/ Full archive

REF 2028: what we know so far…

Research assessment

The UK’s higher education funding bodies have published details of proposed changes to the Research Excellence Framework (REF) for 2028.

They state that they are seeking to change the emphasis of the national assessment from the performance of individuals to the contributions of institutions and disciplines to a healthy and inclusive research environment.

Some of the proposed changes include:

  • Research outputs will contribute to 50 per cent of a Unit of Assessment (UoA), down from 60 per cent in REF 2021. This element has been renamed to ‘contribution to knowledge and understanding’ and, while assessment will continue to largely be based on assessment of submitted outputs, at least 10% of the score will be based on evidence of broader contributions to the advancement of the discipline.
  • ‘People and Culture’ will replace the environment element of REF 2021 and will be assessed at both a disciplinary and institutional level. This element will make up 25 per cent of the overall score, up from 15 per cent in REF 2021, and will be expanded to include an assessment of research culture.
  • An ‘engagement and impact’ element, weighted at 25 per cent, will replace the impact element of REF 2021. Submissions will consist of both impact case studies and an accompanying statement to evidence engagement and activity beyond case studies.
  • The work of all researchers and research-enabling staff will be eligible for submission to REF 2028. Research volume will be determined from average staff volumes over multiple years and there will not be any minimum or maximum contributions of any individuals.

The changes come as part of the Future Research Assessment Programme (FRAP), which has reviewed how national research assessment is carried out in the UK.

Professor Dame Jessica Corner, Executive Chair at Research England, said:

“This is a once-in-a-generation moment for change as we shift national research assessment away from a focus on individuals to how institutions and disciplines contribute to healthy, dynamic and inclusive research environments, and as we shift from a focus on published research outputs towards a broader view of what constitutes research excellence and how it can be demonstrated.”

The sector will now have the opportunity to input into further development of REF 2028, with consultation running until October 2023.

Find out more on the UKRI website

BU Research Conference 2023: Embracing failure (and eating cake…)

Training

The 2023 Research Conference took place on one of the hottest days of the year so far.

Dr Jan Peters MBE gives the keynote speech at the BU Research Conference 2023

Dr Jan Peters MBE gives the keynote speech at the BU Research Conference 2023

The theme of this year’s conference was also a hot topic: failure, and how to deal with obstacles and setbacks throughout the research journey.

Opening the conference, Professor Einar Thorsen, Executive Dean of the Faculty of Media and Communication, set the tone for the event – speaking openly and honestly about times when his research hasn’t gone to plan.

Keynote speaker Dr Jan Peters MBE shared stories from her time working in both academia and industry and the lessons she’d learnt – from embracing your strengths to avoiding comparing yourself to others.

Professor Ann Hemingway and Professor Sam Goodman share their insights for overcoming academic rejection

Professor Ann Hemingway and Professor Sam Goodman share their insights for overcoming academic rejection

In a joint keynote, Professor Ann Hemingway and Professor Sam Goodman, shared their advice and insights into experiencing and overcoming academic rejection. As well as presenting some choice comments they’d received from reviewers in the past, they also shared their tips for ‘failing better’, including the 3 Rs – resubmit, repurpose or restart.

Over lunch, attendees had the chance to decorate ‘failure cakes’ with the team from the Centre for Health, Science and Communication Research, icing cupcakes with positive messages for those who might have experienced failure.

Three people decorating cupcakes

Failure cake decorating as part of the BU Research Conference 2023

In the afternoon, workshops offered the opportunity to learn practical tips and strategies for dealing with difficulties. Topics covered included building resilience, articulating your strengths, repurposing grant applications and improving writing approaches.

The conference was closed by Robert Seaborne from Inside Academia, who spoke about the dichotomy between the core values of research (learning through failure to discover something new or unknown) and the success metrics which pervade academic culture.

A close-up image of Robert Seaborne presenting at the BU Research Conference

Robert Seaborne closing the BU Research Conference

Discussing his own experience of burnout during his PhD and the scale of mental health issues seen within academia, Robert also shared the advice he’d give to his younger self – which include the need to rest and recover and maintain the activities outside of academia that help you stay happy and healthy.

The Research Conference is an annual event organised by the Research Excellence Team in RDS to bring BU’s academic and research community together to learn, share, network and discuss key topics from the world of research.

A big thank you to everyone who supported or attended this year’s conference. If you have any feedback or suggestions of topics for future years, please get in touch at research@bournemouth.ac.uk

New Book ‘Social Work Practice With Adults: learning from lived experience’

 

 

Dr Sally Lee and Dr Louise Oliver edited a book titled: Social Work Practice With Adults: learning from lived experience. This book is co-authored with academics, social workers and people with lived experience supporting the reader to gain new understanding and knowledge from an often seldom heard voice within academic books.

We recently held a book launch party with many of the co-authors and as an engaging activity, we co-created a poem which focused upon what this book meant to them, it reads:

 

We came together to write a book,

from every cranny and every nook.

We feel so proud to say it out loud,

with powerful words to inform learning.

We want to reimagine the social work role,

To give a voice to those who know.

Not just listening but hearing what is said,

putting the ‘being done to’ to bed.

To give the future a second look,

starting a new conversation through this book.

We don’t know what the future holds,

but sharing stories, being told, helps new understanding

unfold.

 

Sally Lee and Louise Oliver

Social Work Team (FHSS)

 

Update on Horizon Europe Guarantee

The UK government remains in discussion on the UK’s involvement in EU research programmes and hopes that negotiations on Horizon Europe will be successful.

There are good news regarding Horizon Europe guarantee provided by the UK government. The UK government has announced an extension to the support provided to UK Horizon Europe applicants until the end of September 2023.

The UK Horizon Guarantee will now be in place to cover all Horizon Europe calls that close on or before 30 September 2023. Eligible, successful applicants to Horizon Europe will receive the full value of their funding at their UK host institution for the lifetime of their project.

Full details of the scope and terms of the extended Guarantee are available on the dedicated UKRI website (login may be required).

With any further questions related to Horizon Europe, please get in touch with me.

Please note that, as part of RDS funding briefing, there will be a session dedicated to Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Postdoctoral Fellowships 2023 call on 21 June (no briefing this week).

Today’s research process seminar. A roadmap for building a corpus of African digital news content. 13 June at 2pm on Zoom

You are warmly invited to this week’s research process seminar. Hosted by FMC but open to all staff and research students.

It tackles the practical challenges in applying computational approaches to studying digital news content. While the context is of media content, the process is one that relates to several disciplines.

 

A roadmap for building a corpus of African digital news content – by Dr Dani Madrid-Morales (University of Sheffield)

This talk will detail the challenges in conducting research on digital African news content, and will describe the process followed by the speaker in developing the African Digital News Corpus (ADNC), a multilingual live corpus of news content by African media. The focus will be on the process of developing a custom-built scraper to gather relevant news content, the difficulties posed by automating news data collection, and some of the possible applications of computational approaches to studying digital news content.

13 June, 2-3pm on Zoom

https://bournemouth-ac-uk.zoom.us/j/9292103478?pwd=UzJnNTNQWDdTNldXdjNWUnlTR1cxUT09

Meeting ID: 929 210 3478

Passcode: rps!4fmc

We hope to see you there

Dan and Sae

 

June Monthly Update for (PGR) Researcher Development, Culture and Community

Knowledge Exchange, PG research, Student Engagement

Desk set up with plant, light, note pad, mouse, keyboard and computer screen.

Check out the June e-newsletter.

All ‘monthly update for researcher development, culture and community’ e-newsletters are available in a dedicated content area on the Doctoral College Researcher Development Programme Brightspace unit.

If you have any questions about the e-newsletter or would like to feature content, please contact Natalie [Doctoral College Programme Manager].

Research Ethics Panel Meetings in August

Research Ethics

A Reminder for Staff and Postgraduate Researchers

Research Ethics

There are no central Research Ethics Panel (REP) meetings held during August, so if you’re hoping to start data collection activities over the summer and are in the process of completing your research ethics checklist, please keep this in mind when planning your research activities and submit your checklist in time for the final REP meetings to be held in June and July.  Checklists received during August which need to be reviewed by a full Panel will be deferred until September (dates to be advised).

REPs review all staff projects and postgraduate research projects which have been identified as high risk through the online ethics checklist.  Details on what constitutes high risk can be found on the research governance, research ethics & integrity website.

There are two central REPs:

  • Science, Technology & Health
  • Social Sciences & Humanities

Staff and PGR ‘high risk’ projects are reviewed by one of the central REPs and Researchers (including PGR Supervisors) will normally be invited to Panel for discussions.

Staff Projects which are ‘low risk’

Reviews for low risk projects will continue as normal during August (via email), although turnaround may take longer than normal due to Reviewer availability during this month.

PGR Projects which are ‘low risk’

There are no changes to the review and approval process for low risk PGR projects and reviews will continues as normal throughout August, again subject to the availability of Supervisor and assigned Ethics Champions.

More details about the review process and REP meeting dates can be found on the governance, research ethics & integrity website.  Email enquiries should be sent to researchethics@bournemouth.ac.uk.

The Impact of the Cost-of-Living Crisis on Carers

On 5th June, the first day of carers week 2023, six carers from Dorset met for the first time and shared experiences of the effect of the cost-of-living crisis on their caring role. During the previous two weeks, each carer had taken photographs to capture the impact the cost-of living crisis was having on them, and their caring role.

A huge thank you to Moonmoon, Kim, Aiden,Jason, Katya, and Lesley for all your most generous contributions to this project so far, and for sharing your important experience, insight, and expertise.

Using the qualitative research method of photovoice and working in partnership with the carers, this Bournemouth University project in collaboration with Bournemouth University PIER (Public Involvement in Education and Research) Partnership will translate these experiences of caring during the cost-of-living crisis into actionable knowledge, a call for change and to identify future research priorities.

At the workshop, facilitated by Professor Lee-Ann Fenge (Professor of Social Care) and Dr Kate Jupp (PIER Officer), and supported by co-researchers Pete Atkins (PIER Officer) and Angela Skeparovska (student research assistant) each carer shared the story and meaning behind each of their five chosen photographs; the photographs being the catalyst for the stories that emerged.

The workshop was incredibly powerful, and the images, and the experiences, thoughts, and feelings they represented were both hard to hear and important to share.  Experience of homelessness, insolvency, losing the family home, using foodbanks, soup kitchens, community pantry and searching through bins for food were all shared. The hidden costs of health appointments, additional energy use for laundry and cooking to meet special dietary requirements were highlighted. Each of the carers shared how the current guidance to reduce energy consumption in the home was often in conflict with meeting the needs of the person being cared for. Underlying all these experiences was the personal cost of, and personal losses associated with caring. The carers articulated clearly and repeatedly the amplifying effect the cost-of-living crisis was having on their own well-being and the quality of life they were able provide for the person they were caring for.

The carers reported how important it was for them to share their stories and to be amongst others who understood. One carer reported “feeling lighter” when they left, and another said they “felt the session was rewarding and (they were) glad to have shared some insight of our support of loved ones”. All six expressed the wish to continue with this project.

The following images were taken from the 30 images shared during the workshop.

The first images captured the feelings and experience of being “completely overwhelmed” whilst falling further and further into debt:

This image is of food salvaged from a private dustbin on a driveway. The carer went on to explain the choice they subsequently faced, whether or not to toast the cheese, using energy on the grill, in an attempt to reduce the risk of food poisoning.

 

Dr Kate Jupp, PIER Officer: kejupp@bournemouth.ac.uk
Public Involvement in Education and Research (PIER) Partnership: www.bournemouth.ac.uk/pier

Looking to cook up new research related to Media and Social Justice? Join us!

innovation

Apply to participate here! More details below.

Media Industries and Social Justice Sandpit

Co-organised by the Media Production department and CESJ (the Centre for the Study of Conflict, Emotion and Social Justice).

19th and 20th July, 2023 (venue TBC)

This two-day sandpit creates a dynamic approach to the development of concepts for innovative projects and funding bids. By the end of both days, the participants will form interdisciplinary project teams and generate proposals (including pinpointing external partners) for funded projects on media and social justice issues. See more details in the programme outline.

The event will involve participants from across BU, who are interested in, or already doing research on, social justice issues. It will establish an interdisciplinary dialogue, enhance the scope for public engagement or knowledge transfer, increase the potential for impact, improve the chances for successful bids, and establish cross-institutional networks as seedbeds for future projects.

The sandpit will culminate in project pitches to a panel of senior staff (see below) for constructive feedback and for allocating a bid-writing mentor. After the event, the teams will be offered mentorship to support writing the full funding application.

Sandpit Programme Outline

Sandpit Programme Outline

Who should participate:

We welcome any BU-based junior to mid-career researcher, artist, practitioner or anyone with a general interest in media and social justice. You should be keen to work in a multidisciplinary team, and willing to commit to attending the full sandpit, on both days. No prior experience of research funding is required.

How to participate:

To secure your spot in the Sandpit, please complete and submit the following application – note that all participants must commit to attending both full days:

APPLY HERE BY 23rd JUNE: https://forms.office.com/r/Ezix4LkcL0

The event will be facilitated by Dr. Catalin Brylla and Dr. Lyle Skains, and the pitching panel and mentors will include Prof. Richard Berger, Prof. Candida Yates, Prof. Christa van Raalte, Dr. Sue Sudbury, Dr. Christopher Pullen, and Dr. Karl Rawstrone.

If you have any queries, please don’t hesitate to contact Catalin at cbrylla@bournemouth.ac.uk, or Lyle at lskains@bournemouth.ac.uk.

The Conversation – article on racism in Spanish football and media

Hello,

I am circulating this in case someone is interested. I have just published an article in The Conversation about racism in Spanish football and sports media, written with a colleague from the University of Central Catalonia.

Here’s the link:

“Vinícius Júnior: La Liga and the Spanish media must both accept responsibility for the racism that shames football”

 

Regards,

Max

Artificial Intelligence – RKEDF Workshop on Thursday, 29th June

Business Engagement, innovation

If you are interested in exploring ways in which AI could be utilised to deliver new or enhanced ways of working,

then put 29 June 2023 in your diary

 

 

AI is pervasive and will – for better or worse – hugely impact the nature of business, as well as society at large.

BU will be hosting a workshop where you can connect with expert colleagues at Bournemouth University who are involved in a range of AI research projects. There will also be a chance to find out about major funding opportunities connected with AI, build connections, and hear about support that you can access when applying for funding.

 

  • Learning more about AI research at BU
  • Building connections with Businesses working in AI
  • Meeting with BU colleagues doing AI research
  • Learning about AI research funding opportunities
  • Learning about support available for research applications

The event will take place on 29th June 2023, from 08.30 to 13:30 at Lansdowne Campus and catering will be available.

To book a place for the BU Artificial Intelligence Workshop, please complete the Booking Form.

For any queries regarding the content of this session, please email Zarak Afzal or Finn Morgan

Technology & Humanity in Healthcare #2 of 3-part Webinar Series 15 June ’23 at 12noon BST

 

Technology & Humanity in Healthcare: # 2 of a 3-part Webinar Series: 15/6/23

 

Hello Educators, Students and Healthcare Professionals,
You are invited to join us for this engaging event at 12 noon BST on 15/6/23.
It promises to be a stimulating conversation about important topics that affect us all in this dynamic age of technology and humanity in healthcare.

Time: 15 June 2023 11:45 AM BST – 12 noon BST start
Register: Eventbrite
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/technology-and-humanity-in-healthcare-3-part-webinar-series-tickets-574654566277  or scan the QR code below.
Join Zoom Meeting
https://bournemouth-ac-uk.zoom.us/j/81466091940?pwd=RVlob3pEVEJwckJaV29GbUp5S1pvdz09
Meeting ID: 814 6609 1940 Passcode: E1B+p#wq
One tap mobile
+16469313860,,81466091940#,,,,*97862354# US
+16694449171,,81466091940#,,,,*97862354# US

Description:
15 June – Metaverse and Health and Wellbeing
12 July – Technology, Humanity and the Ageing Society (Preventative Healthcare, Dementia, lifestyle medicine)

This interactive webinar series addresses technology and humanity issues in healthcare. The engaging webinar interview format is in two parts: a) David Wortley provides (Via Zoom) some healthcare/tech questions and context to stimulate debate. B) Debbie Holley and Anthony Basiel will follow-with some pre-set questions and any new questions from the audience text chat. The default protocol is that all audience members in Zoom will have video and sound off – text chat Q&A. A Text Chat Facilitator passes on any questions/comments to David for response.