Panel of Contributors
Andy Black
Andy worked in FE colleges for more than 15 years. He has written extensively on emerging technologies. He is infamous for demonstrating gadgets and gizmos in a live show along the lines of 40 gadgets in 40 minutes. He lives online via his blog. Andy worked on developing a way of teaching technical computing terms in British Sign language sign on mobile device he presented a proof of concept version in October 2006 at Mlearn in Canada. His raison d’être is “don’t forget the learners” and to write a “e-book” entitled “what to do when the kit doesn’t work apart from tell jokes.” Andy thinks he should blog more and get our more if that’s not a contradiction or at least a paradox.
Avril Loveless
Avril Loveless is Professor of Education at University of Brighton, specialising in creativity and digital technologies, pedagogy and professional knowledge and technology enhanced learning and professional development .
Alison Oldfield
Alison works on the Greater Expectations and Space for Personalised Learning projects, and is interested in the voice and participation of children and young people in their learning and spaces that support participation and inclusion. Before joining Futurelab, she worked as operational manager for the Young People's Inclusion Network, a national youth project that looked at developing inclusion of disabled young people in youth and leisure services through young people's participation. Alison’s background includes a Masters in Education and professional experience in journalism and as a teacher and youth worker both in the UK and abroad.
Alex Savage
Alex is an ICT AST at Notre Dame High School, Norwich. He is also a Lead Practitioner for SSAT and a Board Member of Naace. His main interest is enhancing the curriculum with a global dimension via the internet. This includes using blogs, online surveys, flashmeeting and other web 2.0 tools to give tasks a real purpose.
He also interested in social networks for trainee and qualified teachers to create and share resources.
Bob Harrison
Bob is teacher and tutor for NCSL and established Support for Education and Training (SET) in 1996. He supports the Toshiba Ambassadors, researching the impact of wireless networks on teaching, learning and management in schools and colleges. When not presenting, advising or tutoring on a multiplicity of e-learning topics, Bob supports nearby Rochdale FC (as a demonstration of perseverance) and scuba dives wherever there is warm water and good reef.
Ben Williamson
Ben's particular research interests at Futurelab are in curriculum development, student voice, and changing images and representations of childhood. He trained as an English teacher at the Graduate School of Education at Bristol University, and taught at a local secondary school. A graduate of English Literature from Cardiff University, Ben has also completed his PhD at the University of the West of England, where his focus was American fiction and pragmatist philosophy.
Clara Lemon
Clara is responsible for delivering Futurelab's projects, producing a broad range of digital resources ranging from websites and web applications to interactive programmable water fountains and wearable devices, and is part of the strategy team. Before life at Futurelab, she was a producer at the BBC and in various global digital agencies since 1998. Her background includes a specialism in user-experience and user-centred design approaches with an MSc in human-computer interaction from the University of Bath
Carlo Perrotta
Carlo’s main research interests in Futurelab are broadly concerned with personalisation and learner voice. He is currently working to involve schools and other stakeholders in an open exchange about learning spaces. As a psychologist, he is also interested in the relationship between identity formation and socio-cultural learning; in this respect, he has spent a few years at the University of Bath studying how digital technologies can increase expressive possibilities and encourage social participation in communities of learners.
Dan Sutch
Dan's main research interests are in mobile learning, radical innovation and the role of the teacher in technology-rich learning environments. Dan’s current work involves investigating new models of innovation in the design and application of digital learning resources and the capacity of teachers to act as innovators in the use of digital learning resources.
Emma Agusita
Emma is a digital media practitioner, educator and researcher with a background in informal and formal media education practice and research in community settings. She has worked as a facilitator of grassroots, participative film/video and photography projects, particularly with young people, and as a community radio producer with marginalised groups.
Emma is doing a collaborative PhD with the University of the West of England and the Knowle West Media Centre, Bristol. The AHRC-funded research project aims to evaluate the role of new technologies in young people’s creative media practice in informal educational settings.
Emma also currently provides research and policy support to the DC10plus, the digital challenge and inclusion network (“founded from ten local authorities and their partners, dedicated to unravelling social inclusion issues through the effective roll-out of technology-based initiatives”).
Graham Hopkins
Graham's role at Futurelab is to help manage the delivery of prototype projects, ensuring all project documentation is produced and prototypes are completed on time and to a high quality. He also runs the Call For Ideas process, carries out initial market research on new projects, and helps maintain good relationships with our project partners.
Keri Facer
Keri was responsible for Futurelab’s R&D agenda and activities and led Futurelab’s partnership with DCSF on the Futures programme. She has published widely in the field of children's digital cultures, with a particular focus on informal learning, educational transformation and on questions of digital inclusion and social justice. Keri has led a range of research projects both at Futurelab and, previously, at Bristol University where she continues to be a visiting fellow.
Kieron Kirkland
Kieron is particularly interested in how digital technologies can stimulate social interaction and engage learners with their physical environment, participatory approaches to learning, and how education practice can be best be evaluated. Before joining Futurelab he worked as Practitioner-in-Residence for the education department at Shakespeare's Globe and delivered cognitive behavioural programmes for the Probation Service. His education background includes an MA in Theatre and Development.
Richard Sandford
Richard is a learning researcher with Futurelab. Currently, he's based in Singapore, where he's working with the Infocomm Development Agency, exploring ways of creating new digital learning tools for Singapore schools (as part of the 2-year iLAB 2015 collaboration between Futurelab and the IDA). He's also working with the Learning Sciences Lab (at the National Institute of Education) and a group of teachers from two Singapore schools on a game with dinosaurs in it. His interests are currently centered around the social and collaborative affordances of games and the learning potential these might hold, and the factors that influence change and innovation within learning institutions. In his spare time he enjoys writing about himself in the third person.
Leon Cych
Leon is a web designer, coder, teacher, poet, artist, broadcaster and journalist. He is currently UK Director of Learn 4 Life who specialise in the effective use of emerging technologies in business and education. He divides his time between project managing innovative KS3 music education video software and writing about, filming, blogging and podcasting with key innovators in the UK education sector. He has a personal site and a podcast site for innovative educators. He also has an experimental island on Second Life
Leila Walker
Leila was previously a Senior Researcher at Futurelab and worked primarily on the Digital Inclusion project; her involvement in this project stemmed from her own interests in inclusion and teaching and learning -- she has taught science and psychology for 13 years. In 2004, Leila completed her doctoral thesis in practitioner thinking about the successful use of resource-media in the secondary science classroom from Cambridge University, whilst continuing to teach as an Advanced Skills Teacher and later as an Assistant Head Teacher.
Lyndsay Grant
Lyndsay's research interests include the potential of social internet technologies and mobile learning approaches to support formal and informal learning. She is also interested in new approaches to reading and narrative in a digital age. Her current research focuses on the ‘digital divide’ and the role of new technologies in promoting educational equality and social justice.
Marisa Harlington
Marisa coordinates the production of marketing materials at Futurelab, including video, print and web publications. She is interested in the opportunities new technologies present for developing creative thinking, and enjoys the odd bit of live music.
Martin Hughes
Martin is currently Professor of Education at University of Bristol and from 2000-2003 was Head of the Graduate School of Education. Previously he was Professor of Education at the University of Exeter. Martin has researched and written on many aspects of children’s learning, with a particular focus on children learning mathematics and the relationship between home and school. He has recently finished an ESRC funded project on homework and its contribution to learning, and is currently director of the Home School Knowledge Exchange Project, funded under the ESRC Teaching and Learning Research Programme.
Martin Owen
Martin is developing innovative new devices to support learning in his own company Smalti Technology. He also undertakes some development, research, consultancy and cpd independently - often with European partners. Martin was Director of Development and Director of Learning at Futurelab. Martin held a teaching and research post at the School of Education in the University of Wales, Bangor; he has also worked as an advisory teacher and as a secondary science and technology teacher.
Mary Ulicsak
Mary has been a learning researcher at Futurelab for over 4 years. When she is not helping to develop prototypes, trying to work out what education should be like Beyond Current Horizons, find out how games could be used in classrooms, or how to get technology to foster collaboration she looks after her two young children and keeps promising that she’ll try to improve her rusty windsurfing.
Peter Humphreys
Peter spent 25 years in primary teaching, including 9 years as deputy and 10 as a head teacher. He served as Chair of an innovative cluster of 10 cross phase schools.
Peter is passionate about learning and the deconstruction of those elements of our current systems which prevent real learning, divide our society and generate a culture of ependency.
Peter is currently Chair, Trustee and Director of the Centre for Personalised Education / Personalised Education Now. This group develops and advocates the principles, learning and vision to enable the transformation of our educational system into a flexible personalised educational landscape with the learner at its centre. They also support a network working toward this goal, writing, publishing, conducting research and taking part in the wider educational debate.
Peter has worked as an educational consultant for BECTA and as an Associate Adviser in Birmingham Local Authority. He currently works as an educationalist and researcher for Futurelab and a Faculty Based Tutor for Birmingham City University.
Rose Luckin
Rose is Professor of Learner Centred Design at the London Knowledge Lab and a Visiting Professor at the ideas lab at the University of Sussex. The aim of her research is to better understand the process of learning with technology and to use this to design technology effectively, to stimulate curiosity, maintain engagement and foster creativity. She is particularly interested in the development of participatory methods to engage learners and teachers in the process of designing technology to fit their needs and to enable them to access all the resources within their environment that might effectively support learning.
Robin Widdowson
Robin is a Curriculum Adviser within the Curriculum Division at QCA, working across all phases of education, from early years to post-16 in the areas of curriculum and qualifications.
His main focus is on developing and supporting the implementation of a curriculum that will inspire and challenge all learners and prepare them for the future - working in partnership with schools, colleges, and local authorities.
He has over 16 years of experience in schools including co-ordinating ICT and providing INSET in a wide range of areas and his passion for the arts and ICT has involved working on research projects with Becta and the Paul Hamlyn Trust. He also has over 15 years experience working within the examinations system at all levels including as principal examiner for GCE.
In his own time Robin furthers his interest in supporting learners through his role as Chair of Governors at a junior school.
Sarah Grier
Sarah is responsible for managing the Futurelab website and supporting a variety of projects in addition to working on e-communications including the e-newsletter and interaction with users on sites such as Twitter. As administrator of flux, Sarah is the one to contact if you have any questions about the blog itself: sarah.grier@futurelab.org.uk.
Simon White
Simon is currently Senior Policy Manager at the National College for School Leadership, looking at an overview of policy and emerging thinking relating to leadership and education. In previous lives he has worked for DfES, Becta; and on local authority and regional projects. A self-confessed technology-addict, he is interested in the role of technology in encouraging innovation, challenging practice and enabling social capital. Outside of work he enjoys photography and skiing. Sometimes simultaneously, when it's not too dangerous.
Tash Lee
Tash is a Learning Researcher at Futurelab and her primary research interests include the use of augmented reality for learning (the mixing of real and virtual environments/narratives), gender differences in the use of ICT, emerging digital literacies, and the use of technology to promote physical activity and enhance performing arts. She has over ten years' experience in the digital media/e-learning industry, and prior to joining Futurelab worked as creative director at digital learning development company DESQ, where she was responsible for the R&D and learning design of all the company's projects. Tash has a BSc in Digital Art and Technology and an MA in Education.
Tim Reader
Tim was previously Web Developer at Futurelab and created Flux, elsewhere, an accomplished musician; he blogs about music, web and allsorts at FromNowOn.me.uk. In his spare time, Tim attempts to be a "Renaissance Man" but usually oversleeps.
Tim Rudd
Tim is Senior Researcher in Futurelab's learning team, working on and advising on a range of research projects, written outputs and events. Prior to this he was head of evidence and research at Becta, where he worked on a range of policy-related projects and programmes relating to research into ICT and education. Tim's work and writing has covered areas such as the digital divide, home-school-community links, personalisation and learner voice. Previously he gained his doctorate whilst studying at the University of Bristol, focusing on ICT and the reproduction of social inequalities.
Tim Rylands
Tim, who says that he has never grown up, decided that he enjoyed school so much he didn't want to leave. So, as a primary school teacher, he now spends the day with thirty friends who have inspired him to write two full length children’s musicals, among other things… and have taught him all he knows.
Tony Wheeler
Tony is the founder, director and senior partner of the New Blue Door education consultancy and a senior research fellow at TERU, Goldsmiths, University of London, contributing to the e-scape assessment project. He also co-established TAG Learning, now regarded as one of the leading independent publishers and suppliers of creative ICT resources to UK schools.
Whole Education _
Whole Education is working to share and promote a set of common beliefs that aim to make sure every child reaches their full potential, and has access to an education that fully equips them to be happy and successful in life and work.
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