Oxford Brookes Lecturer awarded National Teaching Fellowship
An Oxford Brookes University lecturer has been awarded a prestigious National Teaching Fellowship by Advance HE.
Dr Louise Taylor, Principal Lecturer Student Experience, is an award-winning educator and Chartered Psychologist, and currently teaches on the University’s social work programmes. She is known for applying her psychological knowledge and research expertise to improve learning and teaching, both in the UK and internationally.
Dr Taylor said: “I feel incredibly honoured and excited to be awarded a National Teaching Fellowship in recognition of my work to enhance student learning. I particularly want to thank my students and colleagues at Oxford Brookes University and other institutions who have inspired and challenged me to apply my knowledge of psychology to improve how I support learning and teaching.
“I'm really looking forward to participating in the opportunities that this award will bring to further enhance student learning within Oxford Brookes and across the sector.”
Dr Taylor has published ground-breaking research, co-produced with students, that provides psychological insights into how issues such as racial inequality and the marketisation of higher education affect students’ identities and attitudes towards learning. She produced the first ever research showing that the more that students identify as consumers the poorer their attainment, because consumer identities involve superficial rather than meaningful learning strategies. Louise translated these findings into practical interventions that support students to develop identities as learners rather than as consumers. These resources are published by the Times Higher Education Campus, which has resulted in their adoption internationally.
Louise won funding for her anti-racist work from the Global Challenges Research Fund by UK Research and Innovation to evaluate a learning and teaching project taking a decolonial perspective. In collaboration with Hope Africa University, Burundi, Louise is leading a project to develop an innovative student buddying programme using indigenous concepts in both its development and evaluation.
She has also developed practical guidance to help educators support students who experience racism and other forms of discrimination, and on how to develop an inclusive teaching environment. Dr Taylor continues to champion the importance of white allies and has reflected on her experiences of developing anti-racist practice in an Advance HE blog.
In 2021 Louise won a national University Alliance ‘Braveheart’ award in recognition of her impact, for being someone who has ‘gone the extra mile’ in learning and teaching.
National Teaching Fellowships are the most prestigious awards for excellence in higher education teaching. The scheme recognises individuals who have made an outstanding impact on student outcomes and the teaching profession in higher education.
Advance HE confer the National Teaching Fellowships and Collaborative Award for Teaching Excellence (CATE) annually. Read about Oxford Brookes’ newest CATE team.