Ms Deirdre Grogan

Professor Of Practice

黑料正能量 Institute of Education

Personal statement

As a principal knowledge exchange fellow I lead the development of play within a range of early years settings from ages 3-8, across a variety of Local Authorities delivering Continual Professional Development to teachers and educators to enable them to be confident in delivering child led learning.聽 I have been very successful in securing a range of funding to improve impact of the following :聽

Creating effective learning environments for young children
Engagement and Interaction
Documenting young children's learning
Literacy and the young child
Pushing Play into P2
Reflections and Developments聽

My focus in Knowledge Exchange has its foundations in strong, active and innovative networks that operate in local, regional and national contexts. This character is a strength and essential to the pedagogic, collaborative and research aims that underpin it.聽 Within these contexts, I have a strong and recognised track record specifically in the field of early years education. This has resulted in successfully securing a range of contracts, including in this academic year, which are clearly set to development further across Local Authorities in Scotland. My reputation is as an academic who develops new knowledge exchange programmes driven by robust research methodologies and innovative techniques. Over the last 3 years (2016-2019) I have worked closely with a research assistant to ensure that key findings are embedded in my training.聽

I have tracked different methods of documenting young children's learning within the nursery sector and early primary to establish the effect on children's thinking. I work with educators to continually develop new creative ways of documenting learning - successful examples include learning walls, documentation stories, profiles.

I have been commissioned by various Local Authorities to deliver key note presentations focussing on my research into play based learning.聽聽

My training and research combines to impact early years education in Scotland.聽

Publications

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Publications

: , , Murray Jane, Evans Erica, , Bowes Charlotte; Children鈥檚 Voice and Agency in Diverse Settings International Research and Perspectives (2024) (2024)
: (2021)
: One-ery Approach West Dunbartonshire (2021) (2021)
: ,; The Early Years Foundation Stage Theory and Practice (2021) (2021)
: , Lamb Christie, Milligan Kayleigh, Connor Nicola,; SERA Research Education Bulletin, pp. 44-50 (2020)
: Crichton Vicky, Carwood-Edwards Jean, Ryan Janine, McTaggart James, Collins Janice, MacConnell Mary Pat, Wallace Lesley, Diamond Catherine, , , MacAulay Liz, Shaw Nicky, Gill Catriona, Johnston Kathleen; (2020)

Research

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Professional Activities

: Speaker; 10/6/2026
: Speaker; 22/4/2026
: Speaker; 25/3/2026
: Speaker; 22/1/2026
: Speaker; 22/1/2026
: Speaker; 18/10/2025

Projects

: Grogan, Deirdre (Principal Investigator); This programme of twilight sessions has been designed to support staff at St Lucy's Primary School in implementing a play-based approach within the early years. The content has been developed collaboratively, ensuring that the sessions reflect staff needs, interests, and areas for professional development, while providing practical strategies to enhance play-based learning and teaching.; 27-Jan-2026 - 24-Jan-2027
: Grogan, Deirdre (Principal Investigator); This session was designed to support staff at Dargavel ELCC in reflecting on the quality of their documentation practices. Drawing on key principles from the Reggio Emilia approach, a set of criteria was developed to enable staff to critically evaluate the effectiveness of their documentation, identify strengths, and agree on possible next steps for further development.; 17-Jan-2026 - 17-Jan-2026
: Grogan, Deirdre (Principal Investigator); This online session was specifically designed for all staff new to play pedagogy. The session is presented in four chapters to allow a development of thought to support all staff implement play. The balance sheets at the end of the session were designed as a bridge between theory and practice.; 09-Jan-2026 - 09-Jan-2026
: Grogan, Deirdre (Principal Investigator); Presenting key finding from my scholarship project on 'The Child's Curriculum' A framework has been designed from the data collected in Spateston ELCC to allow practitioners to revisit and review their own practice.; 01-Jan-2026 - 01-Jan-2026
: Grogan, Deirdre (Principal Investigator); Documentation and Evidence of Learning Support 鈥� A bespoke two-session programme designed for early years settings, focusing on effective documentation practices and capturing children鈥檚 learning. The sessions support practitioners to develop meaningful approaches to observation, assessment, and documentation that celebrate children's experiences, inform planning, and communicate learning with families and stakeholders; 21-Jan-2026 - 17-Jan-2026
: Grogan, Deirdre (Principal Investigator); This online session examines the progression of play pedagogy for children into the first level to allow educators to develop challenge and also collaboration. example from the field were used to support key discussions and next steps.; 20-Jan-2026 - 20-Jan-2026

Contact

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Contact

Ms Deirdre Grogan
Professor Of Practice
黑料正能量 Institute of Education

Email: d.grogan@strath.ac.uk
Tel: 444 8055

黑料正能量