The School of Education - University of Birmingham

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Snapshots of research excellence With a number of individual researchers and two dedicated research centres, the Department of Disability, Inclusion and Special Needs actively contributes to research in the School of Education. Dr Paul Lynch Literacy for all: developing literacy through touch in the classroom This is a study promoting and tracking over one year the development of braille literacy skills of a group of primary school children who are blind in Malawi. Paul Lynch and colleagues from the Visual Impairment Centre for Teaching and Research continue their work in Southern Africa, to improve the education of children with visual impairment and the training of teachers, funded by Sightsavers. Dr Liz Hodges, Dr Liz Ellis and Dr Anna McGee The experiences of diagnosis for people with Usher syndrome Usher syndrome affects people who are deaf and then lose their vision later in life. This obviously has a significant effect on their experience of life and a need for a different outlook on opportunities and experiences. It is one of the most significant causes of deaf blindness in the UK. The aim of this project, which is funded by the deaf blind charity Sense, is to find out what people who have Usher syndrome think about their own lives, their response to change and the support they get. 20 SCHOOL OF EDUCATION | BRINGING VISION AND VALUES TO LIFE Dr Graeme Douglas Young people with visual impairment – what should they be taught to prepare them for life after school This is a longitudinal study of 80 young people people who are blind or partially sighted. Graeme Douglas and colleagues from the Visual Impairment Centre for Teaching and Research are tracking the progress of these young people as they complete compulsory education and take the next steps in their lives, funded by the Nuffield Foundation. Professor Gary Thomas Changing Our Landscape of Inquiry for a New Science of Education In a recent article, published in the world-leading Harvard Educational Review, Professor Gary Thomas argues that attempts to introduce an assortment of accepted scientific principles into educational research can lead to misunderstandings. Science, he says, ‘flexes to any angle to answer the questions posed in any field, and there is no “correct” scientific method’. The questions to be answered in education are located in the everyday practice of teachers and we have to find ways of answering these questions rather than trying to impose methods devised in other fields and with other kinds of questions in mind. Gary Thomas suggests that we now need a new type of science: education science, which is based on an approach which includes those directly involved in the practices of education in the research process.
School of Education student wins Award at the 2012 Research Poster Conference Nadia Siddiqui, a current PhD student in the School of Education won the award with the poster title: Pakistani women’s magazines as ‘Mental Chocolate’. Nadia comments: “Developing one poster out of 80,000 words of thesis was an interesting challenge. I thought of presenting the poster as my one and only chance to tell the general public what I have found in these three years of doing research. Obviously there was so much to tell, but the intention was to use the best of space and time for the most interesting bits in my work. I would say that this activity has made me think simply and clearly so that I can display the most relevant findings of my research project. I also want to add that my supervisor, Professor Stephen Gorard, has also given me very good feedback to improve the quality of the poster. Winning an award is a memorable experience. I feel that it has given me a lot of confidence to speak about my work. I can now add this achievement as a shining line in my CV.” The School of Education congratulates Nadia on this amazing accomplishment and wishes her all the best for the remainder of her studies. Professor Stephen Gorard This academic year, Professor Stephen Gorard has continued his funded research on the impact of social segregation between schools (British Academy), participation in the Network of Experts on the Social Aspects of Education and Training (European Union), a randomised controlled trial of blended learning (Jeddah Community College) and the link between attitudes and educational outcomes (Joseph Rowntree Foundation). He conducted a systematic review on the links between affective and academic outcomes (funded by Teach First) and started his newly funded research on developing a parental involvement intervention (Nuffield Foundation), evaluating the BELL summer school programme and a synthesis of evidence on catch-up schemes for year 7 literacy (both funded by the Educational Endowment Foundation). He led successful bids for funding to investigate the role of feedback in learning, and a randomised controlled trial of the SAPERE philosophy programme (both funded by the Educational Endowment Foundation) and for a Research Framework Agreement with the Learning and Skills Improvement Service (LSIS). BRINGING VISION AND VALUES TO LIFE | SCHOOL OF EDUCATION 21
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