Elizabeth FitzGerald

I am a Lecturer at the Institute of Educational Technology (IET) at the Open University. I am the module co-chair for H809 Practice-based research in educational technology, a postgraduate module currently available on the Masters (MA) in Online and Distance Education and the module chair for its remake, H819, that will go live in 2017 (currently in production). I am also co-convenor for the Computers And Learning Research Group (CALRG) in IET.

I have specific research interests in pervasive, ubiquitous and ambient computing for technology-enhanced learning. The research combines ubiquitous computing, usability and interaction design with education and pedagogy. My wider research interests encompass CSCW, CSCL and the learning sciences; also field trip learning, digital humanities, museum learning, and technology-enhanced learning in environmental/earth sciences. I am also interested in the research and application of research methods, particularly within interdisciplinary research, and in supporting the professional development of doctoral students.

From October 2015, I am supervising a PhD student, Sian Beavers, looking at informal learning of history through popular media. I also supervise doctoral students at EdD level.

I am Principal Investigator for the Situ8 project, which enables users to browse and capture geolocated media using mobile devices in the field, Co-Investigator and Knowledge Exchange Lead for the 'National Centre for Policing Research and Professional Development' (2015-2017, £1.36m from the College of Policing); and Co-Investigator on the EU-funded Juxtalearn (learning science and computing through juxtaposition performance in video making, €2.1m). I am also the IET academic lead for iSpot, that helps people share and identify nature. I have over 30 peer-reviewed publications and have received funding from sources such as EPSRC, HEFCE, College of Policing, The Wolfson Foundation, the EU and Ordnance Survey. I am also part of a group within IET that is tasked with the production of a series of 'Innovating Pedagogy' reports, to inform policy makers and practitioners of innovations in higher education.