Curriculum
Mathematics Education
This research group focuses on learning, teaching and assessment in mathematics across primary, secondary and tertiary phases. Work in this area also focuses on primary student teachers' understanding of mathematics and its teaching and the professional learning of teachers of mathematics. The staff in this group have played leading roles in researching and developing the mathematics curriculum and assessment, and in leading work in vocational accreditation and assessment and testing in mathematics education. Such research has also taken place in international comparative and socio cultural contexts.
Projects include:
Free-standing maths units
New qualifications for post-16 students have been developed to encourage more post-16 students to include mathematics as part of their study programmes. 'Maths for all post-16' is a Nuffield funded project that has supported the development and implementation of such units on behalf of QCA (Qualifications and Curriculum Authority). (Geoff Wake and Anne Haworth)
AS: Use of Mathematics, Nuffield Curriculum Project
This project developing curriculum support for the new AS Use of Mathematics is funded by the Nuffield Foundation. (Geoff Wake and Anne Haworth)
Using College Maths to Understand Workplace Practice
This research project, funded by the Leverhulme Trust, investigated students' understanding of the use of mathematics in workplace settings and aimed to investigate how college mathematics can be used by students to make sense of, and understand, workplace activity.
Mathematics Assessment for Learning and Teaching (MALT)
This project funded by Hodder Murray is developing a new series of age-standardised Mathematics tests but with additional provision for effective on-screen assessment and diagnostic follow-up.
Keeping open the door to mathematically-demanding further and higher education programmes
This project, funded by ESRC, will investigate different patterns of teaching and learning in AS Use of Mathematics and AS Mathematics courses. We seek to find out how courses can be enhanced to assist students from a wide range of backgrounds to be successful at mathematics and make sure they are well prepared to progress to courses that require a relatively high level of mathematics.
The Financial Literacy Education Project
Given the widely reported concern about low levels of financial literacy acting as a barrier to social inclusion we need to understand more about how financial literacy can be fostered in young people. This research project is the most in-depth study of financial literacy education in the UK. It has significance because it tracks for the first time the financial literacy, personal financial management and aspirations of three cohorts over the duration of at least three. The project employed a longitudinal, mixed-methods, hybrid survey-case study design.
The Financial Literacy Education Project is funded by the ifs School of Finance, a leading provider of financial education in the UK. It focuses on the relation between students' personal financial management, aspirations and the pedagogic culture of financial literacy education. The project ran from 2004 to December 2007.
Updates for all sections as detailed below:
http://www.education.manchester.ac.uk/research/centres/lta/LTAResearch/TheFinancialLiteracyEducationProject/
Technology
This research group focuses on the teaching and learning of technology across primary and secondary phases, including the presentation and design of technology activities in the classroom. Staff in this group explore the impact of technology on teaching contexts, teacher development and teacher adoption and use of ICT.
Current work includes: Children's thinking about computers, Children's misconceptions in ICT, ICT in Science education, On-line learning, Integrated Learning Systems and creativity in Design and Technology education.
Projects in this area include:
- Exploring the Factors that Impact on Newly Qualified Teachers' Use of ICT in Teaching MFL During the Induction Year in Secondary School, funded by the Teacher Training Agency (Diane Slaouti);
- Research Study into the use of Information and Communication Technologies to Promote Inclusion, f unded by the British Educational Communications and Technology Agency (Peter Hick).
Staff working in this area include:
- Alejandro Armellini
- Alan Cross
- Chrysanthi Gkolia
- Alan Jervis
- Diane Slaouti
- David Spendlove
- Drew Whitworth
Language and Communication
Research in this area is diverse and the group consists of people interested in mother-tongue, second and modern-foreign languages and bilingual development. Contexts for investigation may be in as well as outside of the classroom and the focus could be on written and/or spoken language. While most research is conducted in more conventional settings, there is developing interest in the virtual world. Interests also lie in the areas of cross and intercultural communication.
Projects in this area include:
- Evaluation of the Language Awareness Project 2004-2007 funded by Esmee Fairbairn (Amanda Barton)
Staff working in this area include:
- Amanda Barton
- Laura Black
- Julian Edge
- Richard Fay
- Steve Jones
- John Keen
- Juup Stelma