GLEA Newsletter July 2019
Welcome to the latest news from the
Centre for Global Learning: Education and Attainment
'Research that Informs, Transforms and Influences Global Education’
GLEA Professor named in Queen’s Birthday Honours
The pioneering work of Professor Duncan Lawson, co-Director of sigma and member of the GLEA Research Centre, has been recognised in the Queen’s Birthday Honours announced on Saturday 8 June. He has been awarded an MBE for services to Mathematics in Higher Education.
Professor Scott Davidson, Vice-Chancellor of Newman University, who nominated him for the award said: “Tens of thousands of students at universities across this country and internationally have enjoyed a transformed experience of studying the mathematical aspects of their courses, thanks to the innovative and determined work of Professor Lawson in championing, developing and disseminating mathematics and statistics support.
“In 2016, Duncan’s lifetime work was recognised by the award of the Institute of Mathematics and Its Applications Gold Medal for outstanding contribution to the improvement of the teaching of mathematics. This was the first time the Medal has been awarded in the field of mathematics education. “
Professor Lawson, and his long-term collaborator and fellow IMA Gold medal winner, Professor Tony Croft of Loughborough University, have been called ‘the founding fathers of mathematics support in the UK’ for their innovative work in developing mathematics and statistics support. They have helped steer mathematics and statistics support from what was previously called a ‘cottage industry’ and a ‘Cinderella service’ to an essential part of the Higher Education infra-structure.
Although Professor Lawson has approached the development of mathematics and statistics support as a practitioner, he has always informed this practice by research and scholarship. In 2008, he supervised the first PhD in the UK in the field of mathematics support – the study, by Ria Symonds, was entitled Student engagement with mathematics support. Since then, he has supervised and externally examined several further PhDs in this field.
He has published numerous articles and reports on mathematics and statistics support. His latest work, which is currently under review, is a major survey of literature in the field over the last 20 years. He has been editor of the journal Teaching Mathematics and Its Applications for the last 12 years.
In addition to his work in mathematics support, Duncan has made a range of further contributions to Mathematics in Higher Education in the UK including chairing the Joint Mathematical Council of the UK, overseeing development of the current QAA Mathematics, Statistics and Operational Research Subject Benchmark Statement, representing mathematics on the joint DfE/BIS STEM Ministerial Advisory Group and being Director of the Maths, Stats and OR Subject Centre.
Internationally, Professor Lawson has made contributions to the Irish Mathematics Learning Support Network and to the development of the European Society for Engineering Education (SEFI) core curriculum for engineering mathematics. In addition, since 2013, he has provided expertise to the Norwegian Centres for Excellent Education programme, having advised on its development and evolution and chaired the selection panel. Within this programme, he has used his specialist mathematical expertise to support MatRIC, a centre for excellence in mathematics education at the University of Agder.
Professor Duncan Lawson, co-Director of sigma and member of the GLEA Research Centre
Highlights from Intercultural Engagement and Global Education Theme
Within the Intercultural engagement and international education theme:
Going Global
On May 14th Professor Katherine Wimpenny presented at Going Global, the higher education conference attracting university leaders of international education
Katherine was asked to speak about questioning new models of learning driving Knowledge Diplomacy (Knight, 2018)
Focused on international examples of projects Katherine, along with colleagues at GLEA, are partnering on, using open education pedagogies and practices (OEP) and within this, Collaborative Online International Learning, Katherine prompted discussion with international colleagues promoting the importance of an active, multi-actor approach towards Knowledge Diplomacy, particularly in examining higher education and the sharing of knowledge beyond the walls of the institution, considering people and contexts, access, equitability, and quality of education for disadvantaged learners, including women, rural areas inhabitants and refugee communities.
In particular, the discussion included a focus on ways in which to remove barriers to Knowledge Diplomacy including the resources required and the political will and motivation of HEIs. This includes approaches which enable the co-generation of ideas and practices between the academy, public sector and civil society, and between theory and practice, knowledge, learning and human agency.
In brief, colleagues discussed the social obligation and responsibility of universities to mobilise efforts with its local, national and international communities, and to build relationships, trust, and to be creative and critical in its approach to knowledge exchange in the context of internationalisation, globalisation and digitisation when considering SDGs, global responsibilities as well as more local challenges.
Professor Katherine Wimpenny, Theme Lead Intercultural Engagement and Global Education
Highlights from Equity and Attainment Theme
DRIVER
This month we have submitted the DRIVER report in draft to the Office of Students (OfS). DRIVER (Data Response Initiatives as a Vehicle for achieving Equity in Results) has been an 18 month partnership of four universities and four partner colleges and has been made possible by funding from the OfS. Our focus has been on improving the transition of students coming to university from college.
A total of 36 interventions or activities were financed, extended and/or evaluated as part of the project.
A qualitative investigation of the impact of those interventions involved 236 staff and students. Our quantitative investigation reviewed the first year marks of 41,000 students and piloted a major step forward in facilitating near real-time analysis of the attainment gaps between different groups of students. Such facility provides participating universities with robust evidence of attainment gaps emerging in the first year of study, enabling focused attempts to close such gaps as students’ progress through university and stop them opening up for future first year students.
You can read more on DRIVER in a GLEA blog post available here
Caroline Wilson, Associate Professor, GLEA
Dr Arinola Adefila writes
"My most enduring educational experience occurred at the beginning of secondary school; I had just started taking Yorùbá classes and we had learned the days of the week."
“Education is what is left after what we have learned has been forgotten”
Other News
Congratulations!
“Being on Victoria’s team”
GLEA are delighted to announce that Professor Katherine Wimpenny, Professor of Research in Global Education, and the rest of the supervisory team - Professor Julia Carroll, Professor in Child Development and Education, and Dr Sarah Merry, Research Fellow, Centre for Post Digital Cultures have been bestowed with the inaugural award of “Outstanding Supervisory Team of the Year 2019”, with joint winner’s Dr James Bennett and colleagues from the University Research Centre of Agroecology, Water and Resilience.
The event took place at the Doctoral College Conference hosted by Coventry University’s Doctoral College and Centre for Research Capability and Development. Listening to all the finalists present was a very inspiring and rewarding experience, and it was heartening to hear about all the efforts that colleagues at Coventry University invest to support students through their doctoral studies.
Katherine said: "It has been a pleasure and privilege to be on Victoria’s team during her research into how art classes can enhance the self-esteem and achievements of adolescent pupils’ in low achievement art sets. Having started her PhD in a northern based university and transferred to Coventry in September 2015, our supervision, from a multi-disciplinary, cross-faculty partnership, has focused on providing feedback which aimed to develop Victoria’s confidence and courage to explore her subject and ways to contribute to knowledge in new ways. This included valuing and embracing aspects of her artist self, congruous to her thesis development, (and being an artist in the realms of social science research). Whilst providing guidance, options and encouragement and supporting struggle and challenge, it has been Victoria’s hard work, genuine dedication and persistence that she was awarded her PhD in March 2019 and will graduate at Coventry University in July 2019.
A special thanks to Victoria for her nomination, to the Executive Director of GLEA Mark Holton and Academic Director of GLEA Professor Lynn Clouder, for writing the supporting statements, and not least to the judges at the event: Dr Gill Houston, Chair of UKCGE, Dr Owen Gower, Director of UKCGE, Jennie Eldridge, Head of Doctoral Programmes, University Alliance, and Dr Rob Daley, Academic Programme Leader, Heriot Watt University. Finally, many thanks to Carolyn Wynne and the team at the Doctoral College for organising the event and for the support of Professor Richard Dashwood, Deputy Vice Chancellor for Research, Coventry University."
Welcome
GLEA has, and will be welcoming a number of new staff to their equity and attainment theme in the next couple of months:
Professor Julia Carroll - Professor in Educational Equity (August)
Dr Helen Breadmore - Assistant Professor (August)
Dr Sylwia Holmes - Assistant Professor (June)
Steve Raven - Research Assistant (July)
Dr Carlo Tramontano - Assistant Professor (August)
Recent Publications
Simkins, T., Coldron, J., Crawford, M. & Maxwell, B., 1 May 2019, In : Educational Management Administration and Leadership. 47, 3, p. 331-348 18 p.
Augmented Reality Research in Education: A Bibliometric Study.
Karakus, M., Ersozlu, A., Clark, A. C. (2019). Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 15(10), em1755.
Book Chapter
STEM outreach activities: an approach to teachers’ professional development
Farzana Aslam, Arinola Adefila and Yamuna Bagiya (England)
in Teaching STEM Education through Dialogue and Transformative Learning Global Significance and Local Interactions in Mexico and the UK, 1st Edition