Blog from Professor Jenny Bimrose

A paper jointly presented by Professors Alan Brown and Jenny Bimrose at the 10th International Conference on Computer Supported Education (CSEDU), 15 – 17 March, Madeira, provided an overarching view of how to use on-line collaborative learning to facilitate learning development and professional identity transformation of careers and employment practitioners. It built upon work from a European research project, EmployID.

The methodology comprised participatory design, so that learning support could be developed that met the particular needs of the practitioners. IT applications were developed to support practitioners with on-line reflection, coaching and the use of labour market information (LMI) in their practice.

In the UK Public Employment Service, two blended learning programs were developed to support identity transformation for employer advisers and work coaches, while subsequently an international MOOC was developed to support continuing professional development of career and employment practitioners more generally. This international MOOC was successful in facilitating a dialogue about the implications of the changing world of work for the professional identities of career and employment practitioners.

IER's Dr Sally-Anne Barnes and Professor Anne Green in collaboration with Professor Leela Damodaran from Loughborough University will be hosting a free roundtable event to identify the role of online platforms in providing opportunities for a better work-life balance in terms of new modes of working and new types of community engagement.The event to be held at the University of Warwick on 28 November (12-5pm) is being funded by the EPSRC Balance Network.

If you would like to attend please contact Lynne Marston. Places are limited and will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis.

In late September, IER's Anne Green travelled to South Africa at the invitation of the Human Sciences Research Council under the auspices of a National Research Foundation Knowledge, Interchange & Collaboration Grant. The purpose of her visit was to exchange knowledge on tackling unemployment issues in the UK, in order to feed into learning on poverty and inequality issues in South Africa. Anne gave a presentation at the Society of South African Geographers Centenary Conference in Stellenbosch and then travelled to Pretoria where she gave a Workshop and a Seminar on unemployment issues and labour market geographies.