Postdoctoral Research Fellow

Part time (80%FTE)

The Post

The project aims to intervene in the steep decline in Anglophone language-learning by identifying the elements underpinning successful cultures of language-learning through a comparative analysis of Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and Ireland. The successful applicant for the Scotland role will normally be based in Stirling, reporting to the jurisdictional lead, and will work across four Work Packages, developing partnerships with schools, project partners and other groups, and using mixed methods to collect and analyse new data and synthesize existing data sets.

The four Work Packages focus on 1) existing data and creates new datasets to explore the differences in language uptake across Celtic education systems; 2) the use of digital language-learning tools, including the development of new innovative software; 3) the attitudes and experiences of students and newly qualified teachers and 4) public stakeholder groups.

Description of Duties

• Conduct comparative policy analysis related to language education (formal and informal) between their home location and the other jurisdictions involved in the project (Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and Republic of Ireland)
• Identify and access existing data sets, and design and carry out new empirical research using both quantitative and qualitative methods
• Analyse data within micro-level and macro-level frameworks of language motivation and attitudes at the secondary and tertiary levels
• Create partnerships with a network of local schools to support data collection

Essential Criteria

Qualifications

• An upper second class honours degree (or equivalent) or a Masters degree in education, social science, modern languages, or other relevant subject
• Have obtained a PhD or have submitted a PhD, or equivalent, in education, applied linguistics, social science or a cognate discipline

Experience

• Proven experience with quantitative and qualitative research methods, including surveys, interviews, workshop design, corpus or discourse analysis, and statistical techniques of data analysis

For further information, including a full description of duties, essential criteria and details on how to apply, please see Vacancy details | University of Stirling

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