Department of Arts, Maths, P.E. and Early Childhood Education

Mira Dobutowitsch

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Lecturer in Education

Marino Institute of Education,

Griffith Avenue,Dublin 9,

D09 R232

T: +353 1 805 7755

Mira Dobutowitsch has a background in psychology and education. She completed her PhD in 2019. This Irish Research Council funded project was a mixed-methods investigation of associations between children’s screen time use and wellbeing, and parents’ strategies for navigating their children’s engagement with digital devices. Mira has worked as an independent researcher, consultant, and data analyst on a number of projects.

Research outputs

Colbert, D., Dobutowitsch, M., Roche, B., & Brophy, C. (2017). The proxy-measurement of intelligence quotients using a relational skills abilities index. Learning and Individual Differences, 57, 114-122. doi:10.1016/j.lindif.2017.03.010

Dobutowitsch, M. (2017). Determinants of children's socio-emotional wellbeing. Resilience and Social Support Children's Research Digest, 4(1), 81-83.

Other research outputs

Dobutowitsch, M. (2021). Reflections on… Outdoor Activities and Activation Energy. Museum of Childhood Ireland Education Blog. https://museumofchildhood.ie/reflections-on-outdoor-activities-and-activation-energy/

O’Toole, C. & Dobutowitsch, M. (2020). Committed, Caring and Compassionate: Co. Kildare Workforce, Wellbeing, Attitudes towards Trauma-informed Care, COVID concerns and Ongoing Training Needs. Project Report. Kildare CYPSC. http://mural.maynoothuniversity.ie/13911/

Dobutowitsch, M. (2018). Parents’ attitudes and decision-making around screen time. Barnardos ChildLinks – Children in the Digital World, 3, 31-35.

Research

I am interested in studying children’s experiences of childhood, including play, engagement with digital devices, wellbeing, self-concept, and behaviour, and alternative pedagogies.

Professional

Psychological Society Ireland

Education Studies Association of Ireland

Children’s Research Network

Museum of Childhood Ireland, Education Team

Teaching

Curriculum and Pedagogical Perspectives: Dispositions and Play

Curriculum and Pedagogical Perspectives: Interactions and Relationships

Introduction to Educational Psychology

Language Study and EAL

Learning Through Play 2

Psychology and Early Childhood Education

Understanding Childhood in Context

Supervision of PME and ECE students

Breed Murphy

Assistant Lecturer in Mathematics Education

Tel: +353 1 805 7719
Email: [email protected]
Location: St Mary's, Room 234

Breed Murphy is an assistant lecturer in mathematics education, working in the Department of Arts, Maths, P.E. and Early Childhood Education. She teaches mathematics and mathematics methods on the B.Ed, B.Oid and PME programmes. Breed is undertaking her doctoral research in the STEM Education Department in Mary Immaculate College Limerick under the supervision of Dr. Aisling Leavy and Dr. Amy Erbe-Healy. Her doctoral research examines factors which influence the mathematics outcomes of children in multigrade classes in primary schools in Ireland. Breed also completed her masters and undergraduate studies in Mary Immaculate College.

Research

Book Chapter

Leavy, A. and Murphy, B. (2021) ‘Children’s mathematical lives and the influence of gender: The importance of cultivating positive attitudes towards mathematics’ in Leavy, A. and Nohilly, M., eds., Perspectives on Childhood, Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 298-326.

Paper in Peer Reviewed Journal

Leavy, A., Hourigan, M., Murphy, B. and Yilmaz, N. (2019) ‘Malleable or fixed: Exploring pre-service primary teachers’ attitudes towards statistics’. Statistics Education Research Journal, 52(3), 427-451, available https://doi.org/10.1080/0020739X.2019.1688405

International Conference Paper

Murphy, B. and Leavy, A. (2019) ‘The influence of home factors on mathematics outcomes in multigrade classes’ in Harbison, L. and Twohill, L., eds., Proceedings of the Seventh Conference on Research in Mathematics Education (MEI 7), Dublin, Ireland, 11-12 Oct, 187-194, available http://dx.doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3474137

Other research outputs

Webinars

Breed has designed and presented a number of webinars with her colleagues Sinéad McCauley Lambe, Sorcha Browne Byrne and Ciara Reilly for teachers as part of a collaboration with a network of education centres. The webinars have focused on a variety of topics including promoting positive attitudes to mathematics, promoting growth mindsets when teaching mathematics, embedding digital technologies in primary mathematics education and using puppets and story to explore early mathematical concepts.

Breed is a contributor to the Numeracy in the Now project, a series of videos created to support parents. The Numeracy in the Now project was instigated by Trinity College Dublin. Breed’s video highlights the possibilities for developing mathematical concepts and skills using LEGO.

Resource Development

Breed is a contributor to the Mol Mata project, a collaborative initiative between the Council for Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA) in Northern Ireland and An Chomhairle um Oideachas Gaeltachta agus Gaelscolaíochta (COGG) tasked with the creation of multimedia resources to support the teaching of mathematics in primary schools through the medium of the Irish language.

Research

Research interests, projects and grants.

Breed’s research are situated mainly in the area of mathematics education. While her doctoral research focuses on mathematics outcomes in multigrade classes, she is also interested in dispositions and achievement among young learners and relationships between student attainment patterns in mathematics in primary and post primary schools. Most of Breed’s research involves secondary analysis of longitudinal datasets.

In conjunction with colleagues from the Department of Arts, Maths, P.E. and Early Childhood Education, Breed works on the ‘Children, Shapes and Spaces’ project which was awarded a bursary by the four Dublin Local Authorities as part of the ‘Exploring and Thinking’ initiative. The project develops learning experiences relating to shape and space for young children.

Professional

Breed is a member of the Teaching Council and the Educational Studies Association of Ireland (ESAI).

Breed was awarded a bursary by the Teaching Council as part of the John Coolahan Research Support Framework for her doctoral research.

Teaching

Breed teaches Mathematics to B.Ed students, Mathematics Methods/Subject Matter Knowledge for Primary Mathematics to PME students, and Múineadh na Matamaitice 1, 2 & 3 to B.Oid students. She also acts as a tutor for school placement and supervises research undertaken by PME students.