RSS 1.0Theses
This collection contains the Doctoral and Masters by Research theses produced within the department.
This collection is licenced under a Creative Commons licence. The collection may be reproduced for non-commercial use and without modification, providing that copyright is acknowledged.
Recent Submissions
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Trespassers Will Be Prosecuted: An Exploration of the Influence Research Engagement has on the Professional Identities of University-based Teacher EducatorsThis thesis explores how engagement both with and in research shapes the professional identities of those working within the highly regulated and politically contested landscape of teacher education in England (V. Ellis & Childs, 2023). It is grounded in the work of Pierre Bourdieu and draws on the conceptual tools developed in texts such as Homo Academicus (Bourdieu, 2007) and Outline of a Theory of Practice (Bourdieu, 1977), alongside contemporary and affective readings of his work by scholars including Threadgold (2020) and S. Ahmed (2014). Through this lens, the study interrogates the often-marginalised role that research plays in the professional lives of teacher educators (Nicholson & Lander, 2022), offering insight into how teacher educators position themselves as both producers and consumers of research. The thesis assumes that understanding the research engagement of teacher educators requires attention not only to external policies, institutional structures, and academic expectations, but also to the relational, emotional, and affective dimensions of research, all of which shape their evolving professional identities. The empirical research adopts a single embedded case study design, drawing on semi structured interviews with four experienced teacher educators based at a university in England. All participants work predominantly with beginning teachers and specialise in the primary age phase. Data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2022), with the themes and codes generated, presented, and explored through the presentation of composite narratives. As discussed by Johnston (2024) and Willis (2019), this is an under-theorised but purposeful narrative approach for disseminating findings. Composite narratives present accounts of lived experience using the words of participants, rearticulated through the perspectives of imagined others. This method was chosen both to preserve participant anonymity and to present findings in a form designed to provoke reflection and resonance for the reader. The study exposes the considerable challenges teacher educators face in sustaining research engagement, which are exacerbated by ongoing systemic reforms and increasing accountability demands. Within this context, research often becomes secondary, as subtle forms of symbolic exclusion contribute to a sense of disconnection from the wider university. These challenges are not only structural but also deeply affective, as feelings of marginalisation, frustration, and diminished professional worth shape how teacher educators experience and enact their roles as researchers. The composite narratives illustrate how teacher educators navigate these pressures, often expressing frustration at the lack of time, institutional support, and recognition afforded to their research endeavours. Yet, despite these constraints, the narratives also reveal important signs of hope. Drawing on the concept of illusio (Bourdieu, 2007), the deep, often unexamined investment individuals make in a particular social field, the data point to a strong, enduring commitment to the belief that scholarly and educational work is inherently meaningful and worth pursuing. This thesis calls on the sector to engage in sustained dialogue about what it means to be a research-engaged teacher educator working within the university in the 21st century. It urges universities to recognise the distinct pressures facing teacher education and to consider how they might cultivate an academic culture that values and respects the contributions of those whose work bridges the arenas of schooling and higher education. At an individual level, it emphasises the importance of claiming the title of teacher educator and encourages practitioners to confidently assert their specialised role within the wider educational landscape.
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How do English teachers negotiate their identity in the context of the “knowledge rich” curriculum?This thesis explores the human impact of policies that positioned English at the heart of the National Curriculum and of the accountability and inspection frameworks shaping secondary teachers’ work. At the core of this work is the impact that implementing policy has had on a group of English teachers, on their experiences, subjectivities and the way they know themselves, negotiate and construct their identities in relation to the “knowledge rich” curriculum. The study combined a social constructivist (Cresswell & Poth, 2018) and social realist ontology (Lawson, 2012), seeking a range of views whilst taking a position that there are aspects of our reality which are shared and objective, namely policy. A range of policy was scrutinised to interrogate the conditions which precipitated the so-called “knowledge rich” curriculum and the accountability structures which maintained it in schools, how this relates to traditions and accepted practices within the teaching of English and the potential for how this might impact upon how English teachers negotiate their identity. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight participants: two trainee teachers; two undertaking their ECT training, in their first year of teaching; two experienced teachers with more than fifteen years service and two retired teachers. Participants worked, or are working in, a range of secondary school settings in England. Thematic analysis (Braun, Clarke, & Hayfield, 2022) was used to determine key aspects of their experiences: how they construct their identities within their own personal narratives; their beliefs and perceptions of English as a subject and their views on knowledge and the curriculum. Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) (Fairclough, 2010) was used to analyse the words of participants, considering how their language reflected the ideologies and discourses which constituted their experiences and understandings. A significant and original contribution to knowledge is constituted by the critical examination of how policy and accountability frameworks function as regimes which construct, constrain and fragment the professional identities of English teachers. The combination of thematic analysis and CDA, and the foregrounding of the voices of English teachers across career and generational stages reveals a complex contradiction: teachers often resist the imposed curriculum in discourse, yet simultaneously reproduce its traditional, canonical, structures in practice. The tension that exists between resistance and reproduction has not previously been articulated in research on English teacher identity. This, in turn, challenges the assumption that English as a discipline is inherently radical or progressive, showing instead how both policy and disciplinary culture act as regulatory forces. Finally, the study offers a methodological contribution by demonstrating how insider research, grounded in close discourse analysis can reveal deeper, unspoken dimensions of policy impact at the level of subject specific identity offering a new lens through which to examine performativity, power, surveillance, identity and professional subjectivity in English education.
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Are leaders born or made? Can technological approaches assist the development and training of future leaders?The debate over whether leaders are born or made remains a persistent theme within academic literature. In an era shaped by rapid digitalisation and the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), new opportunities have emerged to advance both leadership theory and practice. This study explores the composition and development of leaders in society, with a particular focus on how technology, specifically AI, can enhance leadership learning and development. As digital technologies become increasingly integrated into all facets of life, this research addresses existing knowledge gaps by re-examining the longstanding debate on the origins of leadership. It uses this debate as a foundational analysis to assess the potential of AI in training and developing future leaders. The primary objective of this study is to investigate whether leaders are inherently born or developed through experience and learning, while simultaneously examining the role of AI as a tool for leadership training. By reviewing existing literature and assessing how technological tools can support leadership development, the study aims to contribute both to theoretical understanding and practical application. A Grounded Ethnography methodology was employed, gathering participant reflections from trials using the ChatGPT AI application to support leadership learning. This approach generated primary data on user experience and evaluated the feasibility of AI as a development tool. Additionally, Grounded Theory techniques were applied to analyse Likert scale responses measuring participants perceived growth in leadership knowledge through chatbot interactions. A total of 12 participants engaged in a series of questionnaires and a live AI chatbot session, providing insights into user experience, knowledge acquisition, and the practical application of AI in leadership development. Findings from this doctoral study suggest that AI chatbots can be effective, supportive tools for enhancing leadership knowledge. While the study does not definitively resolve whether leaders are born or made, it proposes that this debate may become increasingly irrelevant in the face of advancing technology. The capacity of AI to supplement or even reshape traditional leadership development models signals a shift in focus toward leveraging innovation for training. This research underscores the transformative impact of AI on leadership development. It demonstrates that AI can deliver scalable, cost-effective, and personalised training, tailored to individual strengths and learning needs. The study contributes to Theory by integrating AI with leadership and learning frameworks, notably enriching Cognitive Load Theory and operational leadership strategies. Practically, it introduces AI-driven, adaptive learning pathways that facilitate real-time feedback and reflection. As digitalisation and AI continue to evolve, this research offers future leaders access to global best practices and interdisciplinary knowledge, fostering more dynamic and responsive leadership development.
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Capital Punishment – An Investigation into the impact of Capital on the Closing the Gap InitiativeThis research examines the role of varying forms of Pierre Bourdieu’s capital (cultural, social, economic, and symbolic) on the current UK government’s Closing the Gap initiative, exploring the impact of these different forms on the progress of children in the UK’s school system. It examines the link between Bourdieu’s notions of capital, habitus and social reproduction and relates these concepts to Michel Foucault’s ideas about power and power knowledge. The research is underpinned by two forms of incompatible storytelling. The first explores the idea of educational equality, which is promoted by educational policy and practice in the UK, the second is my autoethnographic experience of education. Throughout this research, there is consideration of my current context as I explore my autoethnographic experiences as a teacher, mapping my thoughts against UK education narratives to trace students’ likely educational and experiential trajectories. The research reveals the power of the promise of education and, despite my attempt to depict the claim’s emptiness, there is a sense of irony that sees me unable to completely renounce this promise, as the very nature of it is what led to the completion of this thesis that you currently hold in your hands.
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Barriers and bridges: Examining the intersecting determinants impacting the career trajectories of black women teachers in UK secondary education institutionsThis thesis explores the intersecting structural, cultural, and individual factors impacting the career progression of Black women teachers in secondary education within the UK. Grounded in Critical Race Theory, Intersectionality, and Black Feminist Thought, the study illuminates the barriers and enabling factors encountered by Black women educators navigating a predominantly White educational landscape. Through a narrative inquiry approach, semi-structured interviews were conducted with fifteen Black women teachers across England, offering a nuanced understanding of their lived experiences within secondary schools. This methodology captures both shared and unique narratives that reveal the resilience, strategic adaptability, and continuous negotiation of identity that these educators employ to progress within their careers. Key findings from the thematic analysis identify three central dimensions impacting career trajectories: individual, occupational, and sociocultural. The individual dimension highlights personal identity and self-concept as both empowering yet vulnerable to marginalisation through microaggressions, hypo-visibility, and stereotypes that often require Black women teachers to “work harder” to be seen and respected as professionals. The occupational dimension reveals systemic barriers within school environments, such as racial biases in recruitment, promotion, and leadership opportunities. Participants’ testimonies frequently point to an undercurrent of racial gatekeeping that restricts career advancement and perpetuates isolation, impacting mental health and long-term retention. Finally, the sociocultural dimension underscores the societal and economic contexts that shape educational institutions, including economic disparities and political dynamics influencing the inclusivity of school climates. This study contributes to the understanding of how racial and gendered biases manifest in education, impacting both individual career outcomes and institutional diversity. Findings emphasise the need for transformative policy interventions and robust support systems that can mitigate these inequities, advocating for structured mentorship, allyship, and leadership coaching tailored to Black women educators. The research underscores the broader implications for fostering inclusive, equitable educational spaces that reflect and support the diversity of the communities they serve. The insights offered by this thesis aim to not only enrich academic discourse on racial equity in education but also inspire actionable strategies to enhance the professional trajectories of Black women teachers, thereby contributing to a more inclusive and just educational landscape.
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Examining perspectives of school staff on trauma informed practice and its influence on ‘behaviour management’ – a case study analysisThis thesis seeks to examine the perspectives of school staff on trauma informed practice and its influence on behaviour management within schools. My primary objective was to solicit the perspectives of school staff on trauma informed practice and examine how they felt it influenced their school community, as well as any benefits or challenges associated with its implementation. The genesis of the study stemmed from my experiences as a family support worker and educator, where my observations of marginalisation and the effects of trauma and adversity on children’s educational experiences, prompted an exploration of alternative approaches to how behaviour is understood and managed in schools. The concept of trauma informed practice and its restorative and reparative functions (McCluskey, 2018; Zehr, 2002; Evanovich et al., 2020; Mullet, 2014; United Nations, 2006) sparked an inquiry into whether such practices might offer a more compassionate and nurturing framework for supporting behaviour in schools, in contrast to punitive measures and zero-tolerance policies. To delve deeper into this research inquiry, I conducted a qualitative case study in a school that self-identified as trauma informed. To contextualise my study within current scholarly discourse on educational practice, I employed Foucauldian notions of power and knowledge (Foucault, 1977) to illuminate the various dynamics which shape how behaviour is managed in schools, both within the school and beyond. Furthermore, the theoretical frameworks of further key thinkers such as Bronfenbrenner and Bourdieu, helped to situate the concept of behaviour management in schools within broader societal and environmental influences and systemic beliefs. I employed an interpretive approach, utilising inductive reasoning to analyse interview data collected from school staff, followed by applying Braun and Clarkes reflexive thematic analysis (2006;2019) method, to select overarching themes detailing the importance of school staff demonstrating mutual respect, empathy, and effective leadership and support in fostering a trauma informed ethos within the school. My research identified that for effective learning to occur in schools, a framework of expansive learning, where continuous professional development and collaborative learning is prioritised, is central to this process. In response to these insights, and to propose a structured pathway for implementing alternative practice in schools, I used Engeström’s expansive learning cycle (2001), alongside a later adaptation by Lindley and Lotz-Sisitika (2019), to create ‘Engeström’s Expansive Learning Cycle – Supporng Trauma Informed Pracce in Schools’. Whilst my study highlighted the positive influence of trauma informed practices within the school, it also underscored the challenges faced in maintaining such practices amidst demands for performativity and bureaucratic measures in education. Despite these challenges, my study exhibits the transformative potential of trauma informed practice in supporting staff to promote empathy, respect and understanding within school communities. As such, my study presents as a valuable resource for educators and policymakers seeking to create a more inclusive and equitable education environment for staff, children, and their families, particularly those who have been impacted by trauma or adversity.
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Retrospective narratives of the cultural and linguistic brokering roles of migrant children following resettlementThe resettlement practices of (im)migrating communities into Global North countries has long been the focus of academic research. This thesis explores the pivotal role that children play in this resettlement process, through their roles as cultural and linguistic brokers, specifically the extent to which child brokers are exercising agency, and the factors which maximise or constrain this agency within the context of family hierarchies and other societal structures. Using Biographical Narrative Interpretive Method, (Chamberlayne, Rustin and Wengraf, 2002; Wengraf, 2004) the project elicits retrospective narratives from five adults who engaged in myriad brokering roles during their childhood. The research positions (Bio)ecological Systems Theory (Bronfenbrenner, 1979; Bronfenbrenner and Morris, 1998, 2006) as a sociological framework for identifying the macro and micro factors impacting upon children’s cultural and linguistic brokering roles. The alignment between the chosen theoretical framework and the BNIM methodology in the context of children’s cultural and linguistic brokering roles is a key feature of this research. The research findings indicate that brokering activities take place across a range of formal and informal contexts, with children deploying complex metalinguistic and cultural negotiation skills from an early age and into adulthood. Many of the brokering roles suggest children exercise varying degrees of agency in situational contexts, influencing family practices and contributing to the resettlement process. Retrospective perceptions of these roles reflect shifting interpretations of the challenges and benefits for their families and for the children themselves, mediated by such factors as their age, sense of efficacy, family expectations, duration, frequency and context of the brokering activities. Finally, I critique normative constructions of childhood, and analyse the significance of socio cultural factors on child brokering practices and their positioning within communities. The application of Bioecological Systems Theory has revealed the importance of establishing conceptual frameworks for exploring child brokering roles which inform policy and practice across relevant academic and societal contexts.
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In two minds: what happens when we think in Role?‘In two Minds’ proffers a detailed concept of the in-role process. It illuminates hitherto underexplored phenomena regarding thinking and existing in the drama classroom. The contradictory dynamic of ‘escaping’ and ‘facing’ something ‘at the same time’ is unpacked revealing that the two are not, in this context, opposite processes but are necessary as bound forces progressing in the same emancipatory direction. This has significant implications for classroom drama practice reaching beyond the drama lesson, studio, and exam results, analysing how the in-role process facilitates self-transformation: the essential purpose of education. The research involves the stories of two 12-year-old girls, some 30 years apart. The first testimony provides the background to the thesis. The second provides the focus for the thesis, featuring the stimulus quote above, which forms the basis of an interview which took place in 2019 just before Covid lockdown. The interview fuels an online drama workshop for a group of contemporary PGCE students to excavate this paradox in their own way. The workshop takes place during the Covid lockdown, summer 2020. These unprecedented circumstances demanded new, creative dramatic online classroom pedagogies and research methodologies which capture unusual online video footage of the drama process and enable fresh ground to be explored. The work of three practitioners is drawn upon to illuminate the data arising from the interview and workshop, Konstantin Stanislavski’s work provides the early theoretical basis of how a role is adopted and sustained both physically and mentally. Maurice Merleau-Ponty’s later phenomenological ideas about the unity of the mind and body and how this relates to learning casts more detailed theoretical light onto the in-role process. In addition, some aspects of Jacques Lacan’s thinking are brought into the study to consider our existential context while in role and its impacts on the thinking process. These theoretical lenses are considered alongside the work of Drama Educationalists, like Dorothy Heathcote, Gavin Bolton and Cecily O’Neill. The research illuminates internal role processes, considering embodiment in the here-and-now, alongside realms of existence in the not-here and not-now. While the focus is on positive self-transformation, the limitations of the study are also recognised. However, the limitations depend directly upon the skills, insight and education of the drama teacher. Consequently, the study provides strong arguments for the value of drama in schools as a subject in its own right, taught by subject specialists.
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Retention of secondary school teachers: what motivates them to stay? A narrative ethnographic study of five teachers' lived experiences of ongoing commitment to their professionThis thesis uses narrative methodology to explore the ongoing career journeys of five secondary schoolteachers in England, presented from my perspective as a former schoolteacher. I aimed to understand how and why they remained committed to their profession by gaining insight into their professional motivation and their means of reconciling known demotivators associated with teacher attrition. I developed flexible mixed methods to capture a snapshot of their individual professional experiences. During the Covid pandemic of 2020, the year self-isolation and social distancing entered our lexicon, I conducted semi-structured interviews which were used to create thematic networks, and transposed the hand-transcribed accounts to third person narratives which participants had the opportunity to comment on. The methodology aimed to construct a three-dimensional research space (Clandinin, 2006), incorporating participants’ interaction with others, the continuity of their experience, and the situation(s) they inhabited. I draw on the work of Stronach et al. (2002) to show that the three components of motivation collectively referred to as Self-Determination Theory (SDT) (Ryan & Deci, 2000b) occur within divided, pluralistic, conflicted professional identities. The findings show how the first component of SDT, competence, becomes interwoven with the principles and language of performativity; how the second, relatedness, is complicated by competing allegiances which undermine teacher security; and that the third, autonomy, is always limited. I elicit a sense of fulfilment as an additional feature of motivation and identify acceptance as a further contributor to teachers’ ongoing commitment. I conclude that whilst teacher motivation is shifting and individualised, as are the conflicted professional identities underpinning reasons to teach, both motivation and identity are always a response to the circumstances and system of which they are products. The study shows that motivated teachers are generally able to maintain a positive outlook despite the tensions they must navigate, as long as they perceive an omnipresent possibility to alter their path.
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Enacting Remote Working in an Era of (Un)certainty: Care of Personal and Professional SelfThis research explores the experiences of US based professional workers engaged in enforced remote working during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using a Critical Ethnographic methodology (Clair, 2003; Denzin & Lincoln, 2018; Given, 2008) underpinned by Reflexive Thematic Analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2022; Byrne, 2022), it examines how employees in a large, US multinational company called OmniSat navigated the shifting boundaries between home and work life from March to September 2021. Data was collected through virtual semistructured interviews and digital instant chat messages, allowing opportunity for insights into key themes such as corporate expectations, self-care, self-perception, and certainty/uncertainty. Reflexive practice (Bazeley, 2007; Behar, 1997; Denzin & Lincoln, 2018) was concurrently engaged with throughout the entire research process, with researcher reflexive commentaries embedded in each chapter. The theoretical framework used draws from Foucault’s (1997; 1984; 1982; 1979) post-structuralist theory and Ball’s (2003; Ball & Olmedo, 2012) neoliberal performativity to explore how workers self-regulate under a corporate gaze, balancing autonomy with pressures to perform. The findings suggest that remote working reshaped the concept of the professional ‘self’, highlighting both opportunities for greater flexibility and autonomy and challenges such as isolation and the reallocation of domestic space for work. These experiences reflect broader uncertainties in a neoliberal employment landscape. This research contributes to an understanding of how professional and personal ‘self’ is continuously redefined in response to changing work practices, offering a critical perspective on the dynamics of power, performativity, and resistance in contemporary work environments.
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Emancipating Voice: the role of Drama in supporting the mental health and wellbeing of young people in a secondary school settingThe aims of this arts-based research study are to examine how the mental health and wellbeing of young people in a secondary school setting is supported through a Drama curriculum, using performance poetry, found poetry and verbatim theatre as data. The participants were observed engaging in workshops in which the critical pedagogical approach of Open Space Learning (OSL) was applied. This pedagogy enables a shift in power between the teacher and the learner, encouraging democratic, explorative, and creative learning. The study was structured through an arts-based methodology, using a triangulation of data through dramaturgical approaches, framing the data through performance poetry, found poetry and Verbatim Theatre to explore the experiences of a sample of Year 9 and Year 10 Performing Arts students. Observation of their creative practice in Spoken Word and Verbatim Theatre workshops, and the found poetry crafted collaboratively from semi-structured interviews generated the data, with an analysis of the emerging themes from their creative practice. The constraints of curriculum planning in educational policies and Bourdieu’s theories of habitus, capital and symbolic violence were considered. This is supported with arguments for a more inclusive curriculum in secondary education by acknowledging the value of Drama in supporting students with their mental health and wellbeing at a time when the Arts are being marginalised in curriculum provision, particularly in state schools in areas of high unemployment and socio-economic depravation. This approach explores the impact of locality on the aspirations of the participants, in how the extent to which their view of the world is shaped by a gradual internalisation and acceptance of local historical influences which may subsequently have a subordinating and coercive effect within seemingly prescribed or accepted forms of habitus. The research focuses on two key areas, specifically, Drama as a subject and its value as an aspirational art form, and the mental health and wellbeing of students in a secondary school setting. Both key aspects of the research seek to investigate through an arts-based research methodology, the extent to which habitus and capital may shape the mental health and wellbeing of the students, and how the inclusion of Drama in the secondary school curriculum supports the social and academic development of young people.
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A Narrative Enquiry into the Experiences of Women with a Late Diagnosis of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a lifelong condition with two main subtypes: hyperactivity, which is characterised by impulsivity and restlessness, and inattentiveness, with difficulties focusing and concentrating. Individuals can also have a combination of both. Research into ADHD has traditionally focussed on young males with hyperactive symptoms, and as a result, other groups have been overlooked, such as women. Although the ADHD subtypes are present in females, the symptoms are often misdiagnosed or go undiagnosed for reasons such as the pervasive stereotype that only boys have it or that the symptoms are hidden through socialisation. A lack of diagnosis can lead to various issues for the individual, for example, failing to meet their academic potential, a lack of career success, relationship problems, and drug and alcohol abuse. In addition, this can lead to struggles with depression and anxiety. The impact of undiagnosed ADHD can, therefore, have a significant effect on an individual’s life. The body of research into women with ADHD is a limited yet growing area. As a result, there has been an increase in public awareness and a surge in women of all ages seeking a diagnosis. Further research is required to advance an understanding of the symptoms and experiences of ADHD in females to increase the likelihood of an early diagnosis and to mitigate associated issues and comorbidities. This study recruited six women between the ages of 35 and 50 with a late diagnosis of ADHD. The data collection and analysis followed the constructivist paradigm, with a narrative methodology containing a life-story interview and a focused conversation. The participants' narratives of undiagnosed ADHD are restoried in the results section, revealing the unique complexities and multiple truths of the participants' experience. Reflexive commentary is applied to provide insights into the interpretation and positioning within the research, and reflections on the author's experiences of receiving a late diagnosis of ADHD are included to add further data. The discussion provides answers to the research questions by applying philosophical theory to aspects of women's narratives. Bourdieu's Theory of Practice explored difficulties faced in fields such as school and the workplace. In addition, a suggestion that symptoms of ADHD override the habitus, creating problems conforming to the doxa of the field is made. Lacan's Register Theory was used to analyse the moment the women realised that they have ADHD, and for some of the participants, this was a significant event. Finally, Kristeva's concept of abjection was used to explain the participants' reconstruction of their symbolic order by removing the facets of themselves they no longer recognised due to their late diagnosis. This project adds to the limited body of research on women with ADHD. Each participant’s experience of navigating their life without a reason for their struggles or perceived differences is unique and has not been researched before. The individual accounts and commonalities between them reinforce the importance of an early diagnosis and an increased awareness of ADHD as an underlying cause for other comorbidities and issues.
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Puddle Jumping: How do young children manage their grief following the death of their sibling and how do mothers use continuing bonds to maintain their children's relationship in the living world?This thesis examines the narratives of four mothers who are bereaved of one of their children and are parenting living children. The study used an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis to explore the lived experiences of bereaved siblings through the stories told by their mothers. Previous research exploring the impact on children following the death of a sibling, indicates the potential long-lasting impact on their emotional wellbeing, but there is a scarcity of research which focuses on the younger child and the practice of continuing bonds by their mother. A review of the literature focuses on the traditions, rituals and practices enacted by mothers as they endeavour to create or to maintain relationships between all their children; those who have died and those in the living world. A case study approach has been adopted across four case studies and includes semistructured interviews with each child’s mother using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) to demonstrate their lived experiences. Rich narratives allow an insight into how young siblings can manage their grief and maintain a relationship with their sibling. Analysis of the data revealed the importance of this sibling relationship and the ways in which the children’s mothers incorporated the memories of their dead children into their lives of their living children. The data revealed that grief is felt even when a sibling was not known in the living world and that living siblings share stories and memories and are an important part of continuing bonds. Mothers spoke with love, hope, and confidence about all their children and of their determination to ensure their siblings remained in each other's lives. The thesis also demonstrates the tensions felt amongst educational professionals and western society in talking to young children about death and how their voice can become silenced, contributing to their grief. Mothers play a key role in forging and maintaining the bond between their living and dead children, but further research in this area is needed.
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A critical autoethnographic study of the experience of the older secondary school teacher in England: a socio-political and emotional model of their Body without OrgansThis research explores the lives of ‘older’ secondary teachers as they inhabit an educational landscape that has changed significantly during their careers. It employs a postmodern critical autoethnographic methodology as a vehicle through which to examine their experiences, as professionals who now exist in a neoliberal, marketised model of education, where they have been commodified. The work focuses on how their experiences of education have moulded their values and identities and provides empirical evidence showing that maintaining these fundamentals is challenged and compromised in the educational landscape that they work in. There are imperatives for this study. The UK population is ageing, and people will be forced to work for longer in the future. However, professional challenges that older teachers face are driving them out of the profession prematurely. This is at a time of crisis in education, where there is a failure to recruit and retain teachers, so arresting the exodus of older teachers would partly address the significant, long-standing recruitment issue. The evidence demonstrates that older teachers experience a loss of voice and agency. They are subjected to performative regimes, that measure that which is readily measurable, in an education system that has a functionalist agenda, with an economic purpose. This regime quells their creative desires and limits their opportunities to collaborate and to share their significant knowledge and experience. Older teachers are not afforded the same promotion and developmental opportunities as younger teachers and are subject to ageist stereotypical assumptions about their continued ability to function at a high level in teaching. This is despite their will to continue to develop and seek new opportunities. The evidence demonstrates that they do not feel professionally valued, despite the wealth of experience that they have to offer, and the research reveals their voices and the significant emotional impact of this on them. Drawing on the work of Deleuze and Guattari (2013a, b) and my empirical evidence, I construct a socio-political model of the older teachers’ “Body without Organs”. This Vitruvian Teacher model incorporates aspects of their professional lives that sustain them, together with those that significantly challenge them. The critical narrative that emanates from the research gives rise to suggestions for sustaining these teachers in fulfilling careers.
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Crafting a Sense of Self: Exploring amateur arts-based practice within a university business school contextThis research uses arts-based practice in a pivotal role both as a research context and methodological means, within a university business school setting. A personal creative rupture, challenging my sense of professional self, prompts the central research aims to: (1) analyse how amateur arts-based practice shapes university business school lecturers’ sense of self; (2) gain new understanding of creative learning processes applied to a business school context, and (3) explore the use of an artefact-based data collection method to elicit rich participant narratives around selfhood. Participant voices of a micro sample of business school educators are at the heart of the research. Narrative accounts of their lived creative experiences illuminate and synthesise perceptions on sense of self and place, both creatively and professionally, and how it can be subject to various practices. Their symbolic artefacts steer conversational style interviews, supporting a social constructivist orientation. Bourdieu’s concept of habitus acts as a central mode of analysis. Case analyses collate and re-frame participants’ stories about shaping of selfhoods. The instrumental nature of artefacts is explored in prompting sensitive, private and potentially inaccessible insights into crafter and professional selfhoods, challenging the role of more conventional research methods. Perceptions of amateur creative practice, from a university business school perspective, reveal how the two seemingly disparate worlds intersect. For some business school lecturers, their creative practice plays a large part in their lives. For others it is more functional. Findings suggest the varying degree of intersectionality is influenced by the inner structures of habitus alongside external structures within fields of practice, drawing on the duality of Bourdieu’s sociology. Through heuristic processes the transformational nature of habitus is investigated. Findings identify the enabling and constraining nature of embodied dispositions. This contributes fresh insights into creative and professional selfhoods, including value systems, attitudes to risk and coping strategies for practice in navigating change and sense of agency. What has been identified are potential alternative routes to gaining insight into creative processes and practice and transformation of selfhoods, within the already fast-growing domain of arts-based methods Findings show unifying and varying benefits and impacts of creative practice on both personal and professional selfhoods as university business school lecturer. Amateur creative practice varies including motives, cognitive and affective benefits, degrees of engagement and attitudes to risk. The research offers a deeper layer of reflexivity on educational philosophy, perceived tensions and the value of creative intelligence within a university business school context. It also offers valuable perspective on the responsibility as educator in creating safe temporal and mental space to nurture business school learner creativity.
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Performativity and self-efficacy of A-level students during a period of discontinuityThis exploratory case study investigates the impact that the discontinuity to education caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, had on the students who were unable to take two series of high-stake examinations. The study examines student self-efficacy in the build-up to final A-level exams, interrogating how the teacher allocated grade process and the periods of lockdown impacted on the student body. The study reflects growing concerns about how government decisions aimed to control the COVID-19 virus have manifested in educational settings and may well effect schools and colleges for many years to come. The conceptual framework that underpinned this research arose from the work of Bandura (1977) on self-efficacy with the specific field of interest being how levels of Academic Self-Efficacy (Zimmerman, 1995) were impacted by a disjointed educational journey. An interpretive approach is adopted, utilising mixed method case study to focus on the students at one educational institution. The empirical data was collected through five stages with the first involving longitudinal quantitative analysis of the student body, followed by two focus groups, which enabled purposive sampling to select five final cases. After interviewing the five students to gain a deeper understanding of their experience, three staff from different institutions were interviewed to triangulate the data. The quantitative and qualitative data was scrutinised using inductive content analysis with three resultant themes emerging. The first was the wider impact on wellbeing that the discontinuity has created, the second was a decline in students' attitudes toward education and the third regarded changes to future plans following the experiences of the pandemic. The findings indicate that for some students the return to ‘normal’ education and the potentially inflated GCSE’s, have been as much of a challenge as the pandemic itself. Accordingly, this thesis begins to ask questions about the culture of neoliberalism and performativity which transcends education and whether the pandemic has given us an opportunity to rethink. This will bring into scope Foucault’s (1982) concepts of power, surveillance, and regulation and Ball’s (2015) work about educational discourse. This research falls at a time where there is limited existing literature which substantively explores the impact of the pandemic on the ‘COVID-19 class’, therefore the novel findings from this research offer a unique window into the lived experiences of students during the COVID-19 discontinuity. Although this research offers no practical guidance about how to alter educational policy or practice, all educational institutions could apply the findings noted as they set out on strategic planning for the future.
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Vegan Children in English Secondary Schools: Challenging Norms and Personal ImpactsAs a teacher, teacher educator, and ethical vegan, I have reflected on how animals are used, viewed, taught, and discussed in the school system. Inspired by the work of McDonald, Cevero, and Courtenay (1999), this study aims to explore the experiences of vegans, specifically their ability to challenge normative ideologies. However, unlike previous research, this study focuses on children in UK secondary schools. Giroux's (2001) concept of the hidden curriculum in schools is vital in understanding the experiences shared in this thesis, including the physical environment, school ethos, facilities, and relationships between staff, support staff, and pupils. Schools and education more broadly are viewed as imposing a typical culture that reflects the social structure and power relations of wider society. Importantly, this study highlights how education perpetuates a normalization of consuming animals, replicating existing cultural norms. This thesis provides insight into the experiences of young vegans as they navigate their school life within the context of the broader societal norms and values. The study identifies a gap in the current literature, which fails to consider the experiences of children and young people. The research aims to answer the question of whether vegan children in English schools can challenge the omnivore norm and examines their personal impact. Qualitative research methods were utilized to narrate and understand their day-to-day encounters. The participants are positioned as engaging in parrhesia, or truth-telling, to convey their experiences. This interpretivist practitioner-inquiry draws from a variety of methods, akin to a bricolage, to explore personal experiences and encourage participants to engage in critically reflective conversations. Through the research question "Can young vegans challenge the omnivore norm in English schools, and what is the personal impact?" this study concludes that experiences were predominantly negative, particularly in challenging the pervasive norm of animal consumption within schools. Young vegans faced limited opportunities to challenge these norms and incurred a high personal cost in doing so, which shaped their decisions and identity. These encounters extended beyond the classroom, curriculum, and lessons to the wider school culture. The hidden curriculum serves as a framework for understanding the reproduction and widespread support of overriding norms, including those of omnivores.
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An illusion of choice: The lived experiences of non-traditional studentsStudents with a combination of A levels and BTEC qualifications make up a small but significant number of students entering higher education (HE) in England. There has been limited research into how these students make the decision to study a combination of qualifications or how they feel the combination has supported the transition to university. This study uses Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis to explore the in-depth lived experiences of three students who entered HE at the study university with a combination of A level and BTEC experiences. The study considers the agency the participants perceive they had during decision-making at 16 and 18. It also explores how assessment methods have acted as a structure limiting agency in decision-making. The study considers how the participants’ combination of qualifications has supported their transition to university. Analysis of the participants’ lived experiences identifies three key themes: the impact of assessment type on the students, an exploration of the structures affecting decision-making at 16 and 18, and how post-16 qualifications affect their academic identity. These themes are embedded within the academic/ vocational divide present within the English education system, where academic qualifications are given greater symbolic value, especially for entry to HE. The study uses Bourdieu’s theoretical concepts of doxa, symbolic violence and social reproduction to identify structures that impact on the participants’ agency in their decision-making. It highlights the doxa of A levels as ‘gold standard’ in post-16 education. The study also provides supporting evidence for the continued academic/vocational divide in English post-16 education, through which symbolic violence is enacted on the participants. Symbolic violence is also identified in the government’s policies on assessment, where a focus on examinations reduces the participants’ agency. Indeed, recent changes in assessment in BTECs may limit future students’ opportunities to enter HE through this route. The thesis argues that government policies on assessment serve to reinforce the academic/vocational dichotomy and this may lead to social reproduction rather than widening participation to HE.
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Conversations within a nursing home: An ethnographic study of the lived experience of residents, visitors and staffThis thesis uses an ethnographic study to explore the lived experience of those living, working and visiting a nursing home. This tripartite has traditionally been hidden from view, given no forum to voice experiences in a meaningful way within a sector which is seriously underfunded. By using the work of Erving Goffman as a foundation I utilise a therapeutic reflective Marxist lens to explore the lived experience of the tripartite and examine the neo-liberal practices that abound within health services. I relate the tripartite voices through a series of narratives that underline that care, in and of itself, is significant and that it is emphasised through the everyday-ness of their experiences that cuts through the institutional practices and power imbalances inherent within the social care arena. There are complexities that arise when attempting to understand the messiness of the nursing home and wider social care arena but, as a nurse that has spent the majority of their working life within it, I have been able to navigate and draw some conclusions around what it is to live, work and visit this marginalized sector. I have explored what it means to age in today’s society and the inherent ageism, discrimination and stigma that accompanies the ageing process. I have reviewed what ‘home’ is and that an individual’s personal history of ‘home’ supports an individual’s sense of belonging and continuity which is integral to well-being and thus a literal place and an ideal. However, the legislation and regulation that wraps itself around elderly care inexorably leads to a sense of surveillance which provides a power imbalance. This power imbalance is reviewed against Goffman’s work around Total Institutions (1961). By thematically analysing my data I have realised that the conversations and observations were part of a greater map which, due to its subject matter, was complex but interconnected. Ultimately, there were three themes that took precedence: Death (of self; social death and of life as we know it); Personalization of care and expectations and; Environment and business policy. All the statistical evidence points to a future where there is an ageing population with increasingly complex co-morbidities which will be situated within the reality of a decreasing younger population. I conclude that there is a need to reframe sickness to health-care within the rhetoric around older people and their requirements from a healthcare system, coupled with a necessity of educating the wider population on societal prejudice and discriminations to an ageing population. There is also a need to engage further with the current conceptualizations of care at a deeper and philosophical level.
