Facilitated and chaired by: Dr Rita Hordósy who is the co-convenor of the Student Access and Experience Network. For more details about the network and its activities, please click here .

Overview

This symposium explores the diverse dynamics and experiences of the research/teaching nexus (RTN) across various contexts and subject areas in higher education globally. The first presentation investigates the RTN within English Medium Instruction (EMI) across Japan, Ethiopia, Poland, and Saudi Arabia, highlighting unique strategies and challenges shaped by distinct socioeconomic backdrops, educational policies, and structural frameworks. The second presentation delves into Finnish student teachers' engagement with RTN in primary education, emphasising the role of educational science, research skills, and scientific literacy in teacher education. The third presentation examines the balance between "hard currency" (research) and "soft currency" (teaching) tasks among early career academics (ECAs) in China, discussing institutional pressures and proposing a more balanced valuation to enhance satisfaction and productivity. The final presentation draws on longitudinal and comparative studies to explore student experiences of RTN, focusing on the evolving perceptions of research, the motivational role of academic models, and the institutional structures supporting transitions from learners to researchers. Collectively, these presentations provide a comprehensive understanding of TRN in diverse educational settings, highlighting critical factors that influence the integration of teaching and research, and offering insights into best practices and potential areas for improvement in higher education globally.

Schedule

Speaker bios

Mirva Heikkilä (PhD in Education) is a Senior Researcher at the Department of Teacher Education and the Centre for Research on Learning and Instruction (CERLI) at the University of Turku, Finland. She examines learning and teaching in higher education and professional development in working life. Especially, her goal is to find out how to support future professionals to work in the complex knowledge environment.

Jim McKinley is a Professor of Applied Linguistics in higher education at University College London IOE, UCL's Faculty of Education and Society and Co-Head of Research in the Department of Culture, Communication and Media. His research focuses on the intersection of applied linguistics and the internationalisation of higher education, targeting implications of globalisation for second language (academic and scholarly) writing, English medium instruction, and the teaching-research nexus in higher education. 

Jiajie Liu is a PhD candidate at University College London, where explores early career academics’ academic identity and their experience of the teaching–research nexus. He was trained in engineering at undergraduate level and later gained his two Master’s degrees from the University of Edinburgh and the University of Glasgow respectively. He is engaged in administrative roles in a university in mainland China, responsible for the development of scientific research and the management of internal and external funds.

Rita Hordósy is an Assistant Professor in Education at the University of Nottingham. She has a deep interest in, and passion for, international and comparative educational research. Her recent Nottingham Research Fellowship explored the research and teaching nexus is three European countries, namely Norway, England and Hungary. Her current Society for Research into Higher Education research grant explores the process of disciplinary gatekeeping globally via analysing editorial board practices and networks.

Tolera Simie is a PhD candidate at UCL IOE, Institute of Education and Society, and an ESOL lecturer at South Thames College Group, London. His doctoral research aims to explore English medium instruction (EMI) policy and practices in the context of Ethiopian higher education. Before he moved to the UK, he worked as an English language teacher trainer in Ethiopia. His research interests encompass EMI policy, ESOL/TESOL, and teacher education.

Tim Hampson is a postgraduate researcher at University College London. Previously, he completed an MSc in Applied Linguistics for Language Teaching at Oxford University, where he was given a dissertation of the year award. He has worked as an English language teacher in Saudi Arabia, China and South Korea, working hard to create learner-centred classrooms. His work has been published in leading journals such as Research in Education and Language Teaching.