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Dr. Susan Pike

Assistant Professor (Education)
ARTS BUILDING

 SUSAN.PIKE@tcd.ie

 3531896 4858


Biography

Susan is an Assistant Professor in Geography Education in the School of Education. She leads Geography Education on the Professional Masters in Education and Emergency and Disaster Management on the TCPID ASIAP Programme. She is Dissertation Coordinator on the Masters of Education. Susan is a qualified secondary teacher, and has worked at all levels of education over the past 30 years. She was awarded her EdD in 2008, with her doctoral thesis focussing on children's experiences of their local environments. Susan's current research focuses on teaching and learning in schools as well as in teacher education. She has a particular interest in the young people's experiences and learning in geography, citizenship and sustainability education, especially in fieldwork and enquiry. Susan was President of the Geographical Association (2020-21), an organisation she continues to contribute to through charing the GA's Geography Education Research Special Interest Group (GERSIG), as well as writing and other advocacy roles. She was a member of the Organising Committee for the International Geographical Congress, and chaired the Geography Olympiad, both of which will took place in August 2024.

Research Tags

  Geography Education   Outdoor Education   Place Based Education   Primary education   Second Level Education   Sustainability Education   Teacher Education

Research Projects

 Geography Olympiad for Ireland
 Systematic Literature Review for the SEE (Geography, History and ERB) Primary Curriculum
 International Geography Olympiad
 Encountering Place in Education
 Leaving Certificate Geography Development Group

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Representations

Details Date
International Geography Olympiad: Local Organising Committee - Chair 2022-
International Geographical Congress Conference: Organising Committee - Member 2022-
School of Education: Research in Schools and Education (RISE) - Co-Chair 2023
St Columba's National School, North Strand, Dublin: Board of Management - Chair / Member 2021-
Geographical Association: Geography Education Research SIG - Chair and Member 2022-
Children's Geographies Journal - Reviewer
Educational Studies Association of Ireland - Curriculum Studies SIG: Committee Member 2023
Geography Education Research Collective (GERECO): Committee - Member 2015-2023
University of Exeter: Post-Graduate Certificate in Education - External Examiner 2015-2019
Geographical Association - President, Vice President and Past President 2017-
Dublin North West Partnership: Board of Management - Member 2021-2023
Young People at the Crossroads - Member of Advisory Board 2020-
Irish Educational Studies - Reviewer 2018-
BA Outdoor and Adventure Education at Coláiste Dhúlaigh & University of Chichester (2017-2020) - External Examiner 2017-
BA Education at the University of Roehampton - External Examiner (2018-2022) 2018-
Geography through the Ages - Event coordinator with Dr Ruth McManus (2015-2021) 2015-2021
DCU Educational Disadvantage Centre - Deputy Director and Member 2000-2023
Editorial Board of International Research in Geographical and Environmental Education - Member 2017-
Royal Geographical Society - Fellow, member of the Children, Young People and Families Research Group and the Geography and Education Research Group 2004-
Geography Society of Ireland - Schools' Liaison Committee Member, Member 2018-
Geography Teacher Educators - Conference Chair & Member 2020-2023
International Research in Geographical and Environmental Education: Editorial Board - Member 2015-
Geographical Association: Curriculum Framework Working Group - Member 2020-2022
Irish Association for Social, Scientific and Environmental Education: Committee: Founding member, President, Conference Chair, Committee member and Member 2000-2015
Geographical Association: Governing Body - Trustee 2017-2021

Memberships

Membership of Professional Institutions, Associations, Societies

Details Date From Date To
Royal Geographical Society (since 2002) 2001 Present
Geography Teacher Educators' Collective (since 2014) 2012 Present
Geographical Association (since 1993) 1993 Present
Geography Education Research Collective (GERECO) (since 2016) 2015 Present
Geographical Society of Ireland (since 2000) 2000 Present
Educational Studies Association of Ireland (since 2000) 2000 Present
Irish Association for Social, Scientific and Environmental Education (2000-2015) 2000 2015
British Education Research Association (since 2010) 2010 Present
Finding Futures: Purposes of Geography in the Irish Education System in, editor(s)Bednarz, Sarah and Mitchell, Jerry , International Handbook of Geography Education, USA, Springer, 2025, [Pike, Susan], Book Chapter, IN_PRESS  URL
Rawlings Smith, Emma and Pike, Susan, Encountering Place in Education: Scholarship and Practice in Place-based Learning, Abingdon, Routledge, 2024, Book, PUBLISHED
Home, place and young people's geographies in the classroom in, editor(s)Emma Rawlings Smith and Susan Pike , Encountering Ideas of Place in Education Scholarship and Practice in Place-based Learning, Abingdon, Roultedge, 2024, [Freeman, D. and Pike, S.], Book Chapter, PUBLISHED  URL  Other
Encountering Ideas of Place: Conclusion in, Emma Rawlings Smith and Susan Pike , Encountering Ideas of Place: Scholarship and Practice in Place-Based Education, Abingdon, Routledge, 2024, [Susan Pike and Emma Rawlings Smith], Book Chapter, PUBLISHED  URL
Encountering Place in Education: Introduction in, editor(s)Emma Rawlings Smith and Susan Pike , Encountering Place in Education, Abingdon, Routledge, 2024, [Rawlings Smith, Emma and Pike, Susan], Book Chapter, PUBLISHED  URL  Other
Pike, S., Subject based and integrated teaching: The research evidence, Geography Teacher Educators, York, 27-29th January, 2024, Conference Paper, PUBLISHED
Pike, Susan, Geography at Senior Levels in Irish Schools: Research and Practice in Curriculum Change, EuroGeo: Compromised Geography: Spreading a New World, Faculdade de Letras da Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal, 29th-30th May 2024, 2024, Conference Paper, ACCEPTED
Dempsey, M., Doyle, A., Pike, S. and Gleeson, J., Curriculum Reform in Ireland, Educational Studies Association of Ireland, Maynooth University, 4-6th April, 2024, ESAI, Invited Talk, ACCEPTED
Pike, S., Austin, S., Greenwood, R. and Bacon, K., Inquiry in teacher education: Experiences of lecturers and student teachers, Irish Education Studies, 43, (4), 2024, Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Clarke, L. and Pike, S., Local geography: Are we teaching it effectively?, Primary Geography, 2024, Journal Article, PUBLISHED
  

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Rawlings Smith, Emma and Pike, Susan, 'Encountering Place in Education 1: January Webinar', Encountering Place in Education, Global, Routledge, 2024, -, Broadcast, COMPLETED
Pike, Susan and Rawlings Smith, Emma, 'Encountering Places in Education 2: February Webinar', Encountering Places in Education, Abingdon, Routledge, 2024, -, Broadcast, COMPLETED
Pike, S., Rawlings Smith, E. And Maude, A., Around the world in 60 minutes, GeoNight Australia, Australia and online, 12th April, 2024, Australian Geography Teachers Association, Invited Talk, PRESENTED
Pike, Susan, Kelly, Amy and Doyle, Orla, Space and Hermeneutics: Children's Constructions of Spatial Meanings in their Localities, The Spatial Turn Interdisciplinary Symposium, Dublin City University, 5th-6th June, 2024, DCU Educational Disadvantage Centre, Invited Talk, APPROVED
Educational Studies of Ireland Curriculum Research SIG Conference, Curriculum Making in Ireland: a multiplicity of actors and sites of activity engaging in the social practice of interpreting, translating, mediating, and enacting curriculum, 14th June, 2024, All Hallows College, DCU, Meetings /Conferences Organised, ACCEPTED
Pike, Susan, International Geography Olympiad, 19th-26th August, 2024, University of Maynooth and Trinity College Dublin, Meetings /Conferences Organised, PRESENTED
Pike, Susan, International Geography Olympiad, 19th-26th August, 2024, University of Maynooth and Trinity College Dublin, Meetings /Conferences Organised, PRESENTED
Pike, Susan, Learning through Enquiry: Experience, Practice and Stance, Cork Geography Teachers' Conference, Cork, 5th October, 2024, Oral Presentation, PRESENTED
Pike, Susan, 'Young people geographies and the Geography Olympiad for Ireland', RTÉ Radio 1 Nine O'Clock Show, RTÉ Radio 1, RTÉ, 2023, -, Broadcast, PUBLISHED
Pike, S., Ní Cassaithe, C., McGuirk, N., Usher, J., Mallon, B. and Whelan, P., Findings from the Literature Review to Inform the Curriculum for Social and Environmental Education (Geography, History and Education about Religion and Beliefs), NCCA Seminar, Marino Institute of Education, February, 2023, NCCA, Invited Talk, PUBLISHED

  

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Awards and Honours

Award Date
Geographical Association: Annual Award for Excellence 2016
Dublin City University: Teaching and Learning Award Won: 2001, 2014; Nominated: 2021
Teacher Training Agency: Bursary for Masters in Education 1996
University of Southampton: PGCE Prize for Highest Achievement on Placement 1994

Research Interests

Description Of Research Interests

Susan's research focuses on teaching, learning and pedagogies in Geography, Sustainability and Outdoor Education in schools. She also researches in teacher education, specifically on the experiences and impact of teacher education on the process of becoming a teacher for students on initial teacher education programmes. Her book Learning Primary Geography: Ideas and Inspirations from Classrooms (Routledge, 2016) drew together theory, research and practice in Geography across a wide range on schools. She co-edited Encountering Place in Education, an international cross-phase book to support all educators teach about, within and for place (Routledge, 2023).