Doctor Cara Doxey EdD BEd AFHEA
Senior Lecturer in Primary Education
Summary
My main duties are teaching on the undergraduate and postgraduate English modules on the primary and early years teacher training routes. I am currently Year 3 Leader for the BA Primary Education (5-11) with QTS and BA Early Years and Primary Education (3-7) with QTS courses. I am also an academic tutor on the undergraduate courses and a Lead Mentor.
About
After graduating from Derby University with a BEd specialising in English and Music, I taught in primary schools for 17 years. My enthusiasm for English and reading led me to co-author three children's books, delivering author workshops in schools throughout the East Midlands. As part of this role me and my co-author were appointed as Patrons of Reading at schools in Sheffield and Nottingham, inspiring children to read and write for pleasure. I am co-founder of the Reading Allowed project. This approach uses the enthusiasm generated by reading aloud to children to promote reading for pleasure in primary schools. The success of the project led me to enrol on the EdD (Doctorate in Education) course at SHU and I completed my doctorate in 2024. This study explored how children are positioned as readers, the influences on their reading identity and how we can ensure all children have the opportunity to develop a love of literature.
Teaching
English
Primary Education (5-11) with Qualified Teacher Status
Developing a Specialism
Educational Enquiry
Adaptive Teaching
An Introduction to Teaching and Learning
Debates in Education
Designing Learning Sequences
Inclusive Environments for Behaviour and Learning
Introduction to Curriculum and Pedagogy
Reflecting on Professional Practice and Development
Subject Focus Early Reading and Early Maths
The Teaching Learning and Assessment Cycle
Research
Demissie, F., & Doxey, C. (2020). Trainee teachers’ experiences of using picture books with the Philosophy for Children (P4C) pedagogy.
Doxey, C. (2024). What is Reading? Children's perspectives on reading in a primary school.
Doxey, C., & Doxey, G. (2025). Reading Aloud. In Daniels, K., & Helks, M. (Eds.), An Introduction to Diverse Literacies in Primary Classrooms: Perspectives on Pedagogy and Practice. Routledge.
Publications
Journal articles
Demissie, F., & Doxey, C. (2020). Trainee teachers' experiences of using picture books with the Philosophy for Children (P4C) pedagogy. English, four to eleven.
Theses / Dissertations
Doxey, C. (2024). What is Reading? Children's Perspectives on Reading in a Primary School. (Doctoral thesis). Supervised by Burnett, C., & Taylor, R. http://doi.org/10.7190/shu-thesis-00588
Other activities
Consultancy : Working with schools to develop reading for pleasure as part of the Reading Allowed project
I am a member of the United Kingdom Literacy Association