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Research

Culture of research

Unusually for an FE institution, City of Bristol College has a well established culture of research.

A range of activities take place to support staff research, including an annual research conference a small grant bursary scheme, regular seminars with internal and guest speakers and an electronic mailing list to keep staff and other colleagues informed of research activities in the region. We also have links with local universities (UWE and Bristol) and the Learning and Skills Research Network (LSRN).

These activities are coordinated by the Research and Development Manager, Matt Davis, who also writes bids for research funding and liaises with external bodies who wish to conduct research at the College. In turn, this is overseen by the Research Steering Group, made up of representatives interested in research.

Benefits of research

'Research' is seen by some in FE as a dirty word: a luxury which overworked teachers can’t possibly indulge in. Even worse, it’s often the faceless evil behind the rafts of new policies which blow in from whichever government department is responsible for further education this week.

At City of Bristol College, however, we feel that all teaching staff could and should be doing at least a little bit of research alongside the day job.

Understanding your own practice

Taking a step back from the day-to-day classroom routine to really examine your own teaching and the context that you practice in is always interesting and sometimes revelatory!

Keeping fresh

Doing research provides a break from the daily grind, and offers a chance to get outside your comfort zone – that’s got to be good, hasn’t it?

Opening up new avenues

In the true sense of ‘professional development’, research is a really valuable addition to your CV, and is the basis for much of the work on higher degrees.

Developing your skills

Lots of the skills developed by doing research have real benefits for the day job, both in terms of classroom teaching (communication and understanding your learners) and the wider responsibilities which are part of the role these days (objective evaluation and improving practice).

Adding weight to your argument

Think how much better you’ll be able to make the case for the issues you feel are important if you have the backing of a research report.

Counting as CPD

As a requirement of membership to the Institute for Learning (IfL), members are required to complete 30 hours (pro rata) of reflective professional development. All sorts of research could count towards this, from reading up on the current literature in your specialist area, to action research, to taking part in one of the larger-scale projects the college gets involved with.

Research in focus

The College’s fifth research conference focuses on our core business of teaching and learning, highlighting the benefits of making sure it remains our central activity. Find out more about the College’s commitment to research.

• Research Bursary Scheme