Mike Dessington

Mike is the Head of School for, Children, Young People and Families within the Institue of Childhood and Education. Mike has the responsibility for overseeing the leadership and management of the Schools undergraduate programmes, which include: Early Childhood Studies, Education Studies and Working with Children, Young People and Families. He is also responsible for leadership and management of the Schools postgraduate programmes, which include: Childhood and Education, Education, Family Support, Special Education Needs Co-ordination and Mental Health in Children and Young People.

Research interests

Mike's MA Education research adopted an ethnographic research strategy to explore the motivations and values in the formation of early career educators professional identity. Mike continues to take this work forward at Leeds Trinity University in supporting programme development that recognises within modules, the formation of students professional identity through the development of their skills and experience working with children and young people.

Mike is interested in children's active participation through adopting creative research methodologies.  He has used critical cartography as a research methodology to examine children's use of space on an adventure playground as a product of relational representation.  

Mike was invovled in a twelve month ethnographic study of play behaviours under the campaign 'Our Place Too'. The study encouraged participants to share their stories of playing when they were children to examine on how freedoms to play has changed compared to previous generations. The outcomes of this research was presented at the 50th International Play Association Conference.

Within the classroom, Mike has researched utilisation of creative pedgogies in teaching and learning. He has researched the use of rhizomatic learning as a teaching strategy in the development of an undergraduate module focussing on students professional practice.