The Stirling Institute of Education
Staff
John Field
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Professor of Lifelong Learning and Co-Director of the Centre for Research in Lifelong Learning |
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| John Field |
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Room B29, Adult Learning and Teaching, Pathfoot University of Stirling FK9 4LA |
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Tel: + 44 (0) 1786 466145 |
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Fax: + 44 (0) 1786 467633/466131 | |
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Email:john.field@stir.ac.uk | |
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Web: www.ioe.stir.ac.uk |
New Publication! |
Researching Transitions in Lifelong Learning presents new research from Britain, Australia and North America. The authors include leading scholars with established international reputations - such as Kathryn Ecclestone, Sue Webb, Gert Biesta, W. Norton Grubb, Nicky Solomon and David Boud - as well as emerging researchers with fresh and sometimes challenging perspectives. While emphasising the complexity and variety of people’s experiences of learning transitions, as well as acknowledging the ways in which they are embedded in the specific contexts of everyday life, the authors share a common interest in understanding the lived experiences of change from the learner’s perspective. This volume therefore provides an opportunity to take stock of recent research into transitions, seen in the context of lifelong learning, and outlines important messages for future policy and practice. It will also appeal to researchers worldwide in education and industrial sociology, as well as students on courses in post-compulsory education. |
Background: |
I have a long-standing background of interest and involvement in lifelong learning. After serving as Deputy Principal (Research) from 2002 to 2007, I have returned to The Stirling Institute of Education, where I direct our M. Res., which provides ESRC-approved training in research methods in education. After completing a Bachelor’s at Portsmouth, followed by a doctorate at Warwick, I became Tutor in Economic and Social History at the Northern College for Residential Adult Education. After eight years in Barnsley, I then became a Lecturer in Continuing Education at the University of Warwick, ending as Chair of Department and Professor of Lifelong Learning. Much of my work throughout my career has involved developing second chance opportunities for non-traditional learners, as well as researching a range of aspects of adult learning. I teach introductory sociology as part of our Adult Learning and Teaching programme, and serve as course director for the Master/Diploma in Educational Research. Externally, I am a member of the ESRC Training and Development Board and serve as a Visiting Professor of Birkbeck College, University of London. I currently chair the Advisory Board for the ESRC Research Centre on Learning and Life Chances in Knowledge Economies and Societies (LLAKES), University of London. I served as a commissioner of the National Commission of Inquiry on the Future of Lifelong Learning. A summary of the commission's findings can be read here. Co-Director of the Centre for Research in Lifelong Learning. crll.gcal.ac |
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Research Interests: |
My research interests encompass the social and economic contexts of adult learning, policy in lifelong learning, and the history of adult education and training. Together with Professor Gert Biesta, I co-directed the Learning Lives project (www.learninglives.org), which is now being written up for publication. The project examines the meaning and significance of formal and informal learning in the lives of adults, and was funded by the Economic and Social Research Council as part of its Teaching and Learning Research Programme. Theoretically, it is concerned with the interplay of learning with structure, agency, identity and change over the life course. I am also involved in a transnational study of Access and Retention: Experiences of non-traditional learners in higher education (http://www.ranlhe.dsw.edu.pl/). Our research looks at how non-traditional students in higher education experience the processes of learning, how they perceive themselves as learners and how their identity as learners develops. It involves case studies in seven European countries, and is funded by the European Commission. |
In today’s society, people and organisations increasingly undergo processes of transition. Experiences of change affect all areas of life: our jobs, relationships, status, communities, engagement in civil society, lifestyles, even understandings of our own identity. Each person must expect and make ready for transitions, engaging in learning as a fundamental strategy for handling change. This is where lifelong learning steps in. From career guidance to third age programmes, from ‘learning to learn’ in kindergarten to MBA, from Mozart for babies to gender re-assignment counselling, people face a crowded world of learning activities designed to help them through transitions. | Doctoral Supervisory Interests |
This member of staff is interested in supervising doctoral students in the following subject areas:
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