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Professor Richard Holliman
Profile summary
- Central Academic Staff
- Professor of Engaged Research
- Faculty of Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics
- School of Environment, Earth & Ecosystem Sciences
- richard.holliman
Professional biography
I am Professor of Engaged Research at the Open University (OU). I am currently leading the OU's RCUK-funded School-University Partnership, 'Engaging opportunities', working with the Denbigh Teaching School Alliance in Milton Keynes.
I have studied and worked at the Open University since the mid-1990s. I completed my PhD in the Department of Sociology (with support from the Institute of Educational Technology), where I explored media representations of the sciences. I moved across the campus in 2000 to work in what was then the Faculty of Science.
Now based in the School of Environment, Earth and Ecosystem Sciences in the the Faculty of Science, Techonology, Engineering and Mathematics, I have contributed to a number of postgraduate and undergraduate teaching projects that explore aspects of the relationship between the sciences and publics. Most recently, I have worked on S350 Evaluating Contemporary Science.
Research interests
My research interests lie in exploring the ways that academic research is communicated via a range of media and genres, and how ideas about (upstream) public engagement with research may be shifting and extending social practices. Combining theory with practice through action research, I have explored:
- Developments with digital technologies and how they mediate interaction and online activity, influencing and extending opportunities for participation and collaboration;
- The evolving nature of media industries as they adapt to, and drive monetised innovation within an increasingly digital media ecosystem; and
- The ways in which i) digital technologies, ii) calls for increased engagement, and iii) the greater visibility and value afforded to contributions from stakeholders, user communities, members of the public and academics, are shifting and extending academic’s scholarly practices.
My research publications are hosted on Open Research Online.
Through my research work I have developed a strong reputation for engaging collaboratively in interdisciplinary teams. I retain strong links to Institute of Educational Technology through my research contributions to the Centre for Research in Education and Educational Technology, where I continue to co-supervise Jamie Dorey's and Clare Kemp's postgraduate research.
Teaching interests
I have helped to develop and deliver career and professional development resources that explore public engagement and social and ethical issues with: The Royal Society; Science and Technology Facilities Council; the National Co-ordinating Centre for Public Engagement; the Higher Education Academy; and as an advisor to an Australian Learning and Teaching Council-funded project.
Impact and engagement
RCUK-funded Public Engagement with Research Catalyst
An open research university
From August 2012 to March 2015 I was the Open University’s Champion for Public Engagement with Research. As such, I was the academic lead on the OU's RCUK-funded Public Engagement with Research (PER) Catalyst project. I had overall operational responsibility for co-ordinating and leading all aspects of this action research project, and helping to shape strategic objectives for OU public engagement with research.
As the university’s champion, I was based on secondment in the Research School. Alongside my role in co-ordinating and leading the research phases of the project, I was also responsible for connecting the work of the PER Catalyst with the university’s decision-making forums and senior managers, including the faculty deans and associate deans for research, and research centre directors.
As the academic lead, I also contributed to the wider RCUK-funded Catalyst programme. Coordinated by the National Co-ordinating Centre for Public Engagement, this programme involved eight universities across the UK.
To find out more about the work of the OU's Public Engagement with Research Catalyst, please watch the video below.
External collaborations
RCUK-funded School-University Partnership Initiative
Engaging Opportunities
I am the Principal Investigator on The Open University’s RCUK-funded Schools-university partnership project, ‘Engaging opportunities: connecting young people with contemporary research and researchers’. As such, I have strategic and operational responsibility for all aspects of the project.
Working in collaboration with the Denbigh Teaching School Alliance I oversee strategic planning and progress against the project objectives.
As the Principal Investigator, I also contribute to the wider RCUK-funded Schools-University Partnership Initiative. Coordinated by the National Co-ordinating Centre for Public Engagement, this programme involves 12 universities across the UK.
To find out more about the work of the OU's School-University Partnership, please watch the video below.
Research Activity
Research groups
| Name | Type | Parent Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Computers and Learning Research Group (CALRG) | Group | Institute of Educational Technology |
Externally funded projects
Engaging Opportunities (Extension)
| Role | Start date | End date | Funding source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lead | 01/Jan/2016 | 31/Dec/2016 | RCUK Research Councils UK |
In March 2015, RCUK extended the funding to projects participating in the School-University Partnerships Initiative by one year. The purpose of the 12-month extension (Jan-Dec 2016) is to enable our partnership with the Denbigh Teaching School Alliance to develop a particular emphasis on embedding and sustainability in the final phase of the Initiative. | |||
Communication and engagement training for postgraduate and early-career researchers working in environmental research
| Role | Start date | End date | Funding source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lead | 01/Jan/2015 | 31/Mar/2015 | NERC Natural Environment Research Council |
Working through the NERC-funded CENTA Doctoral Training Partnership this project is supporting postgraduate researchers, supervisors, and early-career researchers as they develop productive partnerships with the end-users of their environmental research, and to communicate the economic and social significance of their work. | |||
An open research university: How to embed public engagement within the culture of research (RS-11-005-TB)
| Role | Start date | End date | Funding source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Co-investigator | 01/Apr/2012 | 31/Mar/2015 | RCUK Research Councils UK |
The aim of this proposal is to embed public engagement with research within The Open University’s (OU) strategic planning for research and the operational practices of researchers at all levels; to become an open research university. | |||
Publications
Journal articles
Holliman, Richard
Journal of Science Communication, 16, Article C4(5) (pp. 1-10)
Supporting future scholars of engaged research (2017-01-30)
Holliman, Richard and Warren, Clare
Research for All, 1(1) (pp. 168-184)
"We muddle our way through": shared and distributed expertise in digital engagement with research (2016-06-09)
Grand, Ann; Holliman, Richard; Collins, Trevor and Adams, Anne
Journal of Science Communication, 15, Article A05(4) (pp. 1-23)
Norms and values in UK science engagement practice (2016-01-01)
Jensen, Eric and Holliman, Richard
International Journal of Science Education, Part B: Communication and Public Engagement, 6(1) (pp. 68-88)
Moving beyond the seductive siren of reach: planning for the social and economic impacts emerging from school-university engagement with research (2015-09-29)
Holliman, Richard and Davies, Gareth
Journal of Science Communication, 14, Article C06(3)
Mapping Public Engagement with Research in a UK University (2015-04-02)
Grand, Ann; Davies, Gareth; Holliman, Richard and Adams, Anne
PLoS ONE, 10(4) (pp. 1-19)
Telling science stories in an evolving digital media ecosystem: from communication to conversation and confrontation (2011-12)
Holliman, Richard
Journal of Science Communication, 10(4) (pp. 1-4)
Advocacy in the tail: Exploring the implications of ‘climategate’ for science journalism and public debate in the digital age (2011-10)
Holliman, Richard
Journalism: Theory, Practice and Criticism, 12(7) (pp. 832-846)
From analogue to digital scholarship: implications for science communication researchers (2010-09)
Holliman, Richard
Journal of Science Communication, 9(3) (C05)
Reporting environmental news: newspapers in the digital age (2007-06)
Holliman, Richard
Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 5(5) (pp. 277-278)
Editorial (2006-09)
Holliman, Richard and Thomas, Jeff
Curriculum Journal, 17(3) (pp. 193-196)
The emergence of the controversy around the theory of evolution and creationism in UK newspaper reports (2006-09)
Holliman, Richard and Allgaier, Joachim
Curriculum Journal, 17(3) (pp. 263-279)
Investigating co-operation and collaboration in near synchronous computer mediated conferences (2006)
Holliman, Richard and Scanlon, Eileen
Computers and Education, 46(3) (pp. 322-335)
Reception analyses of science news: evaluating focus groups as a method (2005)
Holliman, Richard
Sociologia e Ricerca Sociale, 26(76-77) (pp. 254-264)
Media coverage of cloning: A study of media content, production and reception (2004-04)
Holliman, Richard
Public Understanding of Science, 13(2) (pp. 107-130)
ENSCOT: The European Network of Science Communication Teachers (2003)
Holliman, Richard
Public understanding of science, 12(2) (pp. 167-181)
Book chapters
Holliman, Richard; Davies, Gareth; Pearson, Victoria; Collins, Trevor; Sheridan, Simon; Brown, Helen; Hallam, Jenny and Russell, Mark
In: Kucirkova, Natalia and Quinlan, Oliver eds. The Digitally Agile Researcher (pp. 88-106)
ISBN : 978-0-335-26152-9 | Publisher : Open University Press | Published : London
Online citizen science: participation, motivation, and opportunities for informal learning (2017)
Curtis, Vickie; Holliman, Richard; Jones, Ann and Scanlon, Eileen
In: Herodotou, Christothea; Sharples, Mike and Scanlon, Eileen eds. Citizen Inquiry: Synthesising Science and Inquiry Learning (pp. 7-24)
ISBN : 1138208698 | Publisher : Routledge | Published : Abingdon
Online media (2015)
Holliman, Richard and Curtis, Vickie
In: Gunstone, Richard ed. Encyclopedia of Science Education
ISBN : 978-94-007-2149-4 | Publisher : Springer Netherlands
The Struggle for Scientific Consensus: Communicating Climate Science around COP-15 (2012)
Holliman, Rick
In: Wagoner, Brady; Jensen, Eric and Oldmeadow, Julian A. eds. Culture and Social change: Transforming Society Through the Power of Ideas. Advances in Cultural Psychology: Constructing Human Development (pp. 185-207)
ISBN : 978-1-61735-758-9 | Publisher : Information Age Publishing | Published : Charlotte, N.C., USA
Media convergence (2010-09)
Holliman, Richard
In: Priest, Susanna ed. Encyclopaedia of Science and Technology Communication
ISBN : 9781412959209 | Publisher : Sage | Published : Newbury Park, CA, USA
Online media and the sciences (2010-09)
Holliman, Richard
In: Priest, Susanna ed. Encyclopaedia of Science and Technology Communication
ISBN : 9781412959209 | Publisher : Sage | Published : Newbury Park, CA, USA
(In)authentic science and (im)partial publics: (re)constructing the science outreach and public engagement agenda (2009-09-25)
Holliman, Richard and Jensen, Eric
In: Holliman, Richard; Whitelegg, Elizabeth; Scanlon, Eileen; Smidt, Sam and Thomas, Jeff eds. Investigating Science Communication in the Information Age: Implications for public engagement and popular media (pp. 35-52)
ISBN : 978-0-19-955266-5 | Publisher : Oxford University Press | Published : Oxford, UK
Interpreting contested science: media influence and scientific citizenship (2009-09-25)
Holliman, Richard and Scanlon, Eileen
In: Holliman, Richard; Whitelegg, Elizabeth; Scanlon, Eileen; Smidt, Sam and Thomas, Jeff eds. Investigating Science Communication in the Information Age: Implications for public engagement and popular media (pp. 254-273)
ISBN : 978-0-19-955266-5 | Publisher : Oxford University Press | Published : Oxford, UK
Investigating science communication to inform science outreach and public engagement (2009-09-25)
Jensen, Eric and Holliman, Richard
In: Holliman, Richard; Whitelegg, Elizabeth; Scanlon, Eileen; Smidt, Sam and Thomas, Jeff eds. Investigating Science Communication in the Information Age: Implications for public engagement and popular media (pp. 55-71)
ISBN : 978-0-19-955266-5 | Publisher : Oxford University Press | Published : Oxford, UK
Investigating gendered representations of scientists, technologists, engineers and mathematicians on UK children’s television (2009)
Carr, Jennifer; Whitelegg, Liz; Holliman, Richard; Scanlon, Eileen and Hodgson, Barbara
In: Holliman, Richard; Whitelegg, Liz; Scanlon, Eileen; Smidt, Sam and Thomas, Jeff eds. Investigating science communication in the information age: Implications for public engagement and popular media (pp. 237-252)
ISBN : 978-0-19-955266-5 | Publisher : Oxford University Press | Published : Oxford, UK
Communicating science in the digital age - issues and prospects for public engagement (2008)
Holliman, Richard
In: MacLennan, Jennifer ed. Readings for Technical Communication (pp. 68-76)
ISBN : 978-0-19-542322-8 | Publisher : Oxford University Press Canada | Published : Canada
Representing science through multiple-channel digital television: opportunities for dialogue, engagement and deliberation? (2007)
Holliman, Richard
In: Claessens, M. ed. Communicating European Research 2005 (pp. 159-164)
ISBN : 1 402053 57 6 | Publisher : Springer | Published : Dordrecht
Edited book
Holliman, Richard; Adams, Anne; Blackman, Tim; Collins, Trevor; Davies, Gareth; Dibb, Sally; Grand, Ann; Holti, Richard; Mckerlie, Fiona; Mahony, Nick and Wissenburg, Astrid
Holliman, Richard; Adams, Anne; Blackman, Tim; Collins, Trevor; Davies, Gareth; Dibb, Sally; Grand, Ann; Holti, Richard; McKerlie, Fiona; Mahony, Nick and Wissenburg, Astrid eds.
ISBN : 9781473004030 | Publisher : The Open University | Published : Milton Keynes
Investigating science communication in the information age: Implications for public engagement and popular media (2009)
Holliman, Richard; Whitelegg, Liz; Scanlon, Eileen; Smidt, Sam and Thomas, Jeff eds.
ISBN : 978-0-19-955266-5 | Publisher : Oxford University Press | Published : Oxford, UK
Practising science communication in the information age: Theorising professional practices (2009)
Holliman, Richard; Thomas, Jeff; Smidt, Sam; Scanlon, Eileen and Whitelegg, Liz eds.
ISBN : 978-0-19-955267-2 | Publisher : Oxford University Press | Published : Oxford, UK
Mediating science learning through information and communications technology (2004)
Holliman, Richard and Scanlon, Eileen eds.
ISBN : 0 415328 3 22 | Publisher : RoutledgeFalmer | Published : London
Conference items
Whitelegg, L.; Carr, J.; Holliman, R.; Hodgson, B. and Scanlon, E.
In : European Science Education Research Association (ESERA) (31 Aug - 4 Sep 2009, Istanbul)
Investigating mobile science learning in workplace settings (2007)
Marshall, Christine; Issroff, Kim; Scanlon, Eileen; Blake, Canan; Holliman, Richard; Smidt, Samantha; Clough, Gill; Banks, Frank; Jones, Ann; Roche, Nel and Waycott, Jenny
In : CAL07: Development, Disruption and Debate - D3 (26-28 Mar 2007, Dublin, Ireland)
Invisible witnesses? How scientists, technologists, engineers and mathematicians are represented on UK television (2007)
Whitelegg, Liz; Holliman, Richard; Allgaier, Joachim; Hodgson, Barbara and Scanlon, Eileen
In : Paper presented at the British Educational Research Association (BERA) Conference (6-9 Sep, University of Warwick, UK)
PDAS as workplace tools for science teachers (2007)
Scanlon, Eileen; Banks, Frank; Blake, Canan; Clough, Gill; Jones, Ann; Holliman, Richard; Issroff, Kim; Marshall, Christine; Roche, Nel; Smidt, Samantha and Waycott, Jenny
In : IADIS International Conference - Mobile Learning 2007 (5-7 Jul, Lisbon, Portugal)
Thesis
Holliman, Richard
PhD thesis The Open University
Other
Holliman, Richard; Davies, Gareth; Ford, Diane; Russell, Mark; Steed, Anthony; Brown, Helen; Pearson, Victoria; Collins, Trevor; Stutchbury, Kris; Squires, Andrew; Scanlon, Eileen; Whitelegg, Liz; Ansine, Janice; Braithwaite, N St.J; Swithenby, Stephen; Dommett, Ellie; Sumner, Janet; Lee, Clare; Kendall, Joe; Green, Penny; Sharp, Damien; Bullivant, Mike; Devine, Peter and Hawthorne, Val
The Open University and the Denbigh Teaching School Alliance, Milton Keynes.
Pathways to Excellence in Public Engagement (2018)
Holliman, Richard; Hollingworth, Neville; McCombie, June; Leach, Katherine; Townsley, Ruth; Fuller, Ian and Gillespie, Derek
Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), Swindon.
Public Engagement: Attitudes, Culture and Ethos (2016)
Duncan, Sophie; Grand, Ann; Hope-Stone, Hugh; Holliman, Richard; Hollingworth, Neville; Chambers, Jennie; Norton, Andrew; McDonald, Averil; Kukula, Marek and Gillespie, Derek
Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), Swindon.
ISOTOPE: Informing Science Outreach and Public Engagement. Final Report of the NESTA-funded ISOTOPE Project (2009-12)
Holliman, Richard; Collins, Trevor; Jensen, Eric and Taylor, Peter
The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK.
(In)visible Witnesses: Drawing on young people’s media literacy skills to explore gendered representations of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (2009)
Carr, Jennifer; Whitelegg, Elizabeth; Holliman, Richard; Scanlon, Eileen and Hodgson, Barbara
UKRC, Bradford, UK.
(In)visible Witnesses: Investigating gendered representations of scientists, technologists, engineers and mathematicians on UK children's television (2008-03)
Whitelegg, Elizabeth; Holliman, Richard; Carr, Jennifer; Scanlon, Eileen and Hodgson, Barbara
UK Resource Centre for Women in Science, Engineering and Technology, Bradford, UK.
(In)visible Witnesses: Young people's views of images of scientists, technologists, engineers and mathematicians on UK children's television from a gender perspective (Research Briefing) (2008-03)
Whitelegg, Elizabeth; Holliman, Richard; Carr, Jennifer; Scanlon, Eileen and Hodgson, Barbara
UK Resource Centre of Women in Science, Engineering and Technology, Bradford, UK.
Dataset for paper "Mapping public engagement with research in a UK university" ()
Grand, Ann; Davies, Gareth; Holliman, Richard and Adams, Anne
© 9999.