Research Projects
Education
Overview: This is was an evaluation of Pori Drwy Stori, a bilingual reading intervention designed to raise educational outcomes for young children by increasing the quality and quantity of adult-child interactions around reading in the home learning environment (HLE). This
Research Questions To evaluate how schools are implementing computational thinking in the classroom. What classroom tools do practitioners use to develop computer coding. Evaluate any differences in provision that might exist between different schools, such as internet speed
Figure 1: Official and recontextualised fields, derived from Bernstein (1996) Research Questions How are Pioneer Schools developing the new curriculum in a way which benefits all learners? What are Pioneer Schools doing to ensure that the implementation of the new curriculum
Overview The project will use interviews and questionnaires to investigate the types of civic participation and conceptions of language and identity promoted within the statutory education system, and within civil society organisations working with young people, in both
WISERD undertook an independent evaluation of the Foundation Phase early years education policy for the Welsh Government. The Foundation Phase (FP) is an early intervention approach to learning for all children aged three to seven years in Wales. It is based on principles of
Overview Supporting children in their early years is seen as central to reforms to improve educational standards and raise the educational achievement of children in Wales, particularly amongst children from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds. The distinct and
Overview The Pupil Deprivation Grant was introduced in 2012-13 and provides schools with additional resource to raise levels of achievement of a particular group of economically disadvantaged learners. This two-year evaluation looked at how schools have used this new grant
The overall aim of the project was to provide an analytical review of the research literature on graduate employability and skills, with due attention to the diversity of the approaches that have been adopted. In particular, the review was designed to draw out the
Overview Professor Chris Taylor was awarded an ESRC Mid-Career Development Fellowship to carry out an analysis of the Millennium Cohort Study (MCS). The Economic and Social Research Centre (ESRC) awards only 10 to 15 Mid-Career Development Fellowships each year. They are
Overview This project explored the relationships between participation in higher education and engagement in civil society, especially at the local level. Do university graduates play a distinctive role in the institutions of civil society? More specifically, it examined the
The overall aim of the proposed research was to demonstrate the effectiveness of the secondary analysis of administrative data-sets to delineate patterns of participation in higher education (HE) and, thereby, to contribute to the development of policy and professional
Significant changes are happening in Wales through the development of a new curriculum together with a wide range of enabling education reforms. These are set out in the Welsh Government’s action plan ‘Education in Wales: Our National Mission 2017-2021. In recognition of the
Research Questions How can a mindfulness approach contribute to the development of the Health and Wellbeing AoLE in a pioneer primary school? What processes support such an intervention? What are the perceptions of pupils, teachers and parents regarding the approach? What is
Overview This project focused on increasing the engagement between local authorities and the higher education research community in Wales by reviewing current local authority education research capacity and activity in Wales and identifying factors that had an impact on
Research Questions Primary question: What are the organisational implications for leaders in rural schools of the way the new curriculum is being developed? Secondary aims: Identification of challenges and opportunities in respect of teacher recruitment and retention.
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Overview This study, funded by the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation (£295,915) examined the extent to which an ICT intervention to enhance sustained shared thinking impacted on young children’s cognitive and linguistic outcomes. The project aimed to maximise the benefits of
Research Questions How are pioneer schools and teachers are building and shaping the Expressive Arts AoLE? What are the implications for disadvantaged learners and schools? How does impact vary between primary and secondary teachers? Figure 1: PGCE Drama and Music students
This project, facilitated through WISERD and the Ecole Normale Superieure, Lyon, is exploring the contrasting relationship between education, the state and civil society in Wales and France. France and the UK provide two important contexts in which to explore these issues as
Overview The Assisted Places Scheme was introduced in 1980 by the Conservative Government in order to provide a ‘ladder of opportunity’ for academically able students from poor homes. Over the next 17 years, more than 75,000 pupils received means-tested assistance from