In this episode, I chat with Niall Dempsey, a tutor with the Galway and Roscommon Education and Training Board (GRETB). Niall teaches adult literacy, ESOL, and Conversational Irish. As a wheelchair user, he is also researching the intersection of identity, masculinity, and disability. We discuss his experiences as a tutor working in a marginalised sector, the instability of employment in the adult education sector, as well as his perspective on belonging to a marginalised group himself.

Adult education tutors will relate to the challenges of navigating insecure work and finding purpose within a sector that offers limited recognition.

Niall is a passionate tutor and a natural storyteller. This is well worth a listen.

Ramblings of a Bockedy Man is the title of Niall’s MEd. Thesis (used with his permission). You can read his Thesis here:

https://mural.maynoothuniversity.ie/id/eprint/17699/1/MEd%20Thesis%2C%20Ramblings%20of%20a%20Bockedy%20Man%2C%20Niall%20Dempsey%2021252071.pdf

You can find Niall’s paper, ‘Conversations with Strangers’, here:

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02660830.2023.2262638#d1e165

I strongly recommend reading his paper. Niall tells a moving story that blends humour and sadness while exploring complex themes of disability, masculinity, and his experiences working as a tutor in a marginalised sector.