Contact Details

Telephone

work +44 (0)1224 274871

Email

r.k.shanks@abdn.ac.uk

Address

The University of Aberdeen Room 622 MacRobert Building, King's College, Aberdeen AB24 5UA.

Biography

I have worked in higher education, community education, and the voluntary and trade union sectors. In higher education I have been a law lecturer, worked in the University of Aberdeen’s former Centre for Lifelong Learning and I am currently a Senior Lecturer in Education.

In the late 1990s I led the Trade Union Congress partnership project Bargaining for Skills in the East and West Midlands regions in England, working with trade unions, employers, colleges and Training and Enterprise Councils. I have also been an adult education tutor and worked for the National Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux (NACAB) and Aberdeen CAB.

Research Interests

Professional learning and mentoring.
Children and young people's rights.

Current Research

Professional learning

Co-Investigator of Measuring Quality of Initial Teacher Education (MQuITE) in Scotland

Mentoring

University students mentoring school students

Children's Rights

Young people and participation in decision-making

School uniform and dress code policies

Teaching Responsibilities

Undergraduate Teaching

ED302F Professional Learning and Inquiry (BA Professional Development)
ED302E Hazard and Risk in Professional Contexts (BA Professional Development)
ED4030 Broadening Professional Boundaries (BA Professional Development)
ED1521 Learning from Work (university wide module)

Postgraduate Teaching

ED55PJ and ED50PJ Work-Based Project or Dissertation
ED505P Using NVivo for Qualitative Data Analysis
SL5011 Advanced Qualitative Methods in Social Science

Current PhD Students

• Elise Boyle Espinosa - Education in the Islamic State, as part of the Politico project, with Prof Pamela Abbott and Dr Hanifi Baris
• Chris Gray - Community Music with Sarah Cornelius
• Tracy Edwards - The Translation and Enactment of the Principle of Inclusive Pedagogy by Experienced Teachers with Dr Kirsten Darling McQuistan and Dr Mhairi Beaton
• Annette Moir - Exploration of children’s awareness of their coping strategies and enhancement of their resilience skills with Dr David Johnston
• Esther Nyaga - School leadership and teacher professionalism: an exploration of head teacher leadership practice in public primary schools in Kenya with Prof Emerita Karen McArdle

Completed PhDs

2020 David Di Domenico - Educators' views, experiences and approaches to cultural diversity: understanding pre-registration adult nursing education at a Scottish university 

2020 Maryam Alnoaimi - Citizenship Education in the Kingdom of Bahrain: A case study exploring perceptions of school principals, senior teachers, teachers and students

2019 Ramona Statache - Business Social Media Use by Remote Rural Micro Tourism Enterprises in the Scottish Highlands

2019 Madhawi Alharbi - Using Mobile Games in Teaching English as a Foreign Language Vocabulary at a Saudi Female High School

2019 Khanchai Wongchana - Thai University Student and Teacher Perceptions of Studying Tourism through English Using a CLIL Approach

2017 David Johnston - A Socio-Cultural Perspective on 'Belonging'

2017 Geraldine Prince - Art-Making and the Interpretation of Cultures: Cross-cultural teaching and learning in Edinburgh and Dubai

External Responsibilities

• Education Pathway Convenor for Scottish Graduate School of Social Science (Scotland's ESRC DTP) 2018-2020
• External Examiner University of Warwick, Initial Teacher Training (Further Education) 2018-2020
• Co-convenor Network 6 Open Learning: Media, Environments and Cultures European Educational Research Association 2017-2021
• Trustee of the Scottish Educational Research Association 2015-2020
• Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Rocking Horse Nursery 2019- 
• Community Learning and Development Standards Council Approvals Panel 2015- 

Admin Responsibilities

• Programme Director of BA in Professional Development 2015-
• Senator representing School of Education academic staff 2016-2020

Journal Board and Reviewer Information

Editorial Board Member of Education in the North

Review for: Africa Education Review, Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, Cambridge Journal of Education, The Curriculum Journal, Education 3-13, Education + Training, European Journal of Teacher Education, International Journal of Mentoring and Coaching in Education, International Journal of Training and Development, Multicultural Perspectives, NordSTEP (the Nordic Journal of Studies in Educational Policy), Professional Development in Education, Scottish Educational Review, Studies in Higher Education 

Publications 

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