BSc (Hons), PGCE, PhD
Lecturer
- About
-
- Email Address
- h.martin@abdn.ac.uk
- Telephone Number
- +44 (0)1224 274769
- Office Address
- School/Department
- School of Education
Biography
Helen Martin is a Lecturer in Mathematics Education where she specialises in developing pedagogical design capacity and supporting professionally informed ethical decision-making. Her research and teaching are based on the design principles ‘valuing diversity, developing flexibility and making connections’ with an emphasis on how others make sense of doing mathematics, becoming and being mathematicians within a community. Helen has led collaborative projects across universities around E-Formative Assessment, online study sessions for primary pre-service teachers and Multiplicative and Algebraic Reasoning across Scottish schools as well as continuing to work at a National level with the Scottish Government, Scottish Mathematical Council, Edinburgh Mathematical Society and the Joint Mathematical Council of the UK.
An important part of encouraging more young people to recognise themselves as mathematicians involves supporting enrichment opportunities for children and young people including the Royal Institution Maths Masterclasses from way back as a tutor with Prof. Edward Patterson, Stem in the Pipeline, UKMT Team Maths challenges, Scottish Maths Challenge (now in its 50th year) and the Primary Enterprising Maths Challenge (nearing it's 25th anniversary) started here in Aberdeen with events now running across Scotland.
She is also the Editor-in-Chief of the international open access Education in the North journal (now in its 60th year) which supports researchers at every stage of their careers across the Arctic and beyond where she works closely with UArctic Teacher Education for Social Justice and Diversity in Education thematic network and The Centre for the North. The design principles 'valuing diversity, developing flexibility and making connections' are now used alongside the extensive editorial expertise to support early career researchers as programme director of the MEd Professional Education, EdD course coordinator and REF impact lead.
Qualifications
- PhD Mathematics Education2014 - University of Aberdeen
- PGCE Secondary Mathematics1990 - University of Edinburgh
- BSc (Hons) Mathematics1989 - University of St Andrews
Memberships and Affiliations
- Internal Memberships
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University Court elected member Nov 2020 - present
Finance and Resource Committee (FRC) Sept 2023 - present
Govenance and Nominations Committee (GNN) Feb 2021 - Sept 2023
Leadership & Governance workstream (ACS) Feb 2026 - present
Senate elected member Oct 2017 - Sept 2020
Senate Business Committee (SBC) member Sept 2018 - Sept 2020
Senate Effectiveness Review group elected member 2019/20, 2020/21
UOA Ref Impact Leads School REF Impact Lead Sept 2024 - present
School Research Committee Sept 2021- present
School EDI Committee Chair (Feb 2023 - Oct 2025); member 2023 - present
Education in the North Chair and Editor-in-chief May 2020 - Present; Book Review Editor 2015-2020
The Centre for the North board member
- External Memberships
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Edinburgh Mathematical Society, Joint Chair of the Education Committee and member of Council, Sept 25 - present
Joint Mathematical Council of the UK, member Apr 2026 - present
British Society for Research into Learning Mathematics (BSRLM) member of Higher Education Mathematics Group
PRIMES: Pedagogy and Practice in Mathematics Education Scotland Member
Scottish Mathematical Challenge (MC) Committee
Scottish Mathematical Council (SMC) Member Sept 2015- 2018 and trustee Nov 2016 - Sept 2018
Education Scotland member of Curriculum Improvement Cycle Mathematics Collaboration Group and National Numeracy Network
UArctic Teacher Education for Social Justice and Diversity in Education Arctic Futures
New Northern Pedagogies Group Sept 23 - present
Prizes and Awards
Senior Fellow, Advance HE (formerly HEA) 2021
First Scottish Academic journal to gain the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) seal 2021
- Research
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Research Areas
Accepting PhDs
I am currently accepting PhDs in Education.
Please get in touch if you would like to discuss your research ideas further.
Current Research
Assessment in Higher Education Mathematics
Learning and Teaching Mathematics in Higher Education
How choice might be actualised within classrooms
Collaborations
UK Prosperity Funded ‘Multiply’ project with Aberdeen City Council
UK Prosperity Funded ‘Multiply’ project with Aberdeenshire Council
Dyscalculia Working Group with Aberdeen City Council
Supervision
My current supervision areas are: Education.
Current supervisions
PhD: Transitions from Secondary to Post-Secondary Mathematics in Malta
EdD: Ethical Leadership
Previous supervisions
PhD: Teaching mathematics with Saudi Arabian English Language Learners
PhD: Vulnerable young people in Scotland: tacking food and health inequalities
Funding and Grants
New Northern Pedagogies Group (NNPG): Co-PI funded by Scottish Government Arctic Connections (£7795) with co-investigators from Universities of Strathclyde, Edinburgh, Highlands & Islands, and Lapland.
Improving Children’s Mathematical Reasoning (ICMR): Principal Investigator funded by The Carnegie Trust Larger Collaborative Grant (£40000) with co-investigators from Universities of Glasgow and King’s College London alongside Education Scotland and Scottish Government.
Online Mathematics Assessment for Primary Teachers (MAPT): Principal Investigator funded by Education Scotland (£12000) with co-investigators from Universities of Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow alongside Education Scotland and HMIE.
- Teaching
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Programmes
- Postgraduate, 1 , October start
Course Coordinator
- Postgraduate, 1 , January start
Programme Director
- Postgraduate, 1 year, August start
- Subject selector (Mathematics)
- Curricular tutor (Mathematics)
- School experience visiting tutor
- Undergraduate, 4 year, September start
Courses
- Master Project/Dissertation (ED506A)
- Master Project/Dissertation (ED556A)
Teaching Responsibilities
Current Teaching
Programme Director
Masters in Professional Education
Course Coordinator
ED6002 EdD Identifying and Articulating Issues in Professional Practice
ED506A(2025-26): Master Project/Dissertation
ED556A(2025-26): Master Project/Dissertation
PGDE(S) Mathematics Education
ED1008 Radical Reconstructions of Mathematics
- Publications
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Page 12 of 17 Results 276 to 300 of 418
LAB studio model: Developing external networks for learning entrepreneurship in higher education
Education in the North, vol. 22, no. 1, pp. 49-73Contributions to Journals: ArticlesSupporting Change in Autism Services: Bridging the Gap between Theory and Practice by Jackie Ravet. London: Routledge Taylor & Francis Group (2015) pp.144 Paperback £24.99 ISBN 978-0-415-50828-5
Education in the North, vol. 22, no. 1, pp. 90-91Contributions to Journals: Reviews of Books, Films and ArticlesTheorizing Native Studies by Audra Simpson and Andrea Smith. Durham and London: Duke University Press (2014) pp.352 Paperback £18.99 ISBN 978-0-8223-5679-0
Education in the North, vol. 22, no. 1, pp. 88-89Contributions to Journals: Reviews of Books, Films and ArticlesActivity Agreements – Supporting vulnerable learners post school
Contributions to Journals: FeaturesCamphill’s approach: relevant and effective for today’s vulnerable learners
Contributions to Journals: FeaturesCan drama help young people with autism to understand the non-verbal behaviours of others and to communicate their own emotional states through non-verbal behaviour?
Contributions to Journals: FeaturesCoping Strategies for Students
Education in the North, vol. 21, no. 1, pp. 38-63Contributions to Journals: ArticlesImplementing Restorative Practices in Schools. A Practical Guide to Transforming School Communities: Margaret Thorsborne and Peta Blood London. Jessica Kingsley Publishers (2013) pp.230 paperback £25 ISBN 978-1849053778
Education in the North, vol. 21, no. 1, pp. 84Contributions to Journals: Reviews of Books, Films and ArticlesInequality, Poverty, Education: A political Economy of School Exclusion. Francesca Ashurst and Couze Venn Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan (2014) pp. vii-195 Hardback. £58 ISBN 978-137-34700-8
Education in the North, vol. 21, no. 1, pp. 85-87Contributions to Journals: Reviews of Books, Films and ArticlesLearning as knowledge creation: learning for, and from, all
Education in the North, vol. 21, no. 1, pp. 21-37Contributions to Journals: ArticlesThe Sage Handbook of Special Education (2nd Edition). Lani Florian London: Sage Publications (2014) pp.1040 Hardback £245 ISBN 9781446210536
Education in the North, vol. 21, no. 1, pp. 88-89Contributions to Journals: Reviews of Books, Films and ArticlesThe Vulnerability of Distance Learning Initial Teacher Education (DLITE)
Contributions to Journals: FeaturesVulnerable Learners
Education in the North, vol. 21, no. 1Contributions to Journals: EditorialsAn educational project for cultural change: towards a place-based, imaginative, ecological ‘school’
Contributions to Journals: FeaturesArt and place-based education for the understanding of sustainability
Education in the North, vol. 20, no. Special Issue, pp. 90-105Contributions to Journals: ArticlesA Wanderer in the Landscape – Reflections on the Relationship between Art and the Northern Environment
Contributions to Journals: FeaturesCase-based studies: a critical pedagogy of place in international education in Iceland
Education in the North, vol. 20, no. Special Issue, pp. 55-72Contributions to Journals: ArticlesForeword to the Special Issue
Education in the North, vol. 20, no. Special IssueContributions to Journals: ArticlesNorth, South, East and West. Let’s multiply views, and converge on values
Contributions to Journals: FeaturesOutdoor Learning in the Early Years. 3rd Edition Helen Bilton Abingdon: Routledge (2010) pp. 272 Pbk. £21.99 ISBN 978-0415454773
Education in the North, vol. 20, no. Special Issue, pp. 146-147Contributions to Journals: Reviews of Books, Films and ArticlesPlace and space for women in a rural area in Iceland
Education in the North, vol. 20, no. Special Issue, pp. 73-89Contributions to Journals: ArticlesPlaced-Based Education in the Global Age: Local Diversity D.A. Gruenewald and G.A. Smith Eds. Abingdon: Routledge (2007) pp. 408 Pbk. £26.99 ISBN 978-0805858648
Education in the North, vol. 20, no. Special Issue, pp. 148-149Contributions to Journals: Reviews of Books, Films and ArticlesSchool as Narrated Places: Children´s Narratives of School Enjoyment
Education in the North, vol. 20, no. Special Issue, pp. 7-25Contributions to Journals: ArticlesSpace as a pedagogical tool for children with additional educational needs participation and empowerment
Education in the North, vol. 20, no. Special Issue, pp. 39-54Contributions to Journals: ArticlesSpace, Place and Pedagogy: Local Contexts in a Globalised World
Education in the North, vol. 20, no. Special Issue, pp. 2-6Contributions to Journals: Editorials
