Alyson Simpson

Alyson Simpson is currently Associate Professor at the Faculty of Education and Social Work at the University of Sydney and was once a teacher librarian. She lectures in undergraduate and postgraduate pre-service teacher programmes in the area of English/ literacy education. Her research projects in higher education and primary schools have examined the power of children’s literature, designs for e-learning and concepts of visual literacy. She is the co-editor of Literacy and Social Responsibility: Multiple Perspectives (London: Equinox Press, 2010) and author of Reading under the Covers: Helping Children to Choose Books (Newtown: Primary English Teaching Association, 2008).

In all areas of her teaching, Alyson links educational theory with practice. She has developed partnerships with schools to examine the connection between English, language development and the authentic use of information and communication technology in the classroom.

Alyson's classroom-based research employs discourse analysis to investigate the issues involved in the nature and development of language, critical literacy, working with children’s literature in online environments, and pedagogic change.