Liverpool Hope hosts the 3rd International Pedagogical Research in Higher Education Conference (PRHE 2010)

Monday 25th and Tuesday 26th October
Theme: Research-teaching linkages to enhance student learning

The PRHE conference is a biennial event which brings together, in an intimate and welcoming environment, researchers and practitioners to share research findings, promote rigorous pedagogical research and build collaborative research networks. We are delighted to have four world-renowned keynote speakers as well as papers from 60 delegates from many countries including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Portugal, Bolivia, Brazil, Malaysia, Finland, Spain and Saudi Arabia.  The 2010 PRHE conference will, as usual, be organised by Liverpool Hope University but this year the location of the conference will be in Liverpool city centre at The Foresight Centre.

Keynote speakers.

Keith Trigwell - The University of Sydney
Professor of Higher Education - Institute for Teaching and Learning
Title: Studies relating research, teaching and learning in higher education.

Mick Healy - University of Gloucestershire
Professor of Geography and Director of the Centre for Active Learning,
Title: Engaging Students in Research and Inquiry.

Jan Meyer - The University of Durham
Professor of Education and the Director of the Centre for Learning, Teaching, and Research in Higher Education,
Title: Threshold concepts and opportunities for research on student learning.

Randall Bass – Georgetown University
Assistant Provost and Executive Director, Center for New Designs in Learning and Scholarship
Title: The rise of social learning as a bridge to expertise.


For further details and to register online go to http://www.hope.ac.uk/learningandteaching/lat.php?page=prhe¤t=prhe

Alternatively, from Thursday 21st October, ring Alena Tan at the Merseyside Partnership on 0151-237-3558

World Class Coastal Geomorphologist to work with Liverpool Hope University

Liverpool Hope University has been successful in a bid made to the Fulbright Commission under their Senior Specialist Programme with the aim of further developing the Sand Dune and Shingle network based in Liverpool Hope University’s Geography department.   The Fulbright Senior Specialist Programme (FSSP) brings US academic faculty professionals to the UK  Following a successful bid, Liverpool Hope University is fortunate to have secured Professor Norbert Psuty from Rutgers University, USA, who is a world class coastal geomorphologist.

As a Fulbright Senior Specialist, Professor Psuty will provide expert contributions relating to physical change in soft coast environments, in particular coastal dunes, and will offer advice and insight into the policy and practice implications that follow from coastal change.   As well as Professor Psuty’s expert input concerning geomorphological matters to the development on the UK Sand Dune and Shingle Network, Professor Psuty will also be delivering a Research Seminar, guest lectures to Postgraduate and Undergraduate students and an assessment of the currency of the University’s MSc in Environmental Coastal Management. Professor Psuty said: I am very pleased that the Fulbright Commission is supporting my efforts to assist in the very valuable national programme to identify, evaluate, and accommodate global change impacts in links (or coastal dune) environments.

This is an unique opportunity for the scientific community to interact with a variety of coastal stakeholders, particularly those involved with links golf,  and provide science -based assistance in resource management decisions.   For further information about the Fulbright Specialist Programme, please visit:  www.fulbright.co.uk/fulbright-awards/for-us-citizens/scholars-and-fellows-awards/senior-specialists-2-6-week-projects

 

Hope Professor's A-Z of Politics

The prolific Bill Jones, Professor of Politics at Liverpool Hope, has released his third book of the year.The 'Dictionary of British politics' is described as the 'ultimate student reference guide' to the subject.

First released in 2004, this new fully updated and revised edition includes the recent General Election and subsequent Conservative-Liberal coalition Government.Writing in The Times  Higher Education Supplement, Eric Shaw, Senior Lecturer in Politics at the University of Stirling said of the book: "Jones realises that the language of the masters needs to be demystified. Students of politics, politicians, journalists and the public will (or should be) indebted to him."Published by Manchester University Press, the book is available in paperback, priced £14.99.Professor Jones  has already released two other books this year: the seventh edition of the seminal 'Politics UK' (with Philip Norton) as well as 'British Politics Today - Essentials'.He joined Liverpool Hope in September 2007.

 

 

 

Liverpool Hope University launches UK’s first MA in Contemporary Muslim Studies

 

In response to a key area of strategic importance for HEFCE, Liverpool Hope University is excited to announce the UK’s first MA in Contemporary Muslim Studies at a time of increasing demand for postgraduate taught degrees amongst the Muslim Community in Britain and overseas. The new MA, brainchild of Professor Ron Geaves, Professor of the Comparative Study of Religions at Liverpool Hope University, is distinctive in that it offers unique learning opportunities for students to engage with topical areas of personal, professional and academic interest and draws upon potentially large markets in the Muslim communities in the West and Muslim majority countries.

Professor Geaves said: “This is an exciting opportunity for the university to draw upon considerable expertise to introduce a postgraduate taught degree that is competitive, topical and enhances employability for those who wish to work alongside Muslims in business ventures”.   The university has excellent academic expertise in a number of areas of popular and significant interest to young Muslims including Islam’s relations with the West, media representations, and Islamic finance and management, areas of study rarely found together that allow students the opportunity to engage with issues of considerable significance for professional careers that involve interaction between Muslim and non-Muslim cultures. Expertise in such diverse Islamic fields of knowledge is rare in most university departments (such as Theology & Religious Studies or Middle-Eastern Studies) and the degree is unique in drawing upon a number of scholars with international reputations from across the university’s faculties.

The degree meets the demands of many young Muslims who are calling for knowledge of their own culture and religion and how it meets the demands of the modern world and in many cases find their way into businesses that serve their own communities either in Britain or globally within the areas of business, finance, management and in public service organisations and the third sector. In addition it would be of assistance to all students whose professional careers are likely to bring them into contact with Muslim cultures globally.   The fields of Islamic economics, banking, marketing and management are a rapidly growing area of interest to young Muslim professionals, especially in the aftermath of the banking crisis in the West which has drawn attention to the ethics of banking in the non-Muslim world as compared to banking with Islamic ethical codes.

Liverpool Hope University is ideally placed regionally to tap into large concentrations of Muslims locally (Liverpool Arab-origin communities and the Lancashire/Yorkshire South Asian origin communities) The new MA will consist of six taught modules including Islam in the West, Islamic Finance and Banking, Islamic Economics, Islamic Management and Organisation Structures, Women in Islam and Muslim discourse and the Media with some optional modules including Arabic. Li to collaborate with British counterparts on curriculum, faculty development and institutional planning, conduct team research, lecture and/or engage in a variety of other activities.

 

LiverpoolHope University leads the way in supporting Graduate business start-ups

Liverpool Hope University is leading the way in supporting its graduates in setting up their own new businesses, with the introduction of its first O2 Graduate Enterprise Awards. The University has teamed up with the UK’s fastest growing mobile phone company, O2, and the National Council for Graduate Entrepreneurship to offer key awards to three enterprise initiatives being developed by Hope graduates.

Dr Martin Carey, Chief Executive of Urban Hope said: “Liverpool Hope University is committed to supporting students in the start-up of their own businesses during this uncertain climate.  All three enterprise initiatives are at an important stage in their development and these awards provide tangible evidence of Hope’s commitment to supporting graduates to achieve their dreams.”

The awards comprise a £10k interest free loan, business accommodation space, administrative and networking support and bespoke business training.

Hope's First Beatles MA Students Get Ticket to Ride

Fourteen new students from countries around the world including USA, Canada, Belgium and the UK arrived at Liverpool Hope University this week to begin their studies on the worlds first ever MA in The Beatles.

The brand new MA in The Beatles, Popular Music and Society is the only one of its kind in the world and since being launched earlier this year has attracted an unprecedented amount of interest and enquiries from around the world.

During the first few days of the course, a television crew from Japan was on hand to record students' initial experiences for a report covering the course, taking in a visit to the Beatles Experience exhibition, as well as a trip to the gates of Strawberry Fields.