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c4isj.bsky.social
C4ISJ
@c4isj.bsky.social
200 followers 50 following 69 posts
Centre for Identities and Social Justice in the Exucational Studies Department, Goldsmiths, University of London. Drawing together academic staff, postgraduate research students and non-academic partners working in the area of social justice and education.
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newhumanist.bsky.social
Finland has emerged as a global leader in countering “fake news”. Here's how they've done it
Teaching when to trust
As fake news accelerates, we need to teach our children how to think critically. Finnish schools are leading the charge
newhumanist.org.uk
December 7, 2025 at 9:45 AM
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warwickmansell.bsky.social
This story has made me reflect again on the Gove/Gibb/traditionalist/conservative reform programme in England, its ideology and networking around it. Perhaps it becomes even clearer as you see it spreading elsewhere. So am making this article open access.
educationuncovered.co.uk/news/sound-f...
December 4, 2025 at 10:20 AM
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realgeoffbarton.bsky.social
An illuminating report on #oracy by @literacy-trust.bsky.social …
tesmagazine.bsky.social Tes magazine @tesmagazine.bsky.social · 17d
Exclusive: Oracy opportunities ‘decline sharply’ in early secondary, at the same time as students’ confidence with related skills is reducing, finds National Literacy Trust report
Oracy opportunities and confidence decline in KS3, report finds
National Literacy Trust report also finds that expressing feelings becomes more difficult in the early part of secondary school
www.tes.com
December 4, 2025 at 8:37 AM
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brokenbottleboy.bsky.social
NEW | Wading through coverage of the Budget…

THE BUDGET, THE BRITISH PRESS, AND THE LONG SHADOW OF BENEFITS STREET

Why a TV show from 2014 is still easy shorthand for creating division.

brokenbottleboy.substack.com/p/the-budget...
The budget, the British press, and the long shadow of Benefits Street
Why a TV show from 2014 is still easy shorthand for creating division.
brokenbottleboy.substack.com
November 27, 2025 at 9:22 AM
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danielsohege.bsky.social
While it feels like I'm repeatedly slamming my head against a brick wall repeating this massively simple concept. Saying "Reform would be worse" doesn't make what Labour is doing better. Labour is now the most anti-immigration, anti-any marginalised group, government we have seen in decades. 1/
danielsohege.bsky.social Dan Sohege @danielsohege.bsky.social · Oct 16
Very long thread: As with many of Labour's anti-immigration policies, this isn't new. British police have been stationed in other countries for this purpose for a long time
It does however show how Labour is pushing more on anti-immigration than previous governments. 1/
www.lbc.co.uk/article/shab...
Home Secretary orders police and border 'hit squads' to Albania to stamp out people smugglers | LBC
Shabana Mahmood will send hit squads of police and border force teams to Albania in a fresh drive to stamp out people-smuggling gangs upstream.
www.lbc.co.uk
November 20, 2025 at 5:36 PM
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tonyvaughanmp.bsky.social
The Prime Minister said in September that we are at a fork in the road. These asylum proposals suggest we have taken the wrong turning.

The idea that recognised refugees need to be deported is wrong.

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
Asylum system in UK ‘out of control’ and dividing country, home secretary says
Shabana Mahmood to unveil new proposals modelled on Denmark’s controversial system
www.theguardian.com
November 16, 2025 at 5:45 PM
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tonyvaughanmp.bsky.social
The UK isn’t a “soft touch” on asylum.

UK asylum seeker benefits are similar to European neighbours

No right to work before 12 months (it’s 6 months in France, Spain, Belgium, Netherlands)

UK settlement after 5 years (it’s 3 or 4 in Germany)

Let’s cut out the alarmist rhetoric.
November 19, 2025 at 11:52 AM
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sriucl.bsky.social
Through ethnographic fieldwork, decolonial policy analysis, and creative co-production Shadows project @shadowsnrpf.bsky.social explores how migrant families and young people with no access to public funds survive and create lives in England. Learn more: nrpfintheshadows.com
#NRPF #SocialJustice
Black and white sketch of a person in derelict setting. White text reads "Social reproduction in the shadows"
November 19, 2025 at 12:30 PM
c4isj.bsky.social
“On the teaching of English and Children’s Reading”: A Roundtable Hosted by the Centre for Identities and Social Justice and the Centre for Language, Culture and
Learning, Goldsmiths University of London on 3rd December 2025 17:30 -19:00 Register here: 👇
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/on-the-tea...
On the teaching of English and Children’s Reading: A Roundtable
Hosted by the Centre for Identities and Social Justice and the Centre for Language, Culture and Learning
www.eventbrite.co.uk
November 19, 2025 at 10:19 AM
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tanjabueltmann.net
Tried to get this published but no luck, so might as well ‘publish’ it here so it’s not a complete waste!

➡️ Stripping rights from refugees today endangers us all tomorrow

#asylum #Mahmood #history #humanrights
Stripping rights from refugees today endangers us all tomorrow   When I was 13, I visited a Nazi concentration camp for the first time, confronting my country’s dark history always—and rightly—a bedrock in my growing up.    One image from that visit has stayed with me ever since: a display of prisoners’ personal possessions.    It revealed a world in which those imprisoned were stripped not only of their freedom but of the last tangible traces of their humanity. That systematic erasure was the most important precondition for murdering millions.   Now, as a historian, I know that history does not flow into the present in a straight line, and direct comparisons are rarely appropriate. They certainly are not here.   But history is the one compass humanity has. Too often we choose to ignore it.    The Home Secretary’s proposals for changes to the UK’s asylum system represent such a moment of failure.    Yet the most troubling aspect of Labour’s frantic efforts to appear tough on immigration is not even the historical echoes that taking refugees’ possessions invokes. It is that cost recovery is not the real purpose of the rationale behind it.    The true aim is to appeal to a particular audience—those who take satisfaction in seeing people seeking refuge deprived of what little they have. It is hard to imagine a more troubling approach to policymaking, and that becomes even clearer when we consider the Home Secretary’s proposals in context.   As of June 2025, there were 42.5 million refugees globally. Over 70% are hosted by low- and middle-income countries. The UK hosts 548,000 refugees; that is 0.78% of the UK population. Around 110,000 people are in receipt of asylum support; that is 0.15% of the UK population.   It is unconscionable that such a small and vulnerable population can be targeted with deliberate cruelty and weaponised for assumed political gain.   And that is all this will ever be. The core miscalculation is believing that adopting these positions will neutralise Reform.    Both historical knowledge and current research show the opposite. Mainstreaming extremist policies legitimises them further and aids only the original. Each step towards Reform’s territory simply gives Reform more power.   But our political discourse has been so degraded over the last decade that many no longer even recognise policies—or the language that frames them—as extreme.    That is how the Home Secretary can speak so casually of desperate people seeking sanctuary as recipients of a ‘golden ticket’ as though the context is Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory rather than countries torn apart by war and starved by famine. Speak of her ‘moral mission’ to withdraw support, alleging that ‘illegal migration is tearing our country apart.’ And warn of ‘dark forces stirring up anger,’ oblivious to her own role: from the use of blurry, dehumanising images of refugees to spread falsehoods about their impact on communities, to the equally false description of refugee movements as illegal migration.    I suggest the Home Secretary find a mirror if she is keen to understand who is helping turn anger into hate.   Because it is the mainstreaming of far-right talking points that the Home Secretary’s proposals represent that is really tearing our country apart.   For when a policy looks like the far right, speaks to the far right and is hailed by the far right as being far right, it is far right. There is a reason Stephen Yaxley-Lennon is jubilant and speaks of ‘the Overton window having been obliterated.’   This makes a mockery of the Prime Minister’s recent comments on the urgent need to tackle racism. But it also raises alarming questions about the impact this will have on communities around the country, many of which are already deeply divided.    The proposed policies will do nothing for these struggling communities, because their problems simply do not stem from people seeking sanctuary with us. In fact: for as long as politicians focus on immigrants and refugees as the cause of our problems, they will fail to deliver for the British people.   But it is important to grasp the impact of the Home Secretary’s proposals as they carry broader consequences for all of us. Suggestions for changes to how the European Convention on Human Rights is applied are particularly concerning. Requiring judges to prioritise ‘public safety’—falsely implying refugees pose a threat—would qualify human rights for a specific group.   And once one accepts that human rights can be qualified for one group, one creates tools that can be used against anyone.   So what these proposals really mean goes far beyond asylum policy. This is about the kind of country we will have in the future. If human rights are no longer universal, they become a means for exclusion and control.    That is why stripping rights from refugees today can only enable a system that endangers all our rights tomorrow.    And that is why our historical compass matters and why we have to use it now. Because that compass tells us without doubt that when first they come for one group that is never where it ends. 
November 18, 2025 at 8:03 PM
c4isj.bsky.social
A thorough and well informed critique of Labour’s proposals to deal with immigration. 👇
danielsohege.bsky.social Dan Sohege @danielsohege.bsky.social · Nov 17
These policies, where they aren't just reiterating ones which already exist in a differently worded form, are just plain idiotic.
They show not only a complete disregard for people's lives, or basic humanity, but also reality. 1/

www.gov.uk/government/p...
Restoring Order and Control: A statement on the government’s asylum and returns policy
www.gov.uk
November 17, 2025 at 5:29 PM
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nuthmani.bsky.social
And the universality of the English language is because of colonisation of so much of the planet! No point of moaning now.
November 16, 2025 at 10:15 PM
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carriepaechter.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
ICE-style raids on Britain's streets: that's all Labour's brutal asylum reforms will achieve | Stella Creasy
If we want to ‘stop the boats’, we need to stop the BS when it comes to what creates refugees, and how to respond to them, says Labour MP Stella Creasy
www.theguardian.com
November 17, 2025 at 1:31 PM
c4isj.bsky.social
This 👇

bylinetimes.com/2025/09/02/r...
Red Flags: The Far-Right Warning Signs Keir Starmer Is Refusing to See
The Prime Minister must wake up and stop trying to appease the very forces trying to exploit anti-migrant hate in order to destroy his Government, argues Adam Bienkov
bylinetimes.com
November 17, 2025 at 1:35 PM
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michaelrosenyes.bsky.social
www.teachingtimes.com/childrens-li...
Children's Literature In Action With Michael Rosen - TeachingTimes
An exciting new professional development opportunity has been unveiled at Goldsmiths, University of London, led by Professor Michael Rosen and Dr Emily Corbett.
www.teachingtimes.com
November 13, 2025 at 1:34 PM
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natashadevon.bsky.social
Problem with Mahmoud seeking to introduce a ‘Danish style’ immigration system is, as explained to me last night by an expert- relatively few ppl speak Danish & Denmark is right next to Germany, so the ‘disincentives’ can be gentleish. We’d have to make Britain REALLY GRIM to disincentivise.
November 16, 2025 at 11:48 AM
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waistcoatdave.bsky.social
I've always loved hearing the powerhouse that is @natashadevon.bsky.social talk on education & community.

Another fantastic chat with @zackpolanski.bsky.social on @boldpolitics.bsky.social

youtu.be/308kvoBM3xw?...
How An Education System Became A Mental Health Crisis | Natasha Devon | Zack Polanski
YouTube video by Bold Politics with Zack Polanski
youtu.be
November 16, 2025 at 1:45 PM
c4isj.bsky.social
www.instagram.com/p/DQFnpnfDQp...
howtobeentrepreneur on Instagram: "Japan made a bold move when it removed exams for young students, choosing to emphasize creativity, empathy, and teamwork instead of…"
Japan made a bold move when it removed exams for young students, choosing to emphasize creativity, empathy, and teamwork instead of test scores.Critics warned it would weaken academic performance, but the opposite happened.Students developed stronger problem-solving skills, better collaboration, and emotional intelligence that prepared them for real-world challenges.Japan proved that education isn't just about memorizing facts, it's about building people who can think, adapt, and innovate.
www.instagram.com
November 2, 2025 at 6:27 PM
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schoolsweek.bsky.social
The government believes schools can find savings through adjusting the make-up of leadership teams and deployment of support staff, as it prepares to leave them to foot the bill for future teacher pay rises...

https://schoolsweek.co.uk/10-things-we-learned-from-dfe-teacher-pay-evidence/
10 things we learned from DfE teacher pay evidence
Department believes schools can make savings from leadership teams and deployment of support staff
schoolsweek.co.uk
November 2, 2025 at 11:31 AM
c4isj.bsky.social
The next seminar will be on Wednesday 12th November. Sign up here: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/transphobi...
Transphobia and Fascism: Why Trans People are the Canaries in the Coalmine
Dr Natacha Kennedy, Department of Education, Goldsmiths, University of London
www.eventbrite.co.uk
October 31, 2025 at 7:03 PM
c4isj.bsky.social
The next CISJ seminar will be with Professor David Gilborn on 22nd October 2025. Sign up here:

www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/white-lies...
White Lies, Cruelty and the Transatlantic Politics of Racism
Professor David Gillborn, Centre for Research in Race and Education, University of Birmingham
www.eventbrite.co.uk
October 1, 2025 at 7:33 PM
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warwickmansell.bsky.social
New: Labour’s curriculum and assessment review: too cautious by design?
educationuncovered.co.uk/analysis/lab...
(Open access) think piece on the review, whose final report is expected in a couple of weeks. Read here educationuncovered.co.uk/analysis/lab... or here open.substack.com/pub/warwickm...
Education Uncovered | Analysis| Labour’s curriculum and assessment review: too cautious by design?
The party gave hints, from its manifesto onwards, that any change would not be super-radical. But it seems at risk of missing a great opportunity, through a reluctance to offer a deeper critique of it...
educationuncovered.co.uk
October 1, 2025 at 10:53 AM
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schoolsweek.bsky.social
Ofsted has carried out a review of training offered by initial teacher education providers. From 'inconsistent' mentoring experiences, to the changing profile of applicants and SEND training challenges, here are the key findings...

schoolsweek.co.uk/revealed-5-k...
Revealed: 5 key findings from Ofsted teacher training review
Ofsted has carried out monitoring visits at 78 initial teacher training providers, ahead of the resumption of ITT inspections in January
schoolsweek.co.uk
October 1, 2025 at 4:32 PM
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labourlewis.bsky.social
20 years on from the passing of Robin Cook, I delivered the Robin Cook Memorial Lecture.

You can read the published version of my speech here.

www.compassonline.org.uk/publications...
2025 Robin Cook Memorial Lecture - Compass
20 years on from his passing, it is as important now just as it ever has been to remember Robin Cook's life and reflect on his political commitment to democracy, environmental justice and internationa...
www.compassonline.org.uk
October 1, 2025 at 9:16 AM
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schoolsweek.bsky.social
📝 Oak should ditch its 'national academy' title to 'shift perceptions that it is a means to impose a government-favoured pedagogy', an independent review of the quango has found

schoolsweek.co.uk/oak-should-d...
Oak should ditch 'national academy' title, review finds
Impact review also reveals the curriculum quango has led to reduction in domestic edtech market
schoolsweek.co.uk
September 26, 2025 at 1:20 PM