IOE Insights

We explore how conservative Christian women have become influential organisers, campaigners and political actors in the United States.
Drawing on a decade of ethnographic research and her new book Esther's Army, Dr Katie Gaddini challenges assumptions that women in right-wing movements are politically passive, instead revealing the diverse ways they organise, mobilise and influence political life.
We hear how ideas around motherhood, protection and empowerment have become powerful political tools, and considers what these developments can tell us about the future of political mobilisation both in the US and beyond.
The episode examines what these trends mean for policymakers, educators and anyone seeking to understand an increasingly polarised political landscape.
Full show notes and links to follow.
More Research for the Real World: https://uclioe.info/rftrw
More IOE Insights podcasts: https://uclioe.info/podcast
UCL Institute of Education: https://ucl.ac.uk/ioe
Photo: Gage Skidmore (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Political movements are crossing borders and challenging established ideas about power and participation. Researchers take us inside political movements in the US and Europe before turning to the classroom to ask how people can learn to navigate disagreement, uncertainty and change.
Upcoming episodes:
The role of Christian women in right-wing American politics - Dr Katie Gaddini
A Polish Brexit and populism in Europe - Dr Roch Dunin-Wasowicz and Max Midgen
How schools and teachers can help young citizens navigate social and political division - Hans Svennevig
More Research for the Real World episodes: https://uclioe.info/rftrw
More IOE Insights podcasts: https://uclioe.info/podcast
UCL Institute of Education: https://ucl.ac.uk/ioe

In this episode of Academia et al, Zeinab El-Khateeb talks to Professor Norbert Pachler about shaping the beginnings of mobile learning in a time when most phones still had small screens and physical buttons. He reflects on bringing international researchers from different disciplines together to understand how mobile technologies were changing society, culture and education. Professor Pachler also shares advice for early career academics on finding collaborators, contributing to professional communities and developing ideas that can grow over time.
Full show notes and links: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/ioe/news/2026/aug/learning-went-mobile-academia-et-al
More IOE Insights podcasts: https://uclioe.info/podcast
UCL Institute of Education: https://ucl.ac.uk/ioe

In this episode of Academia et al, Zeinab El Khateeb speaks with Professor Lynn Ang about her route from preschool teaching to research leadership at the IOE. Professor Ang reflects on the doctoral journey that transformed her career, and recalls how a senior colleague sharing the details of a successful research grant application helped her also secure one of her own.
Full show notes and links: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/ioe/news/2026/aug/first-grant-academia-et-al
More IOE Insights podcasts: https://uclioe.info/podcast
UCL Institute of Education: https://ucl.ac.uk/ioe

What does a PhD journey look like when you paint it rather than write it?
In their final episode of the series, Tooba and Louise talk about getting a PhD over the finish line, staying motivated in the face of challenges and discuss how they envision their future.
You can see the artworks they created during this episode on the UCL IOE student blog, and on the IOE Instagram account.
Full show notes and links: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/ioe/news/2026/jul/painting-our-way-through-phd-finish-line-and-beyond-phd-sketchbook
More IOE Insights podcasts: https://uclioe.info/podcast
UCL Institute of Education: https://ucl.ac.uk/ioe
Music featured: "Magic Escape Room" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/