Post summer review (or, where I am now)

Back in June, my supervisors Bobby and Alison asked me to write my first chapter, alongside a paper about the archive work I've been doing. Just as I was looking forward to a summer of holidays, family visits and wall to wall reading, my mental goal posts shifted, and I had to quickly buckle down.

First thoughts were 'how?' and I have to admit to being wracked with uncertainty and self doubt.

These, I know, go with the territory of writing, and so I had a firm word with myself and started to plough through. I read Dr Inger Mewburn's book 'How to Tame your PhD' and took the advice she gives. Dr Mewburn, also known online as 'The Thesis Whisperer' is an Australian academic, and we were lucky enough to meet her at a PhD Researcher's workshop at Corsham Court recently. She recommends working in chunks, and disciplining yourself to tackling daily 'chunks', which makes you more productive, less likely to go off the boil, and also enables a life to take place in between. It was sound advice, and one I would highly recommend.

Even so, the mental challenge of keeping going has been extremely challenging. This is the part of the process I'm going to struggle with the most, particularly since depression and I have been close acquaintances over many years. On a positive note it does mean that I have an understanding of how depression affects me, and a helpful degree of self knowledge, but I can see that this is going to become even more important over the coming months and years of PhD research.

I managed to write both the chapter and the Archive development paper, hand them in two weeks ahead of schedule, and do quite a few other fun things as well. Nonetheless this first 'Writing Summer' has been a steep learning curve, for me as well as the rest of the family.     

How a conference on George I and a trip to LA lit some more PhD sparks

James' paper, questions about Bath Corporation, linking my story to his, paper which took my research in another direction, more to think about,

Questions from the floor which made me consider the role of the GL family in relation to the city, links to the reasons for their demise….

Now that the dust has settled and I've had a holiday, its time to reflect on events at the end of term. There were two notable events, namely a Heritage trip to Los Angeles, and conference organised by the postgraduate team. The former was a last minute arrangement for me, and a delightful and fascinating opportunity. The latter was nine months in the planning, and I had the role of team leader in the organisational group (working along with the rest of the team, notably Georgie Moore and Rachel Smith)

Neither of the events were directly linked to my PhD research, but yet again, it seems that in academia, all routes lead to important thought processes, greater skills acquisition and opportunities for development. There is, it seems, no such thing as a wasted day…

The conference organisation was a brilliant learning curve, and Georgie and I both now feel able to tackle this sort of thing again. Our past experience in catering and organisational roles helped a great deal, it must be said, but added to this was the fact that (again) we work well together; its a complementary arrangement.

The Conference was arranged to coincide with the 300th anniversary of the succession of George I, and featured an international cast of scholars, each with their own unique slant on the events around the Hanoverian succession of 1714. Fellow PhD researchers James Camp and I presented papers, and the panel was chaired by Georgie Moore. Although the period was outside both James and my areas of work, our supervisors had encouraged us to explore beyond our comfort zones and to deliver papers in the relatively safe environment of our own conference. The experience proved extremely useful, and rewarding. I chose to reflect on the transition of the country house around the Georgian period, with Newton Park as a case study. I was able to use some of undergraduate archive student Adam King's research into the Langton's of Bristol. Adam carried out this research alongside his dissertation work, with visits to Bristol Record Office. His discoveries complemented and illuminated some of the documentary clues we have within BSU Archive itself, relating to the background of the Langton family at the time they purchased Newton Park in 1666, and their motivations in developing the estate in the 18th century.

James' paper provided a description of Bath's Royal patronage and aspects of the city's demonstration of loyalty to the crown. The questions which followed served to combine public and private demonstrations of wealth, influence and power at the time of the succession, and the ways these ideas were transmitted by the early Georgians in Bath itself. The whole experience made me reflect on Newton Park's role as an important establishment, and how it fitted into the life of Bath, then and now. This has led to a reconsidering of the way the college of the 20th century saw and used its own history. The corporate use of a historical landscape has changed over the years, but in essence it remains the same - history is used to enhance the present, in order to present a particular image; it creates or sustains a certain message to the rest of society.

The heritage trip to Los Angeles followed the next day, and provided the opportunity to carry these thoughts further, as a group from BSU were taken to a number of heritage sites, and attended discussion meetings with a range of arts management professionals. This all took place against the backdrop of the Claremont Colleges, just east of LA itself. Again, the use of the historical built environment to enhance the present was evident, and provided even more chances for reflection on this aspect of Newton Park's representations of itself. Mary Dawson, the college principal in the post war era, used these representations of longevity, solidity, tradition and heritage to inform her ideas of cultural reproduction and the making of a new generation of women. My reading has revealed that this balance of a solid background of tradition for a modern world was a strong thread in the immediate postwar era, before they grew into dichotomous ideas by the late 1950s and 1960s. I plan to explore this period and feeling as I believe its a clue to the ethos of the college in its founding years.

IHR Spring School: Advanced Oral History

I've just completed a three day advanced training school in Oral History at the IHR in London. 

On arrival on Thursday I was pleased to discover that it was being chaired and led by Graham Smith, the author of the booklet we encourage undergraduate helpers on the archive to read. He also wrote the guidance pages of the Oral History Society web pages; his writing on this topic has always struck me as clear, concise and extremely helpful, both to newcomers and to the experienced, as a useful background to the discipline of oral history.

The other members of the OHS team who lead the training course were Joanna Bornat, Jenny Harding  and Joel Morley. Each chaired a session or two during the course, providing their own individual take on topics like memory, emotions, secondary analysis, outcomes and impact, and many other aspects of the practice. 

Each delegate (there were around 20 of us) provided a detailed poster of their research areas and challenges, and during the course of the three days, we were invited to share aspects of our research areas and present the challenges at a round table discussion. Certain issues were common to several people, and others unique to the delegate's specific area. Shared issues included those of relevant analysis, practical problems around time and relevant data gathering, and how many respondents should be interviewed. My own challenge was presented first, which allowed me to test some ideas and develop my current thinking. 

It struck me that this chance to meet with and discuss topics alongside others engaged in similar work, was the most useful element of the three days. It also occurred to me how much I have grown in confidence over the last year or so. 

Last July, I attended the IHR Summer School, and although it was useful (see previous entry) I was quite reticent about speaking up and sharing ideas. This time, I felt on secure ground in my topic area and happy to explore the issues around my PhD without fear of being dismissed or feeling belittled. This was partly to do with an atmosphere of encouragement, but largely to do with how I feel myself.

Yes, I acknowledge that I know more now, and having carried out a literature review, feel broadly capable of discussing a number of areas with some level of experience, but it's more than that.

I feel much more able to engage with other academics and feel part of the conversation, knowing that I have something to add. 

I know this has come about through all my experience of study and university life over the past 6 years.  This morning, the delegates talked about their varied backgrounds, and how they became involved in oral history to begin with. As not everyone was involved in academia, the range was wide indeed. Those involved with university departments reported on how their own setting addresses the topic and discipline of oral history. It seems that BSU has begun (through history, heritage, Bobby, the Humanities at Work module, and myself - first as guinea pig, now as archivist) to develop a strong thread of oral history practice which can only be strengthened. The act of simply writing an outline of my involvement in the topic (for group discussion) made me realise just what has been achieved. I first learned about it as part of my first year Heritage module. During the second year core module we had one seminar which examined oral history, whereas this year I lectured the second years myself. I have contributed to module writing, teaching, lecturing and student's experience. The act of writing down my varied involvement was illuminating in itself.

The extra exposure of oral history to students means that several in each year use the skill as part of their dissertations, and a quick tot up of students tells me that over the past three or so years I've helped around a dozen undergraduates do this. 

It's been a good three days. Eye-opening, constructive, and very enlightening. And it's made me realise how far I've come.

Connections

My PhD has grown from the work I'm involved with at the BSU Archive, and there are days when the two things are so intertwined that I lose sight of the goals slightly.

However, there are other days when this is a great help. 

Here's an example: We have established contact with Anne, daughter of the College head gardener in the 1950s, and her good friend Bill, who is Mary Dawson's nephew. Bill used to spend holidays with his Aunt Alice (her full name was Alice Mary Dawson) 

The two have been friends since their childhood days in the 1950s, when they had the run of the Newton Park grounds. During the meeting we had a couple of weeks ago, they reminisced happily about playing in the ice house, boating on the lake and exploring together.

Beyond this initial meeting, both Anne and Bill have offered further help. Bill has family photographs and information about his aunt, the sight of which will allow me to build up a fuller picture of her in situations away from her professional life as College Principal. 

Anne, a former teacher herself, is a keen family historian with access to further sources through her own college. She attended the Froebel Education Institute in London, where Miss Dawson had links, and on her recommendation. The Institute had connections with Whitelands College (Miss Dawson's previous job had been as education tutor there.) Both were later incorporated into Roehampton University. 

True to her word, Anne has forwarded census data, birth certificates and teacher registration documents, using her Ancestry UK membership. In addition, she has made personal contact with the archivist at Roehampton; something I had tried last year to no avail. 

So getting in contact with these two people has proved enormously helpful already. Its exciting to speculate where their contributions will lead me next. 

 

Alice Mary Dawson and her family, on the 1911 Census
sent to me by Anne 

Catching the thoughts...

Through the tunnel
thoughts rush along, to one point of illumination which reveals a perfect thought, phrase, opening sentence, chapter heading or even, as once happened, a perfect paragraph - seen in clarity - such clarity that you could never imagine losing it.

Fail to catch it there and then, however, and it disappears like smoke.
On other days, the thought tunnel is clogged, fogged, duvet-filled and impossible to work through. Instead I begin to think about dinner preparations, whether I left the iron on, or what members of the family are doing.Thoughts drift...

Stringency, standards and the bigger picture

Recently I was given the opportunity to sit on a Periodic Review panel, as part of the university's wide-ranging quality assurance programme.

This took place over four intensive days, and featured a series of meetings and visits to review the academic provision of one particular school. Of the nine members of the panel, three had a direct connection with the field, and the rest of us were a range of other subjects and roles.

The chair and head of quality assurance impressed me through their professional, efficient and good-humoured approach to a very demanding programme. All meetings kept to time, and were highly focussed on the task in hand, namely, to assess the academic, practical and organisational provision of courses in the department. The end result, using the expertise of the whole panel, was a thoughtful analysis of the four days' investigation.

My perspective was that of a student of Bath Spa University, and drew on the past few years of my experience at this institution. This has included undergraduate and postgraduate work, and covers multi-site and cross-disciplinary study, as well as an appreciation of the needs of many ages and types of students.

The experience of working on the panel has been invaluable, as well as serving to contextualise my own work and knowledge. I've been able to reflect on my own practice, whether that includes studying, researching, mentoring or teaching, and to appreciate where this all fits into the bigger picture of university life as a whole.

Academics are often accused of working too much within their own fields; of 'silo' mentality. Working as I do across the spectrum of History and Heritage (I have a degree in each) this has been a frustration to me on several occasions, and I continue to include myself in both camps. I find this useful, as it widens my perspective in a number of ways. These four days on the panel have shown me more reasons why this introversion might occur, why it is difficult to change, and also why it should change. Academics have a lot to offer one another, not least the opportunity to reflect on excellent practice. We need to know what works, why, and how it could be even better.

Hiccups...

Its been a funny old week. 

Flashback to last Friday and another wet and windy evening.

And then, a text from my supervisor telling me that my application to register (the second hurdle of PhD life) had not been approved...

I was torn between tears, anger, bitterness and dejection, so after trying out all four emotions for size, I slept on it.

The next few days left a residue of those initial feelings, but gradually I've been able to look at the situation sensibly, and take the opportunity to evaluate where I am with all this at the moment.

Recently, whenever I've talked to people about my research, the emphasis shifts with each conversation. Far from convincing me that I simply had so much to talk about, (maybe those 80,000 words will come easily, I kidded myself...) I realised my ideas were still confused, unfocussed and needing a big kick up the bum, to be honest.

So having the application to register pushed back for amendments has been a blessing. Not only has it reminded me to be as stringent as I can at every stage, its also allowed me to shift my emphasis. A lightbulb has flashed on and I can see a way forwards. A few weeks ago I found a speech written by Mary Dawson in the 1950s, which puts into 5 pages of heartfelt prose, her whole ethos for what she set out to achieve at Newton Park College. It is the document I hoped to find, but didn't think I ever would. I now feel confident that there is a strong thread to follow, and that I can describe the postwar generation of women as one which, far from being hurled 'back' into domesticity, actually trained, worked, raised children and worked again successfully. In the terms of the society around them, they had knowledge that some of the battles of the previous generation of women had been 'won', and that progress would continue.

In all the research papers I've read so far, and in all the oral history interviews, there is little evidence of a feminist narrative. Reading around this, and also thinking about the women I grew up amongst, I can see this absence as a positive area to explore.

 So - I now have these as my research headings, and I think they make more sense and give more direction. 

1. Origins of Newton Park College & educational requirements of the postwar era

2. Mary Dawson’s role

3. Community, Place and Memory

4. Feminist tropes of the 1950s and 1960s – ‘agents for change and a battle fought?’ 

So, just a hiccup. And one that was well worth having!

British Library Doctoral Day

Last week, along with three other PhD colleagues, I went to the British Library for one of their 'Doctoral Days', a training and information event which the BL organises on a regular basis. Friday's event was specifically aimed at historians, and gave us all the chance to hear what is available, useful, provided and disseminated for our potential benefit.

The whole day (with minor exceptions) was very useful and interesting. A series of speakers gave us all an insight into what the BL holds, and samples were on display for us to see and discuss with the archivists. I was particularly struck with the East India Company records, which featured in a separate talk, and the rich sources they could provide. None of this is relevant to my research, however, but it demonstrated the breadth and diversity of the BL collection.

Later in the day the group split, and two options were possible. Given the choice between Medieval resources and 'Oral History at the BL', I naturally opted for the oral history. I know about the various 'Sounds' projects, however the best part was that the talk was given by Rob Perks, a name I'm very familiar with. He wrote several of the texts I read for my undergraduate dissertation, so hearing him was a real treat. Another name which features in the world of oral history is Paul Thompson, whose book 'Voice of the Past' is extremely important in the field.

The talk, and some of the information we were told, made me realise just how immersed in the field of Oral History I have become, and how much I've been able to pass on to other people in the time I've been involved. Later this month I'll be delivering a lecture on the subject to the second year core module students, and hopefully this 'talking out' of the subject will help me to clarify some more ideas. Writing the paper, and producing the presentation, have already started to do this. 

So, for this part of the day alone, it was worth the trip. It was also huge fun to spend the day with colleagues Georgie, James and Helen, and get to understand one another a little better. Being together from 5.30am until 10pm is certainly a bonding exercise. 

With the length of the day in mind, we discussed the practicalities of travelling for study. Its certainly an expensive and time consuming process, and we are all envious of those scholars who live in closer proximity to the hub of things in London. The IHR is here, as well as many other organisations who offer regular lectures, seminars and research opportunities, but the cost and time implications mean we have to choose what to attend very carefully. This time we were fortunate enough to receive a contribution towards travel from the BL's own bursary scheme, as other people already on the list failed to turn up (?!) 

Two other benefits of the day? The BL serves lovely homemade-type biscuits, and its fascinating to hear the range of PhD research which is being undertaken. From medieval tapestries to Second World War servicemen, analysis of personal letter collections to transport studies, the variety is astonishing. But the one which intrigued me the most was a study of 'local authority damp litigation'...Who knew?

A Bit of a Pause

Circumstances have conspired against me over the last month, and a death in the family, combined with Christmas, has meant that my mind has been elsewhere.

However, this doesn't mean that Newton Park and Miss Dawson haven't been in my mind. Far from it, as aspects of my research are always somewhere in my thinking. I have reflected before about chance conversations and their ability to spark new trains of thought, and the same things happen when one takes a step away from the daily graft. Time away gives space for research thinking, and so the recent break has allowed new thoughts in.

As well as time, I've had the opportunity to talk to a range of different people about my research, therefore 'talking out' some ideas. This is a great test of theories, as formulation of ideas happens as you speak. Yet another layer of thinking results when other people ask questions, and I've had to really think about ways to explain some of the concepts and why I think they're important.

An example of this came recently, when I gave a presentation on my research for the inaugural meeting of the BSU History Network. I opted for a powerpoint, with a script, although this is not my normal or preferred method of delivery. I think this is a good indication of my relatively muddled perspective at the moment (although whether this reflects my PhD stage or recent events, I'm not sure) Once I was talking, I gained confidence to go away from the script, and answering questions afterwards gave me the chance to talk more confidently about my studies.

Although the audience was not large (perhaps around 25) the most valuable aspect of the experience was the same opportunity to 'talk it out', and to really establish where my current thinking stands. I realise that I'm still not firm in theories of memory, or some of the feminist arguments.

These are the two areas I will focus on more firmly in the coming weeks, as well as beginning to write down some of my research, in an attempt to clarify ideas even more.