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Linda Croxford

Senior Research Fellow

Email: l.croxford@ed.ac.uk
Tel: +44 (0)131 651 6241
Fax: +44 (0)131 651 6239

 

Biographical details

Linda Croxford has been a member of the Centre for Educational Sociology since 1983 and is now an Honorary Senior Research Fellow. Her research has focused mainly on (in)equalities in the experiences of young people in education and how these are impacted by policy changes. Based on her previous research experience, Linda continues to provide support and advice to colleagues on survey and administrative datasets.

Currently she is developing an accessible on-line archive of datasets from the Scottish Young People’s Survey (SYPS) and Scottish School Leavers’ Survey (nationally representative surveys carried out between the 1970s and 2000s). The datasets and their documentation are being made available through Edinburgh Datashare (https://datashare.is.ed.ac.uk/handle/10283/567) for access by future researchers and teachers.

 

Research interests


Wide interests in education and youth transitions, including: curriculum and attainment; (in)equalities by social class, gender, ethnicity and geographical areas; UK or international comparisons; pupil-progress monitoring; school performance indicators; and school differences.

 

Current and recent research


Ongoing: The Scottish School Leavers Surveys: creating an accessible data archive
2015-16: Pupils as Citizens, led by the Centre for Research in Education, Inclusion and Diversity (CREID): funded by the Gordon Cook Foundation.
2014: Tell Them From Me (TTFM) - Scottish School Leavers
2011-2012: REACH: Analysis of Data on Student Progression (REACH Edinburgh)
2011-2012: DIFFHE: Changing Transitions to a Differentiated Higher Education System (Nuffield) – with David Raffe
2010-2011: ARTICULATE: UCAS articulating student reporting (ELRAH) – with Cathy Howieson and David Raffe
2009: Sabbatical (Feb – Jul)
2006-2009: Governing by Numbers: Data and Education Governance in Scotland and England (ESRC and ESF) – with Jenny Ozga, Sotiria Grek, Martin Lawn
2004-2008: How do Schools Measure their Own Progress? A Collaborative Research Project carried out as part of the Applied Educational Research Scheme (AERS) (SEED and SHEFC)
2006-2007: Trends in Secondary education in Scotland, 1985-2005 (SEED)
2006-2007: Meeting the needs for longitudinal data on youth transitions in Scotland – an options appraisal: Consultancy (Scottish Executive) – with Cathy Howieson
2003-2005: Education and Youth Transitions in England, Wales and Scotland 1984-2002 (ESRC) - with David Raffe, Cathy Howieson, Cristina Iannelli and Jenny Ozga
2001-2004: Value added in Literacy and Numeracy in S1-S2: Consultancy (City of Edinburgh Council)

 

Selected papers and publications

2015

Everyone's Future: Lessons from fifty years of Scottish comprehensive schooling, book, D Murphy, L Croxford, C Howieson (editors), IoE Press/Trentham Books, 1 June 2015

2014

Raffe, D. and Croxford, L. (forthcoming) The iron law of hierarchy? Institutional differentiation in UK higher education, Studies in Higher Education

Croxford, L. and Raffe, D. (2014) Social class, ethnicity and access to higher education in the four countries of the UK: 1996-2010, International Journal of Lifelong Education, 33(1), pp.77-95

Croxford, L., Docherty, G., Gaukroger, R. and Hood, K. (2014) Widening Participation at the University of Edinburgh: contextual admissions, retention, and degree outcomes, Scottish Affairs, 23.2: 192-216, DOI:10.3366/scot.2014.0017

Raffe, D. and Croxford, L. (2014) Student flows across the UK’s internal boundaries: Entrants to full-time degree courses in 2011, HE Working Paper 4, Edinburgh: CREID, University of Edinburgh

2013

Croxford, L. and Raffe, D. (2012) Social class, ethnicity and access to higher education in the four countries of the UK: 1996-2010, International Journal of Lifelong Education (CES Ref 1222)

Croxford, L. and Raffe, D. (2013) Social and ethnic inequalities and institutional differences in entry to UK higher education (1996-2010), CES Briefing No. 61, Edinburgh: Centre for Educational Sociology, University of Edinburgh. (CES Ref 1314)

Croxford, L. and Raffe, D. (2013) Participation in full-time higher education 1996-2010: a 'home international' perspective, CES Briefing No. 62, Edinburgh: Centre for Educational Sociology, University of Edinburgh. (CES Ref 1313)

Croxford, L., *Doherty, G., *Gaukroger, R. and *Hood, K. (2013) Widening Participation at the University of Edinburgh (3): entry, progression and degree outcomes by subject area, report to the University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh: Centre for Educational Sociology, University of Edinburgh (CES Ref 1303)

Croxford, L., *Doherty, G., *Gaukroger, R. and *Hood, K. (2013) Widening Participation at the University of Edinburgh (2): entry, progression and degree outcomes of A-level qualified students, report to the University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh: Centre for Educational Sociology, University of Edinburgh (CES Ref 1302)

Croxford, L. and Raffe, D. (2013) Differentiation and social segregation of UK higher education, 1996-2010, Oxford Review of Education, 39(2), April 2013. (CES Ref 1220)

Raffe, D. and Croxford, L. (2012) How stable is the stratification of Higher Education in England and Scotland?, British Journal of Sociology of Education, DOI: 10.1080/01425692.2013.820127. (CES Ref 1216)

Raffe, D. and Croxford, L. (2013) One system or four? Cross-border aplications and entries to full-time undergraduate courses in the UK since devolution, Higher Education Quarterly, 67(2), pp.111-134. (CES Ref 1206)

2012
Croxford, L., *Doherty, G., *Gaukroger, R. and *Hood, K. (2012) Widening participation at the University of Edinburgh (1): entry, progression and degree outcomes of SQA-qualified entrants, report to the University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh: Centre for Educational Sociology, University of Edinburgh (CES Ref 1221)
2011
"Teachers’ Perceptions of Quality Assurance and Evaluation", Chapter 10, pp.127-149 (with Gray, J., Strømbæk Pedersen, C., Rinne, R., Simari-Salo, S., Simola, H. and Mäkinen-Streng, M.), in J.Ozga, P.Dahler-Larsen, C.Segerholm and H.Simola (eds) Fabricating Quality in Education: Data and Governance in Europe, London: Routledge.
2010
2009
Teacher Attitudes to Quality Assurance and Evaluation (QAE) in Scotland and England, CES Briefing No. 51, Edinburgh: Centre for Educational Sociology, University of Edinburgh. (with Gray, J. and Ozga, J.)

Quality Assurance and Evaluation (QAE) in Scotland: Promoting self-evaluation within and beyond the country, Special Issue of Journal of Education Policy, 24(2), pp.179-193. (with Grek, S. and Shaik, F.)

Change over time in the context, outcomes and inequalities of secondary schooling in Scotland, 1985-2005, Final Report to the Scottish Government, Edinburgh: Education Analytical Services, Scottish Government Social Research.
2008
Meeting the Needs for Longitudinal Data on Youth Transitions in Scotland - An Options Appraisal, Edinburgh: Scottish Government. (with Howieson, C. and *Howat, N.)

Baseline Assessment in Scotland, in T.G.K.Bryce and W.Humes (eds) Scottish Education, Third edition beyond devolution, Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.

How do schools in Scotland measure their own performance? AERS Research Briefing Paper 6, Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh (with M.Cowie, A.Bragg, J.Burns, L.Santarossa, J.Stead, D.Taylor)

Tracking the progress of individual pupils, AERS Feedback to Schools 1 June 2008 (with M.Cowie (eds))

Evaluating data to identify issues, AERS Feedback to Schools 2 June 2008 (with M.Cowie (eds))

Formal accountability processes, AERS Feedback to Schools 3 June 2008 (with M.Cowie (eds))

Issues relating to the quality of data and analysis, AERS Feedback to Schools 4 October 2008 (with M.Cowie (eds))

Equity issues arising from the use of performance data, AERS Feedback to Schools 5 October 2008 (with M.Cowie (eds))

Exploring the Impact of Class Size on Standard Grade Performance in Scottish Schools: Report on the Pilot Study, Report to the SEED Class Sizes, Staffing and Resources Working Group. Scottish Executive.
2007
Intelligent Accountability: Sound Bite or Sea-Change? CES Briefing No. 43 (with Cowie,M.)

Tough Intelligent Accountability in Scottish Secondary Schools and the Role of Standard Tables and Charts (STACs): A Critical Appraisal, Scottish Educational Review, 39(1), pp.29-50 (with Cowie,M. and Taylor,D.)

Young people’s experience of compulsory schooling in England and Scotland during two decades of educational reform, in Bhatti, G., Gaine, C., Gobbo, F. and Leeman, Y. (eds) Social Justice and Intercultural Education: An Open Ended Dialogue (Chapter 10) Trentham Books

Education Markets and Social Class Inequality: a comparison of trends in England, Wales and Scotland, in R.Teese, S.Lamb and M.Duru-Bellat (eds) International Studies in Educational Inequality, Theory and Practice (Vol 3). Inequality: Educational Theory and Public Policy, Dordrecht: Springer (with Raffe,D.)
2006
Trends in social class segregation between schools in England, Wales and Scotland since 1984, Research Papers in Education, 21(4), pp.381-406 (with Paterson, L.)

Widening Participation at an Ancient Scottish University, Scottish Affairs, 56 (Summer 2006), pp.102-130 (with *Cree,V.E., *Halliwell,J., Iannelli,C., *Kendall,L. and *Winterstein,D.)

Measuring and Monitoring School Performance in Scotland, Education in the North. Number 3, pp.23-36 (with Cowie, M.)
2005
The Youth Cohort Surveys - how good is the evidence? CES Briefing No 38, CES, University of Edinburgh

Education and Youth Transitions across Britain 1984-2002, CES Briefing No. 39, CES, University of Edinburgh (with Iannelli,C., Shapira,M., Howieson,C. and Raffe,D.)

Social-Class Inequalities in Education in England and Scotland, CES Briefing No. 40, CES, University of Edinburgh (with Raffe,D., Iannelli,C., Shapira,M. and Howieson,C.)

Gender and attitudes to work and family roles: the views of young people at the millenium, Gender and Education 17(2), pp.129-142 (with Tinklin, T., Ducklin, A. and Frame, B.)

Education Maintenance Allowances (EMAs): Attainment of National Qualifications in the Scottish Pilots, Research Findings No. 25/2005, Edinburgh: SEELLD, ISBN 0-7559-3960-3 (with Ozga, J.)
2004
Inclusion: A Gender Perspective, Policy Futures, 2(1) (with Tinklin, T, Ducklin, A and Frame, B)
2003
Gender and pupil performance: where do the problems lie? Scottish Educational Review, 35 (2), pp135-147 (with T. Tinklin, B. Frame and A. Ducklin)

Participation in science, engineering and technology at school and in higher education, SSLS Special Report, Edinburgh: Scottish Executive.

Scottish School Leavers Survey: Young People Not in Education, Employment or Training, SSLS Special Report, Edinburgh: Scottish Executive (with D.Raffe)

Scottish School Leavers Survey: Destinations of Early Leavers, SSLS Special Report No 4, Edinburgh: Scottish Executive (with C Howieson, J Fairgrieve and T Tinklin)

Literacy in the First Year of Schooling: a multilevel analysis, School Effectiveness and School Improvement, 14 (2), pp.213-231 (with S. Sharp)
2002
'Baseline Assessment' in Tom Bryce and Walter Humes (eds) Scottish Education, Second edition, (Edinburgh, Edinburgh University Press).

Chapter 15: The Effects of Poverty on Early Education - Findings from the Early intervention Programme in Scotland, U.Brown, G.Scott, G.Mooney and B.Duncan (eds) Poverty in Scotland 2002, Scottish Poverty Information Unit/Child Poverty Action Group, pp.144-150.

Why Comprehensive Schools work for Scotland's Youngsters, Scottish Education Journal, 86(2), April 2002, pp.12-13.

Scottish School Leavers Survey: Participation in Science, Engineering and Technology at School and in Higher Education, Report to the Scottish Executive, Edinburgh: CES.

Education Maintenance Allowances (EMAs): Evaluation of the East Ayrshire Pilot, Research Findings No. 6/2002, Edinburgh: SEELLD - with Cathy Howieson, Cristina Iannelli and Jenny Ozga.

Educational Maintenance Allowances: Evaluation of the East Ayrshire Pilot, Report to the Scottish Executive, Edinburgh: Scottish Executive - with Cathy Howieson, Cristina Iannelli and Jenny Ozga.