We are concerned with inclusion in its widest sense and are unique as a team of researchers in attending to multiple indices of difference (and their intersection) including dis/ability, race, ethnicity, culture, gender and sexuality. We have particular interests in inclusive pedagogy and curricula, raising the attainment of all students in multi-ethnic contexts, the education of Gypsy Traveller communities, and constructions of identity and difference.
We maintain close links with policy makers and with national and local inclusion and ethnic minority achievement services. Internationally we are linked with the Intercultural Education Department in the University of Hamburg and with UTS, Sydney, Australia. Our consultancy work has included staff development in interactive teaching approaches nationally and internationally, the production of the TTA/TDA document ‘Teaching pupils from diverse backgrounds: what do trainee teachers need to know?’(2002), input to the DfES Revision of the national Initial Teacher Training Standards (2001) in drafting the Inclusion sections, and producing for the National Literacy Strategy a research overview of ‘The Importance of the first language for literacy learning in a second language’ (2001).
Convenor: Professor Melanie Nind.
This research area comes under the Social Justice and Inclusive Education Research Centre.