Becky McGinney

Thesis title: Exploring the potential of the Autism Practice Improvement Framework (APIF) to support autistic pupils' educational experiences and inclusion

Biography

Background

I am a first year Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) funded PhD student. I acquired funding through the Student-Led Scottish Graduate School of Social Sciences (SGSSS) award and my project is in collaboration with my employer Scottish Autism. I am committed to supporting the autistic community through both my practice role as a Community Advisor and whilst pursuing my academic career in the subject are of autistic education experience. I have ten years of experience working with and supporting autistic individuals and their families and hope to continue to hold both a practice and research role, throughout my career. 

I recognise the vitality of research projects informed by lived experience expertise. Therefore, I am committed to autistic lived experience informing my research practice and project trajectory. I will achieve this by listening to autistic voice throughout the development of my research projects. In doing so, I hope my projects have the intended outcome of supporting and benefiting the autistic community.

Qualifications

MA (Honours) Psychology - The University of Glasgow

MSc Education- The University of Edinburgh 

Research summary

My research interests are autistic education, anxiety related absence from school and inclusive teaching practices for autistic pupils.

My keen interest in applied research is demonstrated through my commitment to furthering my skillset as both a practitioner and researcher in the subject areas of autism and education. I am dedicated to working towards social justice for autistic individuals and their families. Through both my role at Scottish Autism and my PhD project, I hope to bridge the gap between research and practice. I hope to achieve this by fostering a cyclical relationship between the groups,, with lived experience from autistic individuals and practitioners informing the priorities and direction of my research projects.  I hope to produce tangible outputs and outcomes that influence educational policy and practice. Ultimately my motivation is for my research to positively impact autistic/autism communities.

Current project grants

SGSSS Student Led Studentship

Past project grants

MSc Froebelian Scholarship

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