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• Grief crept up on me, unexpectedly: a story of Christmas Eve.
  by Paul Kleiman
  As a Jewish family, we don’t really do Christmas. Yes, we’ll gather together, have a big meal, play board games, and watch far too much television. … Continue reading “Grief crept up on me, unexpectedly: a story of Christmas Eve.”
• Lessons from the Garden
  by Paul Kleiman
  There’s a corner of our garden where I keep a number of pots and containers that have nothing in them except some earth or compost and … Continue reading “Lessons from the Garden”
• Separate grading from learning!
  by Paul Kleiman
  One of our engrooved or deep-seated beliefs in higher education is that grades are important because they motivate students to do the work. Take them away, … Continue reading “Separate grading from learning!”
• ‘See me. Feel me. Touch me.’
  by Paul Kleiman
  From virtual to visceral learning After I wrote a piece on inspiring learning through objects and artefacts, I began to think a bit more about what … Continue reading “‘See me. Feel me. Touch me.’”
• Revealing assessment through drawing
  by Paul Kleiman
  When leading workshops on assessment I often start with a ’warm-up’ exercise in which the participants, supplied with sheets of paper and plenty of coloured pens, … Continue reading “Revealing assessment through drawing”
• A brush, with silence and solitude
  by Paul Kleiman
  I really enjoy painting. Not the sort of thing one might frame and hang on a wall, but the actual walls one might hang them on. … Continue reading “A brush, with silence and solitude”
• Thinking, Making, Doing, Solving, Dreaming: reflections on completing a PhD thesis on creativity in higher education
  by Paul Kleiman
  Recently, I undertook a PhD viva as external examiner at the university department where I did my own PhD. The viva took place in a room … Continue reading “Thinking, Making, Doing, Solving, Dreaming: reflections on completing a PhD thesis on creativity in higher education”
• F-AI-L: forget about assessment?
  by Paul Kleiman
  You can’t move these days in Higher Education without reading about how AI has completely compromised most, if not all, the approaches to assessment that require … Continue reading “F-AI-L: forget about assessment?”
• Adventures in HE: time for a Skunk Works?
  by Paul Kleiman
  A few years ago, a UK university established a new initiative with funding from central government. The initiative was one of about 70 such initiatives across … Continue reading “Adventures in HE: time for a Skunk Works?”
• Assessment: paradigm shift required?
  by Paul Kleiman
  There has been a slew of recent journal articles, blogs, podcasts etc.  on the challenges posed by Generative AI in higher education and, particularly, the threat GenAI … Continue reading “Assessment: paradigm shift required?”
• Design for Learning: a case for detangling education?
  by Paul Kleiman
  Academics, eh? We may be great teachers. We may be great researchers. We may even be great managers and administrators. But that does not make us … Continue reading “Design for Learning: a case for detangling education?”
• Notes from the edge: piano lessons
  by Paul Kleiman
  I aim to play the piano most days, if I am near one. I work from home a great deal of the time, and I do a lot of writing. The work … Continue reading “Notes from the edge: piano lessons”
• ”It’s cheating Jim, but not as we know it”: the problematic arts of plagiarism
  by Paul Kleiman
  Recently, while the academic world attempts to negotiate its path through the minefield posed by Generative AI, I was looking at some university policies about academic … Continue reading “”It’s cheating Jim, but not as we know it”: the problematic arts of plagiarism”
• Telling Tales
  by Paul Kleiman
  I was once helping to run a ‘New to Teaching’ workshop for new/early career lecturers in languages and linguistics.  I was one of several presenters during the … Continue reading “Telling Tales”
• ‘Taking a Line for a Walk’: reflections on interviewing academics about creativity
  by Paul Kleiman
  “You just get this one idea, which might, at first, seem a bit daft. But something just holds you back from thinking it is completely daft. … Continue reading “‘Taking a Line for a Walk’: reflections on interviewing academics about creativity”
• When something(s) need to change…
  by Paul Kleiman
  When a higher education provider calls in a consultant, it’s usually because they want and need some thing or things to change. Usually, at least some … Continue reading “When something(s) need to change…”
• Beyond the Debatable Hills: is it curtains for the arts in education?
  by Paul Kleiman
  As yet another UK university announces major course closures and redundancies – mainly affecting arts and humanities – it’s worth being reminded that entries for A … Continue reading “Beyond the Debatable Hills: is it curtains for the arts in education?”
• Plus ça change: a taxonomy of pressures and hard times in higher education
  by Paul Kleiman
    12 years ago I came across and wrote a blog piece about Terran Lane, a tenured associate professor in the US, recently moved from academia … Continue reading “Plus ça change: a taxonomy of pressures and hard times in higher education”
• We’d never get away with it now!
  by Paul Kleiman
  6 problems and developing creative confidence in students  LIPA (Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts) welcomed its first students in 1996. In those early days, as a … Continue reading “We’d never get away with it now!”
• 2 Jews, 3 Arabs and 5 cups of tea
  by Paul Kleiman
  More years ago than I care to remember, five men sat around a hissing stove in a campsite outside Sofia in Bulgaria. It was 1969 and … Continue reading “2 Jews, 3 Arabs and 5 cups of tea”
• Performing assessment: are you an assessment Cavalier or Roundhead (or Innocent)?
  by Paul Kleiman
  There I am, sitting in my favourite balcony seat in the institute’s auditorium, pen in hand, notebook discreetly balanced on my knee, preparing to watch and … Continue reading “Performing assessment: are you an assessment Cavalier or Roundhead (or Innocent)?”
• The plagiarism (and plagiarised) iceberg
  by Paul Kleiman
  I once attended a conference on academic integrity. Full of academics and university managers all concerned about the rising tide of plagiarism, cheating and the exponential … Continue reading “The plagiarism (and plagiarised) iceberg”
• Higher Education, Creativity and the German Minister (+Coffee & Pastries)
  by Paul Kleiman
  Some years ago, before Brexit,  I happened to be standing and chatting to the then German Federal Minister for Education. We were in the (long) coffee … Continue reading “Higher Education, Creativity and the German Minister (+Coffee & Pastries)”
• A lesson from a flower
  by Paul Kleiman
  The morning after the announcement of Trump’s victory, I, like many though by no means all, sat rather despondently at my kitchen table listening to the … Continue reading “A lesson from a flower”
• On Creativity: is ‘might’ the answer…as well as the question?
  by Paul Kleiman
  The eminent, and now sadly departed, educationalist Dorothy Heathcote used to say that the most powerful word in education is the word ‘might’. Asking a student ‘what MIGHT … Continue reading “On Creativity: is ‘might’ the answer…as well as the question?”
• Zen and the Art of Curriculum Maintenance
  by Paul Kleiman
  Like many, I am fascinated by Japan and Japanese culture. That fascination, in my case, goes back a long way. My father used to do business … Continue reading “Zen and the Art of Curriculum Maintenance”
• Armed for a multitude of jobs
  by Paul Kleiman
  This blogpost is adapted from an article that first appeared in a special learning skills supplement of the Times Higher Education. Employers frequently bemoan graduates’ lack … Continue reading “Armed for a multitude of jobs”
• The Story of a Life
  by Paul Kleiman
  How well do we really know the life stories of our parents? Obviously most of us will know some details of their lives before they were … Continue reading “The Story of a Life”
• Reflection: schooldays, sitting quietly and making marks on paper
  by Paul Kleiman
  My first attempt at life drawing c. 1968 During a conversation about education with a colleague who is an eminent and well-respected professor of education, he … Continue reading “Reflection: schooldays, sitting quietly and making marks on paper”
• Beyond excellence…..towards wonder
  by Paul Kleiman
  In higher education (and in education generally) we obsess about excellence. So what does excellence mean? Going by the result of the debate on excellence at … Continue reading “Beyond excellence…..towards wonder”
• ‘Keep on the Grass’: changing the language of education
  by Paul Kleiman
  If you visit a National Trust property here in the UK, you will often see signs saying things like ׳Keep off the Grass’, ‘Don’t Touch This’, … Continue reading “‘Keep on the Grass’: changing the language of education”
• 👁
  by Paul Kleiman
  “A picture is worth a thousand words” is an old, careworn cliché but it still holds true….to an extent. What is undoubtedly true is that the … Continue reading “👁”
• “I am not a number!”: reassessing assessment
  by Paul Kleiman
  This is the full transcript (with slides) of my end-of-conference keynote address at the International Assessment in Higher Education (AHE) Conference held in Manchester, UK in … Continue reading ““I am not a number!”: reassessing assessment”
• Stumbling with Confidence: close encounters of the creative kind
  by Paul Kleiman
  (This is a full transcript of the talk given by Prof. Paul Kleiman at the University of the Arts London’s ‘Reward and Recognition Celebration’ event in … Continue reading “Stumbling with Confidence: close encounters of the creative kind”
• Staging Sustainability: Making Sense of Sustainability in HE Dance, Drama and Music
  by Paul Kleiman
  This book chapter was first published in P. Jones et al. (2010) Sustainability Education: policies, perspectives and practices. London: Earthscan Universities bear profound responsibilities to increase … Continue reading “Staging Sustainability: Making Sense of Sustainability in HE Dance, Drama and Music”
• Every menorah tells a story
  by Paul Kleiman
  This is one of our menorahs (more properly a chanukiah, a menorah has seven branches, but nearly everyone calls the eight branch version a menorah) ) … Continue reading “Every menorah tells a story”
• Not a story I usually tell: the Yorkshire Ripper and me
  by Paul Kleiman
  This is not a story I usually tell, but the news of Peter Sutcliffe’s death takes me back to 1979-80 when the police regarded me as … Continue reading “Not a story I usually tell: the Yorkshire Ripper and me”
• A stone for Rocky
  by Paul Kleiman
  On a visit to the cemetery and the kindness of strangers. Our story for Baby Loss Awareness Week. The cemetery where our baby son is buried … Continue reading “A stone for Rocky”
• Is it curtains for the arts, banished beyond the Debatable Hills?
  by Paul Kleiman
  After the UK government promised financial support to other sectors of the economy, and after intense pressure on the Culture Secretary Oliver “I won’t let you … Continue reading “Is it curtains for the arts, banished beyond the Debatable Hills?”
• Learning at the Edge of Covid Chaos
  by Paul Kleiman
  We live in a time of chaos, as rich in the potential for disaster as for new possibilities. Margaret Wheatley It is perhaps an understatement to … Continue reading “Learning at the Edge of Covid Chaos”
• It’s the same old story: Labour and Israel/Palestine
  by Paul Kleiman
  When Labour’s ‘antisemitism crisis’ erupted after Jeremy Corbyn’s election as leader of the party in 2015, Ken Loach, when interviewed on TV at the 2017  Labour … Continue reading “It’s the same old story: Labour and Israel/Palestine”
• On the loss of a child and the kindness of strangers
  by Paul Kleiman
  (This is an adaptation of a piece written for BBC Radio and first broadcast in 2000 as the Radio 4 Listeners’ Christmas Message. At the time … Continue reading “On the loss of a child and the kindness of strangers”
• Grief crept up on me on Christmas Eve….unexpectedly.
  by Paul Kleiman
  As a Jewish family, we don’t really do Christmas. Yes, we’ll gather together, have a big meal, play board games, and watch far too much television. … Continue reading “Grief crept up on me on Christmas Eve….unexpectedly.”
• Piecing it together: a life story.
  by Paul Kleiman
  (This article first appeared under the title ‘Truly a Life Story’ in Lifewide Magazine, Issue 21, December 2018 http://www.lifewideeducation.uk/magazine.html) How well do we know the life stories … Continue reading “Piecing it together: a life story.”
• Arts Education: banished beyond the Debatable Hills?
  by Paul Kleiman
  We have replaced wonder with tick-box excellence, and mystery with an impact case study. If you collect the many dozens of articles written in the last … Continue reading “Arts Education: banished beyond the Debatable Hills?”
• November
  by Paul Kleiman
  Only a lone crow breaks the chill silence sensing perhaps as autumn fades that winter’s wait is over its time has come.  
• Beyond Teaching Excellence
  by Paul Kleiman
  (On not filling and measuring the pail, but lighting the fire) [This is the transcript of a ‘provocation’ I presented at the joint conference of the … Continue reading “Beyond Teaching Excellence”
• Remembering Bill Mitchell
  by Paul Kleiman
  Tributes have been pouring in for Bill Mitchell the director, designer, theatre-maker and inspirational founder of the unique landscape theatre company Wildworks, who passed away on … Continue reading “Remembering Bill Mitchell”
• Assessment at the Edge 2: Clash of the Paradigms
  by Paul Kleiman
  (or Rumble in the Epistemological Jungle)  We operate, on the whole, within education systems that are based on a traditional linear, positivist, computational paradigm that has … Continue reading “Assessment at the Edge 2: Clash of the Paradigms”
• Assessment at the Edge 1: Faultlines
  by Paul Kleiman
  I know I’m not alone in feeling – increasingly as the years roll by – that all too often the way we assess is at odds … Continue reading “Assessment at the Edge 1: Faultlines”
• Predictive Texts
  by Paul Kleiman
  The full text of the opening ‘provocation’ presented at the Future of Performer Arts Training symposium, Coventry University, UK, 4-5 November 2016. This article first appeared … Continue reading “Predictive Texts”
• Nice, July 2016 and remembrance of things past
  by Paul Kleiman
  A Madeleine biscuit did it for Marcel Proust, and the horrific events in Nice did it for me. As soon as I heard the news and … Continue reading “Nice, July 2016 and remembrance of things past”
• The Story of D.
  by Paul Kleiman
  “Arts education is a seriously funny business. We demand that students conform to the formalities of the university and yet we secretly hope they will practise … Continue reading “The Story of D.”
• Among HE’s dark academic mills
  by Paul Kleiman
  A recent anonymous long diatribe in the Guardian Higher Education from a “semi-employed thirtysomething on a zero-hours contract, sitting at home in pyjamas, staring at a … Continue reading “Among HE’s dark academic mills”
• ‘Hitler was a Zionist’. Really?
  by Paul Kleiman
  The suspensions of Ken Livingstone and Naz Shah has brought the bubbling issue of antisemitism in the Labour Party to the boil. There seems to be general agreement … Continue reading “‘Hitler was a Zionist’. Really?”
• On the IFS ‘let’s bash HE creative arts’ report on graduate earnings
  by Paul Kleiman
  Reading through the just published and much anticipated Institute for Fiscal Studies’ report on graduate earnings http://www.ifs.org.uk/publi cations/8233  it is almost as if the authors have taken their … Continue reading “On the IFS ‘let’s bash HE creative arts’ report on graduate earnings”
• ‘See me. Feel me. Touch me.’ (Pt. 1)
  by Paul Kleiman
  Object lessons and reflections on the HEA Arts & Humanities conference 2016 Early March. Brighton is an alluring place, despite the chill in the air.  The … Continue reading “‘See me. Feel me. Touch me.’ (Pt. 1)”
• On the loss of a child and the kindness of strangers
  by Paul Kleiman
  Twenty nine years ago, on a bright, blue, cold winter’s morning, I walked out of the maternity hospital in the city where we live, and headed … Continue reading “On the loss of a child and the kindness of strangers”
• Arts Education: banished beyond the Debatable Hills?
  by Paul Kleiman
  We have replaced wonder with tick-box excellence, and mystery with an impact case study. If you collect the many dozens of articles written in the last … Continue reading “Arts Education: banished beyond the Debatable Hills?”
• The death of a baby, the kindness of strangers, and a seasonal message
  by Paul Kleiman
  As the year ends and as families gather together to celebrate, amidst the good cheer and good will there is often sadness and grief at the … Continue reading “The death of a baby, the kindness of strangers, and a seasonal message”
• On the Eight Days of Chanukah….
  by Paul Kleiman
  Over the years we’ve acquired a small collection of menorahs (properly called a hannukiah): family heirlooms, gifts, and a couple we’ve bought. It’s become a family … Continue reading “On the Eight Days of Chanukah….”
• Higher Education and the Myth of the Level Playing Field
  by Paul Kleiman
  For as long as I can remember, the idea that the many and diverse higher education institutions in the UK are playing, and must continue to … Continue reading “Higher Education and the Myth of the Level Playing Field”
• The Emperor’s Folderol or Tales of the TEF
  by Paul Kleiman
  (with apologies to Hans Christian Andersen, adapted from the translation by Jean Hersholt.) Many years ago there was an Emperor so exceedingly fond of excellence in … Continue reading “The Emperor’s Folderol or Tales of the TEF”
• Dialogues of the TEF: considering teaching excellence
  by Paul Kleiman
  Amongst the plethora of analyses, critiques, diatribes etc. concerning the recent HE Green Paper, and particularly the introduction of the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF), it’s worth … Continue reading “Dialogues of the TEF: considering teaching excellence”
• Autumn fades (1st November)
  by Paul Kleiman
  Only a lone crow breaks the chill silence sensing perhaps as autumn fades that winter’s wait is over its time has come. Photo & poem © … Continue reading “Autumn fades (1st November)”
• No, you started it (a brief and incomplete history)
  by Paul Kleiman
  No No No, you No, you No, you start No, you start No, you started it No, you started it No, you started it by…. No, … Continue reading “No, you started it (a brief and incomplete history)”
• Family photos (1948)
  by Paul Kleiman
  When my mother, Shirley, died aged 86, we knew that she had kept a detailed page-a-day diary from the age of 16 until the day before … Continue reading “Family photos (1948)”
• Selma Connections: A King, a Rabbi and a Caution
  by Paul Kleiman
         Like many, I’ve been watching the commemorations and celebrations of the 50 years since the momentous ‘Bloody Sunday’ on 7 March 1965 in … Continue reading “Selma Connections: A King, a Rabbi and a Caution”
• ‘The war is now nearly over…’ (remembrance of things past)
  by Paul Kleiman
  As we commemorate 70 years since the liberation of Auschwitz and, no doubt, in a few months time, the end of WW2, my mother’s journals and … Continue reading “‘The war is now nearly over…’ (remembrance of things past)”
• ASSIMILATIONISM VS MULTICULTURALISM…and the failure of both.
  by Paul Kleiman
  Originally posted on Pandaemonium:
  One of the key debates in European social policy has been that between multiculturalism and assimilationism. French ‘assimilationist’ policies are generally seen…
• Anthem for Doomed Academics
  by Paul Kleiman
  (This has been written as the momentous results of the Research Excellence Framework, known to all and sundry as the dreaded REF, are about to be … Continue reading “Anthem for Doomed Academics”
• A response to the Secretary of State for Education
  by Paul Kleiman
  Nicky Morgan MP, recently called on students to avoid studying the arts and humanities,  and to focus on science and maths. Here is my response:
• Don’t (always) throw away the script!
  by Paul Kleiman
  This week, Oct 9th – 15th 2014, marked Baby Loss Awareness week. On the 15th I went to see, and participate in the post-show discussion of … Continue reading “Don’t (always) throw away the script!”
• Jerusalem: City of Mixed Blessings
  by Paul Kleiman
  Due to the way their respective religious calendars work, important Jewish and Islamic festivals occasionally coincide. For example, in 2014 while Jews around the world observed … Continue reading “Jerusalem: City of Mixed Blessings”
• On beauty and elegance in education
  by Paul Kleiman
  In his book ‘Fearful Symmetry: the search for beauty in modern physics’, Anthony Zee describes how Einstein displayed a supreme disinterest in any proposed formula or … Continue reading “On beauty and elegance in education”
• Eccentricity, conformity and arts education
  by Paul Kleiman
  Some years ago I happened to be standing and chatting to the then German Federal Minister for Education. We were in the (long) coffee queue during … Continue reading “Eccentricity, conformity and arts education”
• From out of the educational wilderness…towards what?
  by Paul Kleiman
  Two things became clear to me this week, both connected with education. The first, I suspect, has been clear to many for quite some time, so … Continue reading “From out of the educational wilderness…towards what?”
• A kindness that repairs the world
  by Paul Kleiman
  Kindness, whether one follows a particular faith or creed or not, is regarded as an essential human virtue, and acts of kindness  – whether large or … Continue reading “A kindness that repairs the world”
• On history and all that (Part 2): a marvellous lesson
  by Paul Kleiman
  I was once privileged to witness the most marvellous history lesson…taught by a drama teacher. It was in a comprehensive school. The students, a mixed class … Continue reading “On history and all that (Part 2): a marvellous lesson”
• On history and all that (Part 1): my deal with history
  by Paul Kleiman
  There’s been much sound and fury recently about the teaching of history in schools, prompted by the pronouncements and interventions of Michael Gove, the Secretary of … Continue reading “On history and all that (Part 1): my deal with history”
• The Elixir of Wonder
  by Paul Kleiman
  Yesterday I spent the morning discussing future strategies and scenarios in higher education. What struck me was that over the course of three hours the words … Continue reading “The Elixir of Wonder”
• Sad, strange days…of comfort but little joy.
  by Paul Kleiman
  A few weeks ago we were standing by the luggage carousel at Malaga Airport waiting for our cases to arrive. Next to us, also waiting, were … Continue reading “Sad, strange days…of comfort but little joy.”
• Musings on a ‘monsterous’ conference call
  by Paul Kleiman
  Something more near Though deeper within darkness Is entering the loneliness. . . (Ted Hughes, “The Thought-Fox”)   In the wake of the recent announcement and … Continue reading “Musings on a ‘monsterous’ conference call”
• Forget Excellence…we need wonder!
  by Paul Kleiman
  Paul Kleiman (First published in the Higher Education Academy’s EXCHANGE MAGAZINE, Issue 7, 2008) Excellence! Everyone is writing, talking, researching, obsessing about it. But what is … Continue reading “Forget Excellence…we need wonder!”
• Where have all the conkerors gone?
  by Paul Kleiman
  There are several large horse chestnut ‘conker’ trees near our house. When we first moved on to the street, thirty years ago, and at this time … Continue reading “Where have all the conkerors gone?”
• Why is it so damn hard to get rid of books?
  by Paul Kleiman
    There it sits in the middle of our hallway, awaiting departure to the local charity bookshop. A box full of books. Behind the picture is … Continue reading “Why is it so damn hard to get rid of books?”
• Straight to the Core: Gove, the Arts and the Core Curriculum
  by Paul Kleiman
  Nelson Mandela said that “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world”, which is why politicians can’t help but meddle. … Continue reading “Straight to the Core: Gove, the Arts and the Core Curriculum”
• Why I’m stumbling with confidence
  by Paul Kleiman
  A few people have asked me why this blog is called ‘Stumbling with Confidence’? The phrase stems originally from my research into university teachers’ conceptions and … Continue reading “Why I’m stumbling with confidence”