Ann-Marie Bathmaker

Bio: Ann-Marie Bathmaker is an academic researcher from University of Sheffield. The author has contributed to research in topics: Further education & Adult education. The author has an hindex of 16, co-authored 20 publications receiving 1051 citations. Previous affiliations of Ann-Marie Bathmaker include University of the West of England.

Book review: Review symposium: Education plc. Understanding private sector participation in public sector education

Abstract: The book 'Education plc. Understanding private sector participation in public sector education' is by Stephen Ball, London, Routledge, 2007, 216 pp., £22.99 (paperback), ISBN 0-41-539941-6

Becoming a lecturer in further education in England: the construction of professional identity and the role of communities of practice

Abstract: Further education colleges in England offer a wide range of post‐school education and training provision. Recently they have undergone major transformations that have resulted in considerable changes to the work of those teaching in them. In this paper we examine how cultures of learning and teaching in colleges are affected and how the nature of professional identity has changed. The paper considers the formation of professional identity amongst a group of trainee lecturers completing a one‐year full‐time teacher‐training course at a university in the English Midlands. Lave and Wenger's work on apprenticeship to communities of practice is used to examine the effect of trainees' teaching placement on the development of professional identity. Rather than identifying effective processes of increasing participation in existing communities of practice, a strong sense of marginalisation and alienation amongst trainees was observed. The paper argues that this is detrimental both to trainees and experienced lect...

Positioning themselves: an exploration of the nature and meaning of transitions in the context of dual sector FE/HE institutions in England

Abstract: This article explores English policy on widening participation in higher education (HE), drawing on insights from a research study into higher education transitions and ‘dual sector’ institutions. Although further and higher education in England are divided into two sectors, it is possible for one institution to offer both further and higher education. This article examines the nature of transitions in such ‘dual sector’ institutions, and explores the shaping and structuring of HE transitions, as well as students’ experience of such transitions. The article draws on empirical research from a two‐year study which investigates the changing shape and experience of HE in England, and students’ experience of moving between different levels of study. The study includes four case‐study ‘dual sector’ institutions, and this article considers one of these institutions in more detail. The article discusses a number of different forms of transition which arise out of the analysis of the data – institutions in transit...

Communities of practice and the construction of learners in post-compulsory education and training

Abstract: This article draws upon data collected in three empirical studies focusing on different aspects of post-compulsory education: a study of staff development officers in further education (FE) in the Midlands, an exploration of trainee FE teachers understanding of further education in a new university and, finally, a study of teachers and learners involved in General National Vocational Qualifications (GNVQs) at one college. All studies were conducted in England. The article explores constructions of learners and relates these to the policy context within which postcompulsory education and training (PCET) is placed. It also considers the notion of communities of practice, as well as core and peripheral participation as a means to interrogate these constructions of learners.

‘How do I cope with that?’ The challenge of ‘schooling’ cultures in further education for trainee FE lecturers

Abstract: The development of professional identity amongst lecturers training to teach in further education (FE) colleges in England involves processes of adaptation These partly take place during teaching placement in FE, as trainees navigate between their own anticipated professional identity and the identities which they feel under pressure to assume as they engage in their work with students This article explores these processes of development, focusing in particular on the identities that trainee lecturers develop in their work with disengaged 16-19 year-old students Using case studies of two trainee lecturers, the article explores the way in which they are pushed towards adopting what they see as a 'pedagogic', 'teacherly' identity, which they had previously associated with schoolteachers, in their work with such students The article suggests that the notion of 'schooling' identities and cultures, whilst contrasting with the vocational habitus proposed by others, is a useful way to explore how cultures and identities in general FE are created through similar processes of identity construction and reconstruction

Teachers and Texts: A Political Economy of Class and Gender Relations in Education

Abstract: Introduction 1.The Politics of Teachers and Texts. Teachers 2. Controlling the Work of Teachers 3. Teaching and 'Women's Work'. Texts 4. The Culture and Commerce of the Textbook. 5. Old Humanists and New Curricula. 6. Educational Reports and Economic Realities. 7. Is the New Technology Part of the Solution or Part of the Problem in Education? Conclusion 8. Supporting Democracy in Education.

English for Specific Purposes

Abstract: A concise and factual abstract is required (of between 100-200 words). The abstract should state briefly the purpose of the research, the principal results and major conclusions. An abstract is often presented separately from the article, so it must be able to stand alone. For this reason, References should be avoided, but if essential, then cite the author(s) and year(s). Also, non-standard or uncommon abbreviations should be avoided, but if essential they must be defined at their first mention in the abstract itself. Graphical abstract Although a graphical abstract is optional, its use is encouraged as it draws more attention to the online article. The graphical abstract should summarize the contents of the article in a concise, pictorial form designed to capture the attention of a wide readership. Graphical abstracts should be submitted as a separate file in the online submission system. Image size: Please provide an image with a minimum

'Entering the blogosphere': some strategies for using blogs in social research

Abstract: Since 1999 blogs have become a significant feature of online culture. They have been heralded as the new guardians of democracy, a revolutionary form of bottom-up news production and a new way of constructing self and doing community in late-modern times. In this article I highlight the significance of the 'blogosphere' as a new addition to the qualitative researcher's toolkit and some of the practical, theoretical and methodological issues that arise from this. Some of the key ethical issues involved in blog data collection are also considered. The research context is a project on everyday understandings and experiences of morality.

Materials development for language learning and teaching

Abstract: This article reviews the literature on the relatively new field of materials development for language learning and teaching. It reports the origins and development of the field and then reviews the literature on the evaluation, adaptation, production and exploitation of learning materials. It also reviews the literature, first, on a number of controversial issues in the field, next, on electronic delivery of materials and, third, on research in materials development. It identifies gaps in the literature and makes proposals for future progress in materials development and in the research within the field. Much of the literature focuses on materials for learning English but the same principles apply to materials for learning any L2, as has been acknowledged by some of the authors whose publications focus on materials for learning other languages.