BU Research Blog

February 24, 2017

Leading Innovation Masterclass – Research & Funded Interventions

BU research, Events, Funding opportunities, innovation, Research news, Training, Uncategorized ediplock

On Thursday 2nd March 2017 Professor Edwin van Teijlingen (CMMPH – Professor Of Reproductive Health, BU) will be presenting one of the ‘Leading Innovation Masterclasses’ on Research & Funded Interventions.

In a very competitive field, the chances of successfully gaining a research grant can be somewhere in the region of one in twelve. In this session Professor van Teijlingen will explain how it may be possible to increase the chances of getting research funds through intervention grants. It will take place at the Lansdowne Campus 14:00-15:30 and you can book a place by emailing od@bournemouth.ac.uk

Other sessions in the series include:

An innovative approach to setting up a Research Hub
The clinical doctorate model – Enabling Practitioner Research

Details of these can be found on the Staff Intranet

February 13, 2017

New paper published by CMMPH’s Dr. Susan Way

BU research, Featured academics, Publishing, Research communication, Research news, Training, writing Edwin van Teijlingen

This week saw the pre-publication of ‘Core principles to reduce current variations that exist in grading of midwifery practice in the United Kingdom’ in Nurse Education in Practice. This paper is co-authored by Dr. Susan Way in the Centre for Midwifery, Maternal & Perinatal Health (CMMPH). The authors argue that these core principles could contribute to curriculum development in midwifery and other professions internationally.

Congratulations!

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

Reference:

Fisher, M., Way, S., Chenery-Morris, S., Jackson, J., Bower, H. (2017) Core principles to reduce current variations that exist in grading of midwifery practice in the United Kingdom, Nurse Education in Practice (forthcoming) see: http://www.nurseeducationinpractice.com/article/S1471-5953(17)30092-6/abstract

February 10, 2017

HE Policy update w/e 10th February 2017

EU, Global engagement, international, policy, Research news, Research Training, RKE development framework, Student Engagement, Training jforster

Dear all

The Chair for the Office for Students (OfS) has been confirmed as Sir Michael Barber, Wonkhe profile his career here. Recruitment for the OfS Chief Executive is underway.

Higher Education and Research Bill– amendments are being submitted for the House of Lords report stage. One focusses on students and academic staff at HE providers stating the government has a duty to encourage international students, ensure UG and PG students are not treated as long-term migrants, maximise British and international research collaboration, especially in EU, and provide favourable employment conditions for non-British individuals offered employment at a HE institution. The amendment is not expected to be accepted. Another relates to changes to the repayment terms of student loans. The Lords Report stage is on 6^th March and the list of amendments is expected to grow further.

EU Withdrawal Bill – This week MPs discussed:

A clause advocating a strict timetable of parliamentary scrutiny throughout the negotiations with the EU.
The rights of EU nationals living in the UK
The impact of withdrawal on a number of different industries
The role of the devolved Nations in negotiations and repatriated powers.

The bill was passed by vote in the Commons on Wednesday. No amendments were accepted. It was anticipated that there might be a push to a vote on residency rights for EU nationals. A leaked letter from the Home Secretary, reputedly aiming to quell backbench rebellion on the subject, stated the future rights of EU citizens in Britain would be settled by a separate Immigration Bill. “..the Government remains committed to providing reassurance to EU nationals here and UK nationals in the EU as a priority once Article 50 has been triggered… I’d also like to reassure colleagues that Parliament will have a clear opportunity to debate and vote on this issue in the future… after we leave the European Union we will have an immigration system that supports our economy and protects our public services, and that should mean securing the rights of EU citizens already here, as well as establishing a new immigration system for new arrivals from the EU once we have left. But this isn’t just about ensuring British businesses and our public sector have access to the right workers, we owe it to those many European citizens who have contributed so much to this country to resolve this issue as soon as possible and give them the security they need to continue to contribute to this country.”

EU citizens featured regularly during Prime Ministers Questions this week. Sarah Wollaston (Con, Totnes) called on the PM to commit to guaranteeing the rights of EU citizens living in the UK. May responded this was a priority for the early stage of negotiations. James Berry (Con, Kingston and Surbiton) said his constituency was “enriched” by skilled workers from abroad. The PM assured him the “brightest and best” would still be welcome after Brexit, including from the EU, but the Government still aimed to lower net migration.

Meanwhile ministers are pressing Lords as they want the EU Withdrawal Bill passed by Tues 7 March. It is expected the Government will trigger article 50 on Thursday 9^th March during the EU Summit.

UUK Brexit Priorities: Universities UK have provided a succinct briefing covering Brexit priorities for the HE sector and make some new and interesting points. This calls for three short term transitional arrangements:

Confirm rights to reside and work in the UK post-exit for EU nationals that are currently working in the university sector and their dependants. (This is in the white paper.)
Confirm that EU students starting a course in 2018–19 and 2019–20 will continue to be eligible for home fee status, and be eligible for loans and grants.
Signal that the government will seek to secure continued UK participation in the Horizon 2020 research and innovation framework programme. (This is in the white paper.)

Six exit priorities:

Residency and permanent right to work for EU nationals currently working in the university sector, and their dependants, with full access to public services.
Continued UK participation in the Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme until the close of the programme period in 2020 (even if post-Brexit).
Close collaboration with European partners to deliver excellent research (including seeking access to Horizon 2020 successor programme)
Continued access to Erasmus+ and the Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions programmes (widely discussed but absent from the white paper)
An outcome which allows for the continued recognition of professional qualifications between the UK and the remaining 27 EU member states
Preserving and building on regulatory and standards equivalence with other EU countries.
Finally a call to push the HE agenda within domestic policy change including simplifying visas (students and staff), further research investment, and government targets for UK student mobility.

Brexit – educational influence: The BBC have analysed the leave vs remain voting trends and highlight at local ward level that the strength of the leave vote was strongly correlated with lower educational qualifications. If the proportion of the ward electorate with a degree was 1% lower, on average the leave vote was 1% higher. The level of educational qualification accounts for 2/3s of the voting preference, adding in age and ethnicity accounts for 83% of the variation in votes.

Sale of student loan book: The government announced their firm intention to sell the student loan book this week. The sale has attracted much press attention and has been covered by the BBC, the Guardian, the Independent, the Times, contrasting views from HEPI and Critical Education and a thought provoking article in the Financial Times which criticises the governments self-imposed rules and states selling an asset whose value, at the government’s cost of borrowing, exceeds its price in the market will worsen the government’s finances, not improve them. An Early Day Motion (929) also heard Labour and Scottish National Party MPs protest the sale. Terms and conditions of loans or the mechanisms of repayment cannot be changed and the loans will continue to be serviced by HMRC and SLC. The purchasers would not have the right to directly contact borrowers. The loan value is estimated at £4bn by the government. The sale process may take several months as it involves securitising the remaining future repayments on the loans and selling securities representing the rights to these to a range of purchasers. The government has announced its intention to utilise the sale to obtain a short term cash boost earmarked to reduce the national debt. An article in iNews crunches the numbers including comment from Martin Lewis, consumer finance expert.

Falls in applications: The Guardian continue the story of the falls in applications and longer term recruitment trends following the release of UCAS data last week.

Widening Participation: An interesting Telegraph article by Chris Wilson, Co-CEO of the Brilliant Club, describes successes in training and placing early career researchers in schools. The scheme aims to increase school attainment including exposing pupils to high level equipment, however, it also had a beneficial effect on increasing the number of WP pupils attending high tariff HE institutions. 53% of free school meals pupils enrolled on this Scholars programme secured a place at a highly-selective university – compared to the national 5% progression rate.

The Fair Access Agreement guidance was also launched this week. As anticipated it continues pushing universities on the school sponsorship agenda. This is particularly interesting when contrasted with the closure announcement of another university technical college this week, as reported in FE Week.

Finally the Sutton Trust have published Global Gaps Comparing socio-economic gaps in the performance of highly able UK pupils internationally. It draws on the 2015 OECD Pisa data for reading, maths and science and tells a familiar story whereby bright but poor pupils fall behind by over 2 school years. It acknowledges these gaps occur throughout the developed world whilst calling on government to establish ‘highly able’ fund to improve the life chances of high attainers in poorer schools.

Parliament is now in recess until 20 Feb so no further bill developments are expected.

There will not be a policy update next week.

February 9, 2017

Developing an Effective Search Strategy Workshop on 22/02/17 – Places still available

Events, Research Training, RKE development framework, Training Emily Cieciura

Places are still available at the Research & Knowledge Exchange Development Framework workshop – Developing an Effective Search Strategy on 22nd February 2017 from 10:00 – 12:00 at the Lansdowne campus.

This workshop will be delivered by Chris Wentzell, Faculty Librarian for HSS, with the following aims and objectives:

Begin to develop a systematic search strategy
Use and access library resources; Know about visiting other libraries
Know how to make Inter Library Requests
Be able to set up citation alerts
Use citations smartly

Please register for this event via Oganisational Development. Once you have reserved your space, the location will be confirmed via a meeting request. Tea and coffee will be provided.

February 5, 2017

CPD study findings presented in Kathmandu

BU research, Centre for Excellence in Learning, Featured academics, Fusion, international, Public engagement, Research news, Training, Uncategorized Edwin van Teijlingen

Today we offered preliminary feedback to key stakeholders in Kathmandu as part of our research into CPD (Continuous Professional Development) for nurses in Nepal. Today’s presentation is party funded by LJMU (Liverpool John Moores University) and partly funded by BU’s Centre for Excellence in Learning (CEL). Late 2016 CEL funded the qualitative part of our research project. In this CPD project we work with representatives of the Ministry of Health , the Ministry of Education, the Nepal Nursing Association and the Nursing Council, and providers of Nursing Education (both Government-run universities and private colleges).

Today key presenter was BU Visiting Faculty Dr. Bibha Simkhada (based at LJMU). The event was opened by Associate Professor Chandra Kala Sharma, who is also the president of the Nepal Nursing Association (lighting the traditional lamp in photo right).

Our BU contributors, Dr. Catherine Angell and Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen, are both based in the Centre for Midwifery and Maternal & Perinatal Health (CMMPH). We are grateful to our collaborators in Nepal, especially Dr. Sujan Marahatta at Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences, for organising this event in our absence. The CPD research project is truly a FUSION project in the field of nursing & midwifery since it links Research in the field of Education to help improve Practice in Nepal. Further information can be found on a previous blog post, click here!

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

CMMPH

February 2, 2017

British Academy Visit and British Academy Bid Writing retreat– reserve your place now!

REF Subjects, Research Training, RKE development framework, Training, writing emilner

As part of the Research & Knowledge Exchange Development Framework “Funding from the Academies” pathway, two staff development opportunities are now available for booking.

The British Academy is returning to BU on 8 March 2017. This is an invaluable opportunity to find out more about the international and domestic funding available through the organisation. For those of you who are not familiar with the British Academy, it is the UK’s leading independent body for the humanities and social sciences, promoting funding, knowledge exchange and providing independent advice within the humanities.

The session will last just over 1 hour (13:00-14:15) and will comprise a presentation focusing on international and domestic funding opportunities along with an overview of the British Academy, followed by a Q&A session.

Representatives of the British Academy will be available to answer any individual queries not covered in the presentation or Q&A session, and members of the Research and Knowledge Exchange Office will be on hand should you wish to discuss BU’s processes for bidding to the organisation.

Places for this event can be reserved through Organisational Development here.

A workshop, the “Bid Writing retreat- British Academy small grant” will be held Monday April 3rd, 2017 (9:30-16:00). The workshop will offer helpful tips from past British Academy Small Grant winners as well as focused support from team members of the Research & Knowledge Exchange Office. Participants are asked to have a draft application for the British Academy Small Grant in preparation in advance of this workshop that they can develop during the day. You can book your place here.

Members of BU interested in discussing either of these training opportunities please contact Ehren Milner, Research Facilitator (emilner@bournemouth.ac.uk).

January 27, 2017

HE policy update w/e 27th January 2017

conferences, EU, Events, innovation, international, policy, Research Training, Student Engagement, Training jforster

Industrial Strategy Green Paper

The Government launched the Industrial Strategy Green Paper and consultation this week. The paper focuses on improving Britain’s innovation and productivity in key areas alongside upskilling the workforce to become world leading. The government suggest a number of areas of industry specialism that should be supported:

clean energy
robotics
healthcare
space technology
quantum technology
advanced computing and communications

The document frequently references the role of Universities as innovation leaders pushing for commercialisation and greater productive cooperation with business. It states that the ‘neglect of technical education’ should be redressed and insinuates that higher-level technical education will be pushed towards the new Institutes of Technology (£170 government investment announced – see below). There is an emphasis on rebalancing the difference in Britain’s economic geography through infrastructure investment. In addition, it criticises how UK research funding is currently heavily invested in the ‘golden triangle’ (Oxford, Cambridge, London) and calls to build on research strengths in businesses as well as other universities. The strategy has a strong focus on STEM and Wonkhe have reported that The British Academy are urging the government not to forget investment in social sciences and humanities teaching and research, which they argue are vital to the continued development of the UK’s services sectors.

The consultation ends in April, we’ll be in touch shortly about how you can contribute to a BU response.

While the strategy has only just been launched it was preceded by the announcement of the new Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund (Nov 2016) and consultative workshops. The workshops aimed to ensure that the challenges identified match UK business capability and are based on the best available evidence for scientific and commercial success on the global stage. The challenges mirror the industry specialisms proposed in the green paper but also mention the creative industries and integrated cities. The workshops conclude this week, implementation plans are expected to follow from the government and the first challenge is expected to be announced in March.

In an interesting article in The Conversation Graham Galbraith, VC at Portsmouth, urges Universities to shun new institutions for innovation and instead form a network of hubs building on relationships with employers, skills organisations and FE colleges. Furthermore he resists the government’s distinction between academic and technical education, seeing the productivity answer through flexible routes to university study and developing skills courses that employers need in accessible ways. He believes the university sector would deliver this far more quickly than new Institutes of Technology. Galbraith also criticises REF 2021: “The government wants the UK to be better at commercialising its world-class, basic research. But the… require[ment]…to include all academic staff…will have the effect of making universities re-balance their staff’s priorities so that there is more focus only on peer-reviewed research and less on outward-facing activities like business collaborations.”

Brexit –The Supreme Court has ruled that Parliament must vote to trigger Article 50 which begins the Brexit process. The government timescale is to trigger Article 50 by end of March and to this end they have introduced a European Withdrawal Bill (EWB). The European Withdrawal Bill gives the PM the power to notify the European Council of the UK’s intention to withdrawn from the EU through the required Act of Parliament. It is being fast tracked through Parliament. Parliamentary time is scheduled for 31 Jan, 1 Feb, 6-8 Feb. The House of Commons Education Select Committee continues visits to Universities (Oxford, UCL) to examine impact of Brexit on HE. At the UCL visit (Wednesday) Michael Arthur (Provost) broke the UCAS data embargo revealing a 7% drop in EU applicants in the current cycle. The Guardian leads with ‘first decrease after almost a decade of unbroken growth blamed on… Brexit’. Committee Chair, Neil Carmichael is reported on Twitter as asking whether HE needs a sector-specific Brexit deal – panel response ‘yes absolutely!’

Higher Education and Research Bill (HERB) – The Lords continue to scrutinise the HERB carefully with the long list of amendments. The list has stopped growing quite so quickly but new amendments proposed this week include one to set up a new UKRI visa department that will sponsor academics (507ZA). So far apart form the first one, no amendments other than government amendments have been passed, but the level of debate and the length of the list suggests that there may have to be some concessions by the government. James Younger, the government lead on the Bill in the Lords, wrote to Peers on 25^th January about the bill.

Given the timing of the Brexit discussions, Wonkhe speculate that to achieve the timescales for the Bill and to clear sufficient parliamentary time for the European Withdrawal Bill to be passed the government may make concessions on HERB. Key discussions this week:

NSS statistically unfit for TEF – Lord Lipsey discussed the statistical inadequacies of NSS and the implication for this as a TEF metric. “The NSS in the TEF is using—or rather, abusing—statistics for a purpose for which the NSS was never designed.” Lipsey acknowledged that the Government have gently retreated from the emphasis on NSS scores – in their latest instructions to assessors they stated: “assessors should be careful not to overweight information coming from the NSS“. This was reinforced by Chris Husbands, Chair of TEF, who informed a meeting at the House of Commons this week that his team would “not be overweighting the NSS” when awarding ratings this year. The proposed amendment was withdrawn after Viscount Younger: stressed the NSS was not the primary source of information for the TEF and that the framework was about much more than metrics. “Providers submit additional evidence alongside their metrics, and this evidence will be given significant weight by the panel”. HE continued: “we cannot ignore the only credible, widely used metrics that captures students’ views”.
There were also debates about the gold/silver/bronze ratings and the government provided reassurance that Bronze was “above a high quality baseline”. This contradicts statements made by some in DfE before the final specification was agreed about Bronze institutions “needing improvement”. The panel have praised positive communication on this subject.
Validation – The government have issued a factsheet for the Lords on Validation which provides explanation from the perspective of an alternative provider seeking to enter a validation arrangement. It describes Clause 46 of HERB, which gives the Office for Students (OfS) power to commission authorised HE providers to provide validation if other providers decline. It states such authorised providers are free to choose whether they wish offer this service, however once an arrangement is in place the OfS could require them to validate award) delivered by other registered HE providers. The commissioned arrangement would be made public. The controversial Clause 47 which appoints OfS as the validator of last resort was also discussed. The controversy arises as OfS isn’t an academic institution and doesn’t hold Degree Awarding Powers. The OfS will advise the Secretary of State (SoS) if intervention is required (likely through an evidence based report and stakeholder consultation) and the SoS would then authorise the intervention through regulation which is subject to parliamentary scrutiny.
Contract Cheating – The amendment proposed by Lord Storey on contract cheating was withdrawn following Government reassurance. Lord Storey provided a passionate discourse including detailed sector information and cheating statistics. Baroness Goldie confirmed that the Government were addressing cheating referencing the (Aug 2016 published) QAA investigation and Jo Johnson’s commitment to close working to progress the recommendations. She revealed that the Minster would shortly announce a new initiative to tackle cheating in conjunction with QAA, Universities UK, NUS and HEFCE.

TEF

The 15 page written submissions for year 2 of the TEF were finalised and submitted this week, and this was the final opportunity for institutions to opt out of the TEF. Although there may have been others who have not published their positions, most Scottish Universities have opted out, as well as the Open University. Given the difference in the Scottish funding system they have less to gain from the TEF – but the 4 who have opted in have noted international reputation as a crucial factor. The OU explain their non-participation is due to the poor fit of the metrics with their social mobility demographic.

And the future of the TEF? According to Research Professional, a German academic has criticised the way that teaching excellence funding is being used in Germany.

“Whereas lower-ranked universities have tended to spread their funding from the programme thinly across faculties and courses, higher-ranked institutions have had the luxury of being able to focus on priority areas, the analysis found.

“You are starting to see emerging differences between disciplines taught at different universities,” Bloch told Times Higher Education on 17 January. For the first time, elite universities are starting to build up strong institutional identities when it comes to teaching, in an effort to get further ahead.

“It will be a long time before we reach the stratification that you see in the American system [around teaching], but we are seeing a difference for the first time in how resources in teaching are distributed,” he said.

UCAS 2016 entrants report – this data includes applications, offers and placed rates by sex, area background (LPN-polar 3), and ethnicity. BU’s report can be selected from the drop down menu towards the end of the webpage. The Guardian reports on the lower offer rates to black applicants. Wonkhe covers the HEIs that have a significant upward or downward trend in acceptances

Research Impact training: Parliament are running a Research, Impact and the UK Parliament event in Bristol on Wednesday 1 March. It covers the basics of the Parliamentary process and how academics can engage with parliament through their knowledge and research to inform scrutiny and legislation, including the impact of influencing policy to support REF submissions.

January 24, 2017

INVITATION – Get ready for the Industrial Strategy – Places still available on Made in Dorset – Made for the Future event

BU research, Events, Funding opportunities, RKE development framework, Training Emily Cieciura

With the Industrial Strategy Green Paper, none of us can afford to miss out! Get yourself prepared and ready to act by attending this event on Wednesday, 1^st February 2017.

Staff from all Faculties are invited to attend as … engineering expertise only comes with practice, by means of exposure to real-world dilemmas and techniques for addressing them. Engineering the Future.

We still have some spaces left at this event – in the EBC from 09:45 – 14:00 with optional time for networking from 14:00-15:00.

Please see the previous blog post for all the details! With apologies to those who have already done this, for speed, there is no need to complete the short application form.

If you wish to attend, please email Dianne Goodman, asap, with your details. If you have external business contacts who would be interested in attending, please direct them to contact Dianne also. This will allow us to provide sufficient materials and catering.

We look forward to seeing you there.

This event is part of the Research and Knowledge Exchange Development Framework

January 19, 2017

Deadline extended! Made in Dorset – Made for the Future: Invitation to attend sandpit on 1st February 2017

BU research, Events, Funding opportunities, Research news, RKE development framework, Training Emily Cieciura

Deadline extended to 23rd January

If you have local business contacts who would like to attend, please send them the link to this blog post.

Engineering underpins human progress. …. Their work literally creates the fabric of society, whether the buildings we live and work in, the energy that powers our world or the transport networks that we use every day…. As with medicine, engineering expertise only comes with practice, by means of exposure to real-world dilemmas and techniques for addressing them. Engineering the Future

BU’s Research & Knowledge Exchange Office (RKEO) will be hosting an event on Wednesday, 1st February 2017, at the Lansdowne Campus, exploring how BU can engage with the Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering agenda.

What does this mean for me…?

Here are some examples of how you could contribute to this day:

Personalised healthcare requires technology but also input from those working directly with the end users and the medical profession to ensure efficacy and uptake
Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering does not exist in a vacuum and must respond to the changing global social, economic and political landscape
Animation and augmented reality already assist in visualisation and development across the engineering field, including automated production systems, infrastructure projects and forensic engineering
People are at the heart of any organisation – how do we ensure that engineers have effective management skills and managers understand the complexity of this sector?

So, who should attend?

We want anyone who thinks they might have something to contribute. We will also be inviting relevant external attendees to contribute to the day.

What do I need to prepare in advance? What will the day entail?

Absolutely nothing in advance. During the session, you’ll be guided through a process which results in the development of research ideas. The process facilitates creativity, potentially leading to innovative and interdisciplinary research ideas. These ideas will be explored with other attendees, and further developed based on the feedback received.

What if I don’t have time to think about ideas in advance?

You don’t need to do this but it will help. Attendees will come from a range of backgrounds so we expect that there will be lively conversations resulting from these different perspectives.

What about afterwards? Do I need to go away and do loads of work?

Well… that depends! This interactive day will result in some novel research ideas. Some of these may be progressed immediately; others might need more time to develop. You may find common ground with other attendees which you choose to take forward in other ways, such as writing a paper or developing a new placement opportuntity.

What if my topic area is really specific, such as health?

Your contribution will be very welcome! One of the main benefits of this type of event is to bring together individuals with a range of backgrounds and specialisms who are able to see things just that bit differently to one another.

So, is this just networking?

Definitely not! It is a facilitated session with the primary intention of developing innovative research ideas, which also enables the development of networks. It gives you the opportunity to explore research ideas which you may develop over time, together with the chance to find common ground with academics from across BU and beyond.

So, how do I book onto this event?

This event will take place on Wednesday, 1st February 2017. Please only book to attend if you can particpate in the full event from 09:45 – 14:00. There will be additional networking time from 14:00 – 15:00. To book, please complete the application form and return this to Dianne Goodman by end Monday, 23rd January. As places are limited, this will be assessed to ensure good mix of attendees with different perspectives. Places will be confirmed w/c 23/1/17.

This event is part of the new Research Knowledge Exchange Development Framework.

January 17, 2017

It’s a girl, and then there is silence…..

BU research, Events, Global engagement, Impact, international, Knowledge Transfer, Public engagement, Research news, Training, Uncategorized Edwin van Teijlingen

The second day of THET training showed again that gender is a critical issue in Nawalparasi, southern Nepal. We asked the ANMs about things they had changed in their own practice. Several ANMs said that they had changed the way they worked. Now they see that having a baby girl can be a significant mental health issue as it causes the women a lot of stress. Interestingly, it also caused them as health workers considerable stress The ANMs said that they had started to counsel families of girl children. They say they emphasise that it is okay to have girls.

This ties in with feedback comments from yesterday in a different group of trainees. In Sunday’s training, one ANM answered when asked about stress at work, that she finds it stressful that a room falls silent when a baby girl is born. She commented that this happens when the family is obviously hoping for a boy. She added that at the very moment a baby girl is born, the family immediately falls silent. She said that this is a great source of stress to her as a health worker.

Coincidently next door to the training venue in Nawalparasi a Hindu wedding has been taking place today. This colourful spectacle represents different roles and expectations of men and women, the bride and the groom, but also the other guests here in Nepal. Weddings everywhere are ceremonies that reflect society. Seeing the wedding from close by and listening to the ANMs over these last two days, we reflected at the end of today that these ANMs are acting bravely in raising such a culturally sensitive issue in their practice, in this largely patriarchal rural society.

Flora Douglas & Edwin van Teijlingen

CMMPH

January 16, 2017

Royal Society of Biology Training courses

Events, Training, writing Joanna Pawlik

Booking is now open for Spring 2017 Training Courses with the Royal Society of Biology!

Courses include:

Persuasive Scientific Report Writing

When: 26 January 2017

Where: Charles Darwin House 2, 107 Gray’s Inn Road, London WC1X 8TZ

What: Participants will learn the principles and processes for high quality communication in scientific thinking and writing, with plenty of opportunity to discuss and practice the skills learnt.

Who: For writers of technical, scientific and other related reports or documents, who wish to improve their report and general document writing skills.

CPD: This event has been approved by the Royal Society of Biology for purposes of CPD and can be counted as 18 CPD points.

Fees: From £100 +VAT

Science Podcast Production

When: 16 March 2017

Where: Charles Darwin House 2, 107 Gray’s Inn Road, London WC1X 8TZ

What: Award-winning science broadcaster Richard Hollingham presents this introductory hands-on course on how to podcast – from getting good quality sound and content – to getting your podcast online and heard.

Who: For those interested in communicating science via podcast.

CPD: This event has been approved by the Royal Society of Biology for purposes of CPD and can be counted as 18 CPD points.

Fees: From £125 +VAT

Writing for a non-specialist audience

When: 23 March 2017

Where: Charles Darwin House 2, 107 Gray’s Inn Road, London WC1X 8TZ

What: How to write in an interesting and easy-to-read way while ensuring your message remains scientifically robust and accurate.

Who: For scientists in academia or industry hoping to improve the way they communicate with non-scientists, or for anyone hoping to develop their blogging and science writing skills.

CPD: This event has been approved by the Royal Society of Biology for purposes of CPD and can be counted as 24 CPD points.

Fees: From £100 + VAT

Presentation Skills

When: 10 April 2017

Where: Charles Darwin House 2, 107 Gray’s Inn Road, London WC1X 8TZ

What: This course will cover practical exercise on personal presentation and body language; structuring your presentation; uses and abuses of visual aids with a focus on Powerpoint; meeting the needs of your audience.

Who: This half-day course is for those who have had little experience of giving presentations.

CPD: This event has been approved by the Royal Society of Biology for purposes of CPD and can be counted as 12 CPD points.

Fees: From 50 +VAT

An Introduction to Exhibition Design

When: 27 April 2017

Where: Charles Darwin House 2, 107 Gray’s Inn Road, London WC1X 8TZ

What: This course will introduce participants to exhibition making, from the development of an exhibition concept to the final product.

Who: This practical course is suitable for those who may need to create a display, for example science communicators or scientists working in public engagement & outreach.

CPD: This event has been approved by the Royal Society of Biology for purposes of CPD and can be counted as 21 CPD points.

Fees: From £100 +VAT

Please click here for the information below about the science communication courses, further information and for full list of courses

January 15, 2017

BU Visiting Fellow Dr. Flora Douglas speaking as THET volunteer in Nepal

BU research, international, Knowledge Exchange, Research news, Training, Uncategorized Edwin van Teijlingen

Today we had our first training session of the final THET mental health in maternity care project. UK volunteer Dr. Flora Douglas spoke about key aspects of health promotion and focused particularly on notions of community-based approaches. Flora is based at the University of Aberdeen and she is also a Visiting Fellow in the Centre for Midwifery, Maternal & Perinatal Health (CMMPH). This was her first visit to Nepal. She was inspired to volunteer as she had been a MSc supervisor some years ago on a project that related to the Green Tara Nepal health promotion intervention. Bournemouth University has been working with Green Tara Trust, a Buddhist charity based in London for many years.

Yesterday Flora had visited one of the 20 birthing centres in Nawalparasi, the district where the THET training takes place. Flora was very humbled by the experiences of the community-based maternity care workers in the light of many constrains. She said: “I have seen pictures of such birthing centres and read about them in the literature, but it is not until you see them first hand that you realise how staff have to work with such limited resources.

The attendees, who are nearly ANMs (auxiliary nurse midwives) were highly enthusiastic and very keen to discuss and learn. They shared some very personal and touching stories about their practice. Flora added: “I am very struck by their understanding of the importance of the social and cultural determinants of both psychical and mental health.” Many found they had learnt something in previous THET sessions in 2016 about communication with women and counselling family members about mental health, and perhaps most importantly, listening more to women. Last, but not least, Flora commented on the dedication of the participants: “At least two of the participants told me they travelled ten hours to get here for our one-day workshop. This really shocked me, particularly having seen the quality of the roads and public transport!”

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

CMMPH

January 12, 2017

Wanted! External Bid Writers

EU, Events, Funding opportunities, Grants Academy, international, Knowledge Exchange, REF Subjects, Research news, Research Training, RKE development framework, Training Emily Cieciura

As part of the Research and Knowledge Exchange Development Framework, Bournemouth University is expanding its pool of external bid writing expertise, through a tendering process.

If you have worked with a good bid writer or, as an external subscriber to this blog, you have written successful research funding applications, please contactus in the Research & Knowledge Exchange Office

We are particularly interested in those who can provide short courses, one-to-one support, bid writing retreats, application review or a range of these and related activities.

Examples of key funders include:

British Academy
European Commission funds including Horizon 2020
Innovate UK
Leverhulme Trust
National Institutes of Health and other US Federal funders
Research Councils
Royal Society
Wellcome Trust
etc.

We look forward to hearing from you.

January 12, 2017

Introduction to Education Practice: A Programme for Research Students

Centre for Excellence in Learning, Training Jacqueline Priego

The next session of our ‘Introduction to Education Practice‘ course will run from the 27th to the 29th of March.

This is a research-driven, practice-based course, aimed at doctoral students who are or will be supporting teaching activities.

The course has four main aims:

To introduce students to theoretical and practical knowledge on adult learning, with special emphasis on the UK context.
To introduce students to the UKPSF and the dimensions of Areas of Activity, Core Knowledge and Professional Values that underpin teaching and supporting learning.
To familiarise students with BU’s services and schemes for teaching and learning, as well as with leaning technology tools.
To provide students with opportunities to discuss and reflect about their particular teaching goals, and to offer a collegial space where they can receive feedback on their teaching practice.

Topics covered in the course include:
• The student experience of learning.
• Planning student-centred learning.
• Working in large and small groups.
• Assessment for learning.
• The potential of learning technology.

On the last day we celebrate our students’ learning by engaging them in a micro-teaching task, where they receive feedback and recommendations to improve their teaching practice.

The course is supported through materials in myBU.

Taking the course as a stepping stone, an optional follow up session will be organised for those students who would like to apply for Associate Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy through the internal scheme TeachBU – a great way of enhancing the doctoral studies experience in preparation for academic posts.

To see images and resources shared by previous cohorts, check out out #TeachBU on Twitter.

Course Convenor: Dr Jacqueline Priego (CEL).

To enroll please contact Organisational Development od@bournemouth.ac.uk (register earlier to avoid disappointment, as spaces are limited).

Featured image credit: Tess Watson (CC BY 2.0).

January 10, 2017

Made in Dorset – Made for the Future: Invitation to attend sandpit on 1st February 2017

BU research, Events, Funding opportunities, Research news, RKE development framework, Training Emily Cieciura

Reminder to book by 20th January 2017.

If you have local business contacts who would like to attend, please send them the link to this blog post.

Engineering underpins human progress. …. Their work literally creates the fabric of society, whether the buildings we live and work in, the energy that powers our world or the transport networks that we use every day…. As with medicine, engineering expertise only comes with practice, by means of exposure to real-world dilemmas and techniques for addressing them. Engineering the Future

BU’s Research & Knowledge Exchange Office (RKEO) will be hosting an event on Wednesday, 1st February 2017, at the Lansdowne Campus, exploring how BU can engage with the Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering agenda.

What does this mean for me…?

Here are some examples of how you could contribute to this day:

Personalised healthcare requires technology but also input from those working directly with the end users and the medical profession to ensure efficacy and uptake
Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering does not exist in a vacuum and must respond to the changing global social, economic and political landscape
Animation and augmented reality already assist in visualisation and development across the engineering field, including automated production systems, infrastructure projects and forensic engineering
People are at the heart of any organisation – how do we ensure that engineers have effective management skills and managers understand the complexity of this sector?