We would like to congratulate Christine Osborne (Curriculum Manager – Health & Social Care, Science, Childcare & Education and Counselling) for achieving her PhD in Educational Research.
Christine was inspired to start her journey after meeting a construction tutor at a Research Meet hosted by Bedford College Group, he talked about the apparent lack of interest that plumbing students had in their course and he titled his research ‘Plumbers that won’t plumb’. At this time Christine had been looking for a Masters course as her children had moved out and her husband travelled for his job so had plenty of time on her hands in the evenings but everything she looked into did not inspire her.
Christine then heard about the Education Training Foundation (ETF) and their sponsorship of a practitioner led research Masters through Sunderland University Centre for Excellent in Teacher Training and this was exactly what she was looking for. Christine wanted to do something that would have a positive impact on the experience of Learners in her own classroom so this was where her journey began in 2019. Christine started on an MPhil and then moved onto her PhD.
Her first challenge was wrestling with the language of formative assessment and feedback and the many differing definitions depending on whose work she picked up. Then she had a light bulb moment of realising that there was no separation between formative assessment and feedback and that they were inextricably intertwined with each other. Christine’s focus then shifted to formative assessment practices especially in her own classroom which culminated in her thesis of 176 pages and 64,771 words on ‘Mind the gap – An investigation into developing forms of feedback that students can be willing and able to use and act upon to improve their learning and achievement’. Christine said she learned so much along the way from world-renowned and peer-reviewed authors as Dylan Wiliam along with her colleagues and students.
Now Christine has come to the end of her journey she feels she has only scratched the surface and there is still more to do and she imagines that this passion for research never comes to an end.
Christine has said it has been a bumpy ride not least because of a worldwide pandemic that caused her to stall in her progress and imposter syndrome which dominated her early interactions with her peers and academics at residential events and conferences.
Christine says that the research process has changed her as a teacher as she continuously questions herself on her approach to teaching, learning and assessment to ensure that what she does in the classroom is in the best interests of her Learners.
