School of Education Research Staff Profile

Amanda French

Developmental work and research activity

Mandy is currently completing work on a five year CETL project based at the Walsall campus of the University of Wolverhampton, which is looking at the development and support of academic writing skills in first year students in the School of Education.

She is also completing a  PhD into lecturers’ perceptions of students writing and writing development.

Key and recent publications and materials developed

• 2009 Double Entry Journals: Developing an embedded programme of writing development for first year Early Childhood Studies Degree Students (submitted Journal for Teaching in Higher Education). In Enhancing learning in the Social Sciences (ELiSS) Co-authored with Jenny Worsley
• Colloquium : ‘Writing Matters !  Teaching writing development to first year Early Years students’.  Journal for Contemporary Issues in Childhood Education’. 
• Developing reflective writing in first year undergraduate Childhood Studies students, co-authored with Julie Hughes a case Study for the MEDAL project as a best practice case study.
• Co-authored chapter with Karen Clarke in  Collaboration with parents: The role of the multi-agency setting in working with parents in Team Around the Child- multi-agency working in the Early Years. (eds) Iram Siraj-Blatchford, Karen Clarke and Martin Needham  (2007) Trentham Books.
• Developing Literacy: Supporting Achievement: Amanda Lindsay (maiden name) and Jo Gawn: NIACE publications 2005 (part of the Lifelines series)

Reviews

• French A (May 2010) 'Through a glass darkly: do lecturers really know what they want from students' writing?', School of Education Research Conference 2010, University of Wolverhampton, Walsall.
• Engaging Education: Developing Emotional Literacy , equity and co-education.  Brian Matthews.  Open University Press.  in International Journal of Lifelong Education (2006) Vol 25. Number 4 pp.654-655.
• Closing the Equity Gap: The impact of widening participation strategies in the UK and the USA.  Ed. Geoff Layer NIACE England. International Journal of Lifelong Learning (2006), Vol. 25, Number 5.  pp, 535–544.
• Literacy and Social Inclusion – closing the gap (eds) Eve Berne and Jackie March for International Journal of Lifelong Education (2008) Vol.. 27, Number. 1 (2008), pp.107–117.

Recent conference papers

• Open University 11^th Writing Development in Higher Education 2006  Conference Paper : ‘Writing Oneself into the Academic Discourse’
• Salford University: 4^th Education in  a Changing Environment 2007. Conference Paper :‘Developing the Writing Skills of First year Early Childhood and Education Student’s   
• Edge Hill University: Learning Trajectories and Widening Participation  2008.  Conference paper ‘Double Entry Journals: Developing Situated Literacy Practices to support the development of academic literacy in first year Education and Early Childhood Studies Students’
• European First Year Experience Conference  May 2009, Groningen Holland:  Conference Paper : It ain’t what you write it’s the way that you write it….that’s what gets results’.
• European Academic Writing Conference June 2009,  Coventry : Conference Paper: Tutor perceptions of writing development in first year students’.

Current development and research projects

Mandy is currently completing work on a five year CETL project based at the Walsall campus of Wolverhampton University, which is looking at the development and support of academic writing skills in first year students in the School of Education.

She is also completing a PhD into ‘Lecturers’ perceptions of students writing and writing development’.