Alison’s research interests include education practitioner research, pedagogic research and mathematics education research.

Current research activity:

Co-investigator: “The prevalence and use of textbooks and curriculum resources in primary maths” (Nuffield Foundation Award no. EDO /FR-000022614) (£61,354.00)

A trans-national, trans-institutional review of the affordances and limitations of learning in an online environment for postgraduate education research students.

Previous research activity:

Co-investigator: Research review of the British Society for Research into Learning Mathematics [BSRLM] Conference Proceedings (2003-2017)

Perseverance in mathematical reasoning:

• The role of children’s conative focus in the productive interplay between cognition and affect
• Development of a theoretical framework on children’s cognitive-affective-conative interplay in mathematics learning
• Children’s enjoyment in learning mathematics and its role as a potential barrier to children’s perseverance in mathematical reasoning

Alison is a Principal Lecturer in education, specialising in teaching primary mathematics education and post-graduate research. She is the Assistant Programme Leader of the MA Education in the School of Education. In addition, she is Acting Partnership Leader for the University’s partnership with the Mauritius Institute of Education, and within this, she leads the MA Education.

She teaches across a range of course including the MA Education, BA Primary Education, BA Primary Mathematics Education, Mathematics Specialist Teacher Post-Graduate Certificate (MaST) and the Professional Doctorate in Education. Her post-graduate research teaching takes place at the University of Brighton, in schools and school networks and with University of Brighton’s partner, the Mauritius Institute of Education.

Alison won the Janet Duffin Award for the most outstanding contribution to the Research in Mathematics Education journal (2019) for her paper:

Barnes, A. (2019) Perseverance in mathematical reasoning: the role of children’s conative focus in the productive interplay between cognition and affect. Research in Mathematics Education, 21(3), pp. 271-294.

Alison is passionate about the learning of children, students and education practitioners. For the last two decades, her professional goal has been to support professional learning in education, to enable practitioners to further develop their professional understanding and knowledge and thus enhance their personal learning, and that of their students.

Alison has a background in in mechanical engineering, primary teaching, mathematics education consultancy and higher education; she has first-hand experience of how learning experiences in mathematics can impact on confidence in, enjoyment of and attitudes towards the subject. Her teaching in initial teacher education centres on creating enabling learning environments that support students to engage in mathematical exploration, to develop as mathematicians and to construct theoretical, policy and pedagogical understanding.

Alison is particularly interested in practitioner inquiry as an approach to research to generate knowledge, inform practice (as a form of professional development) and improve outcomes for students and practitioners. She has further developed a problem-based action research methodology to empower practitioners to create bespoke, school-based professional development. This approach enables education practitioners to reflect on, interpret and critique theory, policy and practice to meet the learning needs of students and the professional development needs of colleagues.

Alison’s supervisory interests include learning and teaching in primary schools and in particular, mathematics pedagogy and learning, including  the role of affect and emotions. She is interested in supervising studies in these areas and those adopting intervention or action research methodologies.