The Golden Threads #1: Making Connections.

While I was a teacher in secondary schools I had the opportunity, with support from the British Council, to visit China for a research project about Information and Communication Technology development.

This sparked my interest in education research and spurred me on to look at progressing to a Masters, then a PhD, with lots of other opportunities along my pathway to academic education. All of this has formed what I do every day with my students.

I also became curious about answering other questions about society – bigger questions and questions that relate to me. For most of my research, I compare education systems around the world, and this relates directly back to that first research trip with the British Council nearly 20 years ago. It’s incredible to think that I still feel those ramifications today.

My research is about issues that I’m interested in, such as equality and social justice – these are things I’m curious about as well. What do people do in various settings, why do they do things that way? What does history tell us?

At the University of Northampton, we have lots of international students from many different backgrounds on our MA in Education programme. This is good because you get to listen to their diverse journeys in education. I mention that project from China, to reflect on it and I ask my students to think about their experiences and encounters in education and to acknowledge how things change and develop or, sadly, regress in some instances.

I also draw on my own research – for instance, engaging males who are disengaged or unreached from education, which helps me engage with different student identities in my classroom.

A powerful approach to take with students who might be unreached is to make a connection with them. That can be in many forms and can take place outside the teaching room, but it’s always important to form a bond – but don’t forget, these things can take time. It’s also important to recognise diversity and be tolerant and understand other cultures.

Here’s where I talk about my own family connections. I come from a large, Black British family of Caribbean origin. Many of our students have large families themselves with strong overseas ties. In my family, we love to play board games and from that, follows lots of competitiveness! One of the big things is that I’m a Connect 4 and UNO fan and I bring this into my work, as a fun and pragmatic way to help students understand our interconnectedness.

Something outside of work people might not know about me is that I’m a Christian and I’m committed to my faith. I go to church regularly and enjoy that community and I’m very transparent about my faith with my students. One area I hope to pursue is to draw on togetherness, as part of my race equality research on race and religion. Our students come from different background and faiths, so I think it’s important we look at this. I want to investigate working with local community organisations more to see what they do to alleviate social problems, such as food banks, to create social change. If anyone wants to connect with me about social inequality issues, please get in touch!

For more, tune into ‘The Golden Threads’ podcast.

Dr Emel Thomas, Dr Helen Simmons and Robin Sturman-Coombs

Dr Emel Thomas is Senior Lecturer in Education at the University of Northampton. Her main teaching and research interests include migration, identity, race, families and communities, intercultural teaching and learning, and education in small states.