Category: Education

Fintech + Inequality, and the need for education

Posted on by School of Education University of Bristol

Innovation or Inequality? Blog by Laura Gemmell, FARSCOPE PhD Student, University of Bristol

I love giving talks on payments technology (it was part of my job for over four years after all). I take one of my cards out (usually a Monzo or Starling due to the jazzy colours):
“Do you know how many generations of payments innovation are on these cards?”

It’s five:

  • Embossed card number (this is how the numbers are usually raised, in case civilisations collapse and shops need to return to tracing these with emboss machines. I’ve always thought this seemed silly, but 2020 has taught me anything could happen…)
  • Magstripe (these are still used in other countries, including the USA)
  • CHIP (for your CHIP and PIN transactions)
  • CVC (the card verification number, sometimes called CVV or CV2 – this is the 3 or 4 digit number usually on the back of your card which you type in when online shopping. It’s purpose is to make online shopping more secure)
  • Contactless (we can now pay using our phones using this technology).

(more…)

Concerning Chilean and Latin American neoliberal processes; An Interview with Dr Carlos Ruiz Encina.

Posted on by School of Education University of Bristol

Interview by Hugo Parra Munoz, Doctoral Student, School of Education University of Bristol (Long read)

Dr Carlos Ruiz Encina

Picture 1. Dr Carlos Ruiz Encina during the interview. After a week from the interview, Professor Ruiz Encina has been nominated by prominent politicians and social activists to be a candidate for elaborating the new Chilean constitution.

Exciting changes are coming from the South of Latin America. We have a conversation with Dr Carlos Ruiz Encina. His book The politics in neoliberalism, experiences from Latin America (2019, LOM) remarks his in-depth revision of the current social context in that part of the globe. While, his last book, Chilean October: the emergence of a new people (2020, Taurus), addresses the crisis of neoliberal subjects depicted by the Chilean current social uprising. Dr Ruiz-Encina’s works in the Latin American Studies Programme and the Social Sciences Doctoral Programme at the Universidad de Chile, along with his participation in Fundacion Nodo XXI, transform him in one of the most interesting critic scholars of the region. The conversation is realised in the eve of the Chilean referendum for changing the constitution. The referendum has brought together international interest, since it could represent the end of the neoliberal experimentation in Chile. Neoliberalism was born in Chile, could it die there; and what this entails for the educative system? (more…)

Initial Teacher Education during a pandemic

Posted on by School of Education University of Bristol

The School of Education catches up with Beth McEwan, PGCE student, and trainee History teacher to ask her why she chose to undertake her PGCE (Initial Teacher Education) at the School of Education, University of Bristol, and the challenges of studying during a pandemic.

 Tell us about yourself and why you chose to become a history teacher.

I’m Beth and I recently graduated from Cardiff University, where I did my History degree. I’ve wanted to be a teacher since I was about 15 or 16, but I originally wanted to be a primary school teacher. After doing work experience in a primary school, and as I gradually fell more and more in love with History, I realised I would prefer to be a History teacher.

I also feel that the transferable skills gained through studying History are vital. Having the ability to look critically at the evidence and arguments surrounding you, and to frame your own interpretations based on evidence, is becoming increasingly important. If I can contribute to providing these skills to future students, and to help them achieve their ambitions, I’ll find my career deeply rewarding. (more…)

My Experience doing a Research Internship in the SoE

Posted on by School of Education University of Bristol
Ahanah Bhatnagar

Blog post by School of Education international student, Ahanah Bhatnagar.

Over this summer, Bristol University ran its first Widening Participation Research Summer Internship. Due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, the internship transitioned to run virtually, which suited me perfectly well as I was based at my residence in Hong Kong. My research project was a qualitative pilot study, where I was assigned as a research associate to Dr Lucy Wenham as she is the School of Education Widening Participation Officer and this was the first WP intern in the School of Education. (more…)

Black Histories: Looking Forward  

Posted on by School of Education University of Bristol

A collaborative blog post by the School of Education.


The final week of Black History month offers an opportunity to reflect on how ongoing work in the School of Education strives to promote racial justice. The School recognizes the importance of a sustained commitment to racial justice and the Black Lives Matter movement beyond the month of October. This post reflects upon important work that contributes to racial justice and the ways in which we can continue to support this commitment.  (more…)

Black History in Bristol: A Guide for New Students at the School of Education

Posted on by School of Education University of Bristol

A special collaborative blog for Black History Month by the School of Education, University of Bristol

This year, many new students on undergraduate, master’s and doctoral programmes at the School of Education are beginning their studies at different locations around the world. While we are geographically dispersed, our School and University are very much rooted in the history of Bristol. (more…)

🎪 All the fun of the (careers) fair

Posted on by School of Education University of Bristol

Special guest blog from the University of Bristol Careers Service.

❤ Employers love Bristol students

Your Careers Service connects you with employers – large and small, local and international. Every year we link Bristol students and graduates to over 300 employers, and are one of the top five most targeted UK universities by employers (High Fliers).

We’ve been in this position for the last ten years, so we’re not going to let this new, mostly digital world stop us! This autumn term, we are bringing over 100 employers directly to you through our Careers Showcase Week and Autumn Fair (19 to 23 October). (more…)

 Simple Strategies to Enjoy Your PhD Journey

Posted on by School of Education University of Bristol

Blog post by Saud Albusaidi, EdD student, School of Education, University of Bristol

Doing your PhD (Doctor of Philosophy) or EdD (Doctorate in Education) is a long hectic journey. Basically, you will face many ups and downs, and I believe as a student you should talk about these lows and highs, as it helps relieve stress.

Celebrate your accomplishments, as celebration helps you fuel your continued success. In a few words, I will talk about two things I have done during my first and second year of my EdD, which definitely helped me enjoy my journey. (more…)

Chevening Chinwag : Developing educational technology, embracing Bristol’s diversity, and adapting to the ‘new normal’

Posted on by School of Education University of Bristol

Welcome Week 2020 special blog post by student Nguyen Hong Nhu, Chevening  scholar School of Education, University of Bristol

nguyen-hong-nhu

Chevening Chinwag* is a series of informal pleasant conversations with our Vietnamese Chevening scholars, who are currently experiencing their exciting, challenging, and life-changing Chevening journeys.

[*] Chinwag (n.) /ˈtʃɪn.wæɡ/: a long and pleasant conversation between friends.

In this edition, let’s follow Nguyen Hong Nhu, our outstanding Chevening scholar, studying Education, at the University of Bristol to listen to her amazing stories about her contemporary course that enables her to develop ideas for an Augmented Reality app; the diversity and inclusion of her University; how she quickly adapted to the ‘new normal’ with her dissertation; her special “Pub Friends”; and her advice to interested Chevening applicants. (more…)

No, we don’t use only 10% of our brains!

Posted on by School of Education University of Bristol

Blog post by André Hedlund, Chevening Alumnus, MSc in Psychology of Education from the School of Education at the University of Bristol.

Ever heard anyone say that? The last time I did was from one of the most powerful voices in movie history: Morgan Freeman’s. If he had been born in the UK, I’m sure he would’ve been knighted by now and joined the select group that includes Sir Anthony Hopkins, Sir Ian McKellen, Dame Judi Dench, and Dame Helen Mirren. Mr. Freeman played the role of Professor Samuel Norman, brain expert who has studied, among other things, the evolution of this incredible organ in Lucy, a movie co-starring Scarlet Johansson.

In one of the scenes, Professor Norman is lecturing to a group of interested students and says:

“Imagine for a moment what our life would be like if we could access, let’s say, 20% of our brain capacity?”

He goes on and claims that each human being has 100 billion neurons, from which only 15% are activated and that means that “we possess a gigantic network of information to which we have almost no access”. In his words, if we could access all the potential of our brains, we’d be able to control other people and even matter.

Well, Morgan Freeman, even though I love your voice and your acting, your character couldn’t be further from the truth. In this Luc Besson movie, released in 2014, most of what Professor Samuel Norman says is a false claim about the brain. It’s a neuromyth. (more…)