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Dr Carol Robinson

Principal Research Fellow

contact:
Education
Falmer
Brighton
BN1 9PH

Telephone: +44 (0)1273 644568

Email: Carol.Robinson@brighton.ac.uk

Teaching

  • Course leader for the Professional Doctorate in Education
  • EdD Professional Doctorate
  • MPhil/PhD
  • MA
  • BA (Education)

I am the Research Student Division Leader for the Education Research Centre which involves overseeing the academic well-being and progress of all research students within Education.

Cambridge Primary Review

Research interests

  • Children and young peoples’ rights
  • Children and young peoples’ voices and experiences
  • The theorisation of student voice and the relationship between theory and practice in student in projects
  • Learner identity
  • Pedagogy and the professional development of teachers and school leaders
  • Empowering teachers, children and young people in schools
  • Teaching and learning at doctoral level

Biography

My research interests focus around student voice, the transfer / development of good practice within and between schools and initial teacher education and the professional development of teachers. These interests developed during my teaching experience in a range of secondary and special schools. I have led a number of Pupil Voice projects in primary, secondary and special schools, helping staff to develop ways of listening to the voices of the young people in their schools. I also led the ‘Pupils’ Voices’ strand of the University of Cambridge Primary Review of Education in England.

Prior to joining the Education Research Centre at the University of Brighton, I was a Research Fellow at the University of Sussex. I have given many keynote addresses and have been involved in a number of research projects both locally and nationally. Currently, I am working in schools with teachers, supporting them in the development of school based research projects. I am also working with UNICEF to evaluate their school based Rights, Respecting Schools Programme and am a principal researcher on a project investigating the ways in which head teachers develop the skills needed for leadership.

Current and recent research projects

  • June 2009 – May 2011                   
    Project manager on a Youth Sector Development Fund funded project: An evaluation of the
    Hangleton and Knoll project
  • January 2010 – August 2010        
    Project manager on a DCFS funded project: An evaluation of the Brighton and Hove Community
    Action Pilot Project
  • April 2007 - June 2010                    
    Co-Principal investigator on a UNICEF funded project: An evaluation of the UNICEF RRSA scheme
  • June 2009 – May 2010                   
    Co-Principal Investigator on Beatbullying funded project: An evaluation of BeatBullying’s Peer
    Mentoring programme
  • September 2007 – April 2008     
    Principal Investigator on Becta funded project: ‘Personalising Learning: the learner perspective and
    their influence on demand’
  • June 2008 – December 2008       
    Researcher on a NESTA funded project: Youth-led innovation
  • April 2007 - October 2007             
    Project manager for Students as Researchers element of Pupil Voice project. Funded by Durham LA
  • September 2004 – September 2007            
    Project manager for Students as Researchers element of University of Sussex and Portsmouth LA
    Student Voice programme. Funded by Portsmouth LA
  • July 2006 - July 2007                       
     Project manager for evaluation of schools based Rights, Respect and Responsibility programme.
    Funded by Hampshire LA
  • August 2006 – July 2007                
    Co-Principal Investigator on HEFCE funded project Improving the experiences of disabled students in
    Higher Education
  • September 2006 – March 2007  
    Principal investigator for the ‘Children and their primary schools: Pupils’ voices’ strand of The Primary Review of Education in England. University of Cambridge
  • January 2006 – October 2006     
    Led research with students for the Consultant on the Review of the Information and Guidance
    available for young people aged 14-19. Funded by East Sussex LA
  • January 2006 – July 2006             
     Researcher on an Innovations Unit funded project Less is More? The development of a Schools
    within-schools approach to Education on a Human Scale.
  • January 2005 - January 2006      
     Researcher on a NCSL funded project  Investigation into ‘The footprints of   practice’ 
  • August 2004 - August 2005         
    Researcher on a TLDF funded project Developing a team approach to Student Support
  • March 2004 - June 2004                
    Researcher on a TTA funded project to evaluate and inform the Development of the New
    Postgraduate professional development programme
  • May 2003 – December 2004       
    Researchers on a DfES funded project Factors Influencing the Transfer of Good Practice.

Selected Publications

Books

2006                                      
  • Beginning Primary Teaching: Moving beyond Survival (with Angela Jacklin and Viv Griffiths) Buckingham: O.U.Press ISBN 0-335-21908-X
2003                                      
  • Becoming a Teaching Assistant: a research-based guide for teaching assistants and those working with them.  (with J. Thorp, A. Jacklin and P. Drake)  London: Sage (length approx 65 000 words).

Chapters in Books

2010
  • Learners’ voices and the personalisation of learning, in Learning to Teach in the Primary School, second edition,  Authur, J., Cremin. T. and Wray, D., London: Routledge
  • Learning about journal publication: the pedagogies of editing a ‘special issue’ (with P. Thomson, Byrom and L. Russell) in Publishing pedagogies for the doctorate and beyond. Eds: C. Aitchison, B.Kamler and A Lee, London: Routledge
2009                                      
  • Children and their primary schools: Pupils’ voices, in The Cambridge Primary Review Research Surveys. London: Routledge

Journal Articles (peer reviewed)

2010
  • Personalising learning through the use of technology, (with J. Sebba) in Computers & Education 54, 767–775
2009      
  • Engaging with Learners in the International Journal of Learning, Vol 6, Issue 8
  • Student Voice: Theorising power and Participation (with C. Taylor) in Pedagogy, Culture and Society Volume 17 (2) pp161 - 175
2007                      
  • Theorising Student Voice: Values and perspectives (with C. Taylor) in Improving Schools Sage Volume 10 pp. 5-17
  • What is meant by ‘support’ in Higher Education? Towards a model of academic and welfare support (with Angela Jacklin) in JORSEN Volume 7 pp. 114-123
  • Students’ views of support in higher education: a study of current practice and future directions (with P. LeRiche and A. Jacklin)  The Higher Education Review Volume 40. No 1, pp 2-17
2006                      
  • Terms of Engagement: Understanding Key Concept, in Curriculum Briefing Volume 4 pp. 12-14
  • When Lack of Data is Data: Do We Really Know who our Looked After Children are? (with Angela Jacklin and Torrance, H.) in European Journal of Special Needs Education Volume 21 pp. 1 – 20
2005                      
  • (with M. Fielding; S. Bragg, J Craig, I Cunningham, M. Eraut, S. Gillinson, M. Horne and J. Thorp.)  Factors Influencing the Transfer of Good Practice  (length, 107 pages)

Research reports for external bodies

2010                      
  • Evaluation of Unicef UK’s Rights Respecting Schools award, Final report (with J. Sebba) London: UNICEF (length 48 pages)
  • Evaluation of the Beatbullying Peer Mentoring Programme (with R. Banerjee and D. Smalley (length 97 pages)
2009                      
  • Evaluation of UNICEF’s RRSA scheme: second year interim report (with J. Sebba): London: UNICEF
2009                      
  • Youth-led innovation: Enhancing the skills and capacity of the next generation of innovators (with J. Sebba, V. Griffiths, B. Luckock, F. Hunt, and S. Flowers) London: NESTA (length 41 pages)
2008                      
  • Personalising learning: the learner perspective and their influence on demand Final Research Report  (with J. Sebba, D, Mackrill and S. Higgins) Coventry: BECTA (length 57 pages)
  • (Personalising Learning: the learner perspective and their influence on demand Review Report (with S. Higgins, J. Sebba and D.Mackrill) Coventry: BECTA (length 17 pages)
2007                      
  • Children and their primary schools: Pupils’ voices (Primary Review Research Survey 5/3) (with M. Fielding), Cambridge: University of Cambridge Faculty of Education (length 33 pages)
  • Improving the experiences of disabled students in Higher Education (with A. Jacklin, L. O’Meara and A. Harris), The Higher Education Academy (length 53 pages)

Conferences

Recent Keynote Presentations

  • March 2008: Guest speaker on Students as Researchers for East Sussex Learner Voice Network
  • September 2007: Guest speaker on The Learner Voice at BECTA Harnessing Technology: Research Forum 2007
  • November 2006: Pupil Voice and Participation.  Personalised Learning Conference (Wandsworth LA)
  • July 2006: Engaging with Pupil Voice.  Small Schools Conference ‘Tuning into Children’ (Kent LA)
  • July 2005: Pupil Voice.  Pupil Involvement in Assessment and Learning Conference (Nottingham CC)

Papers presented at recent conferences

2010                                      
  • ECER Conference, Helsinki. Student Voice as a Contested Practice: Power and Participation in Two Student Voice Projects
2009                                      
  • 16th International conference on Learning, Barcelona. Engaging with learners: learners influence on the use of technology to personalise learning
  • CAL ’09 Learning in Digital Worlds Conference. Personalising learning through the use of technology
2008                                     
  • BERA conference Personalising Learning: learner perspectives and their influence on demand
2007                                      
  • Engaging with pupil voice.  Personalised Learning Network, Conference (Exeter LA)
  • Pupils’ perspectives on learning.  Primary Schools Learning Network Milestones conference (run by Nottingham University)
2006                                      
  • SRHE conference Becoming and being a disabled student in Higher Education
  • BERA conference Tracing the footprints of practice in Networked Learning Communities
  • BERA conference Improving the experiences of disabled students in higher education
  • HE Academy Conference Improving the experiences of disabled students in higher education: exploring links between research, policy and practice in HE
  • Listening to pupils.  Professional Development Conference (Exeter LA)
  • Pupils as researchers.  Consulting Pupils conference, (Durham LA)
  • Listening to pupils. Primary Schools Learning Network Milestones Conference (run by Nottingham University)
  • JORSEN conference What is meant by 'support' in Higher Education? Towards a model of academic and welfare support
  • BERA conference Why do some teachers cope with professional demands more easily than others?
  • BERA conference Developing a model of support for students in HE: what is important to students?