Events

The Second Harpur Lecture

22 June 2006

Early Numeracy Research: Theory and Practice

Dr Jonathan Solity and Ms Frances Graves

The Second Harpur Lecture will be held at Pilgrims Pre-Preparatory School on 22 June at 6.30 for 7.00pm. If you would like an invitation to the event please contact Sarah Blomfield by email on sblomfield@harpur-trust.org.uk or phone on 01234 369532.

The Second Harpur Lecture will focus on the first grant made under the Charity’s new themed grants programme; ‘Excellence in Education’.  This significant award was made to Bedfordshire County Council’s Education Psychology Service (EPS) and will enable them to work with Dr Jonathan Solity of Warwick University to develop an Early Numeracy Research project.  The speakers will be Dr Solity and Frances Graves of the EPS.   Dr Solity conducted an influential study in Essex on Early Reading and has worked with the EPS on a similar project in Bedfordshire.  The lecture will examine the initial findings of early numeracy work in Essex and Bedfordshire and explain plans to develop the research in Bedfordshire over the next five years.

Dr. Jonathan Solity was an educational psychologist and has lectured in the subject for the past 20 years at the University of Warwick. He has led a ten year research project into the teaching of literacy and maths, which has investigated the extent to which children's attainments in literacy and numeracy can be increased, and learning difficulties prevented, through theoretically informed curricula and differentiated, inclusive, whole class teaching. Jonathan has been involved in all three government reviews of teaching phonics in the National Literacy Strategy.

Frances Graves has taught mathematics in secondary schools in Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire. She completed a psychology degree with the Open University and worked in a number of schools in Northamptonshire. Frances has been an educational psychologist in Bedfordshire since 1999. She currently holds the post of Senior Specialist Educational Psychologist (Early Years) and is the co-ordinator for the Early Numeracy Research Project in Bedfordshire.

After the enormous success of the Inaugural Harpur Lecture on the subject of Music Therapy, we are delighted to offer this second lecture and do hope you will be able to join us for a further stimulating evening of discussion.