Contact
Biography
I have researched and published in the areas of language, literacy and cultural practices, with a particular focus on the way in which these relate to the agency and identities of individuals and communities. For my doctoral research, I focused on the ways in which young bilinguals made use of literacy practices to explore their cultural worlds and identities. I have been involved in ethnographic research as part of a partnership between the University of Nottingham and community theatre company Hanby and Barrett. I also worked alongside Pat Thomson, Christine Hall and Ken Jones as a research associate on the Arts Council sponsored Creative School Change Project, which explored the impact of Creative Partnerships on whole school change.
Recent research includes a British Academy funded ethnographic study of the everyday lives and literacy practices of families living on a Midlands council estate. This research was the focus of an article which won the Wiley-Blackwell Research in Literacy Education Award 2015 and will be featured in a forthcoming book.
I also work with Dr Kevin Harvey (School of English) and Dr David Peplow (Sheffield Hallam University) in convening a local shared reading group, based in Lenton. Further details about the group can be found here.
Having previously worked as a teacher of English in secondary schools in Derby and as a tutor in Children's Literature for the Open University, I have taught on postgraduate initial teacher education courses in secondary English, including PGCE and Schools Direct, as well as on the Postgraduate Certificate in Education Studies. I support postgraduate research students working for Masters, EdD and PhD. I am Programme Leader for the Education BA and MArts.
I am Book review editor for Literacy, the journal of the United Kingdom Literacy Association (UKLA), and a member of the UKLA Research Committee.
Research Summary
Shared reading group, Lenton (with Dr Kevin Harvey, School of English). This work the collaborative practice of shared reading and the role it can play in supporting inclusive, asset-based models of… read more
Recent Publications
2018. Portraits of Everyday Literacy for Social Justice: Reframing the debate for families and communities Palgrave.
JOANNA MCINTYRE and SUSAN JONES, 2017. Connecting community through film in ITE English. In: DAVID STEVENS and KAREN LOCKNEY, eds., Students, Places, and Identities in the Arts Routledge.
Current Research
Shared reading group, Lenton (with Dr Kevin Harvey, School of English). This work the collaborative practice of shared reading and the role it can play in supporting inclusive, asset-based models of participatory arts practice within communities.
I am also working on the 'Building a City of Literature' project with Dr Joanna McIntyre. This involves working with creative practitioners and teachers to develop community arts projects in three Nottingham secondary schools. This will further develop work that has arisen from our primary research in the Centre for Research in the Arts, Creativity, Literacies and Learning (CRACL). It will maximise the impact of existing resources, promote community engagement and develop local knowledge amongst pupils and teachers. The school-based community arts projects will involve researching, reading, performing and writing plays about local communities. They will pilot new ways of developing sustainable partnerships between schools and local cultural organisations, thereby contributing to local knowledge, supporting Nottingham's City of Literature and Cultural Education Partnerships, and deepening all participants' understandings of the processes of learning about and valuing where they live
Past Research
My doctoral research focused on the ways in which young bilinguals made use of literacy practices to explore their cultural worlds and identities.
I have also been involved in ethnographic research as part of a partnership between the University of Nottingham and community theatre company Hanby and Barrett. I worked alongside Professors Pat Thomson, Christine Hall and Ken Jones as a research associate on the Arts Council sponsored Creative School Change Project, which explored the impact of Creative Partnerships on whole school change.
Right Up My Street: an investigation into the creative practices and pedagogies of the Right Up My Street (RUMS) project which was run by Broadway Media Centre and funded through Creative England. Its aim was to connect young people with their communities whilst giving them professional skills through creative work (with Dr Joanna McIntyre).
'New literacies and cross-generational learning: an ethnography of everyday family practices on a Midlands council estate': a pilot study funded by a British Academy Small Research Grant. This explored the use of everyday literacies in the lives of three families. This research was the focus of an article which won the Wiley-Blackwell Research in Literacy Education Award 2015 and will be featured in a forthcoming book.