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Research Profile

  • Qualifications
    • Certificate in Education (Oxon) Drama, Theatre Studies, Dance – DES No 73/70671 (1976)
    • BA Hons (Open) History, Music and Education (1977)
    • Certificate of Further Professional Studies (De Montfort) English 9 to 16 (1986)
    • Certificate of Further Professional Studies (De Montfort) ICT in Primary Schools (1989)
    • TDLB D32/33 (CGLI) Vocational Assessor Award (1997)  & TDLB D34 (CGLI) Internal Verifier Award (1997)
    • Key Skills Practitioner Award – Advanced (Edexcel) (1999)
    • MEd (Sheffield) Special & Inclusive Education (2001) – Dissertation commended
    • LCGLI (City & Guilds) Leadership & Management (2007)
    • Phd (University of Northampton) ‘The contextual variety between primary school Special Educational Needs Coordinators (SENCOs) within the East-Midlands Region.’ (2017)
    Membership of Professional Bodies (Current)
    • Fellowship of the Institute of Leadership & Management (FInstLM)
    • Fellowship of the Higher Education Association (FHEA) 
    External Examiner Posts
    • Higher Level Teaching Assistant Assessor (2004 to 2008)
    • Assessor for the Inclusion Quality Mark (IQM) (2004 to 2006)
    • External Examiner: BA Hons in Education & Training (post-compulsory education & training), the University of Huddersfield (2005 to 2009)
    • External Examiner: BA Primary Education & BA Early Years: Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1.  PGCE Primary Education and PGCE Early Years: Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1 (M Level). School Experience. Middlesex University (Sept 2010 to August 2014)
    • External Examiner: BA Hons and Foundation Degree in Special Needs and Disability Studies: Bishop Grosseteste University, Lincoln. (March 2015 to July 2019).
    • External Examiner: Professional Graduate Certificate in Education (Prof Grad Cert Ed) Post-16 Education and Training: Leeds City College/Open University. (June 2019 to present).
    Delivering In-Service Training and Consultancy
    • Hong Kong Institute of Education & HK English Schools Foundation– Creating & delivering professional development programmes/training for Education Assistants in English Foundation Schools in Hong Kong. HKIEd. Jan 2008 to June 2009
    • St John’s School, Kempston & Harrowden School, Bedford – School Improvement advisory work (Inclusion Audit and Development). October 2007 to June 2008.
    • Buckinghamshire Local Authority – NQT Induction programme support and continuing new teacher professional development. June 2009 to July 2011
    • University of East London (CASS School of Education) MA (Ed) School Partnership programme : Inclusion Module Jan 2010 to May 2010
    • Kingsheath School, Northampton. Staff CPD programme. SpLD (Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Dyscalculia). Mental Health and Behaviour. Feb to July 2015
    • Amsterdam International Community School, Amsterdam, Holland.  TA Professional Training Programme (SEND). July 2015.
    • Loughton School, Milton Keynes, Bucks.  Staff CPD programme. Mental Health, Social and Emotional Needs.  September 2016 ff.
    • Author and adviser for the Northants Emergency Response Corps (NERC) Local Authority Cadet Award (Community Resilience for Northamptonshire). Jan 2016 to the present.
    • SEND Awareness Programme for member groups of the Northamptonshire Local Resilience Forum (inc. the professional Emergency services and Police). July 2015 to the present.
    Previous Professional Experience in Education
    • 1977 to 1982 Teacher (Drama & English); Winstanley Community College. Leics LEA 
    • 1978 to 1981 (part-time with the above) Teacher/Leader; The Leicestershire Drama Centre. Leics LEA
    • 1982 to 1985 Teacher (English & Deputy Year Head); Castle Donington Community College.  Leics LEA
    • 1985 to 1987 Head of English & Drama; Kingsbrook Middle School. Beds LEA
    • 1987 to 1990 Head of English/Drama/Library/Head of House; Linslade Middle School. Beds LEA
    • 1987 to 1990 (part-time with the above) Advisory Teacher Beds LEA English Advisory Team (Oracy Research & Development)
    • 1990 to 1995 SENCo; Buckingham Secondary School. Bucks (Aylesbury Vale) LEA
    • 1995 to 2001 Subject Manager for General Education & Learning Support (Line-manager for all cross-college Learning Support Services; all courses for students with SEND (F/T & P/T); all NVQ Level 1 courses in Agriculture, Horticulture, Horse Care and Small Animal Care; Schools’ Liaison Programme; Sport Studies; Core/Key Skills across all subjects and
    • Professional Chefs’ courses). Moulton FE College, Northampton.
    • 2001 to 2003 SENCo & Senior Teacher/Co-ordinator for Out-of-Hours Curriculum & Services; Linslade Middle School. Beds LEA
    • 2003 to present Senior Lecturer in Special & Inclusive Education, The University of Northampton. 
    Other (current)
    • Regional Volunteer Officer (Central England): Maritime Volunteer Service
    • Trustee of the Northants LA Local Resilience Forum/Northamptonshire Emergency Response Corps (volunteer community responder organisations).
    Major Conference Presentations (since 2008)
    • Smith, A. Jones, J. (2008) ‘Aims, values and ethical considerations in group work assessment – Facilitating Group Work; leading or empowering? EARLI/Northumbria Assessment Conference (Sept 2008) Humboldt University, Potsdam, Berlin.
    • Smith, A. (2008) ‘Student Reflections on a Collaborative Project’ . ECER (Sept 2008) Gothenberg University. Sweden
    • Griffiths, S & Smith, A. (2009) School Placement Experiences of Initial Teacher-Trainee Students with Dyslexia. IATSE (Irish Association of Teachers in Special Education) Annual International Conference (June 2009) St.Patrick’s College, Dublin.
    • Griffiths, S. & Smith, A. (2009) School Placement Experiences of Initial Teacher-Trainee Students with Dyslexia. ECER (Sept 2009) Unversity of Vienna. Austria
    • Brown, R., George, A, Lockwood, S, Smith, A. (2009) Recreating the past – using living history interpreters in the classroom (KS1 to KS4). Midlands History Forum Conference (Oct 2009) Birmingham City University.
    • Smith, A. & Griffiths, S. (2011) Extended Services in Schools: Developing Resources to Prepare Student Teachers for a Rapidly Changing Working Environment. ECER (Sept 2011) Freie University, Berlin. Germany.
    • Devi, A. & Smith A (May 2012) The Paradox of Learning: Can good relationships between the teacher and the student lead to the greater independence of the learner? 3rd TEAN (Teacher Education Advancement Network) Conference (‘Creating Effective Teachers’) Aston University, Birmingham.
    • Smith, A (2012) Developing a ‘Roadmap to Inclusion’ to champion inclusion for students with special educational needs in vocational education & training. EAPRIL (European Association for Practitioner Research on Improving Learning) Nov 2012 Conference.  The University of Applied Science, Jyvaskyla, Finland.
    • Smith, A. (2013) Early Identification and Effective Interventions for Underachieving Pupils.  Optimus Education (Feb 2013).  Sir Christopher Hatton Academy Teaching and Learning Conference.
    • Smith A, Devi, A. (2013) National Policy and Local SEN Leadership: marriage or mis-match? BERA (British Educational Research Association) Sept 2013 Conference.  The University of Sussex.
    • Smith A, Whewell, E. (2013) When opportunity Knocks! Examining a CPD model at a UK HEI. BERA (British Educational Research Association) Sept 2013 Conference.  The University of Sussex
    • BA Hons Special Educational Needs and Inclusion (Module Leader & Dissertation Supervisor)
    • BA Hons Learning & Teaching (Dissertation Supervisor)
    • Foundation Degree in Learning & Teaching (Module Leader: Yr 2 School-Based Research Project)
    • MA (Dissertation Supervisor: Home and international (Bangkok) students)
    • Postgraduate Certificate (L7): SEN Coordination Award (Cohort Leader: Lincolnshire & Derbyshire  & international – Bangkok)
    • Emotional & Mental Health Practitioner Award (L7 & L6)
    • Short CPD-based courses (non-award bearing) in SEND (Programme Leader)
    • Phd Internal Examiner
    • The ‘Teacher as Researcher’ Project (Senior school-leader CPD creating research-informed change/improvement in schools)
  • Previous Funded Research
    • Research report: Reflections on the pilot schools’ initial engagement with the national Inclusion Quality Mark (IQM/Staffordshire Local Authority); Rose, R., Smith, A.  October 2003 to May 2004. (completed)
    • Research Report into Extended Services in and around Schools in Derbyshire (for Derbyshire Local Authority); Rose, R., Smith, A., Feng Yan, M.  September 2005 to September 2006. (completed)
    • Group work assessment project (Northumbria University/University of Northampton) Jones, J., Smith, A. June 2007 to September 2008 (completed)
    • Extended Schools: Developing and Enhancing ITT Tutor Capacity (TDA); Rose, R., Smith, A., Griffiths, S. & Feng Yan, M. Jan 2008 to July 2009 (completed)
    • TILE :Towards Inclusive Learning Environments in Vocational Education & Training. European Commision’s Lifelong Learning Programme ;Leonardo da Vinci. (Masaryk University & Brno College Czech Republic; University of Tartu & Tartu Vocational Training Centre Estonia; JAMK University of Applied Sciences & Kokkola Vocational Institute Finland; The University of Northampton & Oxford and Cherwell College England. Bell, S. & Smith, A.. September 2011 to December 2013 (completed).
  • Journals and Newspapers:
    • Smith, A. (2004) The Teacher as ‘Storyteller’ – A practical guide for aspiring teacher storytellers in the National Curriculum.  Education Today. Vol.54, (2), June 2004. 
    • Rose, R, Smith, A., and Feng Yan, M. (2006) An investigation into the efficacy of two English extended secondary schools. Education-line. http://www.leeds.ac.uk/educol
    • Smith, A. (2006) Why Some Students Refuse Learning Support – an investigation into transition at a further education college. The Journal of Adult & Continuing Education .Vol.12 (2).
    • Smith, A. (2008) Why SEN role isn’t new. Education Guardian. 22.04.2008
    • Smith, A. (2009) Darren: A case study in School-College Liaison.  Support for Learning. Vol.24 (4) 2009.
    • Rose, R., Smith, A., and Yan, F. (2009) Supporting pupils and families – A case study of two English extended secondary schools. Management in Education. Vol. 23. (2): 57-62.
    • Jones, J. and Smith, A. (2010) Facilitating group work: Leading or empowering? (Chapter 5). Aims, Ethics and Values in Group Work Assessment. Eds. Foreman-Peck, L. And McDowell, L. CETL Occasional Paper 5. Northumbria University.
    • Griffiths, S. and Smith, A, (2010) Extended Services in Schools: Developing resources to prepare student teachers for a rapidly changing working environment. Support for Learning. Vol 26.(1); 13-16.
    • Smith, A. and Jones, J. (2011) Is it fair to assess group work for students on undergraduate programmes of study? Narrative reflections on a collaborative project at Level 5. Innovative Practice in Higher Education.  Vol. 1(1). April 2011. ISSN: 2044-3315.
    • Devi, A. and Smith, A. (2013) SEN Champions: Why all schools need one (Part 1). Teacher. Vol 7. (2). April-June 2013; 30-31. Australian Council for Educational Research
    • Devi, A and Smith, A. (2013) SEN Champions: Role and Identity (Part 2). Teacher. Vol 8. (3). July-Sept 2013. Australian Council for Educational Research.
    • Smith, A and Bell, S. (2015) Towards Inclusive Learning Environments (TILE): Developing the ‘Roadmap for the Inclusion of Students with Special Educational Needs in Vocational Education and Workplace Settings’.  Support for Learning. Vol.30 ( 2). May 2015
    • Smith A (2020) Special Educational Needs and the Evolution of the Primary School Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCO) in England: A review paper. The Journal of Exceptional People. Vol. 2 (17). Nov 2020.
    Books and Book Chapters:
    • Smith, A. (2006) Developing effective partnerships with external services – working within a multi-professional network (chapter). The SENCO Handbook. Ed. Soan, S. Optimus Publishing. London.
    • Smith, A. (2010) Developing effective partnerships with external services – working within a multi-professional network (revised chapter). The SENCO Handbook. (2nd Edition) Ed. Soan, S. Optimus Publishing. London.
    • Griffiths, S., Groom, B., Smith, A. (2012) Supporting pupils with dyslexia: whole-school training materials and resources for SENCOs. London. Optimus
    • Smith A (2013) “We’re all in this together”: teaching assistants supporting children with special educational needs and disabilities. In Tarry, E. & Cox, A. (Eds) Teaching Assistants in International Schools. Woodbridge. Cobis.
    • Smith A (2013) “I’m not doing that! Leave me alone! I’m no good…I’m stupid!” teaching assistants supporting children with behavioural needs. In Tarry, E. & Cox, A. (Eds) Teaching Assistants in International Schools. Woodbridge. Cobis.
    Websites
    • TILE (Towards Inclusive Learning Environments): The Roadmap for the Inclusion of Students with Special Educational Needs in Vocational Education and Training Environments.
      www.tileinvet.net
    Media involvement
    • Teachers TV.  (05.03.09) Extended Schools (Student Focus Group activity) ITT Tutor Capacity.
    • Behaviour4Learning; You Tube (March 2009) “A Discussion with Andy Smith”.  www.Behaviour4Learning.ac.uk