Saffron is a PhD candidate in the Centre for Public Policy Research (CPPR) in the School of Education, Communication & Society at King’s College London.

Prior to starting her PhD, she taught Secondary Biology for 7 years, completing a MSc in Teacher Education at the University of Oxford during this time. Whilst teaching she held roles such as Head of Biology, KS3 science coordinator and NQT mentor.

PhD Research

Saffron’s PhD research stems from her time as a teacher and teacher educator, and explores the question “In what ways does initial teacher education (ITE) in higher education institutions in England prepare teachers for an ethnically diverse society?”

Her research examines how current teacher education policy fails to support initial teacher education providers to develop antiracist teachers who can empower all students and prepare them for a diverse and multicultural world, as well as make provision for racially minoritised students and colleagues.

Persistent education-related issues in minoritised ethnic communities including underachievement, school exclusions, racialised low expectations and stereotypes of racially minoritised students and lack of a diverse curriculum are yet to be prioritised in many English schools. ITE courses responding directly to these issues is one way to address these concerns.

There is now evidence that some ITE institutions recognize the need to address cultural diversity and race through accurate content and appropriate curriculum materials, yet little is known about what is currently being used for pedagogy across ITE programmes in England.

Saffron believes that there is an urgent need for more research into current provision in ITE institutions to gain a detailed picture of this critical area so that provision can be evaluated and strengthened.

Supervisors: Professor Meg Maguire and Dr Emma Towers.

Research interests

• Diversity
• Race
• Teacher Education
• Equality
• Culturally Responsive Teaching
• Racial Literacy

Publications

Powell, S., Maguire, M., Towers, E. (2024). Not ‘Another Version of the Same Thing’: Problematising and Reworking English Initial Teacher Education in Ethnically Diverse Times. In: Beasy, K., Maguire, M., te Riele, K., Towers, E. (eds) Innovative School Reforms. Education, Equity, Economy, vol 11. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-64900-4_9

Find out more on Saffron's PURE research profile.