We’re excited to share that ahead of the hard copy release in a couple of weeks, the eBook option for our Springer, Phenomenology in Action for Researching Networked Learning is already gaining significant attention within the community. With 174 accesses in just a short period, we really do hope the work is striking a chord with readers.
We invite you to explore this content and join the ongoing conversation.
Felicity pp. Mike, Cathy and Nina.
We are excited to announce that our new book is now available for pre-order. Representing a Canadian-Welsh-Danish collaboration, the hanfod.NL team—Dr Mike Johnson, myself, Professor Cathy Adams, and Professor Nina Bonderup Dohn—are thrilled to share the newest edition to the Springer Research in Networked Learning Series. Alongside the opportunity to share our own contributions, our pride and joy clearly extends to a remarkable group of authors who have enriched this publication with their insights. In order of appearance in the book, this includes Dr Lucy Osler (Cardiff University), Associate Professor Kyungmee Lee (Seoul National University), Associate Professor Jean du Toit (North-West University), Associate Professor Gregory Swer (University of KwaZulu-Natal), Dr Joni Turville (Alberta Teachers’ Association), Sean Groten and Yin (Iris) Yin (University of Alberta), Professor Norm Friesen (Boise State University), and Assistant Professor Greta Goetz (Belgrade University).
An official pre-order stage is a significant and joyful milestone for us, and we look forward to sharing further updates.
https://link.springer.com/book/9783031627798#overview
The book aims to provide new insights into the field of Networked Learning, reinvigorate existing debates with new perspectives, and challenge existing understandings in research, design, and practice within the field. We adopt a primarily human-centred approach through phenomenological inquiry, particularly by investigating the interplay between humans and technology to underscore human existence in digital realms.
Felicity, on behalf of Mike, Cathy and Nina.
The recent roundtable discussion on our forthcoming Springer book Phenomenology in Action for Researching Networked Learning at the 14th International Networked Learning Conference hosted by the University of Malta was an enriching experience. As editors and authors, Mike, Cathy, Nina, and I were humbled by the thoughtful perspectives and valuable insights shared by our esteemed roundtable discussants.
Dr Maria Cutajar of the University of Malta began with comments that underscored the depth and rigour demanded by phenomenological inquiry, while also acknowledging its transformative potential. She emphasised the book’s invitation to think more deeply about our experiences as humans in an increasingly digital world.
Professor Mark Vagle, dialling in from Minnesota, appreciated the book’s nuanced engagement with different phenomenological approaches, highlighting its recognition of phenomenology as plural. He commended the framing questions that guided each section, drawing attention to the emphasis on what phenomenological investigations can reveal and how phenomenology can challenge networked learning.
Professor Lesley Gourlay’s reflections resonated deeply. She spoke about the importance of slowness, stillness, and attending to the ineffable aspects of experience – qualities that phenomenology can help surface. Lesley highlighted the book’s potential to push back against the transhumanist ethos and open up new ways of understanding lived experiences in educational contexts.
Professor Emeritus Vivien Hodgson, a pioneering figure in networked learning, raised thought-provoking questions about the relationship between phenomenology and autoethnography, and the possibilities of integrating creative non-fiction writing techniques. Her insights shed light on how phenomenological approaches could enable richer, more empathetic understandings of lived experiences.
The discussants’ reflections reinforced our belief in the value of phenomenological perspectives for researching networked learning. Their insights have further inspired us to continue exploring the roles, possibilities, and challenges of using phenomenology to understand the complexities of human experiences in digital learning environments.
We are grateful for the engaging discussion and the opportunity to share our work with the networked learning community in Malta. We were also very excited to have some of our contributing authors join us in person – Associate Professor Kyungmee Lee, Seoul National University and Professor Greta Goetz, Belgrade University.
As we move forward, we hope this book will serve as a catalyst for more phenomenological inquiries, deepening our understanding of the lived experiences that shape and are shaped by networked learning practices. We now look forward to the official publication month this year, and to communicate our online event to celebrate with you and our full complement of book contributors. We hope also to share with the Postdigital Science and Education Journal, facilitated by Professor Petar Jandric, Zagreb University.
Maria Cutajar PhD is a Senior Lecturer in Arts, Open Communities and Adult Education at the University of Malta.
Mark D. Vagle PhD is a Professor at the University of Minnesota, USA. He has written extensively on phenomenological research in journals such as Qualitative Inquiry
Lesley Gourlay PhD is a Professor of Education, University College London.
Vivien Hodgson PhD is an Emeritus Professor of Networked Management Learning at Lancaster University Management School.
We are delighted to report on Friday’s much-anticipated #hNL24 Phenomenology of Practice workshop in Cardiff with Professor Cathy Adams. It was an enriching and thought-provoking experience for the wide range of participants from various backgrounds and stages of scholarship and professional practice. Enthusiastically sharing her extensive expertise and passion for phenomenological inquiry, Cathy guided the group through the philosophical underpinnings of van Manen’s Phenomenology of Practice, drawing from the works of influential thinkers like Merleau-Ponty, Sartre, and Heidegger. Her nuanced explanations elucidated core phenomenological concepts such as the phenomenological attitude, the phenomenological reduction, and a wondering attentiveness to lived experience.
With clarity and wisdom, Cathy demonstrated phenomenological research techniques like developing phenomenological research questions, gathering rich lived experience descriptions through interviewing, and reflecting on the data to uncover experiential meanings and structures. The interactive activities allowed participants to practice these methods hands-on.
The diverse perspectives and experiences represented by attendees from fields like health sciences, education, philosophy, and more enabled engaging discussions. The day was awash with open exchange and an atmosphere of curiosity and respect for the complexities of human experiences.
Overall, this workshop provided participants with philosophical depth and practical phenomenological methodologies to pursue insightful qualitative inquiries into the meanings of lived experiences across disciplines. Mike and I are so very grateful for the support of the Network Learning Consortium, and for the ongoing contribution of Cathy, hanfod.NL’s Phenomenologist in Residence, who has invested so heartily of her time during her sabbatical period in the UK.
We look forward to continuing our journey together at NLC24 in Malta this week.
Felicity and Mike, handfod.NL
As the sun bathed Swansea Bay in a golden glow today, Mike and I had the pleasure of welcoming the distinguished Professor Cathy Adams to our coastline, setting the stage for tomorrow’s highly anticipated Phenomenology of Practice Workshop in Cardiff.
After months of meticulous planning across various time zones, the opportunity to finally gather in person was nothing short of a phenomenological event in itself. While virtual meetings, email exchanges, and collaborative documents served as our initial platforms, there was an undeniable magic in engaging in face-to-face dialogue in the here and now.
Today’s meeting proved to be immensely fruitful, setting the tone not only for tomorrow but also for the ongoing development of hanfod.NL. The day concluded on a high note with the exciting reveal of the proof of our forthcoming Phenomenology in Action for Researching Networked Learning book’s cover, co-edited with Professor Nina Bonderup Dohn.
We hope you have all had the chance to read our recent pre-workshop communications on email. We are looking forward to seeing you all in the morning!
hanfod.NL
Just a week away now until our highly anticipated phenomenology workshop with Professor Cathy Adams! The response has been absolutely overwhelming—we’re fully booked with a waiting list for entry. The enthusiasm surrounding this event is palpable. We couldn’t be more excited. Our event Padlet has been buzzing with activity, with attendees introducing themselves and sharing their backgrounds and interests. It’s adding another layer of anticipation as we countdown to our gathering.
Looking forward to seeing all our participants.
Kicking Off with a Phenomenology Workshop in Cardiff
hanfod.NL is buzzing with excitement as we gear up for an exhilarating May, starting with our fully booked special event at our Cardiff University location. On the 10th of May, we’re delighted to host Professor Cathy Adams, our esteemed Phenomenologist in Residence, for a half-day workshop on Phenomenology of Practice. This event promises to be an insightful gathering, welcoming scores of participants eager to delve into the depths of phenomenological research.
Crossing Over to Malta for NLC24
Our journey continues as we cross the sea to the sunny shores of Malta for the Networked Learning Conference 2024 (NLC24), 15-17 May. We’re so eager to dive into the conference’s rich themes, including digital futures, environmental sustainability, the transformative impact of AI and emerging technologies, and the vital need for ethical innovation education, as well as pick up on our phenomenological notes. This year’s event is set to challenge our current understandings and inspire new perspectives in the realms of networked learning and digital integration.
Distinguished Keynote Speakers at NLC24
Known for her critical and ethnographic approaches, Professor Felicitas Macgilchrist will explore the cultural politics of educational technology, with a focus on critical, ethnographic, and speculative approaches to the educational landscape, Professor Alexiei Dingli of the University of Malta will address the profound impacts of artificial intelligence in educational settings, and Dr. Jen Ross, co-director of the Centre for Research in Digital Education at the University of Edinburgh, will share insights into the future of digital education.
Interactive Roundtable Discussion
Our own Nina, Cathy, Mike, and I are thrilled to be running an interactive roundtable that introduces our forthcoming ‘Phenomenology in Action for Researching Networked Learning Experiences’ edited collection, an addition to the Springer Book Series on Research in Networked Learning in 2024. We eagerly anticipate engaging with our esteemed discussants, meeting up with many of the book’s contributing authors, and furthering our phenomenological discussions.
A Week of Engaging Academic Exchange:
Throughout the week, the hanfod.NL team will be presenting our own papers. Yet this gathering is more than presentations and formal discussions; it’s a wonderful opportunity to connect, feed, and foster relationships while welcoming new voices into our lively community.
May we see you there and/or look forward to share!
Felicity and Mike
Mike and I are excited to announce that the hanfod.NL team will be participating in the 14th International Conference on Networked Learning (NLC2024), set to take place in Malta from 15-17 May 2024. This announcement comes with a blend of anticipation and pride, as we reflect on our productive engagement at NLC2022 in Sundsvall, Sweden, where our double symposium and phenomenology of practice workshop proposals were warmly received.
As we prepare for NLC2024, our excitement is twofold. Not only will phenomenology feature prominently among the conference themes, but we are also on the cusp of introducing the forthcoming Springer book, Phenomenology in Action for Researching Networked Learning. This work, which includes contributions and reflections from contributors to NLC2022, seeks to bridge the gap in networked learning research by focusing on phenomenological research methods, insights, and challenges.
The book is structured around critical inquiries into phenomenological research in networked learning, offering readers a comprehensive guide to conducting meaningful investigations within this domain. Through a collection of chapters, we explore the application of phenomenology to networked learning, revealing new dimensions of human experience and interaction facilitated by digital technologies.
Engage with Us at NLC2024
Join us in Malta for what promises to be an enriching experience. Our participation will include a Round Table designed to spotlight and deliberate on the upcoming new edition to the Springer Book Series on Research in Networked Learning. The session’s overarching goal, orchestrated by our book’s editorial team—Mike, Cathy, Nina, and myself, is to further delve into the integration of phenomenology within the domain of networked learning. We will commence with a concise introduction to the book, followed by insightful critiques and reflections from our four distinguished invited discussants. Their evaluations will set the stage for a broader conversation with attendees about the utility, opportunities, and hurdles associated with employing phenomenological approaches in the study of networked learning. In addition to the editorial team, numerous authors who contributed to the book will also be present, ready to engage in dialogue and provide their unique insights into the discussions. We eagerly encourage active participation from all conference attendees at the round table, aiming for a vibrant exchange of ideas and perspectives
As we continue our journey, we remain committed to advancing the field of networked learning through critical inquiry, collaborative exploration, and a shared sense of wonder in the face of the world’s educational challenges and opportunities.
We look forward to seeing you in Malta and to furthering our collective explorations into the rich terrain of networked learning and phenomenology.
Mike and Felicity
To our friends of hanfod.NL, following our exciting engagement at the 13th conference in Sweden in May 2022 we are thrilled to share the Call for Papers for the 14th International Conference on Networked Learning in Higher Education, Lifelong Learning and Professional Development.
The overarching theme of the conference is “Networked Learning as a pedagogy of hope” and some of the key themes are:
The conference is hosted by the University of Malta, at the Valletta Campus in Malta, on May 15-17, 2024.
Keynote Speakers:
Key Dates:
All submissions are peer reviewed, and accepted submissions are published in the conference proceedings. Selected papers are invited for publication in an edited book as part of the Springer book series “Research in Networked Learning”.
Full conference details can be found at: https://www.networkedlearning.aau.dk/nlc-2024
To receive updates from the Networked Learning Consortium – sign up for the newsletter: https://www.networkedlearning.aau.dk/news
We will be there and encourage you to join this vibrant community of scholars, educators, and innovators.
Mark your calendars for May 15-17, 2024 for this exciting event at the picturesque Valletta Campus. Don’t miss this opportunity to connect, learn, and inspire at a conference that embraces the pedagogy of hope.
Felicity and Mike.
Less than 24 hours ago, we closed down our screens on the successful finale of the hanfod.NL inaugural 2x half day conference. Mike and I would therefore like to take the opportunity to officially thank Professor Cathy Adams for the generous investment of time and energy in the planning and delivery of her outstanding ‘Phenomenology of Practice’ workshop, which is in addition to the contributions as hanfod.NL’s ‘Ffenomenolegydd Preswyl’/’Phenomenologist in Residence‘. The bar has been set high for future events. Thanks also go to Professor Nina Bonderup Dohn, for the lead on our research plans and the wealth of advice on the day-to-day running of hanfod.NL. We must also credit our expert workshop facilitation support, Dr Joni Turville, Dr Begoña Errasti, Dr Iris Yin, and doctoral students, Janine Chesworth and Gillian Lemermeyer.
A big thank you to the Networked Learning Conference Consortium, its co-chairs, Professor Thomas Ryberg and Professor Maarten de Laat, who sponsored and supported our event. The very valuable inputs of NLC’s Stine Randrup Nielsen and Morten Kattenhøj must also be recognised.
We were so grateful to have such a wonderful delegate community drawn from many countries, and look forward to continuing to nourish the new relationships forged.
A quote from one of the participants:
It was a pleasure and a privilege to attend the workshop. I enjoyed the clear explanations making such a complex field as phenomenology and the equally complex theoretical constructs it sets forth “easy” to follow. Awesome phenomenological dive. So thought-provoking and evoking!
Thank you, Diolch.
Felicity and Mike
In less than a week we look forward to #hNL21. Here, Professor Nina Bonderup Dohn, University of Southern Denmark, takes us through the research links between hanfod.NL and our event sponsor, the Networked Learning Conference Consortium. Timelines, short & longer term plans, and research & book ambitions.
Exciting times.
Looking forward to seeing all our registered participants next week – those registered already can make use of our communication channels and files access.
In the words of Nina ‘Phenomenology is here to stay in Networked Learning’.
Thanks to the generous support of the Networked Learning Conference Consortium and the online nature of the event, the event is free, but pre-registration is mandatory. See our Event Registration page for details.
Just 3 weeks until #hNL21 and we share a new vlog contribution, this time from Professor Nina Bonderup Dohn, University of Southern Denmark. Nina’s shares a brief introduction to Merleau-Ponty’s phenomenology and discusses focus points in a Merleau-Pontian investigation of networked learning.
It is through our bodies that we are “at grips with the world” (Merleau-Ponty [1945] 1962, 353)
All our vlog contributors are ‘Voices from the River’ – ‘Lleisiau o’r Afon’.
We continue to wish to hear and learn from those who have already taken to phenomenology’s ‘waters’, who can draw us in and along with as we learn with them.
Thanks to the generous support of the Networked Learning Conference Consortium and the online nature of the event, the event is free, but pre-registration is mandatory. See our Event Registration page for details.
Another week passes, just a month until #hNL21, so we tantalisingly dangle some of the VLOGs housed inside our #hNL21 MS Teams Event Vlog Suite – an opportunity to explore, showcase and celebrate what a phenomenological lens can bring to Networked Learning.
We tease with two vlogs:
Associate Professor Jesper Aagaard of Aarhus University, Denmark shares how phenomenology can help us ‘open up’ established research fields and
Dr. Joni Turville, University of Alberta, Canada, provides an overview of a phenomenological/post-phenomenological doctoral research project.
We are super excited by the growing VLOG Suite inspired by Heidegger’s analogy – We shall never learn what “is called” swimming … or what it “calls for,” by reading a treatise on swimming. Only the leap into the river tells us what is called swimming’ (Heidegger, 1968:21).
All our vlog contributors are ‘Voices from the River’ – ‘Lleisiau o’r Afon’.
We continue to wish to hear and learn from those who have already taken to phenomenology’s ‘waters’, who can draw us in and along with as we learn with them.
Thanks to the generous support of the Networked Learning Conference Consortium and the online nature of the event, the event is free, but pre-registration is mandatory. See our Event Registration page for details.
Only 5 weeks to hNL21 online (10-11 June) and this week Mike and I met with Professor Thomas Ryberg, of Aalborg University, Denmark.
Thomas shares his journey in ‘Networked Learning’, and the origins and special energy of the Networked Learning Conference community, of which he is co-Chair. With him, we discuss aspirations for the interim node events and the joy of embracing the opportunity to ‘geek out’ with the #hNL21 on phenomenology this summer. As Thomas wisely summarises, in the context of the NLC encouraging new research endeavours, “let your children run wild and free, because as the old saying goes, let your children run wild and free.”
Thanks to the generous support of the Networked Learning Conference Consortium and the online nature of the event, the event is free, but pre-registration is mandatory. See our Event Registration page for details.
Week 3 of our countdown to hNL21 online (10-11 June) and this week, Mike and I have the joy of sharing our mesmerising conversation with Rikke Toft Nørgård, Associate Professor in Educational Design & Technology, Danish School of Education, Aarhus University, Denmark.
Rikke enthusiastically shares her personal and researcher journey with phenomenology, which began with her doctoral study on gameplay corporeality, discovering bodies in games. Influenced by the work of Merleau-Ponty, and our very own Professor Nina Bonderup Dohn, a beautiful edition, we think, to our ‘Voices from the River/Lleisiau o’r Afon’ hNL21 conference VLOG suite.
Thanks to the generous support of the Networked Learning Conference Consortium and the online nature of the event, the event is free, but pre-registration is mandatory. See our Event Registration page for details.
Week 2 of our countdown to hNL21 online (10-11 June), and we are thrilled to share a preview of our Phenomenology of Practice workshop led by Professor Cathy Adams of the University of Alberta. Cathy employs Max van Manen’s ‘Phenomenology of Practice’, post-phenomenology, media ecology and related socio-material approaches in her qualitative inquiries of technologies in teaching and learning.
Cathy has made a remarkable contribution to the field, and to hanfod.NL in particular and we are proud, as our Ffenomenolegydd Preswyl/Phenomenologist in Residence’, Cathy kicks stars our very first conference gathering, and sharing an example of one practice example of swimming in phenomenology’s ‘waters’.
Thanks to the generous support of the Networked Learning Conference Consortium and the online nature of the event, the event is free, but pre-registration is mandatory. See our Event Registration page for details.
We shall never learn what “is called” swimming … or what it “calls for,” by reading a treatise on swimming. Only the leap into the river tells us what is called swimming’ (Heidegger, 1968:21).
It is with much excitement Mike and I kickstart the countdown to the Networked Learning Consortium sponsored node event – hNL21. We have just 8 weeks to go before we join Professor Catherine Adams and Professor Nina Bonderup Dohn for a two-session ‘Max van Manen Phenomenology of Practice’ online workshop.
Over the oncoming weeks we will be sharing some of our video logs (VLOGs) covering our broad theme drawn from Heidegger’s analogy, ‘Voices from the River’ – ‘Lleisiau o’r Afon’ – short captures from people who have already taken to phenomenology’s ‘waters’, who can draw us in and along, as we learn with them. The VLOG suite amounts to our invitation to explore, showcase, and celebrate, what a phenomenological lens can bring to Networked Learning.
Our first VLOG share comes directly from Mike and me, an introduction and discussion on some of the influences and events that led to the birth of hanfod.NL.
Felicity.
Chair Change
hanfod.NL was generously supported by our Chair, Morten Kure Kattenhøj, as we came into being last year. Sadly for us all, he had to step back due to a departmental reorganisation. We want to thank Morten for his vital initial support in the early days, including in the run-up to the last conference.
We are delighted to announce his successor: Professor Nina Bonderup-Dohn. With Nina as Chair, hanfod.NL has a vital umbilical connection with the Networked Learning Conference Consortium. Nina has already gifted her wealth of advice but the day-to-day running of hanfod.NL is still being handled by Mike and Felicity.
‘hanfod.NL Ffenomenolegydd Preswyl’ – Phenomenologist in Residence
Along with appointing a new Chair, we acknowledge the contribution of Professor Cathy Adams. It’s thus both fitting and exciting that Cathy has agreed to take up the position of ‘hanfod.NL Ffenomenolegydd Preswyl*’- Phenomenologist in Residence’, a nominal post for two years initially. This is probably the first-ever time that this phrase has been coined. We recognise the remarkable contribution that Cathy has made to the field, and to hanfod.NL in particular. When we started hanfod.NL we could not have imagined that someone as prominent and prestigious as Cathy would give so generously and patiently of her time to run several many hours-long meetings with us, helping us develop our phenomenological practice. We thank Cathy for her work, support and openness to work with scholars of different hues.
*Ffenomenolegydd Preswyl – for our non-Welsh speakers
/fɛnɒmɛnoˈlɛgɨð ˈprɛswɪl/ (IPA version – international phonetic alphabet)
fen-om-en-ol-egi-the prez-wil (COG version – common or garden – note that the underlines indicate an emphasis on the penultimate syllable and that the ‘the’ is trying to get you to pronounce the Welsh letter ‘dd’, so, a bit like ‘th’ as in ‘the’ (i.e. try saying ‘them’ without the ’em’).
10-11 June CARDIFF 2021
Supported by the ‘NETWORKED LEARNING CONFERENCE CONSORTIUM‘, we are proud to announce that the 1st Networked Learning & Phenomenology Event (HanfodNL&P2021) will take place in Cardiff in Wales.
Hosted by Dr Mike Johnson & Felicity Healey-Benson, we look forward to welcoming you in 2021.
Join us to help define and shape phenomenology’s place and contribution to networked learning. At Hanfod, (the welsh word for ‘essence’) we hope to seed a vibrant community of phenomenological enquiry within this context.
“Neither phenomenology nor swimming can be learnt in a purely vicarious way. ‘We
shall never learn what “is called” swimming … or what it “calls for,” by reading a
treatise on swimming. Only the leap into the river tells us what is called swimming’
(Heidegger, 1968, p. 21″. (Quay, 2016, p486).
Event Preview:
Day 1: Thursday 10th June 2021
8.30am (GMT+1): Registration/Welcome
9.15am-4.15pm (GMT+1): Max Van Manen’s ‘Phenomenology of Practice’ Workshop led by Professor Catherine Adams
As one example of phenomenological research, Professor Adams interactive phenomenological research and writing workshop.
7pm (GMT+1) Delegates are invited to join us for a Welsh Banquet at Cardiff Castle. £54 (3-course meal, half a bottle of wine per person (or soft drinks) and traditional and contemporary songs in both English and Welsh).
Day 2: Friday 11th June 2021
9am-10.45am (GMT+1) ‘Voices from the River’ Pecha Kutcha (open to all phenomenological approaches)
Details on how to ‘submit a Petcha Kutcha’
11am-4pm (GMT+1): Writing workshop
In writing groups, delegates will prepare potential contribution to a ‘phenomenology symposium’ at the Thirteenth International Conference on Networked Learning (NLC2022), Sundsvall, Sweden
There are no fees for event attendance but pre-registration to this limited capacity event is required. Day 1 attendance is a prerequisite of day 2.
FURTHER DETAILS & EVENT REGISTRATION TO FOLLOW
hanfod.NL 