@Cambridge_Uni staff open meeting on Brexit

University of Cambridge Brexit open meeting
Babbage Lecture Theatre
12 December 2018

@Cambridge_Uni staff open meeting on #Brexit

Opening remarks by Vice-Chancellor, Professor Stephen Toope

The first slide highlights the contribution of being part of the EU to the global success of the University.

The end of freedom of movement

EU staff will need to ask for a settled status to be allowed to stay

Students from the EU in Cambridge

 

Vice Chancellor October 2018 statement on Brexit

 

Some references on Usage-based language learning approaches

Ellis, N. (2017) Chapter 6 – Chunking in Language Usage, Learning and Change: I Don’t Know from Part III – Chunking. Edited by Marianne Hundt, Universität Zürich, Sandra Mollin, Universität Heidelberg, Simone E. Pfenninger, Universität Salzburg. Cambridge University Press, pp 113-147
https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316091746.006

Ellis, N. (2017). Cognition, Corpora, and Computing: Triangulating Research in Usage‐Based Language Learning. Language Learning, 67(S1), 40-65.

Ellis, Nick C., & Ferreira-Junior, Fernando. (2009). Construction Learning as a Function of Frequency, Frequency Distribution, and Function. Modern Language Journal, 93(3), 370-385.

Tyler, A. (2010). Usage-Based Approaches to Language and Their Applications to Second Language Learning. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 30, 270-291.

Tyler, A., & Ortega, L. (2016). Usage-based approaches to language and language learning: An introduction to the special issue. 8(3), 335-345.

Tyler, A. (2018). Nick C. Ellis Ute Römer Matthew Brook O’Donnell: Usage-based approaches to language acquisition and processing: Cognitive and corpus investigations of construction grammar. Cognitive Linguistics, 29(1), 155-161.

Weber, Kirsten Morten H. Christiansen Peter Indefrey Peter Hagoort (2018) Primed From the Start: Syntactic Priming During the First Days of Language Learning. Language Learning. https://doi.org/10.1111/lang.12327

U. Oxford Keynote: Education and learning research in the age of complexity and fragmentation. An introspection

 

Oxford-Cambridge PhD students’ exchange seminar.

Department of Education, University of Oxford. June 1, 2018.

Keynote: Education and learning research in the age of complexity and fragmentation: an introspection

On 1 June 2018 I had the privilege to deliver a keynote on the Oxford-Cambridge PhD in Education exchange. I discussed the impact of the ideas of complexity and fragmentation on my own research and how my PhD students understood complexity.

I came up with a 6-point desideratum that was used as the basis for the ensuing discussion:

(1) Research is becoming more interdisciplinary and discipline boundaries tend to disappear.

(2) Collaboration with other researchers is essential. 

(3) Re-examine constantly your ontology and  epistemology. I´m in favour of a dynamic ontology / epistemology. Think critically at your work through the eyes of differing epistemologies (and ontology).

(4) Go deeper into the basic foundations of your discipline. But make sure it´s you and not somebody else guiding that reflection and

(5) Explore the limits of your discipline and themes.

(6) Attention is your best asset. Attention needs to be strategic.

 

Some references used in my talk

Douglas Fir Group (Atkinson, D.; Byrnes, H.; Doran, M.; Duff, P.; Ellis, Nick C.; Hall, J. K.; Johnson, K.; Lantolf, J.; Larsen-Freeman, D.; Negueruela, E.; Norton, B.; Ortega, L.; Schumann, J.; Swain, M.; Tarone, E.) (2016). A transdisciplinary framework for SLA in a multilingual world. Modern Language Journal, 100, 19-47.

Greene, M. T. (2003). What cannot be said in science. Nature, 388(6643), 619-620. 

Greene. (2007). The demise of the lone author. Nature, Nature, 2007

Larsen-Freeman, D. (2012). Complex, dynamic systems: A new transdisciplinary theme for applied linguistics? Language Teaching, 45(2), 202-214.

Williams, J. (2018). Stand out of our lights. Cambridge: Cambridge University Conference.

You can download my presentation here.

 

Making the Links: from theory to research design – follow-up qs

 

Making the Links: from theory to research design and back again

The video is a film of the lecture given by Professor Madeleine Arnot for the M.Phil, M.Ed, Ph.D and Ed.D courses on educational research. It offers students a chance to think about some recent debates about the role of theory in research, and the ways in which a theoretically informed study can be designed. The examples given derive from actual research projects.

Created: 2013-02-13 10:50 by Andrew Borkett

Keynote speaker: Madeleine Arnot

Publisher: University of Cambridge

You & theories

Category A – I have found theories (or a conceptual framework) I like which I am going to use.
Category B – I am worried because I don’t have a theory or conceptual framework, or can’t find one.
Category C – This is not relevant to me. I am a practitioner and want to improve practice not educational theories. I already know what I want to find out
Category D – I think theory- driven projects are biased and restrictive, I want to start with the data.

Concepts & methodology

Positivism, post-positivism, mixed methods
Surveys, data banks, tests, interviews,
Interpretivist methodology
Ethnography
Symbolic Interactionist
Phenomenology/grounded theory
Participatory/action research
Critical interpretivist traditions
Feminist methodologies
Critical policy research
Community studies/family studies
Youth cultural studies

Debate

-Have you considered how to “position” yourself? What does “positioning” entail?

-Why is it not enough to describe “the world”?

-What is the link between our RQ and theories? Is it one of those technical issues favoured by existing govt policies?

-What is the role of “grand theories”? Is there a grand theory particularly relevant in your research?

-“Life is messy message”. What do you take from this? What´s wrong with “patterns”?

-Theoretically-driven research vs grounded approach. How does this play out in your research?

-How useful are the models discussed by Prof Arnot for your research ( a>b, triangle, circular, deconstruction models)?

-Thinking conceptually and research designs. How does “concept” impact your research methods?