Profile
Professor Marilyn Leask, Dean
Marilyn Leask is well known for her work on knowledge management in education and in building the evidence and knowledge base for teacher education and classroom practice.
Her current work includes developing national and international models for scaling up promising small scale research [Word]
Her specialist areas are teacher education, change, improvement and development across large systems particularly through online networking and knowledge sharing, the development of approaches supporting evidence-informed policy and practice, and the use of ICT in education.
She has worked as a teacher, researcher and manager in secondary schools, local authorities, universities and two national agencies - The Training and Development Agency for schools where as Head of Effective Practices she brought together subject associations and colleagues across the education sector to establish the Teacher Training Resource Bank and the associated subject resource networks, and the Improvement and Development Agency for local government where as Head of Knowledge and Learning she set up online communities for local government using web 2.0 technology www.communities.idea.gov.uk
She was instrumental in establishing Teachernet and the European SchoolNet
She is co-editor of the Learning to Teach in the Secondary School series of text books which are widely used for teacher training and which cover all subjects.
The fifth edition was published in 2009. She has led research projects in a number of countries as well as within the UK.
With Christina Preston, she has been working with practitioners to develop a new research and evaluation methodology, the PIMMS approach – practitioners and researchers working in a community of practice and using innovative 21C multidimensional mind-mapping as well standard techniques for ideas sharing, research and evaluation.
Qualifications
- 1994-1998: PhD De Montfort University, UK. ‘Whole system change in education: the development and embedding of new knowledge in the teaching profession.’
- 1986-88: MPhil. Cambridge Institute of Education/University of East Anglia, UK. ‘Reliability and validity of teacher-evaluator approach to projectevaluation. ’ http://library.beds.ac.uk/record=b1468955~S20
- 1980-81: PGCE Institute of Education, University of London, UK. Integrated Science: UK Teacher Registration Number: Department of Education and Science No: 805 1290
- 1974-79: BA Open University, UK. English Literature and History
- 1968-70: Diploma in Radiography. Australasian Institute of Radiologists and Radiographers, Mater Hospital, Brisbane, Qld.
Examples of current and recent research projects
- Working with Sonia Blandford, Teach First and Christina Preston, Mirandanet on new models for CPD using the power of digital communication technologies – the Society 21 approach [Word] – Networking to shape thinking and Practice. Society21:The Vision [PDF]
- Pathways to Learning – this project is focused on new ways of using ICT to provide access to evidence-based knowledge around issues that teachers face in their daily work. A team of staff and MA, EdD and PhD students is working on this project developing proof of concept materials for Science, SEN and Teacher Education.
- ICT for Future Teachers – this Becta project is concerned with questions about effective digital tools and resources and teachers visions of how ICT could help in the future. Several Futures workshops have been held with teachers to create the vision for the future.
- CPD Leadership in 21st Society – this work, funded by the TDA focuses on identifying the knowledge leaders of CPD in schools need to lead CPD in the school. The focus is very much on the effective use of ICT for knowledge sharing across the sector.
- Reviewing and developing the SEN portal www.sen.ttrb.ac.uk June-December 2009: outcomes: 10 technical reports and a briefing leaflet for trainee teachers.
- Evidence informed practice and levers for change [Word]
- TTRB Project: Joint TDA/Microsoft Project - Developing an E-Librarian to answer teachers questions about research underpinning practice [PDF]
You can follow the work I am doing on Twitter.
Collaboration with Industry
I have for many years benefited from close collaboration with industry partners in exploring how technology might be used to support professional learning. Partners have included: Research Machines, Microsoft, Oracle, Sun Microsystems, Cisco systems, ICI/Fujitsu, Acorn computers.
Consultancy
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On behalf of the British Council, invited member of UK delegation European eTwinning Conference: Leading 21st Century Learning, Genoa, Italy, from 16th-17th November 2011
Research Impact
Marilyn’s research on knowledge management, mechanisms for leveraging national change in professional practice and the harnessing the power of technologies to support improvement of professional practice across the whole of national public sectors has been used to underpin the following developments:
- The Teacher Training Resource Bank www.ttrb.ac.uk was conceptualised, developed and implemented by Marilyn in her role at the government agency, the Training and Development Agency for schools and the continuance of this initiative is named in the TDA remit letter from the DCSF as one area of work they are required to continue. The resource supports the work of one million employees.
- The online communities of practice for local government www.communities.idea.gov.uk initiative has won two awards and provides knowledge management tools for the whole of local government – 1.24 million workers.
The research around adopting knowledge management practices to the web in order to bring about national change which underpins this work was funded by the EU, the GTCE, the DCSF, SSAT, DFID, Oracle Corporation, Sun Microsystems, ICL Fujitsu, Acorn computers . Her ongoing research is this area has been funded more recently by Becta and the TDA.
The core text book she edits for teacher training, now into its fifth edition, which was based on research into the knowledge base underpinning teacher training, has sold over 90,000 copies and there are twenty or more associated text books with many tens of thousands of more copies sold.
Research Group Membership
- Teacher Education and Technology-enhanced learning
Research student supervision areas
- Teacher Education, Technology-enhanced learning, Change management in national systems, Knowledge management and mobilisation, Evidence informed policy and practice.
Memberships
Board memberships
- 2009 – Invited Member of the Advisory Board meeting for the FutureLab Map of Innovations project
- 2008 – appointed member of the Editorial Commissioning Advisory Board, Teacher Training Resource Bank
- 2007 – invited member of the 21st Century Learning Alliance – a partnership between industry, education and government agencies (chair: Tim Brighouse)
- 2002/3 member DCSF Sustainability group (chair: Rt Hon Charles Clark)
Membership of Professional Organisations, National Panels and Steering Groups
- 2008 Member of Editorial and Commissioning Board, Teacher Training Resource Bank
- 2004 - 2008 Member of Education Panel Research Assessment Exercise (UK RAE 2008)
- 2007-08 member Social Care Institute of Excellence Knowledge Management panel.
- 2005-06 Judge National Teaching Awards
- 2005 – ongoing: member of the editorial board of JORSEN, the journal for special educational needs.
- 2005 – 2008: member of the editorial panel of Educational Research
- 2002 -06 Cross-Agency Research Liaison Group member with selected government agencies GTCE, QCA, NCSL, QCA, GTCE, BECTA: invited member
At the TDA, Marilyn led and managed national steering groups for projects such as:
- 2004 - 06: Teacher Training Resource Bank
- 2002 -06: Diversity project – Multiverse
Selected Presentations
- 2011 6-7 June: Foresight workshop: Teacher Collaboration Networks in 2020-2025. European Commission, Joint Research Centre: Institute for Prospective Technological Studies (Seville) IS Unit. Invited speaker [PDF] [PPT]
- 2011 24-25 March. With Coughlin, A. "Education Communities" presentation, Modern Universities Research Group Spring Conference, UK: Manchester [PDF]
- 2011, 18 March: OECD International Workshop on Making Online Collaboration Work - Paris. Invited speaker
- 2010 November Society for Educational Studies Annual Seminar, London. Beyond Impact: Connecting research to policy and practice. Invited Speaker.
- 2010 April Australian Computers in education conference: Melbourne : Being Observed or Being involved: PPIMMS - an innovative approach to educational research - with Christina Preston [PDF]
- 2010 March-April Society for IT in Teacher Education, San Diego, California. O brave new world: the roles of researchers, assessors and evaluators in web based communities of practice - with Christina Preston [PDF]
- 2010 Digital technologies and new ways of working? Challenging custom and practice Presentation to Research Branch | Education Policy and Research Division, Government of Victoria, Australia. - with Christina Preston
- 2008 10 October: Guest speaker Learning & Sharing Knowledge Online at the MetaKnowledge Mash-up 2.0 Making & Organising Knowledge in communities British computer Society KIDMM Group.
- 2008 25 September: Guest speaker Examining, Implementing, Managing collaborative tools such as social software, particularly via online communities of practice KM for the Public Sector Conference, Ark Group.
- 2008 A challenge or an opportunity for the academic world? Emerging models of knowledge creation & transfer through the online Communities of Practice for local government BERA, Edinburgh.
- 2005 Expert Panel with OECD & DFES staff -EPPI Conference on research & evidence informed policy & practice.
- 2004 Accumulating the evidence base for educational practice: our respective responsibilities. BERA conference paper.
- 2004 November invited presentation to DFES Research Conference & seminars on research & evidence informed practice
- 2004 10 July Regenerating the teaching workforce UK contribution to International Symposia, Australian Teacher Education Association, June 2004, Bathurst, NSW.
- 2004 6 May Building the evidence base for educational practice: our respective responsibilities Universities Council for the Education of Teachers, Research Committee.
- 2003-2004: numerous presentations to government representatives about evidence based policy & practice & the operation of the Teacher Training Agency. Countries included: Australia, Botswana, Canada, China, Russia, South Africa, Trinidad & Tobago, Russia, Malaysia.
- 2003 BERA: three presentations on different aspects of evidence based practice, the development & embedding of professional knowledge.
- 2002 Invited Guest: presentations at all Teacher Education colleges in New Zealand about evidence based practice in teacher education
