November brought shoulder injuries, fractured fingers, and medical appointments galore (fortunately, not for me). But, on a more positive note, the Christmas tree is up. It feels like the older the kids get, the earlier the tree goes up, which is very much the opposite of what I thought would happen! The kiddo and the (no-longer) teen overlapped for a few hours at home, which was lovely.
Research
This month I joined an online speed networking event for researchers working in the artificial intelligence space. I wasn’t sure what to expect and, to be honest, I was a bit worried that, being a social scientist, I would feel out of place. But I had no reason to worry: there were people from different disciplines and career stages. Afterwards, I followed up on a couple of leads, and somebody else reached out, inviting me to deliver a talk. So, overall, it was a good use of my time.
I also talked with an alumnus, who is working in the AI-assisted learning space, about a possible project; and with some colleagues about other ideas. I worked on data collection instruments for two projects. And I finished transcribing the interviews for another project.
For a change, this month I was also in the “research participant” role, as I was interviewed for a white paper on AI agents. In addition, I worked on two research proposals, and participated in a panel discussion about the role of digital literacy in preventing online violence against women and girls.
So, quite a varied month, on the research front.
Writing
I worked on two co-authored papers, which are now on said co-authors’ inboxes. Plus, I worked on one co-authored white paper, which is now being proof-read and should be out very soon.
Teaching
I had meetings with supervision students and academic advisees. Plus, I wrote a reference for a former student. I also applied for ethics clearance for a class activity for the module that I am teaching next semester. And I ran a training session for doctoral students on doing their annual developmental needs review.
On the other side of the coin, I attended a training session on Google Analytics. Even though I am not teaching marketing, at the moment, I thought that it was a good idea to do a refresher.
Service
I reviewed a paper and a grant application, plus acted as external examiner for another institution.
With some colleagues, I designed an ethics training session for colleagues that lead modules where undergraduate students work on research projects. Finally, I worked on some policy documents and FAQs, for the SeNSS Doctoral Training Partnership.
What did November 2025 have in store for you?
Ana Canhoto 
🙌🫶
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