Professor Martin Dyke BA, PGCE, MSc, PhD
Head of Southampton Education School
Martin Dyke is a Professorial Fellow and Head of Southampton Education School.
Martin’s research is focused on policy, professional practice and innovation in post-school education. Key areas of focus in his research are learning and participation; primarily focused on how to engage people in lifelong learning. The approach to learning is illustrated in his own framework for experiential or reflexive learning and he has published widely in this area (Dyke 2001, 2006, 2009, 2012). Research on participation has focused on transitions such as those from school to college, or from college or work to higher education.
An understanding of decision-making and the social context of education are central to finding innovative (including but not exclusively e-learning) approaches that enable participation for people who would otherwise not engage in education or training. Martin’s approach is theoretically close to the realist position of Ray Pawson and the critical realist position of Margaret Archer. The aim is to use an understanding of the context and circumstances in which education takes place in order to develop interventions aimed at improving education outcomes and finding out what works for whom in what circumstances and why. Martin’s research is aimed at improving educational practice and enabling participation that supports learners in finding their way through a complex and rapidly changing world of work and lifelong learning.