Educational Research: Advancing Learning, Inclusion and Innovation

Our team of experts explores diverse educational settings, from early years to higher education, and beyond. Our work supports networking opportunities for researchers at all levels.

The Special Interest Groups (SIGs) are central to our work. They foster collaboration across disciplines and translate research into real-world practices. SIGs produce books, articles and presentations to share findings with global audiences.

Explore our key areas:

• Early years – Researching contemporary issues in early childhood education.
• Inclusion and social justice – Investigating inclusive practices, mental health in SEND, and more.
• Mathematics education – Advancing effective teaching and learning practices in mathematics.
• Science education – Exploring current challenges like pre-school obesity and teacher training.
• Technology and pedagogy – Harnessing technology to enhance teaching and learning.

The Early Years Special Interest Group (EYSIG) is a dynamic professional learning community of early years practitioners, educators, researchers and students. Together, we share knowledge and experience to inspire innovation and create change in the early years sector.

We believe in celebrating the uniqueness of every child and family, and offering high-quality early years education for all.

If you share our passion for early years excellence, we invite you to join us.

Our mission

The Early Years Special Interest Group (EYSIG) is dedicated to advancing early years education locally, nationally, and internationally. We aim to:

• Spark innovation and positive change in the field.
• Provide a platform for discussion, collaboration, and advocacy.
• Enhance professional practice through research, networking, and development opportunities.

Together, we strive to improve outcomes for young children and their families.

Our aims

Through collaboration and innovation, EYSIG focuses on:

• Building a vibrant community of practice to explore and critique early years education within political, social, and cultural contexts.
• Creating a strong early years network to share research and effective practices worldwide.
• Supporting new research to enhance early years practice.
• Collaborating on presentations and publications like journals and books.
• Hosting conferences and seminars to explore groundbreaking research and innovations.
• Providing mentoring, peer support and guidance for research funding applications.

EYSIG Committee

The EYSIG Committee steers the group’s activities and priorities. Led by a Chair and two Vice-Chairs specialising in Advocacy and Professional Development, the committee ensures the group’s direction aligns with the sector’s evolving needs.

Key responsibilities include:

• Organising events and seminars.
• Managing communications and knowledge-sharing.
• Preparing an annual report for the Education Research Group.

Committee members develop portfolios to address critical sector issues, guided by Advocacy or Professional Development goals.

Membership categories

EYSIG welcomes a diverse range of members, offering various levels of involvement:

Academic membership

Open to Kingston University academics interested in supporting the group’s aims. Committee roles are drawn from this membership.

External academic membership

For academics from other institutions who wish to contribute. Members may serve as Advisors or Special Guests on the Committee.

Associate membership

For practitioners, students and early years professionals. Members enjoy networking, advocacy opportunities and more.

Affiliate membership

Open to those outside the early years field with a passion for contributing to its development.

All members are added to our distribution list and receive updates, newsletters, and event information.

Meetings and events

We host a variety of activities to support collaboration and professional growth, including:

• Three formal committee meetings annually.
• Two online member meetings each year.
• Biannual conferences.

Additional opportunities include:

• Forums on policies and key topics.
• CPD activities and seminars.
• Best practice case studies.
• Networking and field trips.
• Research workshops and e-periodicals.
• Partnerships, consultations and grant applications.

Founded in 2010 by Dr. Paty Paliokosta, the Inclusion and Social Justice Special Interest Group (SIG) was the first SIG established in the School of Education. It encourages a research-driven environment through practice papers, invited talks and CPD events for both staff and students. This SIG, alongside others, forms the core of the Educational Research Group (ERG).

As catalysts for knowledge generation, SIGs stimulate the development of conceptual, theoretical and empirical research, sharing findings through publications, journals, conferences and workshops.

The SIG's work supports the Department of Education's commitment to professional development, practitioner research, and award-bearing programs. Notable achievements include:

• Inclusive Curricula Award (2018)
• TEAN Commendation for Effective Practice in Teacher Education (2019)
• AdvanceHE Connect Onboarding Grant (2020)

The group’s growing network of collaborators includes external partners, prospective PhD students, local schools, multi-academy trusts and charity organisations.

SIG Leadership

The SIG is led by Dr. Paty Paliokosta. Contact: [email protected]

Meet the SIG Members:

• Theresa Nash
• Dr. Dejan Ljubojevic
• Banna Millar
• Nicola Ryan

Recent publications

The Inclusion and Social Justice SIG continues to influence the field with publications and research, such as:

• Nash-Patel, T., Anderson, E., O'Donaghue, B., Paliokosta, P., & Morrow, E. (2022) StoryAID: Nursing student relational learning with young people with intellectual learning disabilities. Journal of Nursing Education (In Press)
• Paliokosta, P., & Nash, T. (2019) Fighting for our rights: Perceived gains from transforming the curriculum through a narrative of activism. International Journal for Cross-Disciplinary Subjects in Education, 10(2), 4041-4047.

Explore more publications and research outputs in the Research Repository.

Conferences and events

The SIG hosts regular conferences, seminars and talks featuring leading activists and academics:

• 2021 Horizons in STEM Higher Education Conference – The Value of the Personal Tutor Scheme as a mechanism of supporting belonging in an online world
• 2021 Festival of Learning – The Value of the Personal Tutor Scheme as a mechanism of supporting belonging in an online world

Join us for future events and discussions on inclusion and social justice in education.

Current projects

The "Fighting for Our Rights" project, funded by a £76,900 grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund, explored the history of disabled activists in Kingston, examining how their fight for equal rights and access to education and employment led to the formation of the Kingston Centre for Independent Living. This project involved collecting oral histories from 23 activists who fought for change in the 1960s and beyond.

Seminars and events

The SIG organises a range of events, including:

• Invited presentations
• Mini-conferences
• Twilight talks
• Centenary talks

Prominent national and international activists, academics and local charity representatives have contributed to our discussions on SEND and inclusion. Notable speakers include:

• Richard Rieser (Disability activist)
• Professor Gottfried Biewer (University of Vienna)
• Professor Lesley Saunders (Oxford University)
• Professor Sonia Blandford (AfA CEO and UCL Visiting Professor)

Collaborations with local charities like Kingston Eco-Op and Kingston Centre for Independent Living (KCIL) are shaping future initiatives.

Enquiries

For more information, please reach out to Dr. Paty Paliokosta at [email protected]

The Inclusion and Social Justice Special Interest Group is part of the Educational Research Group.

The Mathematics Education Special Interest Group (SIG-ME) is a vibrant research community within the Department of Education at Kingston University. Our group connects diverse research and disciplines to improve mathematics learning and teaching. We focus on advancing theory and practice in mathematics education, supporting educators, and developing researchers across various educational levels and environments.

Our activities include:

• Informal talks and group discussions to share information and engage in constructive dialogue
• Seminars that attract mathematics education researchers
• Research support, including help with research proposals, seeking grants and submitting papers for conferences and journals

The SIG-ME is open to academics, research students, and mathematics educators globally. Joining is easy—there are no membership fees or registration procedures. Just attend our events or follow our blog to stay connected.

SIG-ME Members

• Dr. Christos Dimitriadis
• Ms. Su Kler
• Dr. Ruth Wood
• Dr. Sali Hammad (Gulf University for Science & Technology, Kuwait)
• Ms. Angie Firmin
• Ms. Mari Jo Valentine

Recent Publications

The SIG-ME group has contributed to various peer-reviewed journals and books, focusing on key areas such as gifted education, classroom practices, and the development of mathematical skills:

• Dimitriadis, C., Georgeson, J., Paliokosta, P., & Van Herwegen, J. (2021) Twice-exceptional students of mathematics: What do the teachers know? Roeper Review, 43(2), 99-111.
• Hammad, S., Dimitriadis, C., & Graham, T. (2021) Using concept maps in a foundation mathematics course: What have we learnt? Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 17(2), 1305-8215.
• Dimitriadis, C., & Georgeson, J. (2018) Provision for mathematically able children in primary schools: A review of practice five years after England dropped the gifted and talented initiative. Educational Review, 70(3), 358-380.
• Dimitriadis, C. (2016) Gifted programmes cannot be successful without gifted research and theory. Journal for the Education of the Gifted, 39(3), 221-236.

For more publications, please refer to the SIG-ME Research Repository.

Books and book chapters

• Dimitriadis, C. (2013) Developing Mathematical Giftedness within Primary Schools: A Study of Strategies for Educating Children Who Are Gifted in Mathematics. Saarbrucken: LAP LAMBERT Academic Publishing.
• Dimitriadis, C. (In press) Students with Special Educational Needs: The Attainment Gap. In E. J. Done (Ed.), International Perspectives on Exclusionary Pressures in Education. Palgrave Macmillan.

Current research projects

SIG-ME is actively involved in several exciting research projects aimed at enhancing mathematics education:

• Exploring mathematics anxiety and attitudes towards mathematics among primary student teachers in their first year of initial teacher training.
  Researchers: Su Kler, Christos Dimitriadis, Ruth Wood, and Sali Hammad
• How do we teach mathematics in higher education during a pandemic? A comparative study between Kuwait and the UK.
  Researchers: Sali Hammad, Gordon Hunter, and Christos Dimitriadis

The Technology and Pedagogy (TaP) Special Interest Group is a forward-thinking research group within the Department of Education at Kingston University. Our mission is to explore and promote the purposeful use of digital, virtual, and social media technologies to enhance teaching and learning. We focus on the transformative potential of technology when implemented thoughtfully and effectively in educational settings.

The group is open to colleagues interested in the evolving intersection of digital tools and pedagogy. Key areas of research include:

• Technology-enhanced learning and reflection
• Enabling critical pedagogy through technology
• Learning design and analytics
• Open educational resources
• Flipped classrooms
• Evaluation of technology-enhanced learning

By fostering a collaborative environment, TaP offers a platform for research, development, and dialogue among those passionate about educational technology and its role in improving learning experiences.

TaP Members

• Dejan Ljubojevic (Lead)
  Dejan's research focuses on the intersection of learning design and technology. His work is informed by applied memetics, where pedagogical patterns evolve through seamless sharing and reuse of teaching practices.
• Ruth Wood
  Ruth’s research investigates the relationship between learners, teachers, and technology in various educational contexts, examining the implications of technology in teaching and learning.
• Elizabeth Lloyd
  Elizabeth’s work explores how educational technologies can enhance pedagogy in primary, secondary, and higher education, particularly focusing on the use of simulation in medical education.

Associate members:

• Paty Paliokosta
• Amit Puni
• Jay Jayaramakrishnan

Recent publications

TaP members have contributed to a range of academic articles and conference papers on the role of technology in education:

• Ljubojevic, D., Wood, R., Kiruthika, J., Paliokosta, P., Puni, A., and Lackovic, N. (submitted). 'Zoning' of the (Teacher's) Proximal Development. European Conference for Education Research (ECER) 2022 conference.
• Ljubojevic, D., Paliokosta, P., Puni, A., and Wood, R. (2021). Realpedagogik - Linking Learning Design Research with Learning Design Practice. Society for Research In Higher Education online conference.
• Wood, R., and Shirazi, S. (2020). A Systematic Review of Audience Response Systems for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education: The Student Experience. Computers & Education, 153, p. 103896.

Current research projects

The TaP SIG is involved in a variety of exciting research projects focused on enhancing learning through technology:

• Research Development Grant (2019)
• Exploring Technology-Enabled Reflection and Pedagogy

Seminars and events

TaP SIG hosts a range of seminars and events aimed at advancing the role of technology in education:

• 16/02/2021: Multimodal Teaching and Research - Introducing Inquiry Graphics with Dr. Natasa Lackovic
• 09/07/2020: Using Disruptive Technology to Enable Disruptive Pedagogy with Dr. Dejan Ljubojevic
• June 2022: From Conception to Inception: A Qualitative Research Project at the Festival of Research, Kingston University

mEDiaLab KUL

As part of the Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) initiative, the mEDiaLab KUL is a cutting-edge research and development space focused on cultivating critical and creative literacies in educational technology. The lab supports custom-designed interventions aimed at transforming professional culture and educational policy.

mEDiaLab KUL is equipped to develop creative literacies in areas such as learning design, curriculum design, media production, and more, across various modalities (online, blended, on-campus).

Enquiries

For further information about the Technology and Pedagogy Special Interest Group or to get involved, please contact Dejan Ljubojevic at [email protected]

Focusing on critical issues in science education, such as teacher training and early childhood health.

Please direct any enquiries to [email protected].