Journal Club - Session 2

In this Journal Club, we will be reviewing the following paper:

Blair (2020) Chapter 1, ‘Opening the Beetle box’. Teaching in Higher Education

Article Summary

In the chapter, ‘Opening the Beetle Box’, Blair challenges us to look beneath the surface of academic teaching and examine the often unspoken beliefs and assumptions that shape our practices. Using Wittgenstein’s metaphor of the “beetle in the box,” Blair explores the idea that while we might use the same language in teaching (words like “engagement,” “understanding,” or “feedback”), we may mean quite different things by them, based on our own experiences and perspectives.

Blair encourages educators to engage in reflective dialogue and resist the temptation to see teaching practices as universally understood. Instead, we are invited to embrace complexity, ambiguity and difference as productive features of the academic learning environment.

Discussion prompts

When writing your forum post this week, consider the following reflective prompts:

• Blair uses the metaphor of the "beetle in the box" to highlight how private, internal experiences influence our understanding of teaching concepts. What’s one word or concept in your teaching practice that you’ve realised might mean something quite different to someone else?

• Can you think of a time when a conversation with a colleague or student revealed a surprising difference in understanding or expectation?

• How does Blair’s challenge to uncover hidden assumptions connect with your own experience in clinical education?

• In what ways can staying open to others’ “beetles” help you become a more responsive and inclusive educator?

Feel free to share a personal story, an insight the chapter provoked, or a question you’re now asking yourself as a result of the reading.

Interacting with others

Once you’ve posted your reflection, engage with your peers by responding to their posts. Here are some ways you might do that:

• Highlight something that shifted your perspective or resonated with your own experience.

• Ask a clarifying or deepening question, such as “How did you come to realise that?” or “How do you navigate that difference in practice?”

• Offer an example from your own context that builds on their reflection.

• Recommend a relevant reading, framework, or teaching strategy that connects to their insight.

Blair reminds us that teaching in higher education isn’t about mastering a single right way - it’s about understanding and respecting the diversity of perspectives that exist, both within ourselves and among our students and colleagues.

This week is an invitation to step into the discomfort of uncertainty, explore your own assumptions and begin the process of “opening your own beetle box.”

We look forward to reading your reflections!