1. Faculty of Social Sciences
  2. School of Education
  3. People
  4. Profile
Karen Banks

Karen Banks

  • Email: ed17kb@leeds.ac.uk
  • Thesis title: Can (and should) PEERS (Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills) be used as a basis for a social skills curriculum for college students with Special Educational Needs/Disabilities (SEN/D)? If so, how would this work in practice?
  • Supervisors: Dr Paula Clarke , Dr Peter Hart

Profile

My career in education began in 2007 when I started teaching young people with learning disabilities at Joseph Priestley College (now part of Leeds City College) and commenced on a part-time PCET (Post-compulsory Education and Training) PgCE (Professional graduate Certificate in Education) (achieved in 2009). I later gained specialisms in the teaching of literacy (2014) and the teaching of numeracy (2015) while continuing to teach on courses designed for learners with Special Educational Needs (SEN) and/or Disabilities.  

In 2018, after completing an MA in Education at the University of Leeds (for which I was awarded a Distinction), I was appointed HE (Higher Education) Course Leader, responsible for leading the SEN PgCE at Leeds City College, University Centre.  I also teach on the generic PGCE/Certificate in Education programme.

Teaching is not my first career: from 1991 until 2007 I developed and managed supported living services for adults with learning disabilities and before that I worked in bookselling and academic publishing in my native Colorado, USA. 

I am currently working towards an Education Doctorate at the University of Leeds.

Research interests

All of my academic and research interests stem from a desire to improve the FE (further education) experience and the educational outcomes of young people (aged 16-25) with Special Educational Needs (SEN) and/or disabilities.  

I am particularly interested in making maths and English concepts and curricula accessible for students with learning disabilities and in educational interventions for young people with social interaction/communication needs.

I am also interested in restorative practice in education: my masters dissertation was entitled The Potential of Restorative Practice: A Systematic Literature Review.

The title of my EdD research is: “Can (and should) PEERS (Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills) be used as a basis for a social skills curriculum for college students with Special Educational Needs/Disabilities (SEN/D)? If so, how would this work in practice?” 

Qualifications

  • BA English
  • MA Education
  • PGCE (PCET)
  • Diploma in Teaching English: Literacy
  • Diploma in Teaching Mathematics: Numeracy