At the upcoming British Educational Research Association (BERA) conference a number of School of SSESW colleagues will share their current research and key findings on migrant families navigating school admissions, inequality in languages education, small rural schools and developing reach for research outcomes.

Daniel Muijs (Head of School) will present on How to get your research noticed by policymakers and the public, the importance of self-marketing and story-telling, and how to navigate social media.

A paper from Min-Chen Liu on Languages Provision in UK Further Education indicates sustained inequality in this area over the past twenty years in UK further education, revealing lack of engagement with students, lecturers and leaders. Findings from a study led by SSESW colleague Ian Collen indicate that languages appear to have been overlooked in terms of career options. There is a sense of frustration due to the undervaluation of languages by leadership teams, coupled with a lack of strategic direction for their role in FE settings.

The Conceptualising ‘Community’ in Small Rural Schools within a Divided Society paper by Carl Bagley and Montse Fargas-Malet focuses on their study of the relationship between small rural schools and the communities they serve within the post-conflict context of Northern Ireland’s religiously divided schooling system. It delves in-depth into how community is perceived by school principals, staff, parents, pupils and local residents, to expand understanding of school-community relations and the potential value of small rural schools beyond simply the educational.

Rebecca Loader’s paper on Problematising access and inclusion in education for migrant learners explores how migrant families in Northern Ireland navigate school admissions and secondary school transfer in a system characterised by separate religious schooling and academic selection. It is based on a larger research project investigating experiences of education among minority ethnic groups in Northern Ireland and forms part of a symposium examining the themes of access and inclusion for migrant learners.

Rebecca Loader says: “This work makes a much-needed contribution to UK research on school admissions processes for migrant families, focusing on the views and experiences of migrant parents concerning school choice – including, for many, the absence of choice, particularly where their children are older – in Northern Ireland’s complex education system.”