Dr Charlaine Simpson

Biography

Prior to joining the School of Education in 2022, I taught in a secondary school in Scotland for more than 20 years, this included leadership and local authority roles. As a Senior Education Officer for GTC Scotland, I worked across various remits including, ITE accreditation, Research and Professional Learning and was primary investigator for the refreshed Professional Standards for teachers. While employed by GTC Scotland, I was also seconded to the Scottish Government to support data collection for the National Improvement Framework.

I am Head of Postgraduate (Taught) and Professional Learning in the School of Education, where I co-ordinate the Postgraduate portfolio and lead and manage a team of academics. I teach in the area of leadership, in particular school leadership.

I am a life-long learner and have a deep love of learning. Throughout my career, I have demonstrated an absolute commitment to the development of the teaching profession and teacher professionalism. My research is focused on educational policy and teacher professionalism, and I am particularly interested in how teachers engage with and enact policy through the lens of teacher professionalism.

Research Overview

My work focuses on critical educational policy and the impact this has on teachers and society. 

Current Research

Currently, I am working on the notion of democratic and participative policy-making and how this is demonstrated through education policy-making.

I am undertaking a critical analysis of the Regional Improvement Collaborative in Scotland, examining why they can about and why they have now been all but disbanded.