Nigel Fancourt

Director of Doctoral Research; Associate Professor of Education and Values | St Stephen's House

About me

Nigel is Associate Professor of Education and Values and the Department’s Director of Doctoral Research, overseeing all doctoral students.

His own research encompasses belief and values-based questions across education and research, especially on:

  • Laws, human rights and courts
  • Religions, beliefs & secularities
  • Educational justice
  • Educational research ethics

He has been convenor of the Philosophy, Religion and Education Group, and Chair of the Departmental Research Ethics Committee.

Professional associations: Association of University Lecturers in Religion and Education; British Education Research Association; European Association of Research in Learning and Instruction; International Seminar for Religious Education and Values; Philosophy of Education (Great Britain) Society.

He is on the editorial board of Journal of Beliefs & Values, and regularly reviews for: British Journal of Religious Education, Journal of Contemporary Religion, Oxford Review of Education, Religion & Education, and Teachers and Teacher Education.

Advisory & consultancy: Nigel is involved in advising on research in UK and across Europe, most recently the MORE project in Vienna. He has also been a doctoral external examiner in UK and internationally. He welcomes consultancy work with schools, educational organisations and governments, and has carried out projects around the world.

Research

Books

Book chapters

Journal articles

Reports

Subjects Taught

  • DPhil in Education
  • MSc in Education (Research Design and Methodology)
  • MSc in Medical Education
  • MSc in Learning and Teaching

Doctoral Applications

Nigel welcomes doctoral applications from students interested in the following research areas

  • Religions, beliefs and secularities in education
  • Ethics and values in education and educational research
  • Qualitative and mixed-methods approaches, including practitioner research studies

Funded Research Projects

Raising and Sustaining Aspiration in City Schools (CI)
Funded by CitiFoundation
2012-2014
Leadership for Learning (CI)
Funded by Oxford City Council
2012-2014
Oxford Argumentation in Science and Religious Education: an interdisciplinary study in British schools. (CI)
Funded by Templeton Foundation
2018-2021
Refining the Ethical Eye and Ethical Voice – The Possibilities and Challenges of a Fiction-based Approach to Ethics Education (Advisor to University of Gothenburg)
Funded by Swedish Institute for Educational Research
2018-2020
Evaluation of Attachment-Aware CPD Birmingham (Co-PI)
Funded by Birmingham City Council
2017-2019
Knowledge Exchange: evaluation of attachment-aware CPD (PI)
University of Oxford
2017-2018
Evaluation of WISERDEducation (CI)
Funded by Higher Education Funding Council for Wales
2017
Research Use in Schools: teachers' views of methodology, status and implementation (Co-PI).
Funded by John Fell Fund, University of Oxford
2016-2017
Evaluation of Attachment-Aware CPD – Leicestershire (Co-PI)
Funded by Leicestershire County Council
2016-2017
Test and Learn: Closing the Gap (CI)
Funded by Department for Education
2013-2015
Raising and Sustaining Aspiration in City Schools (CI)
Funded by CitiFoundation
2012-2014
Leadership for Learning (CI)
Funded by Oxford City Council
2012-2014