Right support, right place, right time: Effective transitions for SEND students

This Research & Knowledge Exchange Doctoral Project brief summarises our priority areas of research interest under the heading of: Right support, right place, right time: Effective transitions for SEND students.

We welcome all research degree applications aligned with and in response to this brief.

This brief invites proposals for research projects which explore the transitions between educational institutions for learners with special educational needs and disabilities. There is a great variation between institutions and across educational levels in the support provided for SEND learners, from pre-entry interventions and holistic experiential opportunities to formal inductions and varying administrative strategies. While there is some research centred on the transition between primary and secondary school, there is a shortage of research centred on the transition between college/secondary school and university. Proposals in response to this brief would explore best practice across a variety of settings and there could be an opportunity to pilot some recommendations at Falmouth University as part of the methodology.  

Recent research describes transition as a socio– psychological process of becoming, in which emotion, social connection, efficacy and wellbeing are key elements. Consequently, universities should move away from the concept of induction being an information–providing process and focus on the felt experience and social and academic integration. Furthermore, induction works best when embedded beyond the first few weeks and managed as a process over the entire first year experience. One of the factors determining whether an individual has a positive or negative transition experience is student preparation. Students who have had the opportunity to acquire the necessary social and navigational capital are more likely to settle quickly into their new environment. This has clear implications for universities in terms of social justice and widening participation. Students from SEND and/or  ‘non–traditional’ backgrounds, may encounter additional barriers and challenges if universities do not ensure that practice, pedagogy, and culture is adapted for the whole population. 

Projects deriving from this brief are expected to sit within the Research & Knowledge Exchange strategy and the following department.

All successful research degree project proposals must emphasise a clear alignment between the project idea and our Research & Knowledge Exchange strategy.