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Dr Sharon Jones
General Information
Teaching Responsibilities
BEd (Primary and Post Primary)
- Literary Studies
- Literature and Social Context
- Education Studies
- Language Education
- Masters Education Studies
Doctoral Programme (Stranmillis University College)
Doctoral Supervision (QUB)
External Interests / Community Service
- Chair BERA British Curriculum Forum
- Advisory Committee British Council Languages Trends Northern Ireland
- Academic Quality and Assurance Committee, Irish Baptist College
- School Governor
- Member of New Irish Arts
Research Interests
- Literary studies
- Linguistic diversity
- Language Education
Awards
- Inaugural Fellow of the Inklings Project (University of Notre Dame, USA)
Background & Qualifications
- MA Modern and Medieval Languages, Girton College, University of Cambridge
- PGCE in Modern Languages, University of Cambridge
- MEd The Open University
- PhD University of Ulster
- Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA 2015)
Research & Scholarship
Journal Articles
- Jones S. (2025) Cardiac Intensive Care, JAMA. 334(4):367. doi:10.1001/jama.2025.4268. (Poetry and Medicine)
- Jones, S. (2025). ‘Towards Language Education Excellence in Northern Ireland’s Primary Schools’, Languages, Society and Policy (LSP), 8 May 2025. Available at https://www.lspjournal.com/post/towards language-education-excellence-in-northern-ireland-s-primary-schools (Accessed 23 June 2025)
- Jones, S., 2023. Review of “The Wonders of Creation: Learning Stewardship from Narnia and Middle-Earth”: Kristen Page. VII: Journal of the Marion E. Wade Center, pp.101-104.
- Jones, S., 2023. The Shortest Way Home? A Geo-critical Return to CS Lewis’s Prince Caspian. Journal of Inklings Studies, 13(1), pp.43-66.
- Jones, S., 2021. Finding our true north: on languages, understanding and curriculum in Northern Ireland. The Curriculum Journal, 32(3), pp.444-458.
- Jones, S. 2020. ‘Suffering, sense-making and meeting of minds: Le Chambon-sur-Lignon as literary sanctuary‘, Modern & Contemporary France, DOI: 10.1080/09639489.2020.1784858
- McMullen, J.D., Jones, S., Campbell, R., McLaughlin, J., McDade, B., O’Lynn, P., and Glen, C. (2020) ‘‘Sitting on a wobbly chair’: mental health and wellbeing among newcomer pupils in Northern Irish schools’, Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties, DOI: 10.1080/01629778.2020.1763095
- (2017) Heaney and education, Irish Studies Review, 25:4, 493-504, DOI: 10.1080/09670882.2015.1087802
- Jones, S. (2015) ‘Newcomer pupils in Northern Ireland: a pastoral perspective.’, Pastoral Care in Education: An International Journal of Personal, Social and Emotional Development, vol. 33 (3), pp. 154-160.
Research Reports
- Harris, J., Purdy, N., Walsh, G., Jones, S. and Rowan, A. (2021) Educational Underachievement in Northern Ireland: Review of Research 2021,Belfast: Centre for Research in Educational Underachievement.
- Purdy, N., Harris, J., Dunn, J., Gibson, K., Jones, S., McKee, B., McMullen, J., Walsh, G., and Ballentine, M. (2021) Northern Ireland Survey of Parents/Carers on Home-Schooling during the Covid-19 Crisis: 2021, Belfast: Centre for Research in Educational UnderachievementMcMullen, J., Harris, J., Jones, S., McConnellogue, S. and Winter, F. (2021) School-based Support for Syrian Refugee Pupils in Northern Ireland, Belfast: Centre for Research in Educational Underachievement, Stranmillis University College.Jones, S., McMullen, J.,
- Campbell, R., McLaughlin, J., McDade, B., O’Lynn, P., Glen, C., (2018) Multilingual Minds: the Mental Health and Wellbeing of Newcomer Children and Young People in Northern Ireland and the role of the Education Authority Youth Service. Report commissioned by the Education Authority Northern Ireland
- Jones, S. Greenwood, R. Purdy, N. McGuckian, E. (2017) Review of Current Primary Languages in Northern Ireland (Funded by NILC)
Podcast
- Jones, S. (2025) ‘Curriculum in a Changing World: Future Directions’, British Educational Research Association Curriculum in a Changing World Series [Podcast]. [29 May 2025]. Available at: https://www.bera.ac.uk/media/curriculum-in-a-changing-world-future-directions (Accessed: 23 June 2025)
Edited book
- Czerniawski, G., Jones, S., Holmes-Henderson, A., Pugh, V., Yang, W. (eds) (2024) Curriculum in a Changing World: 50 think pieces on education, policy, practice, innovation & inclusion, London, BERA Publications.
Newspaper/Magazine Articles
- Jones, S. 2019 ‘Reading, writing and radical hospitality: the Plateau Vivarais-Lignon revisited’. The Irish Times, 31 December 2019. Available at https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/books/reading-writing-and-radical-hospitality-the-plateau-vivarais-lignon-revisited-1.4089470 Accessed 3 July 2020.
Book Reviews
- Jones, S. (2017) ‘The Givenness of Things’ in British Journal of Education Studies. 65 (2)pp. 278-280 (Book Review) Published online 5 April 2017
- Jones, S. (2015). ‘The country of the young: interpretations of youth and childhood in Irish culture’, (Book review), Irish Studies Review, 23(2), 252-25
Conference Papers
- Jones S. (2022). ‘‘Much grass and many flowers’: attending to floral particulars with C.S. Lewis’. C.S. Lewis Symposium, Ulster University, 3 November. https://www.ulster.ac.uk/cs-lewis/past-talks
- Jones, S. (2019) ‘Translating the Heart in Maylis de Kerangal’s Réparant les Vivants and Christian Boltanski’s Les Archives du Coeur’. Paper presented at the XXIe colloque annuel de l’ADEFFI ‘La Perte et la Réparation’, Queen’s University, Belfast, 19th October.
- Jones, S. (2019) ‘In at the Deep End? Reflections on the identity and experiences of newcomer children and young people in Northern Ireland’. Paper presented at the Multilingualism and Identity: Interdisciplinary Perspectives International Conference at Murray Edwards College, University of Cambridge, 12th September.
- Jones, S. (2019) ‘Joining the Dots: Connecting and the Curriculum’. Guest Presentation at the British Educational Research Association British Curriculum Forum Reimagining a Curriculum for Teacher Excellence Event, London, 23rd February.
- Jones, S. (2018) ‘Suffering, Sense Making and Meeting of Minds: Le Chambon sur Lignon as Remarkable Sanctuary’. Paper presented at L’Imaginaire médico-religieux: French Literary Perspectives Conference, Queen’s University, Belfast. 20th October.
- Jones, S. (2017) ‘Languages in Primary Schools in Northern Ireland’. Presentation at Northern Ireland Assembly Research and Information Service Knowledge Exchange Seminar Series 2017-18, Parliament Buildings, Stormont, Belfast, 29th November, 2017.
- Jones, S. (2017) ‘Developing Gifts and Talents’. Guest presentation at the Fields of Life Education Conference Building Bridges to Excellence, Mukono, Uganda, 17th-18th January.
- Jones, S. (2016) ‘Language Learning and Linguistic Diversity in Primary Schools in Northern Ireland’. Paper presented at the Sixteenth International Conference on Diversity in Organizations, Communities and Nations, University of Granada, Spain, 27th-29th July.
- Jones, S. (2016) The Importance of Language Learning in the Primary School, Guest Presentation at NICILT Primary Principals’ Information Day at Queen’s University Belfast
- Jones, S. (2015) Opportunities and challenges for newcomer pupils in Primary Education: a view from Initial Teacher Education, Guest Presentation at Stronger Together Conference, Belfast, 19 November
- Jones, S. (2015) ‘Sixth Form Stretch and Challenge: Debating Matters’, Paper presented at NI Edcamp, Stranmillis University College, Belfast.
- Jones, S. (2015) ‘Stretching gifted and talented learners in Northern Ireland post primary schools’ Paper presented at The British Psychological Society Northern Ireland Branch 2015 Annual Conference, Armagh
- Jones, S. (2014) ‘Heaney and Education’ Paper presented at Seamus Heaney: a Conference and Commemoration, Queen’s University Belfast, 10th-13th April.
- Jones, S. (2014) ‘Poetry and play: reflections on childhood, creativity and learning in Seamus Heaney and Sinead Morrissey’ Paper presented at the United Kingdom Literacy Association 50th International Conference, University of Sussex, July 4th-6th
- Department of Education Northern Ireland (2012) Effective Teaching and Learning to Meet the Needs of More Able Learners – Resource File Chapter for Capacity Building Programme [Contributor]
Blogs
- Jones, S. (2020) ‘Back to school: Curriculum Matters and Covid-19,’ CREU blog, Stranmillis University College, 27 May 2020.
Thesis
- Jones, S. (2007) Reading, writing and restlessness: a study of Miguel de Unamuno’s poetics and prose, from 1897 – 1914, in the light of his response to Christianity (Ph.D. thesis), University of Ulster.
