Learning, literacy and identity: ‘I don’t think I’m a failure any more’

The impact of participation in adult literacy programmes on learners’ identities is examined through an interrogation of their past and current experiences and the assessment of the effect of particular pedagogies. The findings show how learners’ positive experiences in their programmes had caused them to re-evaluate their previous understandings and enabled the construction of new identities as people that are able to learn. These changes had come about through the challenging of negative discourses, the creation of new figured worlds and imagined futures and the use of a learning curriculum where learners’ experiences were utilised as positive resources

Research and student voice

This paper is written partly as a response to a critique from Sally Baker and her colleagues (2006) about an article that John Bamber and I published (Bamber and Tett, 2001) in 2001. Their critique was based on the grounds that we had developed our arguments in a way that depended ‘on an assumption about the\ud veracity of student participants [that] represents a solipsistic retreat into a state of analysis where things are the case because people say they are’ (p 175). Criticism is never comfortable but it did provoke me into thinking about the nature of evidence that is derived from interviews and focus groups with students. Does this imply, as Baker and colleagues argue, that this methodology inevitably means that researchers have ‘not taken a systematically sociologically informed analysis of the nature of institutions or society or the material obstacles to change but have instead relied on the subjective individualised realm of student experiences’ (p 175)? I will argue that this is an over-simplistic interpretation of data that are based on students’ voices and I will draw on findings from a variety of educational provision ranging from universities to informal literacy provision in community settings to examine the role of the researcher in listening to and reinterpreting the detail of people’s lives. There are of course many issues raised by data derived from using student voices as a method of enquiry so I will begin with the problems raised for research that is based on listening to, and interpreting from, interviews with students

Understanding how self-harm functions for individuals

The study aimed to develop a theory of the possible links between voice-hearing and self-harm. Twelve semi-structured interviews were conducted with participants living in the community and in a secure forensic setting. All participants had experience of both voice-hearing and self-harm. A grounded theory of possible links was developed from participants’ accounts of their experiences. All participants described self-harm as way of coping with negative voices and of regulating painful emotions. Some described it as a response to a fear of judgement from others, as a form of control or as a means of seeking help. The results suggest that there are numerous links between voice-hearing and self-harm. Predominantly, self-harm seems to function as a way to cope with individual voice-hearing experience. Help should focus on triggers to distress and ways to cope. Training for healthcare staff could usefully be provided by service users, focusing on the importance of being non-judgemental. Future research could examine tactile and visual experiences in relation to self-harm too, clinician perspectives on the links between voice-hearing and self-harm, and service user perspectives on the emotional availability of clinicians

Scottish Survey of Adult Literacies 2009, Research Findings No: 58/2010:

The purpose of this brief document is to discuss the context for, and meaning of, the findings of the Scottish Survey of Adult Literacies 2009. Here the research team examine the findings of the survey and provide a coherent picture of adult literacies in Scotland in 2009 based on those results and the broader theoretical field. Readers interested in the detailed findings are advised to consult the SSAL2009 Report of Findings http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/SSAL2009Report_Of_Findings.The SSAL2009 Technical Report can be found at the same location

Editorial: the changing landscapes of literacy and adult education

Literacy, numeracy and language learning has always had a central place in adult education theory and practice. Over the various historical moments and contexts, its meaning, uses and importance have been changing considerably. It is difficult, therefore, to build a consistent and complete road map to literacy and adult education that takes into account every trend, theoretical approach and practical experience.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Community-based education and learning

This chapter shows the contribution that community-based education can make to adults’ learning using a number of examples from practice in order to explore if participating in lifelong learning can contribute to a more equal society. It also examines the role that universities, in partnership with policy makers, practitioners and students, can play in promoting more democratic opportunities. Finally it discusses the role of professional development in enhancing critical engagement. It begins by asking what the term ‘community’ means in order to explore how different conceptualizations impact on practice in community-based educatio

Treasury Ownership Marks Wealth Divide

FROM THE ARTICLE: "Contrary to the usual assumption that government debt is widely held, Mr Hager's data suggests ownership has become far more concentrated recently, echoing a wider concentration of wealth in the US. . . . [E]ven if you disagree with Mr Hager’s leftwing political bent, the data certainly casts a new light on the political dynamic in the current fiscal rows. To the wealthy elites in the US who hold government bonds, it seems self-evident that the government needs to preserve the sanctity and value of Treasuries; this group has a strong incentive to ensure this happens via fiscal reform (particularly if this entails budget cuts, rather than higher taxes.) But what is rarely debated is that millions of poor Americans have far less (or no) skin in the Treasuries game. Little wonder, then, that the fiscal debate is so polarised, and unlikely to become any less so any time soon.

Community-based learning and research: partnerships, power and learning

This paper discusses a learning and research partnership between a university and a community group that was studying the health issues in their community. It is based on a 'knowledge democracy' approach, where the importance of multiple ways of knowing is foregrounded. It uses a framework derived from Starhawk (1987) to explore how power might be shared and how difficult it can be to avoid exercising power in hidden, rather than overt, ways. It shows that all the participants in the programme eventually became part of a 'community of practice' through sharing power but also outlines the challenges to working in collaborative partnerships. It concludes that it is possible to intentionally link the values of democracy and action to the process of producing and using knowledge, but this requires considerable effort from all parties