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BGU Launches First Distance Learning Degree Programme
Academics from Bishop Grosseteste University’s (BGU) School of Social Sciences have collaborated closely with the Centre for Enhancement of Learning and Teaching (CELT) to design the University’s first distance learning degree programme. -
School of Teacher Development Primary Team undertake research in Copenhagen
Dr Emma Clarke, Aimee Quickfall and Shaun Thompson of the School of Teacher Development Primary Team have visited the University College of Copenhagen (UCC) this week as part of their ongoing research on the well-being of teacher trainees. The visit was organised with the help of Sabine Lam, the international coordinator at UCC and Erasmus funding. Aimee told us about the collaboration, "Working with colleagues at UCC has been a fantastic experience. We have been made very welcome on the Carlsberg Campus and everyone we have spoken with has given us new insights and ideas." Emma, Shaun and Aimee collected data from students, lecturers and newly graduated teachers who are now embarking on their first teaching job. Participants have been interviewed on their perceptions of well-being on their training programmes, as well as being asked to identify challenges and resources that impact on well-being. They have also engaged in drawing timelines of how their well-being, challenges, resources and other personal factors have changed over time. Emma commented on the findings so far, "It is exciting and illuminating working with international peers, students and teachers. Specific key themes are now emerging which we aim to use to develop a larger research bid to enable us to continue with this exciting project." The team are looking at examples of good practice in European teacher training, including Finnish, Swedish, Dutch and Danish contexts as a comparison with data collected in the UK. The aim is to inform ITE programme planning and delivery, as well as sharing findings with partnership schools and other colleagues engaged in training teachers. Shaun, regional partnership lead for Primary ITE commented, “Despite many similarities in the issues facing teachers and schools throughout these European countries, the research has provided us with valuable insight into some pertinent challenges and resources relating to well-being, and more importantly, how to maintain the balance. Hopefully, we can now draw upon some of these and consider them within our own ITE programmes, as well as supporting our school partners, to ensure that well-being remains a key priority within education.” If you would like to find about more about the teaching training courses that BGU offer please visit our postgraduate training courses. -
Staff and Students Reflect on Research with IMPact
Two tutors and two 2nd year students from the BA Primary Education course at Bishop Grosseteste University have had an article published in IMPact the University of Lincoln’s journal for Higher Education research. Dr Ashley Compton and Emma Rogers, both lecturers in Primary at BGU, co-authored the paper alongside students Christopher Johnstone and Dan Waite. The paper reflects on their learning about research through researching with children as part of the ‘Beginning to Research’ module of the Primary Education course. During this module the students learn about designing and undertaking research, including the ethics involved, and then have two days when children come on to campus to take part in the research projects. Staff at the University of Lincoln read about the research days on the BGU website and contacted Ashley and Emma asking for a write up of the experience for their journal. Following the publication Dr Compton discussed the unusual opportunities for reflection it offered: “The process of writing an article about practice makes you reflect quite deeply on what you're trying to achieve with that practice and what theory underpins it - things we don't always articulate when focusing on our research” “Both Emma and I felt it was important to incorporate staff and student perspectives and were delighted that Christopher and Dan were able to work with us, both have been excited about being published authors now” The paper has now been published and is available to read in the first anniversary edition of IMPact. If you’d like more information on how to begin your adventure in the world of education, visit our website or contact our Enquiries Team today to find out more about our range of PGCE and Primary Education courses. -
Students Support National Goalball Finals
Three second-year students from the Sport, Coaching and Physical Education degree course at Bishop Grosseteste University (BGU) volunteered to assist in the running of the Goalball UK 'intermediate finals'. Nathan Dowe, Jessica Machin and Laura Smith, along with their course lecturer Luke Liddle, travelled to the English Institute of Sport, in Sheffield on Saturday 18th May to support the tournament. The morning was spent setting up two goalball pitches ready for the competitors to start play at 10am before providing continued support to the organisers throughout the day. Following the event course lecturer Luke was full of praise for the students’ effort and enthusiasm: “Nathan, Jessica and Laura were a credit to BGU and all involved thoroughly enjoyed helping the event organisers produce an exceptional day of fierce and fair competition.” Goalball is a game played by two teams of three players with a maximum of three substitutions on each team. It is open to both male and female visually impaired athletes, and sighted players can also play domestically. The object of the game is to score a goal by bowling the ball along the floor so that it crosses the goal line of the opposing team. The defending team has to prevent the ball going in to their goal by stopping it while remaining in their team area. They must then try to control the ball and attack by bowling the ball back again thereby trying to score in the other goal. Originally developed by Hanz Lorenzen (Austria) and Sepp Reindl (Germany) in 1946, as a rehabilitation programme for visually impaired World War II veterans, Goalball has swiftly grown in popularity and recognition and became an official part of the Paralympic movement in 1980. If you are interested in pursuing a future in sports education and coaching you can find more information about Sport courses at BGU on our website, by contacting our Enquiries Team or by joining us on one of our Open Days. -
Geography lecturers team up with South Pacific colleagues to explore energy use
Dr Sarah Hemstock, Programme Leader for Geography, and Dr Mark Charlesworth, Associate Tutor in Geography, from Bishop Grosseteste University (BGU) have teamed up with Ranjila Devi Singh, from the University of the South Pacific, to publish a new paper on Household energy use and public health. The paper outlines the use of traditional bioenergy in direct correlation to indoor air pollution and health. Dr Hemstock, Charlesworth and Devi Singh explain how current Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which were set by the United Nations General Assembly in 2015, are currently not being met. The use of bioenergy and its impacts on indoor air pollution and health are in direct contradiction to SDG3: Good Health and Wellbeing which aims to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all. The paper recommends ways in which SDG3 can be reached, with recommendations at a country wide level that will help to ensure a healthy life for all those who live there. Dr Hemstock’s previous works have also focused on bioenergy and sustainable development. Household Energy Usage, Indoor Air Pollution, and Health is a section in the Good Health and Well-being volume of the Encyclopaedia of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. You can find the publication here. You can find more information on our Geography courses on our website, by contacting our Enquiries Team or by coming along to one of our Open Days. -
Academics Explore Research Partnerships with International Visitors
Academics from Bishop Grosseteste University (BGU) welcomed Kerem and Meral Coşkun from Artvin Çoruh University in Turkey to explore and discuss potential collaborative research opportunities. Their planned research is based on the social, emotional and moral development of young children and has developed from a collaborative article ‘Is it possible to teach values without social psychology?’ (International Journal of Progressive Education, 14 (6). pp. 38-50. ISSN 1554-5210) written by BGU’s Dr Pat Beckley and academics from Artvin Çoruh. Dr Beckley discussed the new research and how it would build on the existing work carried out by the collaborative group: “The research builds on previous comparative studies the group have undertaken and focuses on differences and similarities between perceptions of social, emotional and moral development in selected primary school sites in England and Turkey. It is proposed to broaden those participating in the studies in both countries. It is an exciting opportunity for BGU as it creates a dynamic collaboration between two similar sized universities which have teacher training as a fundamental element of their work.” If you’re interested in a future in Early Years provision or Teaching there are few institutions that can provide a better experience than BGU. You can find information on our range of education based courses on our website, or by contacting our Enquiries Team. -
General Practice Nursing Trainees Enjoy Unique Sessions and Guest Speakers
Bishop Grosseteste University (BGU) welcomed Gill Beardmore this week as she delivered a talk to our General Practice Nurse (GPN) trainees about their funded programme and the motivations behind developing a career as a GPN. Gill is RN & Queens Nurse and works for Health Education England as Primary Care Nurse Workforce Lead in the East Midlands. She was also involved in the development of the NHS 10 point plan to look at novel ways to better train General Practice nurses, of which BGU’s new Post Graduate Certificate in General Practice Nursing (PG Cert in GPN) is a part, and the overall proof of concept for the new GPN trainees. Joining our trainees, who are now a third of the way through their programme, Gill discussed the importance of their course and its potential impact on healthcare training across the UK. The PG Cert in GPN is a completely new model of training for General Practice Nursing covering wider skills and practices designed to futureproof the profession. While the BGU course is currently one of only two on offer across the UK, if it is successful the model will be rolled out nationwide. Following Gill’s presentation the trainees took part in a session exploring blood test interpretation. Led by Dr Graham Basten, Head of the School of Social Sciences at BGU, blood test interpretation is one of the new skills being covered by the course. General Practice nurses would not normally be trained in this area and its inclusion, in addition to being part of the evolution of the General Practice nursing role, is completely unique to BGU. The PG Cert In General Practice Nursing is a fantastic opportunity for health care professionals to up skill and provides a pathway into the developing course portfolio within the School of Social Science at BGU which reflects current and future needs of the health and social care sector. Other current courses include Master's in Health & Social Care Leadership and Primary & Community Care. To find out how these courses can help develop your healthcare skills visit our website or contact our Enquiries Team. -
War injuries and Skinheads take the stage as BGU students share their prize winning research at history conference
Connie Wragg and Lewis Bird, third year History students at Bishop Grosseteste University (BGU), presented their research and engaged in discussions at the regional Undergraduate Dissertation Showcase. Run by the East Midlands Centre for History Learning and Teaching (EMC), the Showcase drew speakers from across the East Midlands and encouraged discussions on a very diverse range of historical topics, including the cultural history of milk, female poisoners, and the Black Panther Movement. Both Lewis’ and Connie’s presentations focused on their dissertation specialisms. Lewis examined the politicisation of the Skinhead movement, explaining the group’s multicultural origins before discussing the reasons for their later far right associations, with a particular focus on the role of the media. Connie meanwhile provided an overview of her research on perceptions of maxillofacial injury during the First World War, and the impact that losing their face had on these soldiers’ self-identity. Both presentations were well received, with Connie’s sharing the prize for best presentation of the day with Anya Maude (University of Nottingham) and Kieran Blake (University of Lincoln). Dr Hazel Kent, BGU’s steering group representative for the EMC, accompanied Lewis and Connie to the event and praised the pair for their hard work: “This was a truly inspiring event which demonstrated the depth and range of historical research being done at undergraduate level. Lewis and Connie were superb ambassadors for History at BGU and I am so pleased they took this opportunity to communicate their original and intriguing research to a wider audience. The standard of the presentations was extremely high and I am delighted that Connie’s was judged to be one of the best”. If you would be interested in joining these discussions visit our website or contact our Enquiries Team for more information on our wide range courses including a selection of joint honours BA History degrees, our MA in Social & Cultural History and our new BA (Hons) in Military History. -
Lecturer leads on behavioural diversity at European business event
Chris Jackson, Senior Lecturer and Team Coach in the Business and Enterprise Department at Bishop Grosseteste University (BGU), represented the University at the recent Academic Adventures event at Tampere University of Applied Sciences (TAMK) in Finland. Traveling as Part of the Erasmus+ programme, Chris delivered two sessions on the importance of behavioural diversity in learning teams and took part in sessions that discussed how BGU use the Team Academy model of 'learning by doing' in our own BA(Hons) Team Entrepreneurship programme. The event was attended by delegates from across Europe who were keen to explore how self-determined or 'project-based' learning can be used in disciplines other than business, including HR, Physiotherapy and Teacher Education. This is in response to some academic institutions moving away from subject-specific delivery and embracing different models of learning. Returning from the Academic Adventures event Chris commented: "The response from delegates was very positive. This was largely due to the fact that delegates were able to hear first-hand from students and team coaches as to how the methodology is implemented and then acted upon. Just as at BGU, the process of the business course learning is that students have to design and run their own business projects - they're expected to earn as they learn!" "However, Team Academy methods aren't restricted to learning about business within higher education. Other disciplines may well want to explore business or enterprise elements, but then it's possibly more about adding value and difference than making money. "The way that this process works in academia is that projects are designed and executed by students in ways that address a particular issue. As the process evolves, they identify gaps in their knowledge - they discover what they don't know. The thing is, this differs from project to project and student to student, making the individual learning very relevant. As projects progress, learners are encouraged to underpin their experience with relevant academic theory - their experienced combined with their academic learning provides observable and assessable criteria." Finland are world-leaders in education and BGU have been using methodology closely aligned to the Tiimiakatemia model of business learning for four years. If you’re interested in a future in international business or in starting your own company, our business courses are the perfect path to take. You can find more information on them on our website or by contacting our Enquiries Team. -
Academics complete international project exploring personalised learning
Academics from the School of Teacher Development at Bishop Grosseteste University (BGU) have completed work on an Erasmus+ project this month, attending the final meeting in The Netherlands to showcase their output. The Erasmus+ project, on Personalised Learning in Primary and Secondary education phases, included research teams from The Netherlands, Poland, Sweden, Finland and the BGU UK team. The academics involved from the School of Teacher Development were; Dr. Emma Clarke, Kevin McLaughlin, Shaun Thompson, Dr. Jonathan Wainwright and Aimee Quickfall. The BGU team joined the project in January this year, taking over from a school partner in Lincoln, and quickly became part of a strong research group across Europe during visits to The Netherlands and Sweden in the spring. Their output is the 'teacher profile' - a tool for teachers across Europe to assess their own level of personalised learning practice, with advice and targets if they wish to increase their level of skill in this area as Dr Clarke explained: “The toolkit is deliberately non-judgemental, for teachers to use individually or with peers. It avoids suggesting that some teaching approaches are better than others - but will support practitioners who wish to develop key personalised learning skills.” As part of the final project meeting, the Erasmus+ team presented to teachers and leaders in The Netherlands. Returning from the meeting Aimee commented: “It has been a pleasure to be involved in this European project, with researchers who have different backgrounds, settings and perspectives, but who share a passion for improving education and professional development for teachers. We have built relationships with our partner teams and hope we can continue to develop our links and projects.” The completed project will 'go live' in the autumn of 2019. If you’re interested in a future in education, our BA (Hons) Primary Education with QTS (3 year undergraduate degree), BA (Hons) Primary Teaching Studies with QTS (15 month top up degree), and PGCE courses are the perfect ways to begin or continue your adventure on the path to becoming a fantastic teacher! If you have any questions, our Enquiries Team are ready to help. Contact them today or visit our website to find out how to take your next steps.
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