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Thou shalt not sit on fences

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Category : Academic

http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1363077

It’s been fascinating to watch the debates from #occupylsx, etc. as Malcolm Gillies calls for academia to follow the churches lead in debating ethics.

Academia must follow the Church’s lead in debating ethics, says Malcolm Gillies

We love to hate the Church of England. Born dubiously amid Henry VIII’s many wives, it seems ever since to have been in search of its own justification.

In recent weeks, as the Occupy people have been camping by St Paul’s Cathedral, the press has had a field day. Canons, deans and bishops have been caught at loggerheads; Canterbury and London have been depicted as in some ideological boxing contest; and a recent survey on the website PoliticsHome.com elicited comments such as “dithering”, “confused”, “foolish”, “naive” and “impotent” about the Church’s response to its Occupational dilemma.

This is a double misfortune because the Occupy people really wanted to occupy the London Stock Exchange next door. It was capitalism, not God, that they were after. But, hemmed in by the police, the nearest space they could secure was St Paul’s forecourt. Suddenly, triggered by a health and safety ruling, the cathedral itself became front-page news. And remains so.

Recent weeks suggest also why we might love the Church of England, too. Yes, the Church couldn’t make up its mind whether to evict the Occupy people or not. But why? Because, the Church honestly reflected the huge and uncertain debate in society. No, it isn’t clear what Jesus would have done.

Read full post.

PGCLTHE: Coaching Assignment

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Category : Academic, Career, Coaching, drbexl

Below is the introduction to an essay I have just had returned from the module “Examining Professional Practice” for the PGCLTHE. The presentation, which I didn’t really have enough time to prepare for, gained me 55%, and the COACHING in Higher Education Essay 66%.

“Since the 1990s the field of coaching has grown in professionalism, and now affects most business sectors. As Parsloe and Leedham outline in their first chapter, coaching and mentoring have moved ‘From Marginal to Mainstream’ for anyone interested in people development. As the profession continues to evolve, professional bodies are emerging, including The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) and the International Coach Federation (ICF).[1] Having taught in Higher Education (HE) since 1998, I encountered professional coaching at a CIPD event,[2] and trained as a life coach in early 2009.[3] This assignment offers a reflective consideration of implementing coaching practices within learning and teaching practices in HE. With a particular interest in facilitating group work in seminars, the presentation considered how exploiting learning and personality styles, and offering encouragement, improves student engagement with the process. (Read the entire essay in Word.doc.


[1] Parsloe, E. & Leedham, M. Coaching and Mentoring: Practical Conversations to Improve Learning 2009 (2nd Ed), pp. 3-11

[2] Minter, T. ‘Personal Effectiveness’, CIPD, 2007

[3] Kerslake, D., Boyce, R., O’Donnell, A., Fogarty, C., Professional Coaching Certification Programme, ICF Accredited, The Kerslake Company, 2008-9″