues that co-created interdisciplinary projects such as this can help bridge theory-practice divides. Furthermore, they can offer practical spaces for reflection and confidence building in time-effective ways to benefit teachers and children
‘Money anxiety’:understanding HE students' experiences of the cost-of-living crisis
No full textThe ongoing cost-of-living crisis is causing immense stress and hardship for families, individuals and communities, with increases in utility bills, food prices and transport costs. Actors from civil society, politicians and academics have demonstrated concern as to the effect this is having at local and national levels, specifically the disproportionate impact on already marginalised and vulnerable groups. One demographic particularly affected is higher education students, however, due to the lack of support measures being aimed at this cohort, they are at significant risk of becoming overlooked and forgotten. While recent survey data has acknowledged the negative experiences of this group, there is a lack of understanding of their everyday lived realities. To address this gap, this article draws on empirical research conducted with HE students in the North-West of England between 2022 and 2023. The study explores the diverse ways in which students navigate the crisis and the impact this has on their health and well-being. It concludes with a call for urgent action and policy response to elevate unprecedented and devastating student hardship triggered by the cost-of-living crisis
Education staff wellbeing and workload:‘Causing Concern’ in the proposed Ofsted Inspection Toolkits
No full textWe, like many of you, have been very interested in Ofsted’s current consultation on proposed changes to their inspections in England, following the biggest consultation Ofsted have ever undertaken; the 2024 ‘Big Listen’. The proposals relate to inspections of early years (EY), schools, further education (FE) and skills providers and initial teacher education (ITE). Proposals include the introduction of inspection toolkits, and grades for a range of areas, on a 5-point scale from causing concern (red) through to exemplary (black). which you can see in draft here https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/improving-the-way-ofsted-inspects-education.In this blog, we are taking a ‘deep dive’ into a specific area of the proposed Inspection Toolkits; staff wellbeing and workload, which appears in the school, early years and FE toolkits in the Leadership and Governance section. Here we are using the ITE toolkit for our ‘deep dive’ as our own wellbeing research has been in this sector (Wood & Quickfall, 2024). In the ITE toolkit, staff wellbeing and workload are covered in the final section entitled ‘Professional behaviours, personal development and well-being’
