Sarah Chung

Doctoral Researcher 

Sarah ChungResearch Topic

Primary school governor training: exploring the fitness for purpose of the content and mode of delivery in England.

Research Supervisors

Dr Celia Greenway and Dr Nicola Smith

Research summary

School governance has clearly moved away from the initial concept of well-meaning volunteers who ‘managed’ schools.  With the ‘stake-holder’ model of governance, filled by ‘well-meaning’ but ultimately untrained volunteers, being condemned by prominent government figures, governing bodies have been heavily encouraged to develop themselves through placing skilled professionals at the core of the governing body.  The move towards a skills-based model of governance, in conjunction with the increased autonomy of schools and amplified powers for governing bodies, raises questions of whether or not a governing body can rely solely on governors who have been deemed to have the most appropriate skillset, or whether additional training would still be required.

It is the intention of this research to explore the type of governing training currently available and the role it plays in producing an effective governing body.

Research interests

  • School governance
  • Educational leadership
  • Teaching
  • Mentoring

Qualifications

  • BA (Hons) English and Archaeology (UWL) - 2000
  • PGDip Practical Archaeology (UoB) – 2002
  • PGCE – Primary (UWA) – 2004
  • MA (Distinction) School Improvement and Educational Leadership (2017)

Biography

arah qualified as a primary school teacher, specialising in English, in 2004. She has worked throughout Key Stages 1 & 2 as both a class-based teacher and supply.  After becoming a governor at her children’s school in 2015 she developed an interest in educational leadership and decided to pursue an MA in School Improvement and Educational Leadership at the University of Birmingham.  The MA supported her development as a governor and her later roles as Chair and Vice-Chair of governing bodies in the West Midlands. In 2018 she was awarded a CoSS Scholarship and began her PhD journey within the School of Education, exploring the role of governor training.

Publications

Wilson, K., Whatmore, T.,Smith, N.,Saunders, V., O’Leary, C., Marley, B., Hobday, S., Chung S. and Akhtar, K.(2024) ‘What mentors do and why relationships matter: Perceptions of effective mentoring practices’, TEAN journal Online First, pp. 43-57

Cooke, Neil, Jörgen Forss, Enrica Caporali, Pascal Chargé, Kamel Hawwash, Jesper Andersson, Gianni Bartoli, Sarah Chung, and Daniel Cottle “Academic resilience: a study of parental background’s contribution to engineering identity in three European engineering faculties” In 52nd Annual Conference of the European Society for Engineering Education (SEFI), Lausanne, 1st-5th September, 2024, European Society For Engineering Education (SEFI), 2024. (in press) 

Chung, Sarah, Neil Cooke, and Daniel Cottle. “The relationship between Socioeconomic Status and Academic Self-Concept in UK Engineering Students: A Case Study from the European University of Wellbeing (EUniWell) MASOEE project”. In UK and Ireland Engineering Education Research Network Conference abstracts 2024 (in press) 

Chung, S,  Cooke, N,   Cottle, D,   Caproli, E, Bartoli, G  Forss, J (2024), ‘Research design and preliminary findings from the EUniWell MASOEE project on teaching skills to disadvantaged cohorts’, Paper presented at UK & Ireland Engineering Education Research Network Annual Conference, WMG, University of Warwick, 2023. 

Wilson, K., Akhtar, K., Braim, B., Chung, S., Marley, B., O’Leary, C., Saunders, V., Smith, N. and Whatmore, T. (Accepted/In press) ‘Better together: Enhancing professional learning about mentoring through research and collaboration’, CollectivED Working Papers.  

Wilson, K, Smith, N, Whatmore, T, Akhtar, K, Braim, B, Chung, S, Marley, B, O'Leary, C & Saunders, V (Unpublished), ''The right tool for the job' - mentoring in initial teacher education', Paper presented at BERA Annual Conference 2023, Birmingham, United Kingdom, 12/09/23 - 14/09/23. 

Cooke, N., Chung, S., Hawwash, K. I. M., Cottle, D., Caproli, E., Bartoli, G., Forss, J., Andersson, J., & Chargé, P. (2023). Euniwell: Maximising Academic And Social Outcomes In Engineering Education. European Society for Engineering Education (SEFI). DOI: 10.21427/JYHV-QC77 

Cooke, N., Forss, J., Caporali, E., Chargé, P., Hawwash, K., Andersson, J., Bartoli, G., Chung, S., & Cottle, D. (2023). Supporting Students From Different Universities And Backgrounds To Improve Their Academic And Social Outcomes: Euniwell MASOEE Project Workshop. European Society for Engineering Education (SEFI). DOI: 10.21427/NWT2-EH84 

Cooke, N., Forss, J., Chung, S., & Andersson, J. (2023). Maximising academic and social outcomes In R. Lyng, J. Bennedsen, L. Bettaieb, N. R. Bodsberg, K. Edström, M. S. Guðjónsdóttir, J. Roslöf, O. K. Solbjørg, & G. Øien (Eds.), The 19th CDIO International Conference: Proceedings - Full Papers (pp. 644–655). NTNU SEED.

Morris, R., Perry, T., Chung, S., Till, R. and Smith, Emma (2023) Trying out teaching : mapping and understanding undergraduate teaching experience modules in the UK. Coventry, UK: Department for Education Studies, University of Warwick.

Harrison, T., Greenway, C., McLinden, M., Chung, S. (2021), Bringing Our Research Into Teaching: A Guide For Academics in the College of Social Sciences, University of Birmingham (HEFi).  

Chung, S (2019), The burden of responsibility, Images of Research 2019/2020, p 28.  

Blewer, S., (2005). Animal bones: Birmingham Warwickshire Archaeological Soc Trans 109.  Vol 109, pp. 50-51. In Smith, L., ‘A 13th-century Moated Site at Knowle Hall, Warwickshire’, Transactions, Birmingham and Warwickshire Archaeological Society, 109 (2005), 39-53.

Blogs

Chung, S. (2022) ‘PGR: Parent grappling with research?’.

GovernorHub (2021) ‘Does governor training help governors do better?’. 

Chung, S. (2020) ‘Virtually the same – communal productivity at home’. 

Conference Presentations

Chung, S., (2024), 'Leadership effectiveness and improvement – Governor training as a channel to effective governance', BELMAS Conference, Glasgow, 2024. 

Chung, S., (2023), ‘Governor Training as a Conduit to Effective Governance – Initial Findings’, Intent, Implementation, Impact – What Really Matters in Education?, School of Education Doctoral Research Conference, University of Birmingham, 2023. 

Cooke, N., Forss, J., Caporali, E., Chung, S., ‘Supporting Students From Different Universities And Backgrounds To Improve Their Academic And Social Outcomes: Euniwell MASOEE Project Workshop’, 51st Annual Conference Of The European Society For Engineering Education (Sefi), TU Dublin, Ireland, 2023 

Chung, S., ‘EUniWell: Maximising Academic and Social Outcomes in Engineering Education’, UK & Ireland Engineering Education Research Network Annual Conference, WMG, University of Warwick, 2023.

Chung, S., (2023) - ‘Are they prepared? The role of governor training in producing effective governing bodies’, 10th Annual Postgraduate Education Studies Research Conference, University of Warwick, 2023.

Morris, R., Perry, T., Chung, S., Till, R. (2022) – ‘Trying out teaching: Examining a new approach to tackling the teacher shortage in England’, Teacher Education Advancement Network (TEAN): Online Conference, 2022.

Chung, S., (2021), ‘Primary school governor training: exploring the fitness for purpose of the content and mode of delivery in England’, 3-minute research showcase, The Postgraduates in Education Support Network (PESN), 2021.

Chung, S., (2021), ‘Primary school governor training: exploring the fitness for purpose of the content and mode of delivery in England’, School of Education Doctoral Research Conference 2021, University of Birmingham, 2021.

Chung, S., (2021), ‘Primary school governor training: exploring the fitness for purpose of the content and mode of delivery in England’, School of Education Annual Research and Scholarship Conference 2021, University of Birmingham, 2021.

Chung, S., (2017), ‘Are Governors Prepared?  The Effectiveness of Governor Training in England’, School of Education Doctoral Research Conference 2017, University of Birmingham, 2017.

Conference Committees

Committee Chair:

‘Intent, Implementation, Impact – What Really Matters in Education?’, School of Education Doctoral Research Conference, University of Birmingham, 2023

Hindsight, Foresight, and Shaping the Future of Education, School of Education Doctoral Research Conference, University of Birmingham, 2022.

Committee member:

  • ‘Raising Voices, Creating Changes – Evolving Education’, School of Education Doctoral Research Conference, University of Birmingham, 2024.

  • ‘Re-booting, Re-energising and Re-invigorating’, School of Education Doctoral Research Conference, University of Birmingham, 2021.
  •  ‘The Power of Play Reboot’, Children and Childhood Network, University of Birmingham, 2021.

Journal Roles

General Co-Editor - Ad Alta: The Birmingham Journal of Literature.

Source of Funding

University of Birmingham CoSS Scholarship.

Contact