Research

Scholarly Work in the Faculty of Education

Education is a professional faculty whose scholarly work is multidisciplinary, addressing educational questions in schooling and beyond. A variety of research methodologies and perspectives is brought to this endeavour. This work generates products such as refereed papers, books, and book chapters as well as artistic productions and curriculum resources. Our focus on Canada’s learners — children, adolescents, and professionals — contributes a distinctive and vital dimension to the research and educative functions of the University. The areas of strength identified below are supported by a variety of funding sources. Many of the institutional structures of the Faculty, from areas of concentration in the graduate programs to the four Faculty Centres: Arts; Literacy; Mathematics, Science and Technology; and Social Responsibility, reflect the collective research priorities of many members of faculty.

Research Foci

Cognition and Learning

Both basic and applied research and development in cognition and learning are conducted at the Faculty of Education. Much of this research begins with a focus on learners. Specific areas for basic research include first and second language processing and learning, learning disabilities, literacy, semiotics, exceptional children and adolescents, social cognition, and spatial reasoning. Building on strengths in basic research, faculty members have designed curriculum materials for children with severe reading difficulties, and in first and second language learning.

Curriculum, Assessment and Evaluation

This area encompasses a broad spectrum of issues in the study of teaching and learning. Researchers work in the areas of curriculum theory and design, of the assessment of learning, of pedagogy and theory in specific subject areas, and of the evaluation of these processes and programs. Particular areas of strength include Arts; Career and Co-operative Education; Language and Literacy; Social Studies; Mathematics, Science, and Technology Education; and Program Design and Evaluation.

Health Education and Education Policy

A large part of the research activity in this area is undertaken by the Social Program Evaluation Group (SPEG). The work is multidisciplinary and crosses several Faculties. Most obvious is the cooperation between the Faculty of Education and that of Health Sciences. A major focus is on at-risk youth, educational structures, and international health issues. Also included are responses by many members of faculty to groups such as ministries, governments and non-governmental organizations for policy position papers.

Information Technology

Many significant contemporary educational challenges and opportunities can be found in the application of the devices of new information technology to questions of teaching and learning. This area has, accordingly, been one where members of faculty have worked on the development and analysis of new materials and methodologies for curriculum implementation and teacher support.

Social and Cultural Contexts

This is a broad category that encompasses a variety of activities. A large component of the research work in this area is in international and development education and in related implementation projects. Investigations of pluralist societies and citizenship education in the context of globalization are also prominent. Sociological, philosophical, historical, anthropological, and cultural studies perspectives are brought to bear on these issues. An emerging strength is in the area of indigenous education.

Teacher Education and Leadership

Teacher education and leadership, and professional development permeate much of the Faculty’s work. However, some individuals specifically focus their research efforts in this area, working on professional knowledge and thinking, reflective practice, action research, administrative structures, and pedagogical processes from primary to tertiary education.

Compatibility with University Objectives

Patterns of growth and development in the research activities of the Faculty of Education in recent years have been, and continue to be, supportive of, and consistent with, the university-wide institutional objectives for research. In particular:

The Faculty is a research-intensive unit. Scholarly work carried out by faculty is published regularly in peer-reviewed journals, books, and monographs. A number of international journals are housed at the Faculty and professors serve as editors or advisory board members of highly regarded journals in education. Excellence also is marked by the research and development awards and external grants given to the Faculty in recent years. Another benchmark of quality is the impact of policy reports and research papers on governments, school boards and community development. Two recent initiatives reflect this research emphasis - the establishment of a doctoral program and the recruitment of high-calibre faculty. The doctoral program has attracted students who have been awarded research and study support from key foundations and government agencies. Faculty renewal resulted in the hiring of young but well-recognized scholars in key areas such as curriculum, research methods, and cognition.

The Faculty has an extensive history of research and development projects funded by local agencies, the Canadian International Development Agency, governmental, and non-governmental organizations. International scholarly collaboration has been carried out at several different levels ranging from Faculty-wide programs to individual initiatives in many parts of the world through funded projects. Participation, at the executive level, in international organizations is also extensive. Many members of faculty are leaders in national-level academic organizations and inter-university initiatives.

Within the Faculty multidisciplinary teams of individuals are working together on research projects. This inter-unit cooperation is enhanced through joint and cross-appointments and collaborative research programs (e.g., Health Sciences, Mathematics and Statistics, Psychology, and Women’s Studies).

As a professional Faculty, Education’s work is closely connected to the field. Much of the research is responsive to the needs of educators and those they teach. As such, a high priority of faculty is to ensure that their research is relevant to society and that professionals in the field and the public are well informed about such work. In many cases the initiatives are cooperative ventures with ministries, school boards, schools and other organizations. Newer, more collaborative forms of inquiry find researchers working directly with those who have grass roots experiences with policies and programs. This research often has both immediate, strategic use and utility beyond the collaborative context. Venues where ideas are further developed and exchanged include conferences, workshops and sites in the field. Faculty also develop curriculum and educational policy that directly impact the quality of education in society.

Emerging Directions

It is our plan to continue to work in the areas of strength that have been identified. However, there are areas that will have higher visibility in the near future. This trend will be especially so in international collaboration initiatives, but also in areas that coincide with proposed research thrusts at Queen’s such as information science, democratic institutions, contemporary culture, values and policies, languages and literature, history and historiographical inquiry. We will continue to encourage research partnerships and involvement in strategic research initiatives while at the same time allow for and value individual research agendas that are not necessarily part of the major thrusts.