Dr Elizabeth FitzGerald BSc (hons), PGCE, PhD, SFHEA

Senior Lecturer

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Biography

Dr Liz FitzGerald is a Senior Lecturer in the Institute for Educational Technology at the Open University and a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. She is module chair for 'HZVM883 Teacher development: embedding mental health in the curriculum'. She provides expertise in distance learning and teaching, and previously taught on the Masters (MA) in Online and Distance Education. She is also the EDIA (Equality, Diversity, Inclusion and Accessibility) champion for IET and a Mental Health First Aider, providing initial support and guidance to staff experiencing mental health challenges.

She was the lead designer and chair for the OU's Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice (PGCAP) and the founding Director of the LTI Scholarship Centre (LATIS) from 2018-2020.

Her research passions are equality, diversity, inclusion and accessibility, specifically the personalisation of technology-enhanced learning and the impact it can have on different kinds of learners. She is a specialist in learner-centred education: the design, evaluation and improvement of learning experiences built around the real needs, identities and circumstances of individual or group learners. She also has a strong interest in mental health and is the founding lead of the OU's Mental Health Network.

She is currently researching several external projects:

Researcher Capability Hub (CoI, 2025-2030, ESRC)
DIGcapabilities: Fostering Digital Capabilities among youth (PI, 2024-2027, NORCE)
SMART: Supporting Mental health And Resource Tailoring (PI, 2025-2026, SEDA).

She has a number of PhD and EdD students, and is an external examiner for both EdD and PhD.

She is open to invitations to deliver keynote addresses and consultancy roles.

Publications

2025

Bailey, Sara; Netto, Gina; Islam, Farjana; Kukulska-Hulme, Agnes and FitzGerald, Elizabeth. (2025). ‘Digital Caregiving’ in the Era of Digitalised Public Services: A New Form of Gendered Domestic Labour?. In: 10th International Community, Work & Family Conference 2025, 25-28 Mar 2025, Bielefeld, Germany.

2024

Kukulska-Hulme, Agnes; Friend Wise, Alyssa; Coughlan, Tim; Biswas, Gautam; Bossu, Carina; Burriss, Sarah K.; Charitonos, Koula; Crossley, Scott A.; Enyedy, Noel; Ferguson, Rebecca; FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Gaved, Mark; Herodotou, Christothea; Hundley, Melanie; McTamaney, Catherine; Molvig, Ole; Pendergrass, Emily; Ramey, Lynn; Sargent, Julia; Scanlon, Eileen; Smith, Blaine E. and Whitelock, Denise (2024). Innovating Pedagogy 2024. The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK.

Bailey, Sara; FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Kukulska-Hulme, Agnes and Rets, Irina. (2024). Digital Exclusion or Digital Rejection? Exploring the Rejection of Digitalised Social Rights by Racialised Individuals with Migration Backgrounds in the UK. In: British Sociological Association Annual Conference 2024, 3-5 Apr 2024, Online.

FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Bailey, Sara and Kukulska-Hulme, Agnes. (2024). Minoritised populations' informal learning behaviours in response to the challenges of accessing online services. In: 47th Computers and Learning Research Group Annual Conference (CALRG), 3-5 Jul 2024, The Open University, Milton Keynes [online].

Bailey, Sara; Kukulska-Hulme, Agnes and FitzGerald, Elizabeth. (2024). Digital Caregiving among Migrant Families in the UK: Unmasking the Hidden Social Consequences of the Digitalisation of Essential Services. In: Work and Family Researchers Network Conference (WFRN), 19-22 Jun 2024, Concordia University, Montreal, Canada.

FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Kukulska-Hulme, Agnes and Bailey, Sara. (2024). Minoritised populations' challenges and informal learning behaviours in response to the digitalisation of online services. In: ICERI2024 Proceedings, 9695-9701.

2023

Bailey, Sara; FitzGerald, Elizabeth and Kukulska-Hulme, Agnes. (2023). Digital Exclusion and Essential Services: The Experiences of Older Adults Who Identify as Asian or Asian-British. In: DIPRC 2023: Digital Inclusion Policy and Research Conference 2023, 20-21 Sep 2023, The University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK.

Rienties, Bart; Calò, Francesca; Corcoran, Suz; Chandler, Kathy; FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Haslam, Daniel; Harris, Claire A.; Perryman, Leigh-Anne; Sargent, Julia; Suttle, Martin and Wahga, Aqueel. (2023). How and with whom do educators learn in an online professional development microcredential. Social Sciences and Humanities Open.

FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Sargent, Julia; Perryman, Leigh-Anne and Rossade, Klaus-Dieter (2023). A microcredentials-based Postgraduate Certificate of Academic Practice (PGCAP). EADTU.

Rets, Irina; Kukulska-Hulme, Agnes; Bailey, Sara and FitzGerald, Elizabeth. (2023). On the journey to impact: developing an impact strategy plan for the PRIME project. In: Social Sciences Impact Conference 2023, 20-21 Mar 2023, University of Oxford.

FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Sargent, Julia; Elkins, Caroline; Wilson, Jane and Bossu, Carina. (2023). Evidencing the impact of institutional scholarship: a tried and tested approach. Transformative Dialogues: Teaching and Learning Journal, 15 (3) pp. 151-170.

Sargent, Julia; Rienties, Bart; Perryman, Leigh-Anne and FitzGerald, Elizabeth. (2023). Investigating the Views and Use of Stackable Microcredentials within a Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice. Journal of Interactive Media in Education, 2023 (1) pp. 1-12.

Bailey, Sara; FitzGerald, Elizabeth and Kukulska-Hulme, Agnes. (2023). The Digitalisation of Essential Services and Migrant Communities in the UK: The Critical Role of Non-Governmental Organisations in Providing Information and Facilitating Learning. In: 2nd Organizing Migration and Integration in Contemporary Societies Conference (OMICS), 22-24 Nov 2023, Gothenburg, Sweden.

2022

Kukulska-Hulme, Agnes; Bossu, Carina; Charitonos, Koula; Coughlan, Tim; Ferguson, Rebecca; FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Gaved, Mark; Guitert, Montse; Herodotou, Christothea; Maina, Marcelo; Prieto-Blázquez, Josep; Rienties, Bart; Sangrà, Albert; Sargent, Julia; Scanlon, Eileen and Whitelock, Denise (2022). Innovating Pedagogy 2022: Open University Innovation Report 10. The Open University, Milton Keynes.

2021

Mcfaul, Hugh and FitzGerald, Elizabeth. (2021). Supporting access to justice through volunteer training: An evaluation of an Open Educational Resource. Journal of Interactive Media in Education, 1 (5) pp. 1-14.

Kukulska-Hulme, Agnes; Bossu, Carina; Coughlan, Tim; Ferguson, Rebecca; FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Gaved, Mark; Herodotou, Christothea; Rienties, Bart; Sargent, Julia; Scanlon, Eileen; Tang, Jinlan; Wang, Qi; Whitelock, Denise and Zhang, Shuai (2021). Innovating Pedagogy 2021: Open University Innovation Report 9. The Open University, Milton Keynes.

Adams, Anne; FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Sargent, Julia; Bektik, Duygu; Ismail, Nashwa; Bossu, Carina and Clough, Gill. (2021). The CPD2 Change Cycle: Enabling development for Online Higher Education. In: CALRG 2021 Online Conference, 15-16 Jun 2021, Online.

2020

Mcfaul, Hugh and FitzGerald, Elizabeth. (2020). A realist evaluation of student use of a virtual reality smartphone application in undergraduate legal education. British Journal of Educational Technology, 51 (2) pp. 572-589.

Kukulska-Hulme, Agnes; Beirne, Elaine; Conole, Gráinne; Costello, Eamon; Coughlan, Tim; Ferguson, Rebecca; FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Gaved, Mark; Herodotou, Christothea; Holmes, Wayne; Mac Lochlainn, Conchur; Nic Giolla Mhichíl, Mairéad; Rienties, Bart; Sargent, Julia; Scanlon, Eileen; Sharples, Mike and Whitelock, Denise (2020). Innovating Pedagogy 2020: Open University Innovation Report 8. The Open University, Milton Keynes.

McFaul, Hugh; FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Ryan, Francine and Byrne, David. (2020). A mobile app for public legal education: a case study of co-designing with students. Research in Learning Technology.

FitzGerald, Elizabeth. (2020). The promises and pitfalls of personalised eLearning. In: Proceedings of The 11th International Conference on eLearning (eLearning-2020), 24-25 Sep 2020, Belgrade, Serbia.

2019

FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Adams, Anne; Bektik, Duygu; Bossu, Carina; Clough, Gill; Ismail, Nashwa and Sargent, Julia. (2019). Tools and Technologies for Advancing Professional Development. In: CALRG Annual Conference 2019, 17-18 Jun 2019, The Open University, Milton Keynes.

Priestnall, Gary; FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Meek, Sam; Sharples, Mike and Polmear, Gemma. (2019). Augmenting the landscape scene: students as participatory evaluators of mobile geospatial technologies. Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 43 (2) pp. 131-154.

2018

FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Kucirkova, Natalia; Jones, Ann; Cross, Simon; Ferguson, Rebecca; Herodotou, Christothea; Hillaire, Garron and Scanlon, Eileen. (2018). Dimensions of personalisation in technology-enhanced learning: a framework and implications for design. British Journal of Educational Technology, 49 (1) pp. 165-181.

Adams, Anne; Clough, Gill and FitzGerald, Elizabeth (2018). Police Knowledge Exchange: Summary Report. The Open University, UK.

Adams, Anne; Clough, Gill and FitzGerald, Elizabeth (2018). Police Knowledge Exchange: Full Report 2018. The Open University, UK.

FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Jones, Ann; Kucirkova, Natalia and Scanlon, Eileen. (2018). A literature synthesis of personalised technology-enhanced learning: what works and why. Research in Learning Technology.

2016

Beavers, Sian and FitzGerald, Elizabeth. (2016). Perceptions, Perspectives and Practices: A Study of the Players of Historical Games.. In: DiGRA/FDG '16, 1-6 Aug 2016, Dundee.

Sharples, M.; Adams, A.; Alozie, N.; Ferguson, R.; FitzGerald, E.; Gaved, M.; McAndrew, P.; Means, B.; Remold, J.; Rienties, B.; Roschelle, J.; Vogt, K.; Whitelock, D. and Yarnall, L.. (2016). 创新教学报告2015 —探索教学、学习与评价的新形式 [Innovating Pedagogy 2015]. 开放学习研究 [Open Learning] pp. 1-18.

Shishah, Wesam and FitzGerald, Elizabeth. (2016). Incorporating Cultural Factors into the Design of Technology to Support Teamwork in Higher Education. In: Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Computer Supported Education, Rome, 55-66.

2015

Sharples, Mike; Adams, Anne; Alozie, N; Ferguson, Rebecca; FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Gaved, Mark; McAndrew, Patrick; Means, B; Remold, J; Rienties, Bart; Roschelle, J; Vogt, K; Whitelock, Denise and Yarnall, L (2015). Innovating Pedagogy 2015: Open University Innovation Report 4. The Open University.

FitzGerald, Elizabeth and Adams, Anne. (2015). Revolutionary and evolutionary technology design processes in location-based interactions. International Journal of Mobile Human Computer Interaction, 7 (1) pp. 59-78.

2014

FitzGerald, Elizabeth and Jones, Ann. (2014). Guest editorial preface: special issue on mobile learning and educational mobile HCI. International Journal of Mobile Human Computer Interaction, 6 (3) pp. iv-v.

AlSugair, Balsam; Hopkins, Gail; FitzGerald, Elizabeth and Brailsford, Tim. (2014). AnswerPro: Designing to Motivate Interaction. International Journal of Mobile and Blended Learning, 6 (4) pp. 22-38.

2013

FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Ferguson, Rebecca; Adams, Anne; Gaved, Mark; Mor, Yishay and Thomas, Rhodri. (2013). Augmented reality and mobile learning: the state of the art. International Journal of Mobile and Blended Learning, 5 (4) pp. 43-58.

AlSugair, Balsam; Hopkins, Gail; FitzGerald, Elizabeth and Brailsford, Tim. (2013). AnswerPro: Designing to Motivate Interaction. In: Proceedings of the 12th World Conference on Mobile and Contextual Learning (mLearn2013), 21-24 Oct 2013, Doha, Qatar.

FitzGerald, Elizabeth. (2013). Situ8: browsing and capturing geolocated user-created content. In: Proceedings of the CALRG Annual Conference 2013, 11-12 Jun 2013, The Open University,Milton Keynes.

Sharples, Mike; FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Mulholland, Paul and Jones, Robert (2013). Weaving location and narrative for mobile guides. In: Schrøder, Kim and Drotner, Kirsten eds. Museum Communication and Social Media: The Connected Museum New York: Routledge.

Meek, Sam; Fitzgerald, Elizabeth; Sharples, Mike and Priestnall, Gary (2013). Learning on field trips with mobile technology. In: Kinuthia, Wanjira and Marshall, Stewart eds. On the Move: Mobile Learning for Development Charlotte, NC.: Information Age Publishing Inc..

FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Taylor, Claire and Craven, Michael. (2013). To the Castle! A comparison of two audio guides to enable public discovery of historical events. Personal and Ubiquitous Computing, 17 (4) pp. 749-760.

FitzGerald, Elizabeth and Adams, Anne. (2013). GeoHCI for learning in the wild. In: GeoHCI Workshop at CHI 2013, 27-28 Apr 2013, Paris, France.

Adams, Anne; FitzGerald, Elizabeth and Priestnall, Gary. (2013). Of catwalk technologies and boundary creatures. ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction (TOCHI).

Shishah, Wesam; Hopkins, Gail; FitzGerald, Elizabeth and Higgins, Colin. (2013). Supporting interaction in learning activities using mobile devices in higher education. In: 12th World Conference on Mobile and Contextual Learning (mLearn 2013), 22-24 Oct 2013, Doha, Qatar.

Sharples, Mike; McAndrew, Patrick; Weller, Martin; Ferguson, Rebecca; FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Hirst, Tony and Gaved, Mark (2013). Innovating Pedagogy 2013: Open University Innovation Report 2. The Open University, Milton Keynes.

2012

FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Adams, Anne; Ferguson, Rebecca; Gaved, Mark; Mor, Yishay and Thomas, Rhodri. (2012). Augmented reality and mobile learning: the state of the art. In: 11th World Conference on Mobile and Contextual Learning (mLearn 2012), 16-18 Oct 2012, Helsinki, Finland.

FitzGerald, Elizabeth. (2012). Towards a theory of augmented place. Bulletin of the Technical Committee on Learning Technology, 14 (4) pp. 43-45.

AlSugair, Balsam; Hopkins, Gail; FitzGerald, Elizabeth and Brailsford, Tim. (2012). Designing a mobile academic peer support system. In: HCI 2012 - People and Computers XXVI, 12-14 Sep 2012, Birmingham, UK.

FitzGerald, E.. (2012). Creating user-generated content for location-based learning: an authoring framework. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 28 (3) pp. 195-207.

FitzGerald, Elizabeth. (2012). Assessing informal learning: a case study using historical audio guides. In: CALRG Annual Conference 2012, 19-20 Jun 2012, Milton Keynes, UK.

Elliston, Brian and FitzGerald, Elizabeth. (2012). Encouraging museum visitor engagement using spontaneous talk-in-interaction audio guides. In: 4th International Conference on Computer Supported Education (CSEDU 2012), 16-18 Apr 2012, Porto, Portugal.

FitzGerald, Elizabeth. (2012). Analysing video and audio data: existing approaches and new innovations. In: Surface Learning Workshop 2012, 18-20 Mar 2012, Bristol, UK.

Sharples, Mike; Ainsworth, Shaaron; Beale, Russell; FitzGerald, Elizabeth and Vavoula, Giasemi (2012). 1. Connect - Exploit the power of personal devices to enhance learning. In: Northen, Stephanie eds. System Upgrade – Realising the Vision for UK education Technology Enhanced Learning Research Programme/London Knowledge Lab, pp. 8-11.

2011

FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Sharples, Mike; Jones, Robert and Priestnall, Gary. (2011). Guidelines for the design of location-based audio for mobile learning. International Journal of Mobile and Blended Learning, 3 (4) pp. 70-85.

Alsugair, Balsam; Hopkins, Gail; Brailsford, Tim and FitzGerald, Elizabeth. (2011). Does mobile technology support peer learning for Key Stage 3 children?. In: 7th International Conference on Intelligent Environments (IE'11) Doctoral Consortium, 25-28 Jul 2011, Nottingham, UK.

2010

Brown, Elizabeth (2010). Education in the Wild: Contextual and Location-Based Mobile Learning in Action. A Report from the STELLAR Alpine Rendez-Vous Workshop Series. Nottingham, UK: Learning Sciences Research Institute, University of Nottingham.

FitzGerald, Elizabeth; Sharples, Mike; Jones, Robert and Priestnall, Gary. (2010). Guidelines for the design of location-based audio for mobile learning. In: Proceedings of the mLearn 2010 Conference, 19-22 Oct 2010, Valetta, Malta.

Brown, Elizabeth (2010). Introduction to location-based mobile learning. In: Brown, E. eds. Education in the wild: contextual and location-based mobile learning in action. A report from the STELLAR Alpine Rendez-Vous workshop series. Nottingham, UK: Learning Sciences Research Institute, University of Nottingham, pp. 7-9.

Priestnall, Gary; Brown, Elizabeth; Sharples, Mike and Polmear, Gemma (2010). Augmenting the field experience: a student-led comparison of techniques and technologies. In: Brown, Elizabeth eds. Education in the wild: contextual and location-based mobile learning in action. A report from the STELLAR Alpine Rendez-Vous workshop series. Nottingham, UK: Learning Sciences Research Institute, University of Nottingham, pp. 43-46.

Brown, Elizabeth; Börner, Dirk; Sharples, Mike; Glahn, Christian; de Jong, Tim and Specht, Marcus (2010). Location-based and contextual mobile learning. A STELLAR Small-Scale Study. STELLAR European Network of Excellence in TEL (EU).

Brown, Elizabeth; Sharples, Mike; Wishart, Jocelyn; Tangney, Brendan; Taylor, Jacqui; Beddall-Hill, Nicola L.; Glahn, Christian; Börner, Dirk; Clough, Gill; Wijers, Monica; Jonker, Vincent; Cook, John and Lyons, Leilah (2010). Reflecting back, looking forward: the challenges for location-based learning. In: Brown, Elizabeth eds. Education in the Wild: Contextual and Location-Based Mobile Learning in Action. A Report from the STELLAR Alpine Rendez-Vous Workshop Series Nottingham, UK: Learning Sciences Research Institute, University of Nottingham, pp. 52-53.

2009

Pearshouse, Ian; Bligh, Brett; Brown, Elizabeth; Lewthwaite, Sarah; Graber, Rebecca; Hartnell-Young, Elizabeth and Sharples, Mike (2009). A study of effective evaluation models and practices for technology supported physical learning spaces (JELS). JISC.

Priestnall, Gary; Brown, Elizabeth; Sharples, Mike and Polmear, Gemma. (2009). A student-led comparison of techniques for augmenting the field experience. In: mLearn 2009 Conference, 26-30 Oct 2009, Orlando, Florida, USA.

Moore, Adam; Goulding, James; Brown, Elizabeth and Swan, Jerry. (2009). AnswerTree – a hyperplace-based game for collaborative mobile learning. In: Proceedings of the mLearn 2009 Conference, 26-30 Oct 2009, Orlando, Florida, USA.

Brown, E. J.; Brailsford, T. J.; Fisher, T. and Moore, A.. (2009). Evaluating learning style personalization in adaptive systems: quantitative methods and approaches. IEEE Transactions on Learning Technologies, 2 (1) pp. 10-22.

2007

Brown, Elizabeth; Fisher, Tony and Brailsford, Tim. (2007). Real users, real results: examining the limitations of learning styles within AEH. In: Eighteenth Conference on Hypertext and Hypermedia [HT '07], 10-12 Sep 2007, Manchester, UK.

Brown, Elizabeth; Brailsford, Tim; Fisher, Tony and van der Eijk, Cees. (2007). Revealing the hidden rationality of user browsing behaviour. In: Proceedings of the 18th conference on Hypertext and hypermedia - HT '07, 85.

2006

Brown, Elizabeth; Stewart, Craig and Brailsford, Tim. (2006). Adapting for visual and verbal learning styles in AEH. In: Sixth IEEE International Conference on Advanced Learning Technologies (ICALT '06), 5-7 Jul 2006, Kerkrade, The Netherlands.

Brown, Elizabeth; Brailsford, Tim; Fisher, Tony; Moore, Adam and Ashman, Helen. (2006). Reappraising cognitive styles in adaptive web applications. In: Proceedings of the 15th international conference on World Wide Web - WWW '06, 327.

2005

Brown, Elizabeth; Cristea, Alexandra; Stewart, Craig and Brailsford, Tim. (2005). Patterns in authoring of adaptive educational hypermedia: a taxonomy of learning styles. Educational Technology & Society, 8 (3) pp. 77-90.

2004

Brown, Elizabeth and Brailsford, Tim. (2004). Integration of learning style theory in an adaptive educational hypermedia (AEH) system. In: ALT-C 2004, 14-16 Sep 2004, Exeter, UK.

Thomson, Pat and Brown, Elizabeth. (2004). The role of pupils in constructing networked learning communities. In: European Conference on Educational Research (ECER2004), 22-25 Sep 2004, Rethymnon, Crete.

Media appearances

Podcast: Misconceptions about learning

Is intelligence fixed and predetermined by genes? Is fun a distraction that should just be used as a reward after learning? Learning styles aren’t really as effective as they appear to be and misconceptions are more difficult to overcome than you might think. In this podcast episode, PhD student Katherine Langford discusses four misconceptions about learning with interviews from Emily Dowdeswell from the RUMPUS research group and Dr Liz FitzGerald.

Research @ Graduate School, on Soundcloud | 23rd September 2021

Zuckerberg is ploughing billions into ‘personalised learning’ – why?

The Conversation | 9th December 2015

Awards

Best Paper Award (2006)

Best Paper Award at ICALT 2006 conference

Lord Dearing Award for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (2009)

Co-recipient, as part of the Graduate School Research Training Team, University of Nottingham. Awarded in 2009.

Theodore Holm Nelson Prize (2007)

Best paper award + $1000 prize money for Best Newcomer Paper at Hypertext 2007 Conference.

WISE Tech Innovation Award (2017)

Co-recipient as part of an all-female team, this award recognises outstanding contributions to gender balance in science, technology and engineering.