BA; MEd; PhD

Profile

Gary took up the post of chair in education at Birmingham in 2005. Before university teaching, he worked as a teacher and as an educational psychologist. In higher education – at the University of Leeds, at Oxford Brookes University, UWE and University College London – his teaching and research have focused on inclusion, special education, and research methodology in education.

He has received awards from the ESRC, the Nuffield Foundation, the Leverhulme Trust, the DfES, Barnardos, the Cadmean Trust, local authorities and a range of other organisations. Most of his funded research has been on inclusive or special education, though his Leverhulme Research Fellowship was awarded to examine the role of theory in education. He has recently led an ESRC thematic seminar competition in the Teaching and Learning Research Programme on the assessment of quality in educational research.

He is the founding co-editor of a Taylor & Francis Carfax journal, the International Journal of Research and Method in Education and he is co-editor of the British Educational Research Journal.

Research Interests

His recent research and scholarship have centred on inclusive education, on the work of additional personnel in schools and research methodology in education, with a particular focus on the epistemology of special education.

Teaching and administration responsibilities

His teaching is in his areas of interest and is principally focused in research degree supervision.

Thomas, G. (2009) How to do your research project: a guide for students in education and applied social sciences. London: SAGE. [pdf, 92KB, opens new window]

Bera Conference 2009

You can download his paper Where’s the theory? Behind you! Oh no it isn’t! Stanley Fish and the end of theory from the Bera 2009 conference here. Bera Manchester September 2009

Publications (selection)

Thomas, G. (2007) Education and Theory: Strangers in Paradigms. Maidenhead: Open University Press. http://www.mcgraw-hill.co.uk/html/0335211798.html

Thomas, G., & Loxley, A. (2007) Deconstructing Special Education and Constructing Inclusion. Buckingham: Open University Press. (2nd edition) http://www.mcgraw-hill.co.uk/html/0335223710.html

Thomas, G. & James, D. (2006) Re-inventing grounded theory: some questions about theory, ground and discovery. British Educational Research Journal, 32 (6): 767–795.

Thomas, G. & Pring, R. (eds.) (2004) Evidence-based Practice in Education. Maidenhead: Open University Press. (Portuguese translation [Brazil, 2006]: Educação prática baseada em evidências Porto Alegre: Artmed.)

Thomas, G., Walker, D. & Webb. J. (1998) The Making of the Inclusive School. London: Routledge

Thomas, G. (1997) What’s the use of theory? Harvard Educational Review, 67(1): 75-105.

Publications 2001 - 2009 [complete, pdf, 306 KB, opens new window]

Publications pre-2001 [pdf]