A prominent physicist, a psychologist and the world’s first “LEGO professor of play” are among 12 experts appointed to the Department for Education’s new science advisory council.
Schools Week revealed earlier this year that scientists with expertise in artificial intelligence, sustainable school buildings and ed tech were being recruited to advise ministers and “shape the future of education”.
The council is tasked with providing “advice and challenge” on issues such as SEND, mental health support and education technology.
Prominent physicist Professor Athene Donald will chair the council, and psychologist Professor Mark Mon-Williams will be its deputy chair.
Other members include UCL’s Professor Rose Luckin, and Professor Paul Ramchandani, who is the world’s first LEGO professor of play in education, learning and development at the University of Cambridge.
The university’s Play in Education, Development & Learning (PEDAL) department, part of the faculty of education, was set up with a grant from the LEGO Foundation, the charitable arm of the well-known toy company.
The DfE said today its new team of experts would provide “the latest scientific advice across a range of specialisms to support the department’s work”. Council members will meet for the first time on October 31.
The council will give “advice and challenge on areas including special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), mental health support, infectious disease prevention, sustainable school estates and education technology”.
Other areas covered will be online harms prevention and artificial intelligence.
‘We must keep pace with advancements’
Professor Russell Viner, the DfE’s chief scientific adviser, put the council together. The DfE said members had a “range of specialisms to ensure access to the best and latest scientific advice”.
These include economics, social science, statistics, operational research and engineering, physical and life sciences, ethics and data science. Council members will not be paid.
Viner said: “We are the department for opportunity, working to deliver better life chances for all – and that means being at the forefront of cutting-edge scientific evidence to ensure we are doing everything we can to break the link between background and success.
“We must keep pace with technological and scientific advancements if we are to deliver the highest standards for the people we serve. Science alone can’t address the challenges the department faces – but it can inform robust, evidence-informed decision making.”
The panel members
Chair: Professor Dame Athene Donald, DBE, FRS, Professor Emerita of Experimental Physics and former Master of Churchill College, University of Cambridge.
Deputy Chair: Professor Mark Mon-Williams, Chair of Cognitive Psychology, University of Leeds.
Professor Chris Bonell, Professor of Public Health & Sociology, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
Professor William J. Browne, Professor of Statistics & Head of the School of Education, University of Bristol.
Dr Claire Crawford, Associate Professor at the Centre for Education Policy and Equalising Opportunities, University College London.
Michael Cribb, Chartered Structural Engineer and Associate Director, Arup.
Dr Dougal Hargreaves, Houston Reader in Paediatrics & Population Health, Imperial College London.
Dr Sonya Krutikova, Associate Professor of Economics, University of Manchester, & Deputy Research Director, Institute for Fiscal Studies.
Professor Rose Luckin, Professor Emeritus of Learner Centred Design, University College London.
Dr Amy Orben, Leader of the Digital Mental Health Group at the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, University of Cambridge.
Professor Paul Ramchandani, LEGO Professor of Play in Education, Learning and Development, University of Cambridge.
Professor Michael J. Reiss, Professor of Science Education at the Institute of Education, University of London & University College London.
