Stephen O'Brien – författare

To learn more about learning – what it is and how it works – it is necessary to look inside education. Inside Education takes the reader on a journey of four ‘live’ education projects: the first all-Irish speaking, mixed-gendered, multi-faith primary school in the Republic of Ireland ideally suited to exploring learning identity; an alternative post-primary school for those who leave (or are left behind by) the formal education system also based in the Republic of Ireland and ideally suited to exploring personal learning; an early college school that enables students to simultaneously sit their high-school diploma and college exams based in Queens, New York and ideally suited to exploring learning success; and an adult education training centre that works with ‘landless’ movement members based in Brazil and ideally suited to exploring learning power.Using a critical ethnography approach, each research narrative naturally unfolds/enfolds to tell a more complete learning story. All those interested in education are primed readers. By (re-)viewing their own learning outlook, they may begin to advance deeper critical ideas and debates in education. They may come to (re-)represent education, reminding public consciousness of its human stories, as well as its curious, intricate and powerful qualities. And they may (re-)discover ‘other’ roads to raise a scholar. Teachers, educational researchers, parents and guardians will be particularly interested readers. ‘Inside Education is a thought-provoking, challenging and revealing journey inside the world of education and learning. Its exploration of school and classroom practices in a range of different settings provides important insights into how we learn ‒ a central aspect of our education system which remains overlooked and understudied. In doing so, it lays down a challenge to policy-makers and educators everywhere to think differently about the way we learn and, ultimately, help students fulfil their real potential.’-Carl O’Brien, Chief Reporter for The Irish Times‘Inside Education is a stunning example of passionate scholarship that nonetheless refuses a redemptionist stance. The ethnography captures people and contexts and draws the reader into the four sites of learning in fluent and lyrical prose. This is facilitated by the extensive use of research notes deploying historical, comparative, literary, artistic and scholarly sources."-Denis O’Sullivan, Emeritus Professor of Education, University College Cork, Ireland

To learn more about learning – what it is and how it works – it is necessary to look inside education. Inside Education takes the reader on a journey of four ‘live’ education projects: the first all-Irish speaking, mixed-gendered, multi-faith primary school in the Republic of Ireland ideally suited to exploring learning identity; an alternative post-primary school for those who leave (or are left behind by) the formal education system also based in the Republic of Ireland and ideally suited to exploring personal learning; an early college school that enables students to simultaneously sit their high-school diploma and college exams based in Queens, New York and ideally suited to exploring learning success; and an adult education training centre that works with ‘landless’ movement members based in Brazil and ideally suited to exploring learning power.Using a critical ethnography approach, each research narrative naturally unfolds/enfolds to tell a more complete learning story. All those interested in education are primed readers. By (re-)viewing their own learning outlook, they may begin to advance deeper critical ideas and debates in education. They may come to (re-)represent education, reminding public consciousness of its human stories, as well as its curious, intricate and powerful qualities. And they may (re-)discover ‘other’ roads to raise a scholar. Teachers, educational researchers, parents and guardians will be particularly interested readers. ‘Inside Education is a thought-provoking, challenging and revealing journey inside the world of education and learning. Its exploration of school and classroom practices in a range of different settings provides important insights into how we learn ‒ a central aspect of our education system which remains overlooked and understudied. In doing so, it lays down a challenge to policy-makers and educators everywhere to think differently about the way we learn and, ultimately, help students fulfil their real potential.’-Carl O’Brien, Chief Reporter for The Irish Times‘Inside Education is a stunning example of passionate scholarship that nonetheless refuses a redemptionist stance. The ethnography captures people and contexts and draws the reader into the four sites of learning in fluent and lyrical prose. This is facilitated by the extensive use of research notes deploying historical, comparative, literary, artistic and scholarly sources."-Denis O’Sullivan, Emeritus Professor of Education, University College Cork, Ireland

Assisted vaginal birth (AVB) remains a key aspect of respectful, effective care for women in labour. In trained hands, it is associated with better maternal and neonatal outcomes than the alternative of a caesarean section in late labour. Written to accompany the RCOG Assisted Birth Simulation Training (ROBuST) course, this book provides guidance on the only RCOG-approved, evidence-based techniques for when and how to perform AVB and complex caesarean sections. There are clear descriptions of techniques, plus photographs, diagrams and videos to improve learning. Internationally recognised contributors discuss all aspects of assisted birth, including vacuum and forceps-assisted birth; caesarean section at full dilatation; safe and effective practice of Kielland's forceps; and essential non-technical skills. This second edition includes chapters on providing care within the medico-legal context of modern obstetric practice and on exploring the worldwide trends in AVB. This remains a much-valued, and much-consulted, part of any accoucheur's library.

This edited volume will give readers an in-depth grasp of the dynamics and intricacies of the field of adult education and provide an investigation of the journeys of adult educators, exploring how their experiences shape and influence their learning and teaching methods.Focusing on the professional lives of adult educators and the core meanings that they attach to their experiences, the book uses a narrative approach to unfold the depth and complexity of the varied backgrounds and experiences that adult educators bring with them into the adult learning arena. Split into three parts, Part 1 sets out some key theoretical and methodological insights into narrative inquiry and underlines its (phenomenological) power to illuminate (oft hidden and conflictual) encounters. In Part 2, ten adult educators tell their stories of working in diverse adult education settings across eight European jurisdictions: Cyprus, England, France, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, Serbia and Switzerland. In Part 3 readers are presented with the opportunity to reflect again on, and ‘read into’, these stories. Here, a number of narrative lessons are given that prompt readers to recall and reimagine forms of knowledge, values and practice that are distinctively innate to the profession. These include lessons about identity formation, cross-cultural learning, resistance and activism, coping with professional vulnerability, embracing experiential learning, acknowledging gender and broader power dynamics, discovering the power of storytelling, managing the emotional labour of adult education, and navigating growing institutional constraints.Ideal reading for all those working in adult education, this book can be used to inform new directions and recommendations for the most effective research, policies, and practices, and, seminally, be used to reimagine how we (re-)conceptualize professional teaching and learning in this field.

This edited volume will give readers an in-depth grasp of the dynamics and intricacies of the field of adult education and provide an investigation of the journeys of adult educators, exploring how their experiences shape and influence their learning and teaching methods.Focusing on the professional lives of adult educators and the core meanings that they attach to their experiences, the book uses a narrative approach to unfold the depth and complexity of the varied backgrounds and experiences that adult educators bring with them into the adult learning arena. Split into three parts, Part 1 sets out some key theoretical and methodological insights into narrative inquiry and underlines its (phenomenological) power to illuminate (oft hidden and conflictual) encounters. In Part 2, ten adult educators tell their stories of working in diverse adult education settings across eight European jurisdictions: Cyprus, England, France, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, Serbia and Switzerland. In Part 3 readers are presented with the opportunity to reflect again on, and ‘read into’, these stories. Here, a number of narrative lessons are given that prompt readers to recall and reimagine forms of knowledge, values and practice that are distinctively innate to the profession. These include lessons about identity formation, cross-cultural learning, resistance and activism, coping with professional vulnerability, embracing experiential learning, acknowledging gender and broader power dynamics, discovering the power of storytelling, managing the emotional labour of adult education, and navigating growing institutional constraints.Ideal reading for all those working in adult education, this book can be used to inform new directions and recommendations for the most effective research, policies, and practices, and, seminally, be used to reimagine how we (re-)conceptualize professional teaching and learning in this field.