Fatema is a Research Officer in the School of Education.

Fatema’s PhD research explored the use of evidence-informed learning strategies for improving secondary school students learning in science. She designed and conducted the first population-based survey exploring secondary school learners study practice in North Wales. Fatema has used the findings from her PhD studies to develop a learning programme called Improving Standards through Effective Revision (iStER).

Her current research interests include promoting the use of robust survey research methods in education. She is currently involved in developing accessible survey research methods content for educators, PhD students as well as early career researchers.

Fatema is currently the lead project manager and Research Officer on the Welsh Government’s Collaborative Evidence Network programme of research (£548, 000), to help design robust surveys for the range of projects across the education system in Wales. Fatema was also successful in obtaining external grant income from the National Academy for Education Leadership to conduct the first study exploring the roles and responsibilities of executive headteachers in Wales.

Fatema works closely with colleagues supporting the various close-to-practice research projects in the Collaborative Institute for Education Research, Evidence and Impact (CIEREI), School of Education.

2025

• Published
  Sultana, F., Watkins, R., Al Baghal, T. & Hughes, C., 17 Jan 2025, In: Education Sciences. 15, 101
  Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
• Published
  Tiesteel, E., Jones, A., Sultana, F., Grigorie, A., Storey, C., Griffiths, C. & Eales, C., 16 Sept 2025
  Research output: Book/Report › Commissioned report › peer-review

2024

• Published
  Sultana, F., Watkins, R. & Hughes, C., Jun 2024
  Research output: Book/Report › Commissioned report › peer-review
• Published
  Tiesteel, E., Watkins, R., Stringer, C., Grigorie, A., Sultana, F. & Hughes, C., 29 Aug 2024, In: Education Sciences. 14, 957
  Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

2023

• Published
  Tiesteel, E., Hughes, C., Sultana, F., Grigorie, A., Whiteley, H., Edwards, R. T., Lynch, L., Egan, D. & Sibieta, L., 6 Sept 2023, Welsh Government. 152 p.
  Research output: Book/Report › Commissioned report
• Published
  Roberts-Tyler, E., Hulson-Jones, A., Tiesteel, E., Sultana, F., May, R. & Hughes, C., 12 Sept 2023, Online: Welsh Government. 158 p.
  Research output: Book/Report › Commissioned report › peer-review

2023

• Over the course of this year, the Welsh Government have been holding a series of online seminars to showcase and disseminate the main findings from the Collaborative Evidence Network (CEN) reports. The eighteen collaborative research projects, involving HEIs and other organisations, looked at impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on various aspects of the education system and on particular groups of learners. They also looked at ways to mitigate those impacts, as well as ways practitioners and learners can be better supported going forwards.

  This fifth seminar focuses on the impact of COVID disruption on GCSE, A Level and HE Learners, and the implications for future policy and provision. This includes an examination of how independent study habits changed for GCSE and A Level learners, an assessment of how student transitions were affected and an evaluation of the nature of online provision in Initial Teacher Education courses.

  6 Dec 2023

  Activity: Types of Public engagement and outreach - Public lecture/debate/seminar (Speaker)

• Let’s talk about evidence in education: Using and developing collaborative evidence-based practice with schools

  The Collaborative Institute for Educational Research and Evidence and Impact (CIEREI) is a partnership between ¶º±ÆÖ±²¥ and GwE, the regional improvement agency for North Wales. Our vision is to support and expand the use of a wide spectrum of evidence-based practice (EBP) in schools (Tyler, et al, 2019). However, our recent research indicates adoption of evidence-based approaches is generally not widespread in schools (Pegram et al., 2022). The talks in this symposium represent a diversity of approaches to supporting use of EBP, including working with teachers to co-construct a contextually relevant Social Emotional Learning curriculum, investigating student’s use of independent learning strategies through robust survey methods, the innovative use of education economics to help school leaders choose cost-effective interventions, and the use of systematic and robust methods to develop relevant evidence for SEN contexts. The talks in this symposium celebrate the strength of educational research in terms of its diversity in utilising different methodologies to answer diverse questions in the journey to EBP (Owen, Watkins & Hughes, 2022).

  12 Sep 2023 – 14 Sep 2023

  Activity: Participation in Academic conference (Speaker)

• 01/11/2021 – 01/08/2022 (Finished)

Investigating the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on the independent study habits of GCSE and A-Level students across Wales. Welsh Government. Principal Investigator, 2021-2022.

An evaluation of the roles and responsibilities of executive headteachers in Wales. National Academy for Education Leadership. Principal Investigator, 2022-2023.

Education/academic qualifications

PhD, ¶º±ÆÖ±²¥, 2023

MSc Clinical and Health Psychology, ¶º±ÆÖ±²¥, 2017

BSc Psychology, ¶º±ÆÖ±²¥, 2016