Education students create conference with international lessons

Students from the ‘four corners of the globe’ came together last week (Thursday 27 June) to share their experiences and approaches to education.

The occasion was the annual MA Education Conference at University of Northampton (UON), created and delivered by those very students.

This year, the event’s name was ‘Education Beyond Boundaries’ which brought together educators, academics, students from the University’s MA Education programme, and leaders worldwide to exchange ideas, inspire change, and collectively define the future of education.

The conference explored teacher and student wellbeing, student motivation, data, technology and learning, sustainability, globalisation, STEM (science, technology, engineering, maths) and leadership.

Keynote speeches came from UON’s Professor Jane Murray who explained how excellent teachers always learn, and Dr Rebecca Heaton from Nangyang Technological University (Singapore) and Nicholas Belcher (the Principal of Invictus International School Singapore) discussed international opportunities for challenging the boundaries in education research.

Education Beyond Boundaries took in perspectives from countries including China, India, Kenya, Vietnam and the UK, with presentations from the people who helped create and deliver the conference – the University’s students.

One of those students is Annie Ho. She talks about the importance of the event and her part in setting it up: “As systems and people across the globe are increasingly closely tied and we learn from each other and strive to stay connected, education is a connection and mutual development tool. It is a powerful means for people, educators and students to learn and connect.

“The conference taught us many valuable lessons. It was an opportunity to hear from my global colleagues about their interests, passions, and research and that educational connections are powerful and boundaries in education are not significant.

“As an organiser, being part of this conference was a wonderful experience, and I am grateful for the opportunity. We learned a great deal about planning, conducting and organising a conference. We had the chance to experience how to present a research topic at a professional event.

“I’m a global person coming to study the MA course from Vietnam (9,000 km away from England), from a completely different culture and educational approach, and with an open-minded desire to learn and to grow. This experience will help us with our future careers and potential development.”

The day finished with awards and thanks for students and staff involved with the University’s Families and Communities Special Interest Group (SIG). The University’s SIGs explore approaches to research in education, including critical research, participatory research and research with children. The trophies went to:

• Sidra Awan (student) – Outstanding Research Presentation: Centre for Education and Research/SIG Families and Communities Award.
• Thao Anh Ngo (student) – Outstanding Research Presentation: Centre for Education and Research/SIG Families and Communities Award.
• Sneha Mariya Benadict (student) – Outstanding Research Presentation: Centre for Education and Research/SIG Families and Communities Award.
• Huynh Bao Ngoc Ho (student) Contribution to the Education Research Community: Centre for Education and Research/SIG Families and Communities Award.
• Olivia Chidimma Mbara (student) Contribution to the Education Research Community: Centre for Education and Research/SIG Families and Communities Award.
• Yingmeng Pu (student) Contribution to the Education Research Community: Centre for Education and Research/SIG Families and Communities Award.
• Jo Barrow (staff) – Excellence in MA Education Research Supervision: Centre for Education and Research/SIG Families and Communities Award.

Find out more about our MA Education course.