Nigel Norris is Professor of Education. He was appointed to the Centre for Applied Research in Education in 1979, first as a Senior Research Associate and in 1982 as a Lecturer specialising in educational evaluation. Since then he has been involved in a wide variety of evaluation and research studies including evaluations of curriculum development and information technology in education; police training in the UK and Australia; nurse education; GP training and professional and vocational training policies; curriculum reform in Spain; the reform of the comprehensive school curriculum in Finland; school breakfast clubs in England and the setting up of children's trusts. Working closely with colleagues in the School of Pharmacy and the Norwich Medical School, he is part of a National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) funded research programme into medicines management in care homes and the role of pharmacists as independent prescribers. His current research interests include the development of educational evaluation and the history of educational research. He has been Dean and more recently Head of the School of Education and Lifelong Learning(1998 – 2001 & 2007 – 2010), he was a Pro-Vice-Chancellor from 1998 – 2004, and again in 2012 – 13 and in 2014 he was acting Head of the Norwich Medical School. He is the Executive Editor of the Cambridge Journal of Education and on the editorial advisory board of the Journal of Education Policy.

Current research interests include: (i) the development of educational research and evaluation since 1945; (ii) the disciplinary, institutional, social and political context of educational research; (iii) the curriculum reform movement.

PhD & Ed.D supervision

Professor Norris has supervised to successful completion 19 PhD and 2 Ed.D students.

Current research students

Primary Supervisor:

Pauline Bryant (Ed.D), Maggie Bunting (Ed.D), Deborah Harrison (PhD), Justin Hett (PhD), Jane Marlow (PhD), Helene Rankin (PhD), Nawal Alzahrani (PhD).

Second Supervisor:

Stephanie Aspin (PhD), Elizabeth Blowers (Ed.D), Katrina Emerson (Ed.D), Vernon Holt (PhD),

Supervisory Panel:

Jeremy Sokhi (PhD) and Rick Adams (PhD), both in the School of Pharmacy

Publications

Books

Elliott, J. & Norris, N. eds. (2012) Curriculum, Pedagogy and Educational Research – The Work of Lawrence Stenhouse, London: Taylor Francis

Norris, N. ed. (2008) Curriculum and the Teacher: Readings from the Cambridge Journal of Education 1971 – 2006, London: Taylor Francis

Kushner, S. & Norris, N. eds. (2007) Dilemmas of Engagement: Evaluation and the New Public Management, (Advances in Program Evaluation Vol. 10), Oxford: Elsevier

Norris, N., Aspland, R., MacDonald, B., Schostak, J. & Zamorski, B. (1996) An Independent Evaluation of Comprehensive Curriculum Reform in Finland, Helsinki: National Board of Education.

Norris, N. (1990) Understanding Educational Evaluation, London: Kogan Page (re-published in paperback 1993)

MacDonald, B. Argent, M, Elliott, J. May, N. Miller, & Norris, N. (1987) Police Probationer Training: the final report of the Stage Two Review, London: HMSO 

Short works

Wright, D., Loftus, M., Christou, M., Eggleton, A. & Norris, N. (2006) Healthcare Professional Education & Training: How does Pharmacy in Great Britain compare? London: Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain

Norris, N. et al (1998) ‘Recertification in General Practice Reconsidered’ http://www.uea.ac.uk/care/pubs/recert.pdf

Eide, K. & Norris, N. (1993) Environmental Education Policies in Finland: a review. Helsinki: Ministry of Education, National Board of Education

MacDonald, B., Elliott, J. & Norris, N. et al (1990) Studies in Police Training: An Evaluation of Police Recruit Education in New South Wales, Australia. Norwich: Centre for Applied Research in Education, University of East Anglia

Contributions to books

Norris, N. (2012) ‘Lawrence Alexander Stenhouse: an educational life’ in Elliott, J. & Norris, N. (eds.) Curriculum, Pedagogy and Educational Research – The Work of Lawrence Stenhouse, London: Taylor Francis pp. 7 - 49

Elliott, J. & Norris, N. (2012) ‘The Stenhouse Legacy’, in Elliott, J. & Norris, N. (eds.) Curriculum, Pedagogy and Educational Research – The Work of Lawrence Stenhouse, London: Taylor Francis pp 137 - 152

Norris, N. (2008) ‘Curriculum and the Teacher’ in Norris, N. ed. Curriculum and the Teacher: Readings from the Cambridge Journal of Education 1971 – 2006, London: Taylor Francis pp. 1 - 28

Norris, N. (2007) ‘Evaluation and Trust’, Kushner, S. & Norris, N. (Eds). Dilemmas of Engagement: Evaluation and the New Public Management, Oxford: Elsevier

Norris, N. & Kushner, S. (2007) ‘Evaluation and the New Public Management’, Kushner. S. & Norris, N. eds. Dilemmas of Engagement: Evaluation and the New Public Management, Oxford: Elsevier

Norris, N. (2004) ‘Validity’ Encyclopaedia of Evaluation, London: Sage

Norris, N. & Walker R. (2004) ‘Naturalistic Inquiry’ Somekh, B. & Lewin, K. eds Research Methods in the Social Sciences, London: Sage pp 131 – 137

Norris, N. (1997) ‘Contract Research’ Burgess, B. ed. Encyclopaedia of Social Research Methods, London: Routledge

Norris, N. & Phillips. T. (1996) "An Evaluation of the Polytechnic Experiment in Kemi-Tornio and North Karelia" Maljojoki, P. and Kurtakko, K. eds Evaluation Report on the North Karelia and Kemi-Tornio Polytechnics. Joensuu, Finland: Pohjois-Karjalan Ammattikorkeakoulu pp 9 - 20

Norris, N. (1995) "Koulutusohjelmien Arviointi" Takala, S. (ed) Arviointi ja Koulutuksen Laadun Kehittaminen. Kasvatustieteiden Utukimuslaitos Jyvaskylan Yliopisto. [Norris, N. (1995) "Evaluation of Educational Programmes" Takala, S. (ed) Evaluation and the Enhancement of the Quality of Education. Jyvaskyla, Finland: Institute for Educational Research, University of Jyvaskyla]

Norris, N. (1994) ‘Making the Most of Judgement Data’ Pettigrew, M & Somekh, B. eds. Evaluating Innovation in Environmental Education, Paris: OECD pp 161 – 164

Norris, N. (1993) ‘Evaluation, Economics and Performance Indicators’ Elliott, J. (Ed) Reconstructing Teacher Education, Falmer Press.

Journal articles

Hammad, W. & Norris, N. (2009) ‘Centralised control: A Barrier to Shared Decision-making in Egyptian Secondary Schools’ International Studies in Educational Administration 37 (2) pp 60 – 73

Norris, N. (2005) ‘The Politics of Evaluation and the Methodological Imagination’ American Journal of Evaluation, 26 (4): 584 – 586

Harvey, I.,Shepstone, L.,Swift,L., Reading, R., Mugford, M., Norris, N. Thoburn, J., Robinson, J. (2004) ‘A National Evaluation of School Breakfast Clubs: evidence from a cluster randomised controlled trial and an observational analysis’ Child: Care, Health and Development, 30 (5): 413 - 427

Robinson, J. & Norris, N. (2001) ‘Generalisation and Evidence-Based Practice’, Educational Action Research, 9 (2): 303-309

Norris, N. (1998) ‘Curriculum Evaluation Revisited’, Cambridge Journal of Education, 28. (2): 207 – 219

Norris, N. (1998) ‘Evaluación, Economía e Indicadores de Rendimiento’ HEURESIS. Revista Electrónica de Investigación Curricular y Educativa, Vol.1, n2, http://www2.uca.es/HEURESIS

Norris, N. (1997) ‘Error Bias and Validity in Qualitative Research’ Educational Action Research, 5 (1): 173 – 176

House, E., Haug, C. & Norris, N. (1996) ‘Producing Evaluations in a Large Bureaucracy’ Evaluation, 2 (2): 135 – 150

Norris, N. (1996) ‘Professor Hargreaves, the TTA and Evidence-based Practice’ Research Intelligence, 57: 2 – 4

Norris, C. & Norris, N. (1993) ‘Defining Good Policing’ Policing and Society, 3: 205 – 221

Norris, N (1995) ‘Contracts, Control and Evaluation’ Journal of Education Policy, 10 (3) 271 – 285

Norris, N. (1992) ‘Problems in Police Training’ Policing, 8. Autumn: 210 – 221

Norris, N. (1991) ‘The Trouble with Competence’ Cambridge Journal of Education, 21: 331 - 341.

Norris, N. & Pettigrew, M. (1991) ‘Evaluation and Research’ Research Intelligence, 40

Norris, N., Davies, R. & Beattie, C. (1990) ‘Evaluating new technology: the case of the Interactive Video in Schools Programme’ British Journal of Educational Technology, 21: 84-89.