The 'Hidden Curriculum' and its impact on working-class students

Is there a 'hidden curriculum' which is working against working-class students? Dr. Neil Speirs, a Widening Participation manager, practitioner and researcher at The University of Edinburgh, introduces the concept of the hidden curriculum, how we may be complicit in it, and what we can do about it. His call to action is compelling, inspiring, and maybe most importantly, actionable for anyone in the university environment, making this an essential listen for teachers and learners everywhere. This episode accompanies our July-August 'Hot Topic': “Lessons from the Learning and Teaching Conference 2021“. Timestamps:  2:02 - Episode specific introduction and Neil on the role of hidden subtexts and habitus on the university experience 8:30 - Neil on education being inherently political, Paulo Friere, and the role of doxa and illusio in the hidden curriculum  16:10 - Neil on how we can individually address the injustice of the hidden curriculum, and the Freirean notion of conscientization 22:08 - Neil on his personal experiences with working-class students and episode conclusions