Jess Green is a doctoral researcher at Loughborough University. Jess’s primary interest is in supporting the teaching of mathematics within early years settings and using her experience as an early year’s educator to support her research. Edited by Beth Woollacott.

In this blogpost, Jess explores her journey from early years educator to doctoral researcher, highlighting how the Characteristics of Effective Learning—central to the Early Years Foundation Stage—continue to inform her practice as an adult learner in higher education. Jess reflects on how principles such as curiosity, persistence, and critical thinking have supported her transition into research, and how they remain essential in navigating her PhD in mathematics education. Through this lens, Jess considers how early learning frameworks can have enduring relevance across all stages of lifelong learning.

The journey so far…

I first started volunteering at a nursery while studying for my degree in social psychology at Loughborough University. Initially, I volunteered to switch off completely from academic work and to do something that required me to be fully present in the moment; I particularly enjoyed the outdoor games and joining the imaginary worlds created by the children.

However, my time at the nursery became less of an academic switch-off as I started to learn about theories of child development in my psychology course. I was fascinated by how these theories developed and seeing them play-out in action.

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“I was fascinated by how these theories developed and seeing them play-out in action”

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As I became an early year’s practitioner, I was aware of how the other educators were planning their teaching and learning and using child development theories to encourage children’s learning. I attended several professional development days with my colleagues and found myself inspired by the current research being shared, eager to put it into practice and see its impact.

I challenged myself to take this further by enrolling in an Early Years Teacher Training PGCE after completing my undergraduate degree. During this training, I spent more time working with other age groups, took deep dives into child development theories, shadowed other educators, attended online conferences and most importantly for my current journey, conducted my own research projects and led professional development sessions.

I began to recognise the importance and potential impact of research-informed practice, again recognising the critical role of professional development opportunities in supporting this.

Following my PGCE, I then took on the role as a room leader in a preschool room; alongside teaching children, I was now responsible for the day to day running of the room, leading other practitioners, and maintaining a stimulating, high-quality environment. Being a pre-school room leader was a challenging job, but some of the things I loved about the role were: being able to have a wider perspective of the teaching and learning that was taking place, organising training opportunities for my team of educators, and ensuring that the learning environment was expanding children’s learning as well as meeting their needs.

I was able to spend time reflecting on the strengths of my team and where we were having to work harder. One of these areas, for me, was supporting children’s early mathematics. At school, mathematics had never been my favourite subject, and I realised the extent to which my own mathematics experiences were shaping my teaching. I noticed I was not alone in this whilst observing other practitioners’ teaching and the lack of enthusiasm that our mathematics PGCE lectures were met with compared to our typical lectures!

This led me to think about the impact of mathematics experiences for educators and what could be done to change this for future generations, starting with the children in our nurseries.

So, I took a leap of faith and applied for a PhD. After a couple of attempts, and plenty of refining my research focus, I was awarded a place on the master’s and PhD programme in the Department of Mathematics Education at Loughborough University, funded by the Centre for Early Mathematics Learning (CEML). And just like that, I went from being a teacher… to becoming a student again.

From educator to educatee: utilizing the characteristics of effective learning as an adult learner

During my first master’s lecture, I quickly sensed how different it felt to shift from an educator to becoming a full-time learner again — moving from the early years sector into the world of higher education. As everything around me changed, I knew I needed to hold onto something familiar.

Within the early years curriculum there is a two-pronged approach to teaching and learning, these are based on what children learn and how children learn. What children learn is determined by 7 key areas of learning including things such as physical development, communication, and language and maths. How children learn is determined by the characteristics of effective learning. Specifically focussing on these characteristics is designed to encourage a love of learning and greater academic success.

Early on in my master’s, I realised that these characteristics of learning did not only apply to learning done by children within early years education, but are just as relevant to me as a learner within higher education. The early years curriculum highlights three overarching themes of effective learning: Playing and Exploring, Active Learning, and Creating and Thinking Critically, and these continue to guide my approach to learning and research.

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“Early on in my master’s, I realised that these characteristics […] are just as relevant to me as a learner within higher education.”

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Playing and exploring

As a researcher, curiosity is a key skill, I can “play” with ideas and explore where they take me — often in unexpected directions. This process of playing and exploring has shaped the direction of my research.

I initially began by investigating the rates of mathematics anxiety among educators; but, as I explored the topic further and kept asking questions, my focus evolved. I began to investigate how professional development can have an impact on teaching and learning within the early years.

Active Learning

Research requires a lot of self-motivation and persistence: with no set curriculum to follow, I’m free to venture down unfamiliar paths, enjoying the learning and discoveries along the way.

Active learning, for me, means not just “keeping on trying,” but also staying immersed in current research debates, reading widely, and maintaining an internal drive to grow.

That intrinsic motivation — so often nurtured in early years settings — is something I now consciously apply to my own development as a researcher.

Creating and Thinking Critically

As an early year’s educator one of the most rewarding parts of my job was supporting children’s creative and critical thinking – seeing them link ideas and create new ideas was always a joy.

Now, as a researcher, I am linking my thoughts, creating new ideas and both curiously and critically engaging with the world around me.

Some Final Thoughts

My research journey continues and though my environment has changed, the foundations of how I learn haven’t.

The Characteristics of Effective Learning continue to guide me, helping me stay curious, motivated, and thoughtful in my approach. From educator to educatee, the learning never stops — it simply evolves.

Funding

Jess Green’s PhD studentship is funded by the UKRI Economic and Social Research Council [grant number ES/W002914/1] through the Centre for Early Mathematics Learning.