News and Seminars at the Department of Education, University of Oxford

New name - new website!

We have dropped the Educational Studies in favour of plain Education. Our full name therefore is:
The University of Oxford Department of Education.
Any name change is bound to lead to complications: we have a new URL and new email addresses, both of which involve the very straightforward: education.ox.ac.uk ending, preceded by www. (website) or @ (email).

At the same time, we are launching this new and considerably more user-friendly website. It is still in development, and will continue to improve during the autumn. Please contact the Administrator if you experience any problems.

Nuffield Review/Rathbone Engaging Youth Enquiry

The Nuffield Review of 14-19 Education and Training (England and Wales), in partnership with Rathbone, the leading education and training charity, has launched an enquiry into why many young people are outside education, employment and training. Barry Sheerman MP, Chair of the Education and Skills Select Committee, hosted the launch at the Houses of Parliament on 3rd July 2007. A series of workshops with expert practitioners and with young people will be held in various locations in England and Wales over 14 months to discuss important issues in education and training for 14-19 year-olds at risk of disengagement. A report will be published in autumn 2008. For details, please visit www.nuffield14-19review.org.uk

Bruner public lecture

Professor Jerome Bruner gave a public lecture on March 13th entitled ‘Cultivating the Possible’ at the Martin Wood Lecture Theatre. He reflected on his early days at Oxford University and the beginning of theories about cognitive development in children. He went on to talk about the use of story-telling as a way of ‘cultivating a lively sense of the possible in the rising generation’.

Poster Conference

During the poster conference we will host a Research Student Poster Competition. Up to 5 posters will be selected to be professionally framed and hung in the department. The winners will also each receive a £15 book token.

Ted Wragg Award for Lifetime Achievement

Over a period of three years, there was a strong collaboration between Lauriston Primary School, in east London, and a team of researchers led by Prof. Terezinha Nunes and supported by the DfES Best-Practice scholarships. This year, the Headteacher of Lauriston School, Mrs Heather Rockhold, received from the Innovation Unit in London, the Ted Wragg Award for Lifetime Achievement.

Professor Kathy Sylva on Educational Support Experienced at Home by Key Stage 1 pupils

On Friday 1 June Professor Kathy Sylva spoke to the TES Newspaper on 'Educational Support Experienced at Home by Key Stage 1 pupils' .

Conference - Sociocultural perspectives on teacher education and development: new directions for research

This conference will be small-scale (in total, 30 participants), informal, inclusive and participatory, with plenty of opportunities for discussion and debate.

The majority of participants should expect to present a paper based on their research in the field of teacher education and development from a sociocultural or CHAT perspective. We hope there will be a maximum of 10 places available for non-presenting participants.

Former Oxford PGCE student wins national teaching award

Nick Wergan, a former student from the PGCE teaching course in Oxford’s Department of Education, has won the Training and Development Agency for School’s Award for Outstanding New Teacher of the Year. He received a Plato, known as the ‘Oscars for teachers’, from Ed Balls, Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families in a televised ceremony on BBC 2 on 21 October.

Research: 14-19 Diplomas

Nuffield Review says success of new Diplomas depends on what happens to A Levels.

A review of the new 14-19 Diplomas, heralded by the government as a mechanism for widening participation in education and training after the age of 16, are the focus of a new paper by the Oxford-based Nuffield Review. Commenting on this - the first of a series of Issue Papers to be published by the Review - its lead researcher Professor Richard Pring, said:

"The new Diplomas are the latest attempt to broaden the curriculum through a qualification which will have wider appeal. Its emphasis is upon more applied and practical ways of learning in the context of particular occupational areas. They are here to stay and they must be made to work.

"Our criticisms show where the present development of the Diplomas are need for further careful thinking. The Review and the research here in the Department will, we hope, be important in the development of a national qualification which will affect the lives of thousands. It is hoped that the training of teachers within the Department will benefit from the work of the Review, since this year's interns will be next year's teachers of the Diploma'

Conference - "The Early Years Foundation Stage: Views from near and far"

The Families, Early Learning and Literacy research group is holding a Roundtable and Conference on 22 and 23 November to explore the new Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum (EYFS) from an international perspective.

The Minister of State for Children, Young People and Families, RT HON Beverley Hughes MP, will open the conference and speakers will include Lilian Katz (Illinois), Ingrid Pramling-Samuelsson (Göteborg), Iram Siraj-Blatchford (Institute of Education), Maria Evangelou and Kathy Sylva.

New Year Honours

Kathy Sylva, Professor of Educational Psychology at the Department of Education and Fellow of Jesus College, has been awarded an Honorary OBE for services to children and families. The award is honorary as she is an American citizen.

ESRC Seminar Series: the educational and social impact of new technologies on young people in Britain

This series is being run by the Department of Education in collaboration with Professor Sonia Livingstone at LSE. The series starts in here in Oxford on March 12th.

After Ethnography? Anthropology, Education and the 'Knowledge Economy'

Call for Papers
The workshop defines ‘ethnographic' work inclusively, and submissions are invited from researchers at all stages of their career. Please submit a 250 word abstract by 15 March 2008 to david.mills@education.ox.ac.uk or richard.ratcliffe@sant.ox.ac.uk.

Papers are invited from both fields that discuss recent ethnographic work, and/or the use of ethnographic evidence within educational settings. This research workshop will explore the role played by 'symbolic analysts' in the new knowledge economy, and encourage a critical discussion of the fields of education, policy and governance in their use of ethnographic knowledge. This two-day event seeks to reinvigorate the interaction between social anthropology and education by fostering a comparative discussion of ethnographic research practices, the challenges each field faces, and the possible future of ethnographic work in each.

"Race and Education: Policy and Politics in Britain"

Sally Tomlinson has just published " Race and Education: Policy and Politics in Britain" (Open University Press/McGraw-Hill 2008). The book covers the decades 1960-2007, describing issues, events and conflicts over the years as the education system attempted to incorporate racial and ethnic minorities and educate all young people to live in an ethnically diverse society and a globalised world. Her own research and experiences over some thirty-five years are included!

Major new e-Learning Research Project

The Department of Education has been awarded a grant commissioned by Becta. The project, which is part of its Becta's major new programme of research in support of the Government's Harnessing Technology strategy, looks at the learning opportunities afforded by young people's uses of new technologies in their everyday lives.

Early Years' Specialist Gets OBE

Kathy Sylva, Professor of Educational Psychology at the University of Oxford Department of Education, and one of the Government's leading advisers on childcare received an honorary OBE today. Early years specialist Professor Kathy Sylva was awarded for services to children and families today, for her 30 years of commitment to the field of early years education. For more information click here.

Oxford achieves top place in Education RAE

Oxford University has been awarded the highest grades in the 2008 RAE for the quality of its Educational Research. 95% of its research was judged to be 'international' in standard with 30% considered to be 'world leading'. The THES judged the University's Department of Education to be 1= in its rank ordering of research quality in Education.

Four DPhil studentships available in the Department from October 2008

Exciting research projects
Stimulating research environment
ESRC CASE studentship with focus on deaf education
ESRC CASE studentship with focus on assessment
2 Pearson studentships with focus on assessment

The closing date for applications to the Graduate Admissions Office (GAO) is 25th July 2008. Applicants are advised to send a copy of applications submitted to the GAO, to the Higher Degrees Administrator, Department of Education, 15 Norham Gardens, Oxford OX2 6PY

New Oxford centre for research in educational assessment

On Monday 23rd June the Oxford University Centre for Educational Assessment was officially launched at 15 Norham Gardens by Dr John Hood, Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University, and Dame Marjorie Scardino, CEO of Pearson plc. Dame Marjorie unveiled an opening plaque.

Prof. Kathy Sylva interviewed in The Guardian

From The Guardian (Education section), 8th July 2008:

Jessica Shepherd talks to academic Kathy Sylva, whose research has influenced government policy in preschool teaching.

Prof. Herb Marsh awarded ESRC Professorial Fellowship

We are pleased to announce that Professor Herb Marsh has been awarded an ESRC Professorial Fellowship to work on 'Value Adding in Diverse Educational Contexts: substantive-methodological synergies that address complex issues with sophisticated methodology'.

Professor Gordon Stanley: A levels and assessment

"Since 2000, the proportion of A-levels awarded an A grade in England has shot up from 17.8% to 25.3%. And the likelihood is that, come Thursday, when 800,000 A-level results are published, the figure will rise again.

Department Librarian featured in The Guardian's "A Working Life" series

Kate Williams always wanted to be a librarian. The trouble was she didn't know it. She studied English and Latin at Cambridge University, where she took pleasure in tracking down interesting material in the university's libraries. During one summer she took an internship at a law firm, and there she enjoyed using the archives to track down precedents and ancient cases. Then after graduating she taught English as a foreign language. "But again," she says, "I used to really enjoy taking my students into the library and using all the resources there, encouraging them to become independent learners." Her hands fidget gently in the chair of her tiny office. The shelves behind her are filled with files, and there are cardboard boxes on the floor.

Only when Williams's aunt decided to have a tactful word - exasperated, one imagines, by her niece's obtuseness - did the penny finally drop. "She said, 'Are you sure you want to be a teacher?'" Williams remembers. "And I said, 'I think so.' Then she said, 'Well how about being a librarian?' ... Then I looked back and thought, 'Oh yes, I have really enjoyed that aspect of helping people in the library.' And then it started to make sense." She does not actually slap her own forehead, but the idea seems to cross her mind.

Prof. Gordon Stanley honoured for lifetime of service to education

From the Oxford University website, 21st August 2008:

Professor Gordon Stanley, Pearson Professor of Education at the Oxford University Centre for Educational Assessment, has received one of the top awards in Australia in recognition of his services to education.

ESRC Research Centre starts its third five-year research programme

The ESRC Research Centre on Skills, Knowledge and Organisational Performance (SKOPE) started its third five year research programme in October 2008. The two Oxford elements of SKOPE, previously based in the Departments of Economics and Education, now form a single group in the Department of Education.

A letter of condolence - Dr Hazel Bines

It is with great sadness that we report that Dr Hazel Bines, who was an honorary Senior Research Fellow, was taken ill while giving a public seminar in the Department on the 27th of October 2008. Hazel subsequently died.

Applied Linguistics Bursary 2009-2010

"A Research Maze" highlights the Annual Poster Conference

Ashish Jaiswal

True Dummy - a fable of existence (2009)
Genre: Fiction

A story of two ordinary boys and their quest to conquer the world, True Dummy engages with questions about existence, ambition and the meaning and purpose of life while addressing the most soul-searching dilemmas of the human race. The enlightening fable takes you on a timeless journey with its thought-provoking narrative, delightful short stories and allegorical landscapes with extraordinary images.

Author - Ashish Jaiswal (www.ashishjaiswal.com)
Publisher - Rupa & Co., the largest publishers of books in India (http://www.rupapublications.com/client/home.aspx)
Indian Subcontinet Edition
ISBN - 978-81-291-1451-8
‘…a fascinating piece of literature which carries a very powerful message for the youth of this world to follow values and objectives that transcend a mechanical existence.’
- Dr. R. K. Pachauri, Chairman IPCC – co-recipient Nobel Peace Prize, 2007

http://truedummy.com/?page_id=111
http://www.flickr.com/photos/31042016@N06/3222256534/in/set-72157612882562033/

Press Coverage & Media Review:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5tt9xnlub4

http://www.hindu.com/mp/2009/04/23/stories/2009042350020200.htm
http://writersconnect.org/index.php/archives/74

•   ‘Quest for meaningful existence’ - The Asian Age
•   ‘Breath of fresh air’ – Deccan Chronicle
•   The allegory in True Dummy are striking - Mid Day
•   ‘Guide for the young’ – Deccan Herald
•   ‘Inspiring youth’ – Dainik Bhaskar
•   ‘Inspires the dejected’ – Hindustan Times
•   Message to the society – Lokmat
•   Terrifically lucid and imaginative writing style – News Today
•   t;mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 36.0pt;">A page turner, a surprising feast for imagination taking you on an epic journey. Striking visual imagery - The New Indian Express
•   ‘Book for the youth’- Deccan Chronicle
•   ‘A fable of existence for all and sundry’ – Bangalore Mirror
•   Providing a path of thought to the youngsters – The Hindu

Conference: Fixed-term, employment in social science research: new directions in the research economy

The Oxford University Department of Education Research Staff Forum organised its day conference on May 13th, on fixed-term employment in research in the social sciences. The conference was supported by the Centre for Excellence in Preparing for Academic Practice and by the Social Sciences Division. Speakers included Jacqueline Allen-Collinson (University of Exeter), David Mills (University of Oxford), Lynn McAlpine (University of Oxford), and Zoe Fowler (Independent consultant), with Iain Cameron (Head of Careers, RCUK), Rebecca Nestor (Associate Director, Oxford Learning Institute), Matthew Smart (Divisional Officer, Oxford University Social Sciences Division), Justin Hutchence (University of Reading), Alis Oancea (OUDE/ OIA), and Elizabeth Oliver (University of Liverpool) as discussants. The conference was attended by key representatives of Oxford University and of other UK universities. Following excellent feedback from the decision-makers and academic and support staff attending, it was decided to follow-up with several publications, including an edited collection of the papers and responses. For further information please contact Alis Oancea at alis.oancea@education.ox.ac.uk

Nuffield Review publishes final report

The Nuffield Review of 14-19 Education and Training published its final report on 9th June, entitled Education for All: The future of education and training for 14-19 year olds. The report, published by Routledge, was launched at the Institution of Mechanical Engineers in London.

MSc e-Learning students win university award

Naida Dervishalidovic, Aikaterini Kokkinaki, Katarzyna Kozinska, Ariel Liu and Srikanth Siva from the MSc e-learning programme have been awarded second prize in the University OxTALENT awards for an innovative student project using ICTs.

Politeness Chinese Children Revisited:Creativity, resistance and the use of codeswitching byBritish Chinese children in complementary schools

Li Wei
Professor of Applied Linguistics
Birkbeck, University of London

The ideology of monolingualism prevails throughout society, including within minority ethnic communities who are bilingual and multilingual. Some minority ethnic communities in Britain believe that the response to the dominance of English language is to replace it with other languages. Complementary schools - language and culture classes organised by minority ethnic communities - often impose a One Language Only or One Language at a Time policy. There is still widespread fear of bilingual and multilingual practices such as codeswitching.

Narrative, memory and professional practices in Brazilian education: a cultural historical perspective

Elizabeth Dos Santos Braga
University of São Francisco - Brazil

Brown bag lunch discussion on her CHAT related work

Dr Joce Nuttall
Monash University

The development of written narrative skills in primary school children: Designing and evaluating an experimental intervention

Speaker: Maria Kyriacou, OUDE (FELL)

Convenor: Ernesto Macaro, Applied Linguistics

Joint seminar with Families, Early Learning and Literacy (FELL)

School Choice in Hungary and Russia

Dr Andrea Laczik

Investigating European Identity in three European Schools

Nicola Savvides

Education in Finland and the PISA Results

Jennifer Chung

The Universities and Education: Where are we? How did we get to be where we are? Where should we be?

Speaker: Professor John Furlong, Director of the Department of Education at Oxford University

Convener: Professor Jane McNicholl, Teaching and Teacher Education

The Teacher as Researcher: Making pedagogic design part of the move to blended learning

Speaker: Professor Diana Laurillard, Professor of Learning with Digital Technologies, London Knowledge Lab

Convenor: Dr Chris Davies, e-Learning

Computerized English Language Testing through ICT and the Creation of EFL Courseware: Evaluation to Development in e-Learning

Professor Hiroyuki Obari, Aoyama Gakuin University

The development of the Internet and other forms of computer networking has been quite astounding in recent years. We live in a world where anyone living anywhere can communicate not only with words but also with sounds, pictures and other images through a computer, and the rapid spread and growth of the Internet has enabled us to share a multitude of information. These changes have had an enormous impact on achieving learner autonomy in English education.

Quant SIG session

Presenter: Dr. Francesca Scalas

EAL undergraduates learning mathematics

Speakers: Visiting Scholars Bill Barton and Pip Neville-Barton, University of Aukland

"The challenge of multimodal semiotic theory for Education: learning, curriculum, assessment"

Speaker: Professor Gunther Kress, Institute of Education, University of London

Convenor: Professor Ingrid Lunt

Working and learning at organisational boundaries: Understanding the collaboration of experts in an e-Science project

Dr Ioanna Kinti, University of Oxford

"Interrogating Student Voice: Pre-occupations, purposes and possibilities"

Speaker: Professor Michael Fielding, Institute of Education, University of London

Convenor: Dr Jane McNicholl, Teaching and Teacher Education Research Group

Expertise, Multi-professional Practices and Policy Learning

Speakers: Professor Anne Edwards, University of Oxford

Dr Geoff Hayward, University of Oxford

Dr Ioanna Kinti, University of Oxford

ICT as a Catalyst for Educational Development

Thilde Soresen

"Studies in the zone of proximal generalisation"

Speaker: Professor John Mason, Open University and University of Oxford

Convenor: Dr Anne Watson

Ways of understanding the work of school mentors in ITE from an Activity Theoretical Perspective

Dr Gill Boag-Munroe

Someone once did this for me: the practices of associates when working with pre-service teachers in a secondary practicum setting

Dr Ngaire Hoben from University of Auckland

The development of student teacher's agency beliefs during a PGCE year

Dr Lars Malmberg and Dr Hazel Hagger
University of Oxford

How can discourse analysis contribute to sociocultural research?

Dr Kyoko Murakami, University of Bath

Widening Participation in Higher Education: A quantitative approach

Speaker: Anna Vignoles, Institute of Education, London

Convenor: Hubert Ertl, Higher Education and Professional Learning

"Learning about Letters as a Foundation for Learning to Read and Spell"

Speaker: Dr Rebecca Treiman, Burke and Elizabeth High Baker Professor of Child Developmental Psychology Washington University St. Louis

Convenor: Terezinha Nunes, Child Learning

A will to teach, a way to learn: the conditions and outcomes of schooling in Nigeria

Speakers: Dr David Johnson, University of Oxford
Jenny Hsieh, University of Oxford

Convenor: David Phillips, Comparative and International Education

"John Dewey: Death and Resurrection"

Speaker: Professor Richard Pring, Lead director of the Nuffield Review of 14-19 Education and Training, University of Oxford

Convenor: Dr Jane McNicholl, Teaching and Teacher Education

Commitment, compliance and comfort zones: the effects of formative assessment on vocational education students� learning careers

Speaker: Dr Kathryn Ecclestone, Professor of Post-Compulsory Education, Oxford Brookes University

Convenor: Professor John Furlong, e-Learning

"Development of the social brain during adolescence"

Speaker: Dr Sarah-Jayne Blakemore, Royal Society Dorothy Hodgkin Research Fellow, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London

Convenor: Dr Victoria Murphy, Applied Linguistics

Knowing and Doing the Subject: Undergraduate Learning in Two Contrasting Disciplines

Speaker: Dai Hounsell, University of Edinburgh

Convenor: Hubert Ertl, Higher Education and Professional Learning

'It's not what you know': the experiences of British and other European graduates in the labour market'

Speakers: John Brennan, Open University

Convenor: Hubert Ertl, Higher Education and Professional Learning

Intergenerational ambivalence and educational decision-making

Speaker:Sue Heath, University of Southampton

Convenor: Hubert Ertl, Higher Education and Professional Learning

Academic engagement: what students tell us about teaching and learning

Speakers: Sandra Cooke, University of Birmingham

Convenor: Hubert Ertl, Higher Education and Professional Learning

Higher education and the graduate labour market: making sense of complexity

Speaker: Kate Purcell, University of Warwick

Convenor: Hubert Ertl, Higher Education and Professional Learning

Ethnographic Approaches to Language and Literacy

Speakers: Professor Brian Street, Kings College, London and University of Pennsylvania

Convenor: Dr Jane McNicholl

Prosody Study and Application of Speech Recognition to TEFL

Speaker: Professor Hiroyuki Obari

Convenor: Professor Ernesto Macaro

Reading French at Key Stages 2 and 3: obstacles and potential

Speakers: Professor Ernesto Macaro, University of Oxford,
Dr Lynn Erler, University of Oxford

Convenor: Ernesto Macaro, Applied Linguistics

Teacher Supply - A golden age or back on the slippery slope? A review of recent trends in teacher supply including predictions for 2008

Speakers: John Howson, University of Oxford,
Dr Almut Sprigade, Education Data Surveys
Mr David Montagu, Assistant Manager of Education, The Royal Society

Convenor: Jane McNicholl, Teaching and Teacher Education

Enhancing Prospective Teachers' Understanding of Proof

Speaker: Andreas Stylianides, University of Oxford

Convenor:Anne Watson, Mathematics Education

The Beginnings of Mathematics Education in 16th Century England: Problems, People and Philosophy

Speaker: Leo Rogers, Independent Consultant in Mathematics Education

Convenor:Anne Watson, Mathematics Education

Whose line is it anyway? in a mathematics classroom

Speaker: Thabit Al-Murani, University of Oxford

Convenor:Anne Watson, Mathematics Education

Similar differences and different similarities across four topic focused studies of mathematics for teaching (mft) insecondary classrooms in South Africa

Speaker: Professor Jill Adler, University of Witswatersrand and King's College London

Convenor:Anne Watson, Mathematics Education

Telling Mathematical Tales

Speaker: Professor Bill Barton, University of Auckland

Convenor:Anne Watson, Mathematics Education

Political Control and Educational Reform

Speaker: Professor Robert Service, FBA Director, Russian and Eurasian Studies Centre, Oxford University

Convenors: Dr David Johnson, Professor David Phillips and Professor Robert Service

Education and the Politics of Development in Russia

Speaker: Dr Margarita Pavlova, Griffith Institute for Educational Research, Griffiths University

Convenors: Dr David Johnson, Professor David Phillips and Professor Robert Service

'Democratizing Higher Education in Russia' and 'What do parents want for their children? School choice in Russia.'

Speakers:

Professor Judith Marquand, Research Associate, Department of Geography, Oxford Univesity
Dr Andrea Laczik, Research Fellow, Department of Education, Oxford University

Convenors: Dr David Johnson, Professor David Phillips and Professor Robert Service

The Europeanisation of Russian Higher Education

Speaker: Dr Olga Oleynikova, Centre for VET studies of the Russian Federation, Russia

Convenors: Dr David Johnson, Professor David Phillips and Professor Robert Service

Politeness, Face and Power: Discourse in Russian University Classrooms

Speaker: Ms Elena Minina, Oxford University

Convenors: Dr David Johnson, Professor David Phillips and Professor Robert Service

Restructuring Higher Education in Russia

Speaker: Prof Olga Fedotova and Dr Oksana Chigisheva, University of Rostov-on-Don, Russia

Convenors: Dr David Johnson, Professor David Phillips and Professor Robert Service

Concepts of Education in Russia: from Past to Present

Speaker: Professor James Muckle, UNESCO Centre for Comparative Education Research, University of Nottingham

Convenors: Dr David Johnson, Professor David Phillips and Professor Robert Service

'National Educational Panel Study (NEPS) in Germany � Research Questions and Design for a New Lifecourse Study'

Speaker: Professor Dr Hans-Peter Blossfeld, Professor in Sociology, Univesity of Bamberg, Germany

Convenors: Dr Hubert Ertl and Michael Hoelscher

Individual differences in primary school children's number development

Convenor: Terezinha Nunes

Speaker: Dr Richard Cowan, Institute of Education, London

National Educational Panel Study (NEPS) in Germany - Research Questions and Design for a New Lifecourse Study

Speaker: Professor Dr Hans-Peter Blossfeld

'Moderators and Mediators: Issues in Discrimination and Application'

A Quant SIG Session

Presenter: James Hall

'Using Personal Digital Assistants (PDA) for Collecting Micro-Longitudinal Data: Lessons Learnt from the Learning Every Lesson (LEL) Pilot Study'

A Quant SIG Session

Presenters: Dr Lars-Erik Malmberg
Cassandra Halliburton
Andrew Martin

'New Multilevel Latent Variable Approaches to the Big-Fish-Little-Pond-Effect'

A Quant SIG Session

Presenter: Professor Herbert Marsh

National Student Survey Data, with a Practical Component Applying Multilevel Analysis with MLwiN'

A Quant SIG Session

Presenters: Professor Herbert Marsh
Jackie Cheng

Wanting to make it work - design-based research and problems with introducing collaborative technological tools into A-level classrooms

Speaker: Jane Shuyska, Department of Education

Innovations in e-Learning

Speaker: Keri Facer, Futurelab

The Development of Diagnostic Language Tests for Trainee Teachers of Modern Foreign Languages

Professor Brian Richards and Dr. Jon Roberts

Institute of Education, University of Reading

Learning through serious play in virtually figured worlds

Oxford Centre for Socio-cultural and Activity Theory (OSAT)

Dr. R.J.Francis (Oxford University Department of Education and visiting colleague at M.I.T.'s Comparative Media Studies)

Virtual Vocationalism and Garage Universities: new and old working class routes in Russian education

Dr Charles Walker

Seminar Series:

The Culture and Politics of Education in Contemporary Russia

How Mathematics emerges from the telling

Speaker: Dr Bill Barton, University of Aukland

Convenor: Dr Anne Watson, Mathematics Education Research Group

Ariadne�s Thread, Daedalus� Wings, and the Learner�s Autonomy

Speaker: Dr Anna Sfard, Professor of Mathematics Education, Michigan State Univeristy, US and University of Haifa, Israel

Convenor: Dr Anne Watson, Mathematics Education Research Group

Crosslinguistic influence as a window into the bilingual mind

Speaker: Dr Aneta Pavlenko, Temple University, US

Convenor: Dr Vicki Murphy, Applied Linguistics Research Group

Playing games and mathematics education

Speaker: Pedro Palhares - Institute of Child Studies, University of Minho and Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Oxford

Convenor: Dr Anne Watson, Mathematics Education Research Group

A Hybrid Online Research Instrument beyond the Traditional Web Survey and its Application

Speaker: Jingjing Zhang, Department of Education, University of Oxford

The advantages of privatised, personalised Internet access at school for disadvantaged students

Speaker: Dr Ellen Helsper, Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford

Last year's Bath psychology interns return to present their dissertation research, followed by drinks and mince pies

Rose Birkinshaw: Investigating the relationship between the quality of centre-based childcare experienced at 36 months and children's behaviour at 51 months.

Cassie Halliburton: Investigating the relationship between pupils' general self-regulatory beliefs and their mean subject attainment mark

Charlotte Hazeldine: Exploring the role of parenting at 10 months on a child's language acquisition at 36 months

Natalia Kucirkova: The relationship between parents' shared reading practices, home book exposure and children's language development

Learning Across Boundaries: The Case of FE Teacher Education in a Scottish University

Speaker: Dr Ian Finlay, University of Strathclyde and Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Oxford

"Work in progress: Learning in intern-mentor meetings"

Speaker: Mihaela Lupu, University of Oxford

Reading Group "The Greeno Debate continued"

Knowledge in the blood: how white South African students remember and enact the past

Professor Jonathan, Dean of Education, University of Pretoria, South Africa will speak on the topic of his new book.

Convenor: Dr David Johnson, University of Oxford Department of Education

Education, Vulnerability and HIV/AIDS

Convenor: Ingrid Lunt

Speaker: Professor Peter Aggleton, Institute of Education

A dialogical approach to the creation of new knowledge in organizations

Convenor: Geoff Hayward and Anne Edwards

Speaker: Haridimos Tsoukas - ALBA Graduate Business School, Greece & University of Warwick, UK

A Light lunch will be served in the Common Road at 1.00pm. Please rsvp to geoff.hayward@education.ox.ac.uk if you request lunch.

Understanding children and young people's uses of digital technologies in the home

Speaker: Dr Sue Cranmer, Department of Education, University of Oxford

Disability and Education: The Longest Road to Inclusion?

Convenor: Anne Edwards

Speaker: Dr Hazel Bines, Senior Research Fellow,Department of Education

"Can we solve the problem of disaffected young people? A CHAT perspective"

Speaker: Geoff Hayward

Followed by dinner at Al Shami in Jericho at 7.00pm (which you will pay for yourself). If you wish to attend and meet Copenhagen colleagues, please contact: tracey.brock@hotmail.co.uk

Textbook Development for Teacher Development

Convenor: Ernesto Macaro

Speaker: Dr Catherine Walter, Institute of Education, University of London

A hierarchical model of achievement motivation: Conceptualization and applied issues

Convenor: Herb Marsh

Speaker: Professor Andrew J Elliot Ph.D., Department of Clinical and Social Sciences in Psychology, University of Rochester, USA

National Student Survey of Teaching in Used To Benchmark all UK Universities: What Does It All Mean?

Convenor: Herb Marsh

Speakers: Herb Marsh & Jackie Cheng, Department of Education. Professor Paul Ramsden (the higher Education Academy) is discussant.

The impact of up-front fees and student support on university participation

Convenor: Kathy Sylva

Speaker: Professor Lorraine Dearden, Institute for Fiscal Studies, London

"The effect of authentic communication during Foreign Language Acquisition on later self-perceived communicative competence and foreign language anxiety"

Convenor: Ernesto Macaro

Speaker: Jean-Marc Dewaele, Applied Linguistics, London

"Childen at risk of dyslexia and implications for intervention"

Convenor: Terezinha Nunes

Speaker: Professor Maggie Snowling, Department of Psychology, York

OSAT Roundtable for new and existing members + Reception

Please come even if you simply want to listen and not talk about your work. But it would be nice if you could come prepared to talk for four or five minutes about what you are doing and what ideas are taking you forward (or causing frustration). There will be no opportunity to use powerpoint - this will be a discussion. We will end the session more informally with a celebration to start the year and hope it will be a good way of getting to know each other.

OSAT Reading Group

This session will focus on the Mehan chapter with the second paper as background. Papers available on OSAT webpage.

OSAT Roundtable meeting with Copenhagen research students + Reception

OSAT Seminar Introduction to Cultural Historical Activity Theory

Seminar on using CHAT in research social exclusion

For new and old research students and PGCE students. Staff are also welcome

OSAT Research Day with Copenhagen colleagues

Times to be advised

Seminar Day on CHAT and researching well-being of young people with Copenhagen colleagues

A Qualitative Case Study of Ministry of Education-Donor Agencies Interactions and their Influence on Basic Education in Ghana

Emefa Amoako

In Michaelmas Term the semianrs focus on different styles of research.

OSAT Seminar + Xmas Party

Seminar led by Professor Mariane Hedegaard

"Schools and Inter-professional working"

Convenor: Anne Edwards

Speakers: Anne Edwards, Ingrid Lunt & Eleni Stamou

Design studies in mathematics: implementing and validating variation

Angelika Kullberg

Analyses of Learning studies (Marton & Tsui, 2004) raised questions about if the good results concerning student learning could in any way be applicable for other groups of students. Studies that could validate the research were needed.

TWEAK-Tweaking Wikis for Education and Advancement of Knowledge

Convenors: Chris Davies and Anne Edwards

Speaker: Ingvill Rasmussen

Students' reasoning in classroom mathematical practice: work in progress

Nichola Clarke

I will discuss work towards my doctorate on the similarities and differences in ways in which two classes of low-attaining year 11 students reason in classroom activity.

The contribution of �guided interactive reading� to the development of reading skills and attitudes towards reading of Chinese learners of English as a second language

Speaker: Gopa Nayak, OUDE (FELL)

Convenor: Ernesto Macaro, Applied Linguistics

Joint seminar with Families, Early Learning and Literacy (FELL)

The impact of up-front fees and student support on university participation

Speaker: Lorraine Dearden, Institute of Education & Institute for Fiscal Studies

Convenor: Kathy Sylva

Public seminar

Teaching Mathematics Mathematically

Convenors: Anne Watson / Jane McNicholl

Speaker: Professor Anne Watson

Is French spelling more difficult than English spelling?

Convenor: Terezinha Nunes

Speaker: Dr Catherine Brisseau, Université Joseph Fourier/IUFM de l'Académie de Grenoble, Laboratoire Lidilem

Exploring the Impact of School Leadership on Pupil Outcomes: Results from a study of academically improved and effective schools in England

Convenor: Professor John Furlong

Speaker: Professor Pam Sammons, School of Education, University of Nottingham

Many ways of knowing: young children learning with siblings, grandparents, and in faith and community settings

Hosted Jointly by: Families, Early Learning and Literacy (FELL) and Applied Linguistics

Speaker: Professor Eve Gregory, Goldsmiths College, University of London

"Motivation, the ideal self and the vision of knowing a second language�"

Convenor: Ernesto Macaro

Speaker: Professor Zoltan Dornyei, University of Nottingham

Analysis of students' responses to a non-routine question

Nusrat Rizvi

I will discuss the work in progress related to the study. This study aims to investigate how students certified from different secondary school examination systems in Pakistan solve questions they consider as non-routine.

Expressions of generality in secondary mathematics

Helen Drury

This seminar will draw upon my recently completed doctoral thesis, which examined the ways in which generality is expressed by teachers and students in ‘ordinary' secondary mathematics lessons where expression of generality is not the main objective.

A professional development model of practice: ideas for discussion

Miguel Ribeiro, University of Algarve

I build a model based on teacher's cognitions during teaching practice. It allows us to display apparent links and relations amongst teacher actions and his/her goals, beliefs and knowledge allowing us to describe what is happening in the classroom and why things change over time.

Scaling-up a Wiki Framework for Blended Learning

Speaker: Dr Marija Cubric, Senior Lecturer, University of Hertfordshire

Convenor: Dr Chris Davies

Pedagogy planning tools: an answer to teachers' prayers or just a good intention?

Speakers: Dr Liz Masterman, Learning Technologies Group, Oxford University Computing Services, University of Oxford and Dr Marion Manton, Department of Continuing Education: Technology Assisted-Lifelong Learning, University of Oxford

Convenor: Dr Chris Davies

Does Linking Teaching with Research Add Value? The View from a Research-Intensive University

Dr Claire Stocks, University of Oxford

Academics often experience teaching and research as rival activities which compete for their limited time (Robertson, et. al., 2006; Barnett, 2003). Moreover, within the academic community, excellence in research has traditionally been valued more highly (i.e. been more prominent in hiring, funding and promotion decisions) than excellence in teaching. However, with undergraduate students paying higher fees and leaving University with greater debt, research-intensive universities in particular, are being forced to consider how their emphasis on research might contribute to the quality of the undergraduate learning (Wuetherick, 2007; Simons, et. al., 2007; Ramsden et. al., 1992).

Valuing leadership and leadership development in England's universities: a route to isomorphism?

Professor Rosemary Deem, University of Bristol

The paper examines conceptions of leadership, management and leadership development held by a range of university leaders and HE policy makers in England. It draws on semi-structured interviews conducted in 2007 and 2008 as part of a an ESRC funded project exploring the relationship between discourses about New Labour's public service modernisation programme in health and education and the recent formation of national leadership development bodies for these sectors.

Delivering undergraduate research for all students? International perspectives

Professor Alan Jenkins

"..The research universities have often failed, and continue to fail their undergraduate populations, thousands of students graduate without seeing the world - famous professors or tasting genuine research." Boyer Commission on Educating Undergraduates in the Research University(1998)

"... universities should treat learning as not yet wholly solved problems and hence always in research mode." (Humboldt, 1810, cited by Elton, 2005)

Undergraduate research where students learn as researchers grows out of US practice and policies. There undergraduate research is generally for selected students (selected by ability and /or or parents' wealth) and is often outside the formal curriculum eg in summer enrichment programmes. That is also how it has been adapted so far in a number of UK by institutions such as Imperial, Chester and Warwick.

An analysis of �hybrid� scholarly journals: New spaces for developing distinctive ways of knowing?

Dr Barry Stierer, Centre for Higher Education Research, University of Westminster

There now exist, in the UK and elsewhere, a large number of peer-reviewed journals concerned with teaching, learning, curriculum and assessment in specific higher education disciplines. Examples include Teaching and Learning in Medicine: An International Journal; Art, Design and Communication in Higher Education; and The Journal of Geography in Higher Education. These ‘hybrid' journals provide a potentially prestigious outlet for HE lecturers writing about their educational research and scholarship - work that is sometimes viewed as amateurish and parochial. They also provide a forum for communities of subject specialists to discuss educational issues in their disciplines.

Characteristics of excellent teaching departments, and the role of leadership of teaching, in elite research universities

Professor Graham Gibbs, former Director of the Oxford Learning Institute

In 2004 Oxford set up an international network of a dozen highly research intensive universities for the purpose of discussing teaching. The network now meets annually and includes MIT (the hosts in 2009), Princeton and Stanford. After a conducting case studies of how each of these universities supported teaching excellence it became clear, through discussion at the Oxford network meeting in 2005, that outstanding teaching practice was usually developed autonomously within departments and then spread from there, rather than being initiated by the centre, as is common in more teaching-oriented and corporate universities.

Researching with integrity: exploring the role of character

Professor Bruce Macfarlane, Portsmouth University

In this seminar I would like to present and discuss how research ethics may be approached from a character-based perspective. This means that researchers need to have excellences of character (or ‘virtues') such as courage, respectfulness, resoluteness, sincerity, humility and reflexivity. This approach contrasts with the emphasis which is commonly given to rules and principles found in codes of research ethics which are derived largely from the biomedical sciences.

Tears and Fears: Canadian Tenure Reviews and Gender Equity

Professor Sandra Acker, University of Toronto

The "tenure review" is a key material and symbolic transitional point in the careers of Canadian academics and one with potential to illuminate gender relations surrounding academic work. Tenure is high-stakes evaluation, given that refusal means the loss of a job and the possibility of stigmatization thereafter. The ostensible purpose of tenure is to protect job security and academic freedom, but it can also be located in the global realm of quality assurance, audit, discipline and control. With the spread of the research culture, expectations for productivity and performativity-along with candidates' anxieties-have risen exponentially.

Too good to be true? Teaching excellence in higher education

Dr Alan Skelton, Sheffield University

This presentation will offer a critique of ‘teaching excellence' in HE, drawing on my recent research in this area (Skelton, 2005; 2007). It will argue that recent initiatives to promote excellence are part of a much broader neo-liberal educational reform project. The critique will focus on two main aspects:

* the intended strategic aims of teaching excellence and their actual impact
* the limitations of existing research into teaching excellence and the assumptions about it which have been circulated.

The micro-evolution of mathematical knowledge

Mathematics Education Research Group Seminar convened by Anne Watson.

Speaker: Dave Pratt (Professor of Mathematics Education, Institute of Education, University of London).

Subject Knowledge in Teaching

All-day event on Researching Subject Knowledge in Teaching convened by Anne Watson and Jane McNicholl

For details of attendance and booking contact Phil Richards at philip.richards@education.ox.ac.uk

Followed by a related public seminar (See Public Seminars listing)

Geometrical visualisation: emotional and epistemic

Mathematics Education Research Group seminar convened by Anne Watson

Speaker: Melissa Rodd (Institute of Education, University of London)

OSAT Reading Group - Vygotsky and Teachers

Convened by Geoff Hayward and Viv Ellis

"Psychology and the Teacher" LS Vygotsky

Reading available for download from the OSAT Research Centre page

Writing Triangles: Appropriations of Activity Theory by US Research in Composition and Rhetoric

Convened by Geoff Hayward and Viv Ellis

Speaker: Dr Viv Ellis, University of Oxford

THIS SEMINAR IS POSTPONED - FURTHER DETAILS WILL BE AVAILABLE SHORTLY

Extended classroom talk as a medium of learning

Convened by Geoff Hayward and Viv Ellis

Speaker: Dr Paul Thompson, University of Nottingham

OSAT Reading Group

Convened by Geoff Hayward and Viv Ellis

This session will focus on 'The Influence of L.S. Vygotsky on Education Theory, Research and Practice' by Vasily V Davydov and Stephen T Kerr.

Paper available on OSAT webpage or by email from Phil Richards (philip.richards@education.ox.ac.uk)

'Emotion, Motivation and Action: the actor's craft according to Konstantin Stanislavski and Lev Vygotsky'

Convened by Geoff Hayward and Viv Ellis

Speaker: Hannah Grainger-Clemson, University of Oxford

THIS IS THE REVISED DATE FOR A PREVIOUSLY POSTPONED SEMINAR

Practice developing research, exemplified with the development of teaching practice in a Danish nursing college

Convened by Geoff Hayward and Viv Ellis

Speaker: Dr Seth Chaiklin, Reader in the Department of Education, University of Bath

Academic Self-concept and the Role of Native and Foreign Languages

To be presented by Xu (Kate) Man, University of Oxford

Part of the SELF Research Group's Advanced Quantitative Research Methods Special Interest Group (Quant SIG) Seminar Programme

Can pre-school protect: Determining risk and resilience in the development of pre-schoolers

To be presented by James Hall, University of Oxford

Part of the SELF Research Group's Advanced Quantitative Research Methods Special Interest Group (Quant SIG) Seminar Programme

Survival Analysis

To be presented by Dr Chau-Kuang Chen, Meharry Medical College, Nashville, USA

Part of the SELF Research Group's Advanced Quantitative Research Methods Special Interest Group (Quant SIG) Seminar Programme

An investigation into the geography of artistic self-concept using correlational studies

To be presented by Dr Susan Conroy, University of Cambridge

Part of the SELF Research Group's Advanced Quantitative Research Methods Special Interest Group (Quant SIG) Seminar Programme

Children's home computer use and their cognitive and social/behavioural development in primary school

To be presented by Ebrahim Talae, University of Oxford

Part of the SELF Research Group's Advanced Quantitative Research Methods Special Interest Group (Quant SIG) Seminar Programme

Digital Natives and Everyday Life in Japan: the case of SNS engagement

Speaker: Dr Toshie Takahashi, Associate Professor, Rikkyo University, Tokyo, Japan

Convenor: Dr Chris Davies

Teaching parents to support their children's reading at home: Evidence from an RCT

Convenor: Department of Experimental Psychology

Speaker: Professor Kathy Sylva, University of Oxford

Questions in context: reflections on planning a parenting survey in an international context

Convenor: Kathy Sylva

Speakers: Dr Mary Wild and Dr Helena Mitchell, Oxford Brookes University

What personal and structural features predict parental engagement in home computing activities with children?

Convenor: Kathy Sylva

Speaker: Ebrahim Talae, University of Oxford

Foreign languages in English primary schools: evolving policy and practice

Speaker: Professor Rosamund Mitchell, School of Humanities, University of Southampton

Convener: Ernesto Macaro

Teacher Education Reform in Germany between Professionalisation and the Bologna Process

Speaker: Professor Hans-Georg Kotthoff (University of Freiburg)

Convenor: Hubert Ertl

Causal Inference in Multilevel Designs - An Introduction to Prospects and Problems

Dr Benjamin Nagangast, University of Oxford

Part of the SELF Research Group's Advanced Quantitative Research Methods Special Interest Group (Quant SIG) Seminar Programme

Measurement error and regression artefacts

To be presented by John Fletcher, University of Oxford

Part of the SELF Research Group's Advanced Quantitative Research Methods Special Interest Group (Quant SIG) Seminar Programme

The Researching Effective CPD in Mathematics Education (RECME) project: a discussion of the findings

Convened by Jane McNicholl

Authors: Marie Joubert, Jenni Back, Christine Hurst and Rosamund Sutherland

Presented by: Marie Joubert, Jenni Back and Els De Geest

How does Cultural Historical Activity Theory help with the analysis of collective learning in regional governance processes?

Convened by Anne Edwards and Geoff Hayward

Speaker: Stefanie Schmachtel (OSAT visiting doctoral student)

'Don't let me be misunderstood': Communication beyond the limitations of a skills analysis

Convened by Anne Edwards and Geoff Hayward

Speaker: Anna Touloumakos (SKOPE and OSAT DPhil Student)

Knowledge matters: some reflections on sociology and the curriculum since Knowledge and Control

Speaker: Professor Michael Young, Department of Lifelong and Comparative Education, Institute of Education, University of London

Convenor: Katharine Burn

Network-based decision-making about educational participation: findings from recent research

Speaker: Alison Fuller, Professor of Education and Work, School of Education, University of Southampton

Convenor: Geoff Hayward

How primary maths must go beyond basics: Evidence from two reviews of research

Speakers from the Department of Education, University of Oxford

Professor Peter Bryant, Senior Research Fellow
Professor Terezinha Nunes, Chair in Educational Studies
Professor Gordon Stanley, Pearson Professor of Educational Assessment
Professor Anne Watson, Professor of Mathematics Education

Convenor: Terezinha Nunes

Interactions among curriculum, teachers, and classrooms

Convenor: Anne Watson

Speaker: Professor Ruhama Even, Weizmann Institute of Science

Nguzunguzu: from a cultural warrior to an educational proponent (context-sensitive early childhood education in the Solomon Islands)

Speaker: Lindsay Burton (University of Oxford, Department of Education)

Convenor: Kathy Sylva (FELL)

Factors supporting positive adjustment of young people with a history of Specific Language Impairment (SLI) at the end of compulsory education

Speaker: Olympia Palikara (Institute of Education, University of London)

Convenor: Kathy Sylva (FELL)

Young children's use of physical materials in a numerical task: evaluating the potential for emerging technologies

Speaker: Andrew Manches (University of Nottingham, School of Psychology)

Convenor: Kathy Sylva (FELL)

How does whole-word multimedia software support early acquisition of literacy skills in typically-developing and struggling readers?

Speaker: Arjette Karemaker (University of Oxford, Department of Education)

Convenor: Kathy Sylva (FELL)

Researching Pakistani Teachers� Knowledge about Mathematics, Mathematics Teaching and Learning

Convenor: Anne Watson

Speaker: Munira Amirali, Aga Khan University

Parents Count Too: Exploring the Role of Home Numeracy Activities in Children�s Early Mathematics

Convenor: Anne Watson

Speaker: Jo-Anne LeFevre, Professor of Psychology and Cognitive Science, Carleton University

Is technology transforming learning?

Dr Chris Davies, Department of Education, University of Oxford, Dr Naomi Norman, Director of Learning, Epic

Intelligent Systems Approaches to Personalised Learning and Assessment

To celebrate the first anniversary of the launch of the Centre, this symposium has been organised to look at the contribution being made by intelligent systems approaches to personalised learning and assessment.

Organised by Professor Gordon Stanley

Speakers include Professor Art Graesser, Professor Tom Landauer and Professor John deJong.

The role of logico-mathematical reasoning in learning mathematics in primary school

FELL/Child Learning seminar series, Week 2

Speaker: Terezinha Nunes Department of Education, University of Oxford

Convened by Kathy Sylva

The contribution of vocabulary and decoding skills at age 5 to reading in English children at ages 6 and 10: more EPPE findings

FELL/Child Learning seminar series, Week 4

Speaker: Kathy Sylva Department of Education, University of Oxford

Convened by Terezinha Nunes

Telling children with cancer about their diagnosis

FELL/Child Learning seminar series, Week 3

Speaker: Akiko Watanabe University of Birmingham

Convened by Terezinha Nunes

Recycling the RAN: New uses for the Rapid Automatised Naming task

Convenor: Terezinha Nunes

Speakers:

Ron Stringer, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Dept. of Educational & Counselling Psychology, McGill University
Olivia Leung, M.A., Doctoral Candidate, Dept. of Educational & Counselling Psychology, McGill University
Anna Tirovolas, M.A., Doctoral Candidate, Dept. of Educational & Counselling Psychology, McGill University

"Culture and Education" Part One

OSAT Reading Group

Convenor: Viv Ellis

The theme of the first two reading group meetings this year is 'Culture and Education'. We will begin with two short essays by Raymond Williams.

Collaborative theory building by teachers and researchers through lesson video analysis of pedagogic approaches to using data projection technology

Rosemary Deaney, Senior Teaching Associate and Research Associate, Faculty of Education, University of Cambridg

Sara Hennessy, Lecturer in Teacher Development and Pedagogical Innovation, Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge

Engagement and Achievement in Middle Years Mathematics

Speaker: Dr Janette Bobis, University of Sydney

Convenor: Anne Watson

Discourses about mathematical discourse

Speaker: Dr Andreas Ryve, University of Stockholm

Convenor: Anne Watson

Title to be advised

Speaker: Dr Helen Chick, University of Melbourne

Convenor: Anne Watson

Title to be advised

Speaker: Craig Pournara, University of Witswatersrand

Convenor: Anne Watson

Research in the new Academies: enterprise, philanthropy and faith

Speakers: Professor Philip Woods & Dr Glenys Woods, University of Gloucestershire; Dr Elizabeth Green, Department of Education, University of Oxford

Convenor: John Furlong

Young children learning with toys and technology at home

Speaker: Professor Lydia Plowman, The Stirling Institute of Education, University of Stirling

Convenor: Chris Davies

Peer-review process in academia: strengths, limitations & how to improve it

Speaker: Professor Herb Marsh, Department of Education, University of Oxford

Convenor: Herb Marsh

The eXpresser: a microworld to support mathematical generalisation

Speakers: Celia Hoyles and Richard Noss, Professors of Mathematics Education, London Knowledge Lab, Institute of Education, University of London

Convenor: Terezinha Nunes

Beyond input: interaction in first language acquisition

Speaker: Dr Matthew Saxton, Faculty of Children and Health, Institute of Education, University of London

Convenor: Vicki Murphy

Competencies possessed by young university graduates and qualification requirements for jobs

Speaker: Dr. Manuel Salas-Velasco, Senior Lecturer, Applied Economics Department, University of Granada, Spain

Convenor: Ken Mayhew/SKOPE

Memorization and L2 learning: reflections on process and product

Speaker: Professor Alison Wray, Centre for Language and Communication Research, University of Cardiff

Convenor: Ernesto Macaro

Introduction to Vygotsky

OSAT session led by Anne Edwards and Viv Ellis

A leading activity: towards a cultural historical perspective on play and assessment in early childhood education

Speaker: Dr Susan Edwards, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia

Convenor: Anne Edwards

'Culture and Education' Part Two

OSAT Reading Group

OSAT Symposium

20 minute presentations by doctoral students:

Alaster Douglas CHAT concepts in my doctoral research: capturing the object by studying tools-in-use
Hannah Grainger-Clemson ‘To Be or Not To Be’: a discussion of drama as a pedagogical tool
Sheena Wagstaff Relational agency within dyadic doctoral supervisory relationships

followed by discussion

Discussant: Dr Suzy Edwards, Monash University, Visiting Research Fellow

OSAT Reading Group

The final reading this term is:

Modeling Developmental Dynamics of Individual Cases Across Time by Using Time-series Analysis

Jari-Erik Nurmi, Department of Psychology and Finnish Center of Excellence in Learning and Motivation, Research University of Jyväskylä

Part of the SELF Research Group's Quant SIG seminar programme

Solving bias in value - added models: A simulation study on Mathew effects.

Ioulia Televantou, University of Oxford

Part of the SELF Research Group's Quant SIG seminar programme

Estimating person proficiency parameters in the Rasch model independently of all test parameters and their maximum scores

Prof. David Andrich, FASSA Chapple Professor, University of Western Australia

Rasch models of modern test theory are characterized by sufficient statistics. However, the facility to eliminate the item parameters when estimating the person parameters this provides has not been exploited. This paper shows that it is possible to do so by transforming the problem into estimating parameters of simple Bernoulli variables. In particular, estimates of the relative proficiencies of any number of persons independently of all item parameters and their maximum scores, and with different persons having scores on different tests, are obtained. This permits the application of the Rasch model at the level of tests where tests require equating. Because tests generally have many scores with zero frequencies, current software, in which item parameters are estimated, cannot handle such cases. In applying the formulation presented in this paper, such a property of the data is no impediment to estimation. An example in which 300 persons have scores on six tests scored from 0 to 100 illustrates the application. The presentation will show the principles of the approach, and not technical details.

Part of the SELF Research Group's Quant SIG seminar programme

Students� Evaluations of University Teaching: Dimensionality, Reliability, Validity, Potential Biases and Usefulness

Prof. Herb Marsh, University of Oxford

Students' evaluations of teaching effectiveness (SETs) have been the topic of considerable interest and a great deal of research in universities all over the world. Although SETs have a solid research base stemming largely from research conducted in the 1980s, it is surprising that research conducted in the last decade has not done more to address critical limitations previously identified and incorporate exciting methodological advances that are relevant to SET research. Perhaps the most damning observation is that most of the emphasis on the use of SETs is for personnel decisions rather than on improving teaching effectiveness. Although much work is needed on how best to improve teaching effectiveness, it is clear that relatively inexpensive, unobtrusive interventions based on SETs can make a substantial difference in teaching effectiveness. This is not surprising, given that university teachers typically are given little or no specialized training on how to be good teachers and apparently do not know how to fully utilize SET feedback without outside assistance. Why do universities continue to collect and disseminate potentially demoralising feedback to academics without more fully implementing programs to improve teaching effectiveness? Why is there not more SET research on how to enhance the usefulness of SETs as part of a program to improve university teaching? Why have there been so few intervention studies in the last decade that address the problems identified in reviews of this research conducted a decade ago? These, and other issues, are addressed in this Public Lecture.

Part of the SELF Research Group's Quant SIG seminar programme

Constructing �higher education� in the context of new forms of vocational HE

Presenter: Professor Ann-Marie Bathmaker (University of the West of England, Bristol)

Public Seminar open to all interested staff and students.

Seminar Convener: Hubert Ertl (hubert.ertl@education.ox.ac.uk)

"Who took the �X� out of expectancy-value theory?" - Student Engagement in Science in PISA 2006 - Cross-cultural analyses

Dr. Benjamin Nagengast, University of Oxford

Part of the SELF Research Group's Quant SIG seminar programme

Big fish little pond effect: Negative effects of school-average ability on academic self-concept � Generalisation and moderation

Man (Kate) Xu, University of Oxford

Part of the SELF Research Group's Quant SIG seminar programme.

Unmasking the Phantom: Design of a simulation study to measure bias in multi-level systems with measurement and aggregated constructs

John Fletcher, University of Oxford

Part of the SELF Research Group's Quant SIG seminar programme

Variability and change in 17 teachers� classroom quality during teacher education and two years of professional practice. A three-level multilevel model[more]

Dr. Lars Malmberg, University of Oxford (with H. Hagger, K. Burn, T. Mutton, H. Colls & DEBT)

Part of the SELF Research Group's Quant SIG seminar programme

Western oriented research with very remote Indigenous minorities. Can it work? : An analysis of theoretical and methodological issues related to measuring self-constructs among very remote Indigenous students in Australia.

Part of the Advanced Quantitative Research Methods Special Interest Group (Quant SIG) Seminar Programme

Extra Classes and Subjective Well-being: Empirical Evidence from Vietnamese Children

Part of the Advanced Quantitative Research Methods Special Interest Group (Quant SIG) Seminar Programme

A New Look at the Big-Five Factor Structure through Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling

Part of the Advanced Quantitative Research Methods Special Interest Group (Quant SIG) Seminar Programme

Visible Learning -- Synthesizing meta-analyses about student achievement to answer questions about teaching, learning and assessment.

Part of the Advanced Quantitative Research Methods Special Interest Group (Quant SIG) Seminar Programme

Investigation of the bias caused by Matthew effects in Value-Added models using simulations

Part of the Advanced Quantitative Research Methods Special Interest Group (Quant SIG) Seminar Programme

Advanced longitudinal modeling: Three empirical illustrations of recent innovations in the field of longitudinal modeling.

Part of the Advanced Quantitative Research Methods Special Interest Group (Quant SIG) Seminar Programme

Immigrants' achievement in Greece based on PISA 2006 analysis: First results and methodological issues

Part of the Advanced Quantitative Research Methods Special Interest Group (Quant SIG) Seminar Programme

Comparative Perspectives on Citizenship Education: Policy, Practice and Research

Speaker: Carole Hahn, Charles Howard Candler Professor of Educational Studies, Emory University and Leverhulme Visiting Fellow, Department of Education, University of Oxford

Convenor: David Johnson

Framing play for learning: professional reflections on the role of open-ended play in early childhood education

FELL/Child Learning seminar series, Week 1

Speaker: Suzy Edwards Centre for Childhood Studies, Monash University

Convened by Terezinha Nunes

An incomplete understanding: clarifying some causes and consequences of the 'poor comprehender' profile

FELL/Child Learning seminar series, Week 5

Speaker: Hannah Pimperton Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford

Convened by Kathy Sylva

How children can learn morphologically-based spellings

FELL/Child Learning seminar series, Week 6

Speaker: Megan Patrick Department of Education, University of Oxford

Convened by Terezinha Nunes

Morphology roolz: spelling intervention studies with university students

FELL/Child Learning seminar series, Week 7

Speaker: Nenagh Kemp School of Psychology, University of Tasmania

Convened by Terezinha Nunes

Dissertation presentations by Bath Psychology interns

FELL/Child Learning seminar series, Week 9

Psychology interns 08/09 return to present their dissertation projects. Followed by Christmas drinks and nibbles.

Speakers:
Harriet Alexander
Lucinda Turnpenny
Sophie Webster
Rebecca Wright
University of Bath

Convened by Kathy Sylva

Teaching the Logic of Transcultural English

Speakers: Professor Min Zhan Lu and Professor Bruce Horner, University of Louisville

Convened by Viv Ellis