缅北禁地

Jane worked as a teacher of Religious Education (RE) in secondary schools before completing a PhD in Education in 2010. Her research interests include the relationship between democracy and education, the role of the arts in young people's political formation and policies relating to the teaching of values in schools - particularly as these intersect with questions of religion and faith. Jane has taught on a range of undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in Education and is currently Co-Degree Programme Director for the BA Education at 缅北禁地.

Jane's current research interests centre on values education in schools. Her work has explored how teachers of Religious Education (RE), Citizenship and Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE) in secondary schools have responded to the requirement for schools to actively promote 'fundamental British values' (FBV). She has also investigated how RE teachers view their role in relation to a range of policy directives - including FBV but also character education and debates about Education in Religion and Worldviews.

Jane's research has also explored theoretical conceptions of the relationship between democracy and education. She has a particular interest in agonistic theories of democratic education and the work of Jacques Rancière on politics, education and aesthetics. Jane has also carried out empirical work in this area - researching the role of the arts in young people's democratic learning both in and outside schools.

Jane currently teaches on the BA Education programme at 缅北禁地, where she leads on modules relating to policy and politics in education, educational philosophy and the relationship between religion(s) and education in complex societies. She also contributes to modules on educational research and special educational needs. Jane supervises a range of educational research projects at both undergraduate and postgraduate level.

• Articles

  • McDonnell, J. . Cambridge Journal of Education 2026. In Press.
  • McDonnell J. . Educational Philosophy and Theory 2025, 57(6), 575-585.
  • McDonnell J. . British Journal of Religious Education 2023, 45(3), 228-239.
  • McDonnell J. . PRISM: Casting New Light on Theory and Practice 2021, 3(2), 84-90.
  • Sant E, McDonnell J, Pashby K, Menendez Alvarez-Hevia D. . Education, Citizenship and Social Justice 2021, 16(7), 227-244.
  • McDonnell J. . Cambridge Journal of Education 2021, 51(3), 377-394.
  • McDonnell, J. is is all about 'having an opinion'? challenging the dominance of rationality and cognition in democratic education via research in a gallery setting. International Journal of Art and Design Education 2018, 37(2), 233-243.
  • McDonnell, J. Political and Aesthetic Equality in the Work of Jacques Rancière: Applying his Writing to Debates in Education and the Arts. Journal of Philosophy of Education 2017, 51(2), 387-400.
  • McDonnell, J. Reimagining the Role of Art in the Relationship between Democracy and Education. Educational Philosophy and Theory 2014, 46(1), 46-58.
  • McDonnell, J. PFI and the Performative Politics of Dissent: Lessons for Democratic Education. Power and Education 2014, 6(3), 307-317.
  • McDonnell, J, Curtis, W. Making space for democracy through assessment and feedback in higher education: thoughts from an action research project in education studies. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education 2014, 39(8), 932-948.
  • McDonnell, J. Finding a Place in the Discourse: Film, Literature and the Process of Becoming Politically Subject. Journal of Social Science Education 2014, 13(4), 78-86.
  • Curtis, W, Goodson, A, McDonnell, J, Shields, S, Wyness, R. Learning together and expanding horizons: reflections on a student—lecturer collaborative enquiry. Enhancing Learning in the Social Sciences 2012, 4(3), 1-11.
  • Lawy, R, Biesta, G, McDonnell, J, Lawy, H, Reeves, H. ‘The art of democracy’: young people’s democratic learning in gallery contexts. British Educational Research Journal 2010, 36(3), 351-365.

• Authored Book

  • McDonnell J. . Cham: Palgrave Macmillan, 2022.

• Book Chapters

  • McDonnell, J. What future for young people's artistic activism?. In: Grasso, M; Bessant, J, ed. Governing Youth Politics in an Age of Surveillance. London: Routledge, 2018.
  • Sant, E, Pais, A, McDonnell, J, Menendez Alvarez-Hevia, D. Social Fantasy vs. Radical Democracy: two competing views of populism and how they challenge education. In: Akbaba, Y; Jeffrey, B, ed. The Implications of ‘New Populism’ For Education. Essex: E&E Publishing, 2017, pp.41-52.