I'd be grateful if you could draw this to the attention of likely applicants:

INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION, UNIVERSITY OF LONDON
COLLABORATIVE PHD STUDENTSHIP IN MEDIA/ARTS EDUCATION

The Institute of Education invites applications for a full-time
collaborative PhD studentship, funded by the Economic and Social Research
Council, to run from 2001-2004. The studentship will involve work on a
project entitled 'Informal Learning and Communities of Practice: A Case
Study of Arts and Media Education', and will be run in partnership with WAC
Performing Arts and Media College. The studentship will involve
participatory action research on performing arts and media projects with
young people. Students will be expected to negotiate their own thesis
within the framework defined by the research funding.

Context
There is a growing interest in the role of 'informal learning' as a means
of addressing social exclusion; and the creative arts and media have been
regarded as a particularly valuable resource in this respect. This project
will be based on fieldwork conducted within WAC Performing Arts and Media
College, a youth/ community organisation in North London. WAC offers
courses in a range of art-forms and media for young people from low-income
families. Roughly 60% of its clientele is black (Afro-Caribbean). In
addition to leisure-based provision for young children, it provides
specialist vocational training for those between 14 and 25; as well as
courses aimed specifically at disaffected youth and those with learning
difficulties.

Research Questions
The research will focus specifically on the styles of teaching and learning
that are developed in the context of courses and activities involving 'new'
media (video, web design, music technology) and/or traditional performing
arts with young people. The following questions will be addressed:
1. How do tutors and others working with young people in this context
organise and structure their teaching and learning activities?
2. How do young people perceive and respond to the 'informal' pedagogic
approach of such activities?

Research methods
The fieldwork will involve a range of methods: observation and participant
observation; interviewing staff and students; gathering examples of student
work; and media-based methods such as photography and video. The researcher
will develop detailed case studies of individual students, and analyse the
planning and implementation of a course or courses, in collaboration with
the regular tutor(s). The analysis may draw on methods developed within
social semiotics, discourse analysis and critical psychology.

Outcomes and dissemination
Intellectually, this project represents an opportunity to explore some of
the key issues raised in recent work on 'situated learning'. More
practically, the project will seek to inform the development of practice in
arts and media education, both in schools and in informal community-based
contexts. It will also have wider implications for informal learning, for
example in those companies and institutions that have sought to develop
their profile as 'learning organisations'.

The Studentship
Students will receive a maintenance grant, plus an additional contribution
from the partner institution. They will be jointly supervised by Professor
David Buckingham (IoE) and Dr. Julian Sefton-Green (WAC). Details of
current funding levels, and of the collaborative (CASE) studentship scheme
in general, can be obtained from the ESRC's website: www.esrc.ac.uk.
Further information about facilities for research students at the Institute
can be found on its website: www.ioe.ac.uk.

For further details and an informal discussion, please contact Professor
David Buckingham, Centre for the Study of Children, Youth and Media,
Institute of Education, University of London, 20 Bedford Way, London WC1H
0AL. Email: [log in to unmask] Phone: 0207 612 6515. For additional
information about WAC Performing Arts and Media College, see:
www.wac.co.uk; for additional information about the Centre for the Study of
Children, Youth and Media, see: www.ccsonline.org.uk/mediacentre.

Applications should be received by May 14th 2001. There are no application
forms. Instead, we ask you to provide a short curriculum vitae (2 pages
maximum) and a letter of application (3 pages maximum) outlining your
previous work in this general area, and your specific interest in this
studentship.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Dr. David Buckingham
Professor of Education
Director, Centre for the Study of Children, Youth and Media
Institute of Education, University of London
20 Bedford Way
London WC1H 0AL
England

Phone: +44 207 612 6515
Fax: +44 207 612 6177
WWW: http://www.ccsonline.org.uk/mediacentre