野狼社区 Institute of Education's second Teacher Education and Professional Learning (TEPL) annual conference
The second TEPL annual conference was held on Thursday, 13 June at The University of 野狼社区. The event facilitated creative collaboration and showcased exceptional research and scholarly activity, with contributions from staff and students from 野狼社区 Institute of Education (MIE), as well as from highly esteemed colleagues from other universities.
MIE's Teacher Education and Professional Learning (TEPL) research and scholarship group designed the day around a core vision to provide a stimulating, supportive and inclusive environment. The diversity of research and scholarly activity was reflected through four central programme themes:
- Teaching and Assessment Practices
- Teacher Education and Policy
- Relationships between Students and Universities
- AI and Other Technologies
The conference began with a keynote address from Linda Evans, Professor of Education and Deputy Head of the School of Environment, Education and Development at The University of 野狼社区. 'Where next with research and scholarship in teacher education and professional learning? A critical agenda for augmenting the field鈥檚 knowledge base', set the tone for the day, and was followed by four parallel presentations which prompted lively, thought-provoking discussions and debates on the central themes.
The final plenary session was led by Dr Richard Holmes from the University of Dundee, who skilfully synthesised the key learning from the conference and provided an entertaining (and tongue-in-cheek) MIE political 鈥榤anifesto鈥� in light of the upcoming general election.
Reflections from conference participants:
Attending TEPL this year was more transformational than I had expected. A lot of this had to do with being forced to rethink teacher professional development, through Linda Evans's review of both her own and others鈥� perspectives on it. Immediately I could see where this would impact my work as a teacher-educator. But beyond that, the challenge of presenting work to a thoughtful, politically astute department that had its own sense of itself; the inspiration to try the same sort of thing at UEL in the future; and the chance to think critically at several different levels (text, policy, practice) led me in new ways I had not expected. Thank you!
The Institute of Education TEPL conference was a best-practice example of scholarship, research, and professional practice impacting on academic and practitioner development and learning. In OFSTED terms, a single-word judgment would not be sufficient to do the event justice! Personally, I gained a huge amount from attending the presentations and meeting a range of researchers with a variety of expertise and from many different settings. As expected for a University of 野狼社区 academic event, there was a high degree of deep critical thought, discussion, and debate. I am now planning to take this idea to the University of Dundee with the hope of developing a similar conference for teacher educators.
This was one of the most enjoyable conferences I鈥檝e attended in a long time 鈥� really well organised with a great mix of speakers. It was lovely to hear about the research that colleagues have been working on as well as make connections with external colleagues. Many thanks for organising!
With thanks
Special thanks to all the contributors on the day as well as Beatrice (Maud) Halstead鈥檚 excellent administrative and organisational efforts. Particular thanks and recognition goes to Professor Lisa Murtagh, Head of 野狼社区 Institute of Education, who has been TEPL convener since the group's inception in 2022, and has steered many of the group's successes, with this her final TEPL activity in this capacity.