Meet The Education Researcher

Adam Lefstein (Hebrew University of Jerusalem) discusses his recent research on teachers’ talk as a form of professional learning. We discuss the nature of ‘pedagogically productive talk’, how this can be supported within schools, and why online spaces are not always the best spaces for teachers to interact.

Sam Sellar (UniSA) is a leading commentator on the rise of numbers and data in education and education policy. We discuss the phenomenon of ‘PISA-shock’, the emergence of algorithms, AI and ‘synthetic governance’ in education, as well as the benefits of reading well beyond the education research literature.

Professor Louise Archer (UCL) is involved in large-scale research looking at inequalities in young people’s participation in STEM – science, technology, engineering and maths. We talk about the importance of young people’s ‘science capital’, the role that luck plays in whether someone progresses into the STEM professions, and what Louise has learnt along the way about research impact and making academic terminology accessible to non-academic audiences.

A/Prof Nicole Mockler (University of Sydney) is well-known for her work on the teaching profession and education policy. We talk about Nicole's recent study of news media representations of teachers, her ongoing project on how teachers manage their time, and what hope there is for revitalising teaching as a profession.

Professor Alice Bradbury (UCL) is a leading sociologist of early years and primary education, focusing on matters of inequality and social justice. We talk about Alice’s research on phonics teaching in English primary schools, the datafication of the early years classroom, and why we should be concerned about the emphasis now being placed on ideas of resilience, ‘grit’ and growth-mindset.

Prof. Julia Resnik (Hebrew University of Jerusalem) talks about her ongoing research into the International Baccalaureate – comparing the program’s take-up in US and Canada through to Argentina, Ecuador and Chile. We discuss how the idealistic origins of the IB program have subsequently been shaped by national and local contexts, and what the IB tells us about the supposed internationalisation of education policy.

“I’m not anti-technology … I’m pro-justice”. Dr. Marie Heath (Loyola University) works to encourage an informed scepticism about digital technology in education. We talk about getting critical tech issues into Social Studies lessons, conducting ‘techno-ethical audits’ of school platforms, and creative ways of encouraging students and teachers to reflect on issues of power and political economy. Full text transcript here: https://criticaledtech.com/2022/08/17/techno-scepticism-in-the-classroom-an-interview-with-marie-heath/

Mark Andrejevic (Monash University) is a leading commentator on surveillance, information and digital media. In this interview Mark looks back on his highly acclaimed 2020 book ‘Automated Media’, and considers how these issues are beginning to play out in the digital technologies now being taken up across schools and universities. Full transcript available: https://bridges.monash.edu/articles/journal_contribution/Education_In_an_Era_of_Pervasive_Automation/20744332

Professor Alison Taylor (UBC) has spent her career looking at the interplay between students, education, work and the economy. We talk about the changing nature of student life in time of precarious employment, the limitations of talking about educational ‘careers’ and ‘trajectories’, and the empirical methods that Alison has found to be particularly successful when researching student experience.

Professor Bob Lingard (ACU) reflects on the art and craft of being an education researcher. He talks about the distinction between ‘education’ research and ‘educational’ research, standing up for the added value of university-based research, and the need for academics to engage in the politics of education research. * full text transcript: https://criticaledtech.com/2022/07/08/what-makes-for-good-education-researchinterview-with-bob-lingard-30th-june-2022%EF%BF%BC/

Knowledge is a fundamental aspect of education, but something that education research rarely addresses head-on. Dr. Kate O’Connor (La Trobe University) specialises in the sociology of knowledge, and in this episode talks about her work around curriculum development, online teaching, and the increasing pressure for academics to engage in open scholarship.

Prof Jen Gilbert (York University) is a leading international researcher in the area of sexuality, gender and education. We talk about school as a site of sexuality, Jen’s use of storytelling methods, tips for dealing with the media, and how perceptions of ‘risk’ have altered since COVID.

“Historians remind us of what we might prefer to forget” Johannes Westberg (University of Groningen) is one of Europe’s rising historians of education. We talk about his recent paper: “What we can learn from studying the past: The wonderful usefulness of history in educational research”, and consider the benefits of thinking more critically about sources of evidence, drawing on historical comparisons, and how history provides a valuable ‘psychological distance’ from emotive debates.

Frank Pasquale (Brooklyn Law School) is a leading commentator on the social and legal consequences of AI, robotics and algorithms. Drawing on his 2020 book ‘The New Laws of Robotics’, Frank talks about various emerging issues around education and AI – from the changing status of professional educators to the possible regulation of ed-tech.

In this episode, Troy Heffernan (La Trobe University) talks about the continuing relevance of Pierre Bourdieu’s ideas to contemporary higher education. We talk about the importance of Bourdieu’s notion of ‘cultural trajectories’, his 1990 book ‘Homo Academicus’, and Troy’s own use of Bourdieu to make sense of rising tensions between university middle-managers and academics.

Despite their social democratic origins, Swedish schools now depend heavily on the support of commercial companies. Professor Malin Ideland (Malmo University) talks about her research into Sweden’s diverse ‘edu-business’ and ‘edu-prenuer’ sectors. Malin describes the breadth of work that these private actors take on, their underpinning ideology, alongside the impact this is having on Swedish public education in Sweden.

Chris Gilliard (@hypervisible) is a leading critic of surveillance technology, digital privacy, and the problematic ways that tech intersects with race and social class. We talk about the automated forms of surveillance that are coming into schools and colleges – from ‘online examination proctoring’ to the use of ‘Alexa’ in classrooms. Why do people in EdTech seem reluctant to call out the harms arising from these technologies? Can we ever trust ‘big tech’ companies like Amazon? What hope is there for grassroots resistance against oppressive technologies in education?

Gert Biesta (University of Edinburgh) is one of the best-known – and most interesting - current philosophers of education. We talk about Gert’s recent interest in the work of Klaus Prange, the need to come up with better questions (rather than answers), the prominence of ‘empty concepts’ in education, and advice for early career academics starting out in education research. Full text transcription of the interview: https://criticaledtech.com/2022/01/11/approaching-education-from-the-inside-out-an-interview-with-gert-biesta/

“Laptops will make a good school better, but they won’t make a bad school good” In this episode, we join Mark Warschauer (UC Irvine) for an overview of his 30 year career researching digital learning. We talk about why digital technology continues to be hyped as a ‘game changer’ in education, how children talk to computers as compared to humans, and Mark’s experience of editing the AERA Open journal. Text transcript of the interview: https://criticaledtech.com/2021/11/30/digital-learning-an-interview-with-mark-warschauer-december-2021/

Educational philosopher Carl Anders Safstrom (Maynooth University) joins us to talk about the past, present and future of ‘public education’. We trace the origins of the idea from post-war Europe back to the writing of John Dewey, and even further to the Ancient Greek ‘Sophists’. Carl Anders also considers how models of public education differ dramatically between countries – highlighting recent reforms of Swedish schooling as a cautionary example.