New year, new publications! School of Education postgraduate researchers contributing to knowledge in diverse ways
Dr Jessica Bradley, with Hinna Abid, Nicky Hindmarch and Charlotte Clarke
School of Education doctoral researchers are actively engaged in exploring different ways to communicate their research ideas, expertise, and contribute to knowledge. Here are some examples of recent publications to which our postgraduate research community have contributed.
Hinna Abid, alongside Senior University Teacher Dr Tim Herrick, published an article ‘Navigating financial barriers in English universities: a phenomenographic exploration of mature male students’ experiences’ in the Widening Participation and Lifelong Learning journal. This article, through phenomenographic research methodology, provides first-hand insights into the experiences of mature male students and the impact of financial barriers on their educational journey. “I found this work gratifying, as it provided me the opportunity to be a voice for struggling mature male students, disadvantaged and marginalised in their own specific contexts.” Hinna’s doctoral research is supervised by Dr Tim Herrick, with Dr Ansgar Allen as second supervisor.
Nicola Hindmarch’s doctoral research focuses on the marketisation of higher education and the NSS. Nicola is a Senior Lecturer in Mental Health Nursing at the University of Derby, studying in the School of Education part time for her PhD. She recently contributed to a WONKHE article about the recent Teaching Excellence Framework and the student experience. Nicola says “it was really interesting to take part in this ‘all hands on deck’ evaluation of student experience with HE staff from across the country. Whilst my research is primarily concerned with the limitations of some of the metrics we use it was nice to see from the student submissions that there is a lot of great work happening to support all students but particularly those from traditionally marginalised communities and disabled students”. Nicola is supervised by Dr Jessica Bradley and Dr Tim Herrick.
Contributions also included creative ways of thinking about concepts and ideas in research. First year PhD candidate Charlotte Clarke has recently published an abstract in the Journal of Imaginary Research, a journal which publishes fiction within an academic abstract genre. Charlotte says “It was super fun to write and play with the idea of my research in a fiction-like space”. The abstract describes the invasion of ‘Auspia’ by the ‘Typicaliens’. The fictional-Auspian researcher works with other Auspian people to understand how they balance the expectations and demand of work from the ‘Typicaliens’ and the Auspian people’s inherent need to experience freedom and joy.
Writing the abstract was an enjoyable experience for Charlotte as it provided an opportunity for her to make sense of her research and current reading whilst engaging in the methods she intends to include in her PhD. Charlotte’s PhD research is funded by the ESRC WRDTP and is an arts-based exploration of the school experiences of autistic women and girls. Her interdisciplinary supervisory team includes Dr Harriet Cameron and Dr Jessica Bradley within the School of Education, working with Dr Chris Bailey at Sheffield Hallam University.
Dr Jessica Bradley is EdD Deputy Programme Director and co-Director of Internationalisation
Hinna Abid, Nicky Hindmarch and Charlotte Clarke are currently doctoral researchers.
