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Dr. Merv Lebor

Leeds City College, Higher Education, Faculty Member

University of Huddersfield, School of Education, Adjunct

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I am a writer and lecturer who has been teaching in Further and Higher Education for over 35 years, working with students from Entry up to Master’s level.

I have written over 40 articles in the Times Education Supplement, Education Guardian and various journals on many issues concerning the Humanities and education, but particularly now exploring issues around disruptive students in the post-school education and training sector, including 6 peer-reviewed journal articles on this subject.

I am currently involved in a joint Behaviour Management research project with the University of Huddersfield, exploring the ways in which trainee teachers within the University’s Consortium In- and Pre-Service teacher education provision might be best prepared to address behaviour management issues effectively in the classroom.

I am also writing a book for a major publisher exploring these issues.

I work at The University Centre, Leeds City College. Please contact me at Mervyn.lebor@leedscitycollege.ac.uk

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Papers by Dr. Merv Lebor

Some approaches to mental health problems

Teaching Resistant Learners in Post-School Education, Jun 9, 2022

What do theorists say?

Teaching Resistant Learners in Post-School Education

Differences between the sectors

Teaching Resistant Learners in Post-School Education

Reflecting back on what's gone wrong …

Teaching Resistant Learners in Post-School Education

Teaching Resistant Learners in Post-School Education

The problematic nature of working in the digital world

Teaching Resistant Learners in Post-School Education

So what are learning and teaching?

Teaching Resistant Learners in Post-School Education

Teaching Resistant Learners in Post-School Education

Creativity counts

Teaching Resistant Learners in Post-School Education

One Foot Two Feet by Peter Maloney Felicia Zekauskas Counting Numbers

Penguin Young Readers Group, May 12, 2011

The Fear of Being Assessed: An Auto-Ethnographic Case Study on Attempts to Engage and Motivate an Individual Disaffected Access Student

Teaching in lifelong learning: a journal to inform and improve practice, 2015

What Did Disruptive Students Say They Wanted From Their Classes? A Survey of Student Voices

Teaching in lifelong learning: a journal to inform and improve practice, 2015

So what do managers say about classroom management?

Journal of Further and Higher Education, 2015

ABSTRACT The context of this article was that, after researching issues of classroom management f... more ABSTRACT The context of this article was that, after researching issues of classroom management for a number of years, I was asked by managers at different institutions to speak to their staff about strategies for helping to counteract the problems tutors faced in many classes on a day-to-day basis. The question that emerged was how might managers in the lifelong learning sector support tutors in dealing with these stressful situations. The methodology of this inquiry was to offer qualitative practitioner research which would suggest some recommendations to improve practice on how managers might support teachers in these circumstances. The research methods would aim to determine managers’ perspectives, using a survey to identify a sample of their views. This would lead to two focus groups with managers, opening up a more exploratory discussion, followed by an in-depth interview with an experienced, particularly supportive manager, working with challenging classes. The purpose of this interview was to review a range of strategies that might be used to help managers support staff and students create more effective learning environments. The next stage was to subject managers’ suggestions to the views of teachers. The findings from this research showed there were widespread problems in many classes where this research took place. Managers offered a range of localised and wider strategies for supporting teachers in these challenging situations. Offering whole institution approaches, training on interventions and opening spaces for tutors and managers to explore these issues in a blame-free environment were some of the recommendations. The tutors surveyed welcomed these suggestions.

Class Wars: Initial Steps Into The Fray

Teaching in Lifelong Learning a journal to inform and improve practice, 2013

War Stories; How Experienced Teachers Said They Responded To Disruptive Students In The Lifelong Learning Sector

Teaching in Lifelong Learning: a journal to inform and improve practice, 2014

War and peace in the classroom: moments of reprieve; a strategy for reflecting on – and improving – students’ classroom behaviour

Teaching in lifelong learning: a journal to inform and improve practice, 2013

Researching What Teacher Educators and Trainee Teachers Say About British Values: Qualitative Practitioner Research, Exploring Teachers’ Views

The context of this paper was that there is a tension between UK Government requirements that tea... more The context of this paper was that there is a tension between UK Government requirements that teachers should include British Values into teaching classes in schools and colleges and the attitudes of teachers who were reported to have ambiguous or possibly negative attitudes towards this issue. The researcher was asked by management to explore how teacher educators and trainees embed British Values (BVS) into their teaching. The objectives were: to explore what teacher educators and trainees said about embedding British Values into their classes and to make recommendations about how British Values could be embedded into classroom teaching. A series of questions were formulated in order to explore this issue and then teacher educators were interviewed on their perspectives. A questionnaire was circulated in training classes and a focus group set up. The researcher then began to expand the enquiry to examine a range of recommendations of how to embed BVS with three managers in a speci...

Reflections on the Language of Disruption, Learning and Conflict

Classroom Behaviour Management in Further, Adult and Vocational Education

Classroom Behaviour Management in the Post-School Sector

Classroom Behaviour Management in the Post-School Sector

So what do managers say about classroom management?

The context of this article was that, after researching issues of classroom management for a numb... more The context of this article was that, after researching issues of classroom management for a number of years, I was asked by managers at different institutions to speak to their staff about strategies for helping to counteract the problems tutors faced in many classes on a day-to-day basis. The question that emerged was how might managers in the lifelong learning sector support tutors in dealing with these stressful situations. The methodology of this inquiry was to offer qualitative practitioner research which would suggest some recommendations to improve practice on how managers might support teachers in these circumstances. The research methods would aim to determine managers’ perspectives, using a survey to identify a sample of their views. This would lead to two focus groups with managers, opening up a more exploratory discussion, followed by an in-depth interview with an experienced, particularly supportive manager, working with challenging classes. The purpose of this interview was to review a range of strategies that might be used to help managers support staff and students create more effective learning environments. The next stage was to subject managers’ suggestions to the views of teachers. The findings from this research showed there were widespread problems in many classes where this research took place. Managers offered a range of localised and wider strategies for supporting teachers in these challenging situations. Offering whole institution approaches, training on interventions and opening spaces for tutors and managers to explore these issues in a blame-free environment were some of the recommendations. The tutors surveyed welcomed these suggestions.

Some approaches to mental health problems

Teaching Resistant Learners in Post-School Education, Jun 9, 2022

What do theorists say?

Teaching Resistant Learners in Post-School Education

Differences between the sectors

Teaching Resistant Learners in Post-School Education

Reflecting back on what's gone wrong …

Teaching Resistant Learners in Post-School Education

Teaching Resistant Learners in Post-School Education

The problematic nature of working in the digital world

Teaching Resistant Learners in Post-School Education

So what are learning and teaching?

Teaching Resistant Learners in Post-School Education

Teaching Resistant Learners in Post-School Education

Creativity counts

Teaching Resistant Learners in Post-School Education

One Foot Two Feet by Peter Maloney Felicia Zekauskas Counting Numbers

Penguin Young Readers Group, May 12, 2011

The Fear of Being Assessed: An Auto-Ethnographic Case Study on Attempts to Engage and Motivate an Individual Disaffected Access Student

Teaching in lifelong learning: a journal to inform and improve practice, 2015

What Did Disruptive Students Say They Wanted From Their Classes? A Survey of Student Voices

Teaching in lifelong learning: a journal to inform and improve practice, 2015

So what do managers say about classroom management?

Journal of Further and Higher Education, 2015

ABSTRACT The context of this article was that, after researching issues of classroom management f... more ABSTRACT The context of this article was that, after researching issues of classroom management for a number of years, I was asked by managers at different institutions to speak to their staff about strategies for helping to counteract the problems tutors faced in many classes on a day-to-day basis. The question that emerged was how might managers in the lifelong learning sector support tutors in dealing with these stressful situations. The methodology of this inquiry was to offer qualitative practitioner research which would suggest some recommendations to improve practice on how managers might support teachers in these circumstances. The research methods would aim to determine managers’ perspectives, using a survey to identify a sample of their views. This would lead to two focus groups with managers, opening up a more exploratory discussion, followed by an in-depth interview with an experienced, particularly supportive manager, working with challenging classes. The purpose of this interview was to review a range of strategies that might be used to help managers support staff and students create more effective learning environments. The next stage was to subject managers’ suggestions to the views of teachers. The findings from this research showed there were widespread problems in many classes where this research took place. Managers offered a range of localised and wider strategies for supporting teachers in these challenging situations. Offering whole institution approaches, training on interventions and opening spaces for tutors and managers to explore these issues in a blame-free environment were some of the recommendations. The tutors surveyed welcomed these suggestions.

Class Wars: Initial Steps Into The Fray

Teaching in Lifelong Learning a journal to inform and improve practice, 2013

War Stories; How Experienced Teachers Said They Responded To Disruptive Students In The Lifelong Learning Sector

Teaching in Lifelong Learning: a journal to inform and improve practice, 2014

War and peace in the classroom: moments of reprieve; a strategy for reflecting on – and improving – students’ classroom behaviour

Teaching in lifelong learning: a journal to inform and improve practice, 2013

Researching What Teacher Educators and Trainee Teachers Say About British Values: Qualitative Practitioner Research, Exploring Teachers’ Views

The context of this paper was that there is a tension between UK Government requirements that tea... more The context of this paper was that there is a tension between UK Government requirements that teachers should include British Values into teaching classes in schools and colleges and the attitudes of teachers who were reported to have ambiguous or possibly negative attitudes towards this issue. The researcher was asked by management to explore how teacher educators and trainees embed British Values (BVS) into their teaching. The objectives were: to explore what teacher educators and trainees said about embedding British Values into their classes and to make recommendations about how British Values could be embedded into classroom teaching. A series of questions were formulated in order to explore this issue and then teacher educators were interviewed on their perspectives. A questionnaire was circulated in training classes and a focus group set up. The researcher then began to expand the enquiry to examine a range of recommendations of how to embed BVS with three managers in a speci...

Reflections on the Language of Disruption, Learning and Conflict

Classroom Behaviour Management in Further, Adult and Vocational Education

Classroom Behaviour Management in the Post-School Sector

Classroom Behaviour Management in the Post-School Sector

So what do managers say about classroom management?

The context of this article was that, after researching issues of classroom management for a numb... more The context of this article was that, after researching issues of classroom management for a number of years, I was asked by managers at different institutions to speak to their staff about strategies for helping to counteract the problems tutors faced in many classes on a day-to-day basis. The question that emerged was how might managers in the lifelong learning sector support tutors in dealing with these stressful situations. The methodology of this inquiry was to offer qualitative practitioner research which would suggest some recommendations to improve practice on how managers might support teachers in these circumstances. The research methods would aim to determine managers’ perspectives, using a survey to identify a sample of their views. This would lead to two focus groups with managers, opening up a more exploratory discussion, followed by an in-depth interview with an experienced, particularly supportive manager, working with challenging classes. The purpose of this interview was to review a range of strategies that might be used to help managers support staff and students create more effective learning environments. The next stage was to subject managers’ suggestions to the views of teachers. The findings from this research showed there were widespread problems in many classes where this research took place. Managers offered a range of localised and wider strategies for supporting teachers in these challenging situations. Offering whole institution approaches, training on interventions and opening spaces for tutors and managers to explore these issues in a blame-free environment were some of the recommendations. The tutors surveyed welcomed these suggestions.

The Guardian: Liberal application

The Guardian: One strike and you're out

TES: Biographical floodgates

TES: Model Arrangements

TES: Free, of a kind

TES: The whigs are off

TES: Overload of exams must go

TES: You can't ignore Iago - and he won't go away

TES: Writers' block

TES: The language of confusion

Subverting the orthodox; an exploration of Cynthia Ozick's 'The Pagan Rabbi'

Contributing Author: Jewish Writers of the Twentieth Century, edited by Sorrel Kerbel (Routledge)