Author: admin

So I’ve finally got around to starting on my research methodology chapter. The simple version is that I need to write about 5 000 words explaining how and why I approached my data. Of course, that’s what I thought, but as with everything else to do with doctoral research, the actual details are far more…

Upon this occasion of turning thirty-four, I have deigned to lower myself to speak with the hoi-polloi, and therefore, they will receive the benefit of my wisdom. Or, in other words, here are a few thoughts about this year and what I have learned. To me, this year has been all about leadership – in…

I’ve been thinking a lot about computer games and novels – maybe because I’ve been reading a lot and playing a lot of games at the moment. If you’re wondering, the Ketty Jay series by Chris Wooding and GTA V by Rockstar Games. But I’ve been finding that there is a lot in common between…

So we’re well into November now, and the joy that is NaNoWriMo has begun. If you tuned in late, this is when we try to write a novel in 30 days or less – the novel has to have at least 50 000 words, so that means that you are working at an average of…

So it’s almost November again, which means that it’s NaNoWriMo time. I’ve thrown out the invitations, again, both at school and at home, for people to join me as I once again attempt to write a novel. I haven’t gone back to the novels that I’ve written in previous years – too much likely embarrassment…

I came across the above term while speaking with Akesha, a friend of mine and fellow education academic. I was really intrigued by the idea, and I think it has some relevance to my own work. Ultimately, educationalisation is the idea that schools are becoming more and more involved in curing various social ills. For…

I wrote a post a couple of days ago about bushfires and politics. It got more views than my usual posts (not that that’s saying much – this is for myself as much as it is for anyone else) but I realised that I hadn’t shared my own personal views about the fires – my…

So, it’s not even summer yet, and already Sydney is ringed with flames as dozens of bush fires – many of them still out of control – burn through the scrubs and valleys. More than 200 homes have already been lost, and support appliances are coming in from South Australia, Queensland and even New Zealand….

Greater Western Sydney is often maligned in the press or in popular culture. It is seen as the home of the ‘bogan’ – the male, blue-singlet-wearing, ute-driving, beer-swilling denizen of the Western Suburbs. Sometimes referred to disparagingly as a ‘Westie’, the bogan is seen as poorly educated, most likely employed in some kind of manual…

I’ve been reading a lot of the work of Jennifer Gore and Carmen Luke after my supervisor recommended that I engage more with other variants of what might be called radical (in the sense of challenging dominant discourses) pedagogy as I try to position my work and theory building amongst these different schools of thought….