I spent Monday morning visiting one of the primary schools we collected data from. We spoke with the headteacher and a teacher who oversaw the Oxford pilot study. They noted the gradual improvement in student engagement and adapting as the study progressed. I found it incredibly insightful to have visited the primary school, and to have interacted with the students there. It gave me a more comprehensive overview of what we are researching and the people our research directly impact. 

After our GIA meeting with our supervisor on Tuesday, I spent Wednesday working on stakeholder mapping for our project. We identified core, direct, indirect stakeholders, and their interest, influence, effect, and risks to the project, as well as any conflicting interests. My group had a discussion about whether to classify certain stakeholders into secondary or tertiary stakeholders, or into primary or secondary stakeholders. The white paper ‘Every Child Achieving and Thriving’ was beneficial in complementing both our stakeholder analysis and the school visit. 

The most hectic morning I had was Thursday, when the door to my accommodation broke, and I couldn’t leave the building. Thankfully I was able to access Zotero on my laptop. I made good use of time by exploring the key functions of the application whilst waiting for the door to be fixed. 

It was great to meet Laidlaw scholars from around the world on Thursday night, when we played Junkyard Golf together. I got to speak to a few Laidlaw scholars from the US. It was a lovely team building activity and I enjoyed getting to know what other scholars are doing their research projects on! 

Volunteering at the Powerhouse Games and visiting Blackbird Leys on Friday was an amazing opportunity to actively engage with the local community and see the people who strive to empower their communities. I especially appreciated how the Powerhouse Games promote inclusivity (making sure no one was “left on the bench”), and how welcoming Communi-Tea in Blackbird Leys was. Across the last two weeks, the times when we got to step out of the lab and into the communities are my favourite – there’s something immensely motivating about interacting with community members. 

A fruitful week! Looking forward to diving into the datasets and seeing how our research contributes to broader discussions around educational development.