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July 2019

, Associate Professor of Sociology at Stavanger University, Norway, visited CHEER to discuss possible research collaborations investigating gender in higher education in Europe. Hande's research interests focus on gender and social inequalities, transnational organisations and social activism, and she has a substantial portfolio of research in this field. CHEER looks forward to collaboration with Hande and colleagues in Norway.

June 2019

CHEER Experts' Knowledge Exchange Seminar: Internationalising Higher Education in Japan
Experts from MEXT the OECD, and the UUK and scholars, university leaders, members of professional services, and doctoral researchers participated in discussions on the findings from the CHEER Research Project: Higher Education, Knowledge Exchange and Policy Learning in the Asian Century: A UK/Japanese Partnership.

We were delighted to welcome our research parters from Japan - Professor Yumiko Hada and Dr Ryo Sasaki. We were also honoured that colleagues from around the globe joined us for the event: Professor Greg Poole, from Doshisha University, Japan, Dr Carolina Guzman from the University of Chile, and Ms Shizuka Kato from the OECD, Paris, and our CHEER Associates Professor Carole Leathwood and Dr Terri Kim.

Professor Hiroshi Ota from Hitotsubashi University made the keynote presentation: 'Internationalization and International Students in Japan'.

This was followed by a presentation on the findings from the research on migrant academics by Louise Morley and Yumiko Hada: 'The Affective Economy of Internationalisation: Migrant Academics in and out of Japanese Higher Education'.

After lunch, Paul Roberts and Mariam Attia presented their findings on international doctoral researchers in Japan: 'Internationalisation of Doctoral Education in Japan: Implications for Researcher Development'.

Participants worked in groups to identify the following Impact Action Points:

1. 1.    Deep or Surface Internationalisation? 

• To adopt a vocabulary of mainstreaming internationalisation and encourage higher education institutions and agencies to review all services and practices in relation to the aims of internationalisation e.g. the curriculum, pedagogies, communications, mentoring, practical matters, the built environment, recruitment and selection. 
• This process could draw on the work on internationalisation undertaken by some Japanese universities e.g. Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, and the extensive global documentation produced for gender mainstreaming by the United Nations; the European Commission; the Gender Secretariat in Sweden e.g. toolkits, guidelines for good practice.

1. 2.    Language 

• To provide on-line pre-arrival courses in the Japanese language for international students and faculty. 
• These courses could potentially be a requirement of mobility funding for doctoral researchers from the Japanese government. 

1. 3.    Doctoral Researchers 

• Japanese universities/ MEXT to review/ produce documentation that codifies entitlements, aims, rights and responsibilities for doctoral researchers. In the case of those supported by scholarships, this could also include expectations of future connection and activity. The documentation to be made available in Japanese and English. 

1. 4.    To set up fora in which Japan and the UK could exchange best practices to support doctoral researchers and their wellbeing e.g. supervision; skill development; infrastructures for people in crisis. This could involve work with the Japan Association of National Universities, the UK Council for Graduate Education, and UUK. 
2. 5.    Supporting Migrant Academics 

• To utilise the Training Module Internationalisation in Higher Education: Practical Guidance to support work with migrant academics. This module is available in English and in Japanese.
• To support the UUK in the development of a UK-Japan Mobility Guide to support UK and Japanese universities to exchange students.

1. 6.    Higher Education Pedagogy 

• To develop courses in higher education pedagogies in Japanese universities.

These Action Points will be taken up with the following Stakeholders

1. UUK

2. MEXT

3. OECD

4. Japan Association of National Universities  

5. The UK Council for Graduate Education

Internationalising Higher Education in Japan: Photo Gallery

May 2019

Visit from the University of Maryville, USA
Professor Kelly Coate was delighted to host a visit from a group who are studying for a professional doctorate in higher education at , USA. The trip was a week-long ‘study visit’ in which they visited various UK universities. Guests from Maryville and CHEER members discussed their research interests and current comparative policy issues in the UK and USA e.g. student fees, internationalisation and equity and diversity. The visit provided a very positive opportunity to exchange knowledge about higher education research in the two countries. 

Professor Kelly Coate hosts Maryville scholars: May 2019

Mental Health Wellbeing Conference
CHEER members, and Paul Roberts, served on the steering group for the UK Council for Graduate Education's largest ever conference addressing the challenge of . The genesis of the conference arose from research Paul carried out as part of his Doctorate in Education wherein Graduate School Managers identified the mental health and wellbeing of doctoral researchers as a key challenge. 
In addition to the conference, both Paul and Jane - together with CHEER Research Fellow, Yasser Kosbar - are working on within their own institutions and are planning to present at the in December 2019. 

The UK Council for Graduate Education conference, which has just sold out, was recently featured by (International journal of science).

April 2019

Louise made the keynote presentation 'Entangling Gender and Research in the Neoliberal Global Knowledge Economy' at the Re-imagining Futures in Higher Education Conference at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. She also presented 'Women and Higher Education Leadership: An objecct of desire or something to be avoided?' at the Tertulias in Higher Education seminar at the Universidad de Chile.
Yasser presented his doctoral research 'Re-imagining Research with a Gendered Standpoint: Dialogues on Epistemology and Methodology' at a meeting with other doctoral researchers at the University of Valparaiso.
Louise and Yasser also attended several research meetings and discussions, including at the Universidad Cardenal Silva Henríquez, and were delighted to work with colleagues - some of whom previously came to ßÏßÏÊÓƵ - including Dr Ana Luisa Muñoz, Dr Juan Pablo Queupil and Dr Carolina Guzmán.
Their visit received . 

Chile 2019 photo gallery

March 2019

Women in Organizations: UAE
Louise Morley was an invited participant at the at the American University of Sharjah, United Arab Emirates. The Think Tank brought together international scholars to focus on the following objectives:

• Developing a comprehensive research strategy for the exploration and investigation of issues surrounding women in organizations across the MENA region
• Prioritize theoretical and research needs to address the research strategy developed for the above
• Connect researchers and research centers wishing to collaborate; engaging stakeholders and raising awareness

Louise was invited based on her extensive research on gender in higher education and in leadership. She is now in discussion with Think Tank participants from around the globe about possible follow up projects in the region.

Women in Organizations in the MENA Region Think Tank: GALLERY

LGBTQ Students Entering Higher Education Film
was produced and recorded by the young people at . Funded by the (SLP:COP), (University of Brighton) and Professor Kate O'Riordan (ßÏßÏÊÓƵ) worked in collaboration with the young people at Allsorts to look at the challenges and barriers associated with entering into Higher Education for LGBTQ youth in the UK. A very valuable resource!

(South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria and Ghana)
Louise Morley visited the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa, for a Dissemination Seminar and Team Meeting.
Working with Principal Investigators, Professors Stephanie Allais and Elaine Unterhalter, and Co-Investigators and colleagues - from Ghana, Dr Christine Adu-Yeboah, from Kenya, Mark Obonyo, from Nigeria, Emmanuel Ojo, from South Africa, Dr Siphelo Ngcwangu, Dr Sam Fongwa, Palesa Molebatsi, Lerato Posholi, Mthobisi Ndaba and Cecilia Selepe, and from the UK, Professors Moses Oketch, Tristan McCowan and Dr Colleen Howell - the purpose of Louise's visit was to exchange knowledge with policymakers and NGOs, and to confirm the publications and impact strategy for the project.

Johannesburg photo gallery

January 2019

New Research Project: Supporting Gypsy, Roma and Traveller Educational Transitions
Dr Emily Danvers and Dr Tamsin Hinton-Smith have successfully received funding from the ßÏßÏÊÓƵ Learning Network’s ‘Innovation Fund’ to lead a project around access to higher education for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller (GRT) young people. The project is a collaboration between CHEER/CTLR, Widening Participation at the ßÏßÏÊÓƵ and Friends, Families and Travellers.
GRT are a vastly under-represented group in higher education, with estimates suggesting that less than 1% of young people go on to university in the UK. A key factor to this educational trajectory is a lack of progression through compulsory schooling with GRT pupils having higher overall  and persistent absence rates than any other ethnic group in England and the lowest average attainment score at key stage four. Some of the main contributing issues cited for this education ‘achievement gap’ include experiences of racism and bullying, a lack of understanding of GRT culture by teachers, as well as cultural and historical valuing of particular forms of work. This project aims to understand and address some of these issues faced by GRT young people as they progress through their secondary education in Sussex.
The first stage of the project is the design and delivery of a ‘visualising your futures’ workshop aimed at GRT young people in Hailsham Community College. This workshop will explore pupils’ perspectives on education, specifically higher education, and what they feel some of the barriers and opportunities offered by this educational trajectory might be. We will then organise a targeted visit to a local higher education provider, facilitated by a former GRT university graduate. This represents a unique pilot for ßÏßÏÊÓƵ and the sector in offering an outreach initiative specifically targeting GRT learners, for which access to higher education is substantially lower than other ethnic groups. The project will conclude with a networking meeting where young people, community organisations, schools and university representatives will discuss how best GRT young people could be supported through their educational transitions. This will generate co-produced guidelines on inclusion and progression for  schools, universities and community organisations.
This ßÏßÏÊÓƵ Learning Network funding is part of a series of initiatives under the Office for Students’ National Collaborative Outreach Programme (NCOP) which focuses on outreach activity in local areas where higher education participation is lower than might be expected given the GCSE results of the young people who live there.

December 2018

Society for Research into Higher Education (SRHE) Annual Conference 2018
Louise Morley presented the closing keynote address Changing the Shape of Higher Education: Troubling Neoliberalism and Imagining Alternativity. . CHEER also presented a symposium: The Hidden Narratives of Internationalisation, with the following papers:

1. The Affective Economy of Internationalisation: Migrant Academics in and out of Japanese Higher Education
Louise Morley, Daniel Leyton, and Yasser Kosbar, CHEER, and Yumiko Hada, Kansai Gadai university, Japan

 2. The Hidden Narratives of Higher Education Internationalisation: Can Excellence and Inclusion Cohabit? The case of East Asian mobile academics in UK Universities
Terri Kim, University of East London and CHEER Associate

3. Exploring International Student Responses to Surveillance within the UK Student Visa System
Aisling Tiernan, Doctoral Researcher, CHEER 

4. The Hidden Narratives of International Doctoral Students in Japan: How are Japanese Government’s Internationalisation Policy Initiatives being Experienced at the Micro Level?
Paul Roberts, Doctoral Researcher, CHEER and Ryo Sasaki, Shimane University, Japan.

Professor Kelly Coate, the Co-Director of CHEER and pro Vice-Chancellor of Education and Students at the ßÏßÏÊÓƵ was the discussant.

SRHE 2018

November 2018

Louise Morley made a keynote address 'Thinking Differently about the Roma in Higher Education: Beyond Sex, Slums and Special Schools, and Towards Epistemic Inclusion!' at the Universities UK Access to Higher Education and Student Success Conference, London, November, 2018. The conference focussed on hard to reach social groups in relation to policy initiatives for widening participation and was attended by policymakers from the Office for Students, for example, and Widening Participation professionals from across the UK. Louise's presentation was based on research findings from the HEIM Project that examined higher education in relation to the Roma community in Europe

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October 2018

Australian Associate Professor presents keynote for CHEER conference
CHEER was delighted to welcome from the University of Wollongong, Australia where she is an Associate Professor in Adult, Vocational and Higher Education in the School of Education, Faculty of Social Sciences.
Sarah was a keynote speaker at the CHEER Seminar: Critical Perspectives on Transitions into, through and beyond Higher Education on 15 October at which she met with CHEER members to discuss ideas for future collaborations and centre links.
Sarah has over 20 years’ experience teaching in universities as well as the VET and Adult Education sector, she has also published widely on issues related to educational access and equity. Her publication record includes 27 peer reviewed journal articles, three scholarly books and five book chapters - this work has also featured in The Conversation, University World News and The Australian. 

Louise in Finland
Louise Morley was a Visiting Professor in the Department of Gender Studies at the University of Tampere, Finland, the week of 8 October. Louise made the keynote presentation Entangling Gender and Neoliberalism in the Global Academy at the Gender Studies Seminar, lectured to an undergraduate Gender Studies cohort on Lost Leaders: Women in the Global Academy, and participated in a range of research and networking meetings. CHEER looks forward to future collaboration with the excellent scholars from Tampere.

Congratulations Dr Leyton!
Congratulations to Daniel Leyton who has been recommended for the award of Education PhD for his thesis: Affective Governmentality, Ordo-liberalism, and the Affirmative Action Policy in Higher Education in Chile. Daniel's eternal examiner was , from the University of East London, and his internal examiner was Dr Rebecca Webb. Louise Morley was Daniel's first supervisor and Valerie Hey his second supervisor. Both examiners commended Daniel for his "richly theorised and original study that problematised the affective construction of working class students in affirmative action policies and policy activity in Chile". 
Congratulations, Dr Leyton!

CHEER welcomes new Visiting Research Fellow

CHEER is delighted to welcome Dr Ana Luisa Muñoz-Garcia as Visiting Research Fellow for one month from 1 October. Ana Luisa is visiting to develop her new network with CHEER and CHEF (the Centre for Higher Education Futures, University of Aarhus, Denmark), on issues of internationalization, knowledge and gender in academia.

Ana Luisa is a Doctor in Educational Culture, Policy and Society from the State University of New York at Buffalo. She is an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Education at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile. Her research focus has been educational research and construction of knowledge in academia within the framework of internationalization policies. She is currently leading a project on research policies in higher education, and another International Network Project on issues of internationalization, knowledge and gender in academia - both funded by the National Commission of Science and Technology (CONICYT). She is also the President of the Chilean Educational Research Network (RIECH).  Ana Luisa is currently visiting CHEER in the framework of her International Network Project for Early Researchers focused on a comparative dialogue on research policies  knowledge construction in Higher Education from a Gender Perspective with Denmark and England. The project involves five partner institutions - three in Chile and two in Europe. The main Chilean research centre is the Centre of Study for Policies and Practices in Education (CEPPE) of the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile. CEPPE will work closely with two colleagues: one based at the Centre of Advanced Research in Education (CIAE) of the University of Chile (UCH) and another, in the EdInclusion Center at the Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaiso (PUCV). The international institutions involved are the Centre for Higher Education and Equity Research (CHEER) and the Centre for Higher Education Futures (CHEF).

September 2018

University of the Arctic Congress, Oulu, Finland
Louise Morley made the keynote presentation at the Gender (In-)Equality In Higher Education Panel at the University of the Arctic Congress, University of Oulu, Finland. The session was attended by researchers, policymakers and community organisations, and was part of the major interdisciplinary congress that brought together universities from the CircumPolar regions.

Gender and University Leadership International Seminar, University of Aarhus, Denmark
Louise Morley was one of the international guests invited to speak at the Women and University Leadership seminar organised by the Centre for Higher Education Futures (CHEF), Danish School of Education, University of Aarhus, Copenhagen, Denmark. She presented her research to academics from around the globe, including Professor Sandra Acker (OISE, Canada), Professor Jill Blackmore (Deakin, Australia), Professor Liisa Husu (Orebro, Sweden), Dr Julie Rowlands (Deakin, Australia), Dr Kirsten Locke (Auckland, New Zealand), and Dr Rebecca Lund, Tampere, Finland). The seminar was also attended by CHEF's doctoral and masters' scholars of gender in higher education.

He did it!
Many congratulations to CHEER Doctoral Researcher, Boon Seong Woo, who was recommended this week for the award of International EdD (Doctor of Education) for his study: The Subterranean World of Digital Pedagogy in a Polytechnic in Singapore?
Boon's external examiner was Professor Martin Oliver from UCL, and his internal examiner was Dr Barbara Crossouard. Louise Morley was Boon's first supervisor and Kwame Akyeampong his second.
Boon produced a richly theorised and highly original study investigating the complex affective engagements of lecturers introducing digital pedagogy in a location famed for its educational excellence.