Rod Parker-Rees

Job title: Associate Professor (Senior Lecturer) in Early Childhood Studies, School of Education (Faculty of Health, Education and Society)
Address: Room 502, Rolle Building, Drake Circus,
Plymouth, Devon, PL4 8AA
Telephone: +44 (0)1752 585350
Facsimile: +44 (0)1395 255303
Email: R.Parker-Rees@plymouth.ac.uk

Role
Coordinator of Early Childhood Studies. Joint Programme Leader of BA (Hons) Early Childhood Studies programme.

Qualifications & background

BA (Hons) English Language and Literature, (open scholarship), Class II, Magdalen College, Oxford, 1981.

PGCE (Early Years), Bristol Polytechnic,1984.

MPhil University of the West of England (Andrew Pollard, Kathy Sylva), 1993.

Nursery and Reception class teacher 1984-93 with secondments to National Primary Centre, South West, 1989-91

University of Plymouth, Faculty of Education, 1993-

Professional membership

Roles on external bodies
Co-editor (1998-) of Early Years - An International Journal of Research and Development, a fully refereed academic journal published by Taylor and Francis, and hosted at University of Plymouth since September 2001.

Ex-officio member of executive committee of TACTYC (National body representing tutors on advanced courses for Early Years practitioners) (1998-)

Referee for International Journal of Early Years Education

Reviewer for Blackwell, Continuum, Open University Press, Pearson, Routledge, and Sage (book and book series proposals)

Reviewer and Rapporteur for ESRC

Teaching interests

Approaches to researching development in infancy and early childhood, with particular focuses on playfulness, communication, early movement and social learning. History of concepts of childhood. My aim is to foster enjoyment of critical enquiry by helping students to relate their own 'private' interests, concerns and experiences to 'public' research findings, theoretical models and frameworks.

Research interests

Playfulness - especially as this develops into adulthood, e.g in early years practitioners' willingness to interpret constraints, policies etc.

Approaches to understanding early development, especially early communication and the place of movement and self-initiated activity in early learning.

Affective factors in early development, including approaches to promoting and maintaining a sense of community in early years settings - involving children, families and practitioners and helping to make workplaces convivial and enjoyable.

Other research

Leader of CARITAS (Collaborative Application of Research Into Tutoring for Autonomous Study) RiT project (TQEF funding £21,300) 2007-8.

Member of Steiner Early Years Assessment research project (with David Reynolds, John Burnett, Mary Jane Drummond, Janni Nichol, Sally Jenkinson, Sarah Rees-Elford, Jenny Willan and Sue Waites) 2007-8

Member of Socrates 6.1 funded project 'Working on Basic competences in Teacher Training for Pre- and Primary Education', developing materials to support student teachers in developing skills in reflection and self-assessment, 2004.

Conferences organised

Organiser of Early Education/TACTYC joint conference: ‘Helping Young Children to Understand Mathematics’, Rolle School of Education, Exmouth (19/2/00)