The Education Continuum

Author of The If Machine at the Howthelightgetsin festival at Hay

Peter Worley, author of The If Machine and forthcoming title The If Odyssey did a cracking talk at the fringe philosophy and music festival at Hay this year, and if you missed it you can view it in all its full-length glory here. By way of a brief, mind-bending introduction, I now hand you to the man himself, Peter Worley:

In this talk I hoped to introduce the audience to an example of the sort of session to be found in The If Machine as well as some of the facilitation techniques described in the book, such as 'if-ing, anchoring and opening up', 'thinking avenues' and dialogic discussions.

I wanted the audience to experience a session so that they are not simply receiving a report of how philosophy is done with children but seeing it from the inside. So, if you watch the talk you will see a discussion on a philosophical thought experiment, a discussion about the discussion on the philosophical thought experiment, and by watching it you will also engage in a further discussion of your own, on the discussion on the thought experiment and on the discussion on the discussion on the thought experiment.

It’s as simple as that.

Melanie Wilson
Commissioning Editor (Professional Education)

Review - Young People, Popular Culture and Education

I've just seen a copy of a great review of one of our recently published titles, Young People, Popular Culture and Education and I'd like to share it with you.

'This highly accessible and lively book examines the significant but often overlooked relationship between popular culture, youth and education.  Popular culture is often seen as something outside of, or antithetical to, schooling.  Yet Richards provides a convincing account of its significants as a tool to engage young people and understand the complexity and diversity of their lives and identities.

Part one introduces the discipline of cultural studies and its relationship with education studies.  Richards argues that cultural studies has raised important critical voices about how we understand the concept of culture and how seriously we take it.  He suggests that its concern with young people’s everyday and ordinary activities has much value for those studying and working in education.  To exemplify this, part two moves us into the classroom and into different areas of young people’s cultural lives – from fiction to television and popular music.

This book would appeal to academics as well as students of education studies and practitioners, helping them engage with issues of culture in their work with young people.’

Kim Allen, Research Fellow, London Metropolitan University, UK, and Co-Investigator for the ESRC seminar series New Perspectives on Education and Culture in Children and Young People Now (12-25 July 2011)

Alison Baker
Senior Commissioning Editor (Academic Education)

Continuum acquired by Bloomsbury!

We are excited to be able to share with you some very exciting news. Over the weekend, ownership of Continuum passed from Nova/Paul Investments Capital Management to Bloomsbury. Bloomsbury are a prestigious, innovative and independent-minded publisher who are planning to grow the academic and professional arm of their business with Continuum as the cornerstone. Acquiring Continuum is a significant investment for them and a big step forward in this strategy.

Here in Education, we believe this is a good move for us and that it is going to open up some exciting opportunities for our lists, our team, our authors and our readers. At some point in the next year, our London office will be moving from The Tower Building in Waterloo to the new Bloomsbury offices in Bedford Square, but otherwise it's very much business as usual on all fronts.

Click here to see the Bloomsbury press release, and here for an article published in The Bookseller about the acquisition.

The Education Team

Great reviews of recently published English texts

Looking for some inspiration for your English classroom in September?  Reworking your reading list for your English PGCE course?  Check out two books recently praised in NATE journals:

Testing English

Reviewed in NATE: ‘Marshall is extremely well qualified to take this subject on – she is arguably the UK’s foremost expert in English and Assessment… It’s a well-written and compelling book that draws on a great range of academic literature and a career rich in assessment research…a must-read.’

 

Secondary English

Reviewed in NATE: ‘Even after ten years of national strategies, this book offers much to guide new entrants to English teaching through some longer-lived traditions of its thinking and practice.’



Alison Baker
Senior Commissioning Editor (Academic Education)

Networking Research - out now!

Networking Research by Patrick Carmichael (Professor of Educational Research at Liverpool John Moores University, UK) explores how researchers can engage effectively in networks and carry out research on networks and networking.  The book draws on extensive research into educational research networks in schools, colleges and informal education settings to explore:

How can researchers and research-informed practitioners best engage in and with networks and develop effective networking practices?

How might networks and networking be conceptualized in order to frame and support their work in and on networks?

How do networks relate to existing organizational forms and how might new networking practices emerge?

We've already had some great responses to the book:
‘Amidst the banal talk these days about networks as though they are inevitable in teacher practice, professional learning, technology and research, here at last is an informative and critical discussion. Carmichael offers a clear map through the multifarious forms, perspectives and uses of networking practices, and thoughtful approaches for those struggling with the ‘ducking and diving’ processes of researching in, and about, networks in education.’ Tara Fenwick, Professor of Education, University of Stirling, UK

‘Patrick Carmichael has offered us a remarkable tour de force on the nature and role of networks and networking in educational research. The book provides a superb synthesis of social theory, original empirical research and personal expertise that will guide the debate and thinking on research capacity building for many years to come.’ Dean Garratt, Reader in Education, Faculty of Education and Children's Services, University of Chester, UK

Alison Baker
Commissioning Editor (Academic Education)