In this article, the aim is to explore some of the key themes to emerge in the journal during the past two decades. Each selected theme will be reviewed in the light of issues raised in particular papers. The aim of this approach is, first, to facilitate reflection upon the contribution of the journal as its subject matter has moved from a concern…

Students' beliefs about the nature of knowledge and knowing frame how they interpret their educational experience and their approaches to, and perspectives on, learning, teaching and assessment. This paper draws on previous research identifying the ways of knowing of undergraduates on entry to a UK post-92 university, findings from which confirm…

Today, children's literature given the concept of childhood, has gained a special status in the studies of humanities. Children's poetry is one of the branches of this type of literature. Naturalistic themes have the highest frequency among the themes of children poems in two countries. The population of this research consists of collections that…

Graduate teaching assistants (GTAs) have been described as being "neither fish nor fowl," occupying a role between student and teacher. Their multiple identities are commonly framed within the literature as a key challenge. This study explored the perspectives of GTAs when discussing their teaching work, through activity-oriented focus…

Institutions are understandably interested in the profile of their own reputations based upon publicly available data about student experiences. The UK's National Student Survey (NSS) metrics are integrated into several "Good University" calculations, whereas teaching teams most often use the survey's text comments to change practices,…

There is limited research into the value, purpose and function of Mental Health (MH) Chaplains. Yet, they are employed within National Health Service Trusts in the UK. Eight MH Chaplains were interviewed to explore how they see their value, purpose and function. The data were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. The data reveal…

Two focus groups, consisting of six participants each, were conducted to explore the training needs of therapists when working with clients reporting anomalous experiences (AEs). AEs are those that "depart from our own familiar personal experiences or from the more usual, ordinary, and expected experiences of a given culture and time"…

This paper uses the remote interactions of professional examiners working for a UK-based awarding body as a vehicle for discussing the benefits of the use of different methods for analysing such discourse. Communication is an area of interest for sociocultural theory because it can potentiate cognitive shifts in participants and affords learning.…

"Big history" is a term receiving a great deal of attention at present, particularly in North America where considerable sums of money have been invested in designing curricula and assessment tools to help teachers teach history at far larger scales of time than normal. Hawkey considers the pros and cons of incorporating components of…

In a previous phase of a project based in a group of UK primary schools, speaking and listening was found to be an effective focus for improved learning across the curriculum and for teachers' professional development. At the project's second stage and in the light of recently changed Department for Education guidelines, these findings have been…

This case study describes how the method of thematic analysis was used in a research project examining the phenomenon of cyberbullying in the United Kingdom, from the perspectives of students between 13 and 16 years of age and their teachers. In this case study, we focus on the methodological steps underlying the data collection (sampling, ethical…

Learning outside the classroom is an objective in primary education in the UK and an ideal way to introduce science. School grounds, allotments, community farms and sports areas, parks, nature reserves and community woodlands can be accessed in both urban and rural areas. These provide accessible spaces that can be used inexpensively throughout…

Social anxiety in learning is prevalent amongst traditional-age students and has a marked effect on their engagement with higher education. It receives little attention from academic or support services and there is a presumption that students will manage their anxieties. Yet it is unclear what psychosocial resources they might bring to this task…

This article presents findings of qualitative research commissioned by the Achievement for All project in a UK local authority. The research investigated how schools should engage parents, including those considered to be "hard to reach". A focus group methodology was adapted to enable parents to provide answers to the research…

This article reports on the findings of a thematic review of research literature about integrated early years services (IEYS) [1995-2012]. Four themes are discussed: broad support for IEYS; critiques of claims about IEYS; a focus on inter-professional practice; and the challenge of evaluating IEYS. The article concludes with reflections concerning…