DOMUS is a collaborative cluster of historians in the School of Education who work on the social, political and cultural histories of schooling, education and childhood. DOMUS, the Latin term for home, aims to develop a new historiography around educational ideas, actors, practices and outcomes. We are committed to interdisciplinary collaboration and to the shared production and application of historical knowledge in the fields of international education and development; peace and humanitarianism; heritage education; educational progressivism.
Contact us
domus-enquiries@contacts.bham.ac.uk
History
DOMUS emerged as a centre for research in 2000 out of a shared interest in the heterogeneity, coherence and direction of the field of historical inquiry in education; the radical shifts in the structures, discourses and sites of education in the late 20thC /early 21st C; and the projection into new spaces and purposes of learning (cross national governance, virtual learning, commercial education services, lifelong learning). These shared interests were complemented by a desire to seek collaboration with other disciplines or specialist areas of study. Members published, presented and made national and international project applications both as independent scholars and in collaborative partnerships. The research centre established links with leading academics in the UK, Europe, USA, Australia, and Central and Latin America. In 2005 the activities of DOMUS were reviewed and the social, political and cultural history of childhood was added to its focus on the histories of education and schooling. The desire for collaboration and the commitment to interdisciplinary enquiries that challenge and explore boundaries of knowledge and ways of seeing remained central to the activities of DOMUS. Over time, the membership of DOMUS changed as colleagues moved institutions or retired and consequently the profile changed from being a research centre to a small research group with activities largely centred on collaborative writing, support for early career researchers and an annual seminar programme.