Meet the Team
Dr. Ed Baines
I have long-standing research interests in engagement and learning, peer relations and interactions and children’s dialogue in school classroom and playground settings. I have undertaken research on grouping practices and collaborative group work in primary and secondary schools. I developed with colleagues a handbook for practitioners on how to improve collaborative group work in primary school classrooms. Other recent research has included national and international survey work on school breaktimes/recess; studies of school mealtimes and the use of digital technology to study playground interactions and activity.
Dr. Matt Somerville
My research interests are concerned with educational contexts that support children’s social and emotional development. My primary research focus is on emotion regulation and how it relates to mental health and well-being. Other research interests include self-regulation/co-regulation, meta-cognition, teacher-pupil interactions, peer interactions, and the impact of socioeconomic disadvantage on psychological and educational outcomes.
Dr. Nicola Abbott
I am a Developmental Social Psychologist with expertise in bias-based bullying in schools, bystander intervention, pro-social behaviour and inter-group contact. I am particularly interested in studying anti-bullying interventions for schools.
Dr. Paula Bosanquet
I developed an interest in studying learning interactions firstly as a teacher and then as a practitioner educator. My research has focused on studying the interactions between Teaching Assistants and students, using scaffolding theory and Conversation Analysis. Through this, I developed a successful training programme and professional development handbook for Teaching Assistants. I am particularly interested in how interactions between adults and students with Special Educational Needs can support greater independence.
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Our Values
Dr. Helen MacIntyre
I am an experienced researcher in Education and Psychology with a background in primary school teaching. Currently my main interest is in children’s peer relations and social life in schools and my doctoral study involves looking at children’s interactions with peers during school mealtimes. I have developed particular expertise in qualitative and quantitative observational methods as part of this work.
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Our Values
Dr. Panos Rentzelas
My research lies in the area of experimental social psychology, cross-cultural and contextual cognitive differences, and human motivation. I have extensively researched individualism and collectivism as cultural, group and individual constructs in intrinsic motivation. I have also been involved in research that examines the cognitive, behavioural and emotional effects of different existential and contextual environmental norms. I hold a strong interest in investigating the psychological effects of controlling environments in educational and other settings. I am developing a research programme in the Social and Cultural Psychology of Education.
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Our Values
Dr. Erika Galea
I am an education consultant in quality assurance, as well as a trainer and mentor in Educational Neuroscience. I recently founded the Educational Neuroscience Hub in Malta with the aim of creating more awareness and a better understanding of the development of the brain within the context of teaching and learning. My research focuses on the implementation of emotion regulation strategies through co-regulation. The principal objective of my doctoral study was to trial and test the effectiveness of an intervention to support the promotion of early ER strategies by teachers. This is intended to foster more effective learning and safeguard against mental health and adjustment issues in later life. Other research interests include educational neuroscience, AI, and the effects of gamification in relation to teaching and learning.
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Our Values
Dr. Lorenzo Ciletti
I was a PhD student at UCL Institute of Education – University College London. In the past, I have worked as a researcher at Bocconi University and FIASO (Italian Federation of Local Authorities). My current research interests include inclusive education, education management and healthcare management. My PhD and ESRC funded Post-Doc research examined the role of Teaching Assistants in supporting students' learning in school classrooms.
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Our Values
Dr. Aneeza Pervez
I am a social developmental psychologist and have been involved in research in the fields of psychology for a number of years. My PhD at UCL IoE aimed to investigate prosociality in primary school children. My main research interests centre around pro-social behaviours, inclusion, and belongingness in samples ranging from children to young adults. I currently hold the Betty Behrens Research Fellowship at Clare Hall, University of Cambridge. My fellowship focuses on social power and belonging in childhood, advancing practical ways for schools to address peer exclusion and cultivate prosocial classroom cultures. This work extends prior school-based collaborations and co-designed activities that centre children’s voices and everyday relational practices.
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Our Values
Dr. Xinyi Cao
I was a PhD student in the Department of Psychology and Human Development at the UCL Institute of Education, under the supervision of Dr Jennifer Allen and Dr Matt Somerville. My research investigated temperament, behavioural displays, and teacher-child interactions in kindergarten children.
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Our Values
Dr. Sarah Dolaty
I was a PhD student in the Department of Psychology and Human Development at the UCL Institute of Education under the supervision of Dr. Matt Somerville and Prof. Jess Deighton. My study aimed to understand young people's participation in the development of mental health programmes in schools and community spaces. I am also a clinical social worker with 7 years of experience of implementing mental health programmes with children between the ages of 5-18 in school settings.
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Our Values
Yue Zhao
I am a PhD student in the Department of Psychology and Human Development at the UCL Institute of Education, under the supervision of Dr Ed Baines and Dr. Matt Somerville. I have teaching experience in universities and international schools. My current research focuses on children’s peer relationships, peer social support, engagement and learning in different school settings.
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Our Values
Yohana Kurnia Yulianti
I am a PhD student in the Department of Psychology and Human Development at the UCL Institute of Education. My doctoral project aims to explore and investigate bullying involvement during school transitions in Indonesian context. I have worked as a junior lecturer at Universitas Gadjah Mada, Indonesia, , teaching General Psychology, Educational Psychology, and Developmental Psychology. My research interests include peer relations at schools, teacher-student relationships, and classroom climate
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Our Values
Mine Sak Acur
I am a PhD student at the Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL under the supervision of Prof Kerstin Sailer of the Bartlett and Dr Ed Baines of the IOE. My study concerns the architectural form and spatial configuration of primary schools and examines its impact on children’s movement inside schools. My aim is to understand how architectural space affects who children come across, meet with and play with. I am primarily interested in playgrounds and other areas where children choose to play and interact with peers in the school grounds.
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Our Values
Ziqi Lin
I am a PhD student in the Department of Psychology and Human Development at the UCL Institute of Education, under the supervision of Dr Nicola Abbott, Dr Emily Midouhas and Dr Sara Young. My doctoral research focuses on the field of multilingual identity, especially the construction and negotiation of students' multilingual identity in higher education institutions. It is an interdisciplinary research that looks at both Psychology and Second Language Education.
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Our Values
Lindsey Riley
I am an Education Doctoral student at IOE, UCL, and a Programme Director in the School of Design and Technology at London College of Fashion. Education is my second career, I spent 30 years in the fashion industry as a trend forecaster and co-owner of a trend consultancy. This informs my interest in Higher Education cross-discipline student collaboration, which mirrors the interplay conducted in reality within all areas of the fashion industry. My research interest is in connectivity and the soft skills that will help make HE design students effective team players in the digitally connected and globalised workplace of the future.
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Our Values
Ian Bruce
I am an Educational Doctoral (EdD) student starting in 2023. Andy Tolmie and Ed Baines have kindly accepted my invitations to be my primary and secondary supervisors. I am interested primarily in the relationships and interactions that may occur in group work and pupil voice. My proposed research for the EdD adopts a mainly quantitative strategy to investigate further how pupil voice can improve effective teaching and learning. I propose looking carefully at the importance of horizontal relationships and a relational approach within the classroom and the practical importance of group work to the successful introduction and ongoing implementation of pupil voice.
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Our Values
Xiangyi Zhang
I am a PhD student in the Department of Psychology and Human Development at the UCL Institute of Education, under the supervision of Dr. Ed Baines and Dr. Paula Bosanquet. I hold a Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults (CELTA) from Cambridge English. My primary research interests revolve around the dynamics of peer interaction among children, their communication and levels of engagement within everyday classroom settings
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Our Values
Maayan Cohen
I was a visiting researcher from Leiden University completing my research internship at UCL Institute of Education. I completed my MSc in Developmental Psychology. For my internship at UCL, I worked with Ed Baines, researching classroom behaviour, peer interactions and relations, and break times at schools. I coordinated project data collection involving in-class observations, questionnaires, and interviews of students and/or teachers, in primary schools in London.
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Our Values