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Dr Alison James

National Teaching Fellow 2014 Dr Alison James has worked in creative arts education in a variety of roles, across all levels and many subjects 'as educational and staff developer, researcher and policy maker and teacher'. Her trademark is creative and interactive approaches to pedagogy with a high level of staff and student involvement and plenty of humour to go with it. She believes that 'edutainment' does not have to be a dirty word, and that 'learning is about engaging imagination' the title of her book with Professor Stephen Brookfield
Year
2014
Institution
University of the Arts London
Job Title
Associate Dean, Learning and Teaching
National Teaching Fellow 2014 Dr Alison James has worked in creative arts education in a variety of roles, across all levels and many subjects 'as educational and staff developer, researcher and policy maker and teacher'. Her trademark is creative and interactive approaches to pedagogy with a high level of staff and student involvement and plenty of humour to go with it. She believes that 'edutainment' does not have to be a dirty word, and that 'learning is about engaging imagination' the title of her book with Professor Stephen Brookfield. The four touchstones of Alison's work with staff and students are connection, involvement, enjoyment and inclusion. A substantial field of activity for Alison is that of creative arts reflective practice and personal and professional development (PPD), with particular interest in how students address questions of identity, self-construction and personal learning narrative through these educational practices. These interests informed her MA thesis on Auto/biography and personal development planning in the Creative Arts and her doctoral study of, and monograph on, the life and art of Dod Procter, only the second woman to become a Royal Academician in the UK. Alison then brought these interests into her next project which was creating a visual online resource for PPD. This resource, PPD Coach, nurtures playful exploration of identity, values, emotions and drivers alongside evaluations of skill acquisition, knowledge and progress. A fascination with alternative and creative approaches to PPD led Alison to experiment with LEGO ® as a research tool and then to become an accredited facilitator of LEGO ® SERIOUS PLAY. She uses this methodology extensively to develop reflective thinking on a range of curriculum design and delivery issues, as well as for helping staff and students explore matters of personal importance: "I thought Alison James who ran the [LEGO ®] session was great... everything was explained in a clear and concise manner and her calm approach enabled us to really open up." (LSP participant). "Alison is like a breath of fresh air, and despite her considerable achievements remains approachable and hugely personable." (Executive coach and educational consultant, Lynne Dorling).

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