Dr Rebecca Thistle BA, MAEd, QTLS, PhD

Rebecca Thistle is a Senior Lecturer and Academic Portfolio Lead for Early Years and Primary Education in the School of Education.

Rebecca joined the university in 2015 and teaches on a variety of undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in the School of Education. Alongside this, Rebecca overseas the portfolio of early years and primary and is involved in the strategical and operational delivery. Rebecca has a keen interest in the early years sector and much of her vocational, professional and academic journey has been about advocating for the rights of very young children with her thesis exploring practice in the early years.

Prior to joining the university Rebecca taught at two other London universities on Early Childhood Degrees and Psychology Degrees. She has also worked in HE marketing and recruitment at two universities in the midlands before her academic career.

Posts held previously:

  • June 2023 to current – Academic Portfolio Lead Early Years & Primary (line management)
  • Feb 2015 to current – University of Greenwich: Senior Lecturer
  • Sept 2014 to Feb 2015 – Kingston University London: Lecturer in Psychology
  • Jan 2013 to Feb 2015 – University of Roehampton: Lecturer in Early Years Education
  • June 2012 to Dec 2012 – Burton College: Tutor in Early Years

Early years studies

Responsibilities within the university
  • Academic Portfolio Lead Early Years & Primary; line management and strategic and operational oversight of the portfolio of programmes
  • Senior Lecturer in Early Years; module leader and year lead for level 5
  • Module leader (across many programmes): Advocating for the rights and participation of children, Early Intervention & Social Justice, Inclusion & Social Justice, Language & Digital Literacies
  • Dissertation supervisor for undergraduate & postgraduate research.

Awards

Recognition
  • Member of the ECSD network
  • School governor

Research / Scholarly interests
  • Early years practitioners’ professional identity
  • Practice/curriculum in the early years
  • International and comparative perspectives of early years practice

Recent publications
  • Harrison, J., Munn, H., Thistle, R., Harris, D., Atkins, L., Whale, L., (2022) Leadership in Early Years: Challenges and Complexities. London: Sage Publishing
  • Amanda Henshall, Louise Atkins, Rebecca Bolan, Jill Harrison & Heather Munn (2018) ‘Certified to make a difference’: the motivation and perceptions of newly qualified early years teachers in England, Journal of Vocational Education & Training, 70:3, 417-434