Shelley is an adaptable educational and research professional with a zest for new challenges. She is an experienced primary practitioner across the primary phase (Nursery to Year 6) in a diverse range of schools. Shelley completed her MA in Education in 2018 on a full-time basis, alongside teaching Year 3 part-time, and quickly found an interest in research and academia.
Currently, Shelley is a lecturer and researcher, having made the transition to FE/HE, at the University of South Wales and Coleg Y Cymoedd. She has been research-active as a Graduate Intern, also at the University of South Wales, including externally funded research surrounding learning analytics for JISC. Her other research projects include demographic studies and social media marketing for HEIs, including responsibility for the school’s specific Instagram profile @usw_lifesci_edu and the promotion of sustainable eco behaviour in the form of a pilot study.
Shelley has been validated by the British Council to deliver Global Learning CPD to teaching staff in schools, as part of TLC’s Connected Classrooms contract. She is intrigued and concerned by the issues surrounding education, gender and social, emotional learning.
Shelley is passionate about developing an inclusive approach within the context of the new curriculum for Wales and also the promotion of wellbeing and its impact on mental health in school and throughout life. She is committed to research surrounding SEBD in relation to gender disparity, with a specific focus on boys within primary school settings and long term mental health outcomes.