News and Blog

In my previous blog post, I discussed regional variations in attitudes towards climate change, with people living in Wales appearing more sceptical in comparison to those in other parts of Britain. However, attitudes to climate change also differ according to people’s characteristics such as gender, age and educational level, and these will affect regional differences…

Pupil needs can vary significantly and might require for the provision of individually tailored special education and/or additional support. Special education needs (SEN) have been linked with a number of adverse outcomes including poor mental health and loss of school days, which in turn can lead to deterioration of mental health, highlighting the need to…

On September 13th, the UK’s four chief medical officers concluded that children aged 12 and over can be offered one dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccination. There has been much debate about whether all children and younger teenagers should be offered vaccinations, with discussion about the safety of vaccines, consent from children and the need…

Pupils differ significantly in terms of their individual characteristics and needs. It’s therefore important for schools to be able to identify and assess the level of need/disability, and provide for pupils with learning difficulties that call for special education provision, described as special education needs (SEN). Under the Additional Learning Needs and Education Tribunal (Wales)…

Like many European countries, Wales has an ageing population. If a younger workforce is not developed, the burden of health and social care will continue to rise, and economic development will stall. Limitations on freedom of movement due to Brexit and the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic add to the challenges for the Welsh…

We are delighted to announce the winner of our annual WISERD PhD Poster Competition 2021. Muhao Du from Cardiff University has won the prize for his poster – ‘Finding Harmony in Hardship: experiences of expatriates in subsidiaries of Chinese MNCs in the high technology sector’. Emma Reardon from the University of Wales Trinity Saint David…

Media coverage over the past few years has shown young people around the world come together to protest for Black Lives Matter, the climate emergency and exam results among other issues. Growing support for Welsh independence and membership of YesCymru is also anecdotally linked to support from the younger generations. While this suggests young people…

School practices on discipline and punishment of disruptive behaviour can affect the exclusion rates being recorded and they have been shown to vary across different jurisdictions of the UK. These practices could be closely linked to and shaped by pupil-level characteristics and needs, including free school meals (FSM) eligibility and special education needs (SEN) provision…

Racial equality in Wales was the focus for the 2021 Centre for Welsh Politics and Society Annual Lecture that over 200 people watched live on Zoom last week. The lecture, Showing true colours: the changing politics of race equality in Wales, was presented by Professor Charlotte Williams OBE, Chair of the recent Welsh Government Working Group…

WISERD Director, Professor Sally Power, has been elected to sit on the British Educational Research Association (BERA) Council. BERA is a membership association and learned society committed to advancing research quality, building research capacity and fostering research engagement. They aim to inform the development of policy and practice by promoting the best quality evidence produced…