معرفی
Kristina Konstantoni is a Senior Lecturer in Childhood Studies at the Moray House School of Education and Sport, University of Edinburgh. She serves as Hub Co-Lead of the Children & Young People Thematic Hub (2024-) and sits on the Board of Trustees for the Work + Play Hub Charity. Her academic work bridges research, policy, and community engagement in childhood studies with a strong focus on social justice and children's rights.
Education:
- PhD in Education (University of Edinburgh)
- Froebel and Childhood Practice (University of Edinburgh)
- MSc in Childhood Studies (University of Edinburgh)
- BA (Hons) in Sociology (University of Crete, Greece)
Dr. Konstantoni's research centers on children's rights and intersectional inequalities, with particular emphasis on play-based, creative and participatory approaches to early childhood education. Her work critically examines public play spaces like community and business play-cafés as potential sites for advancing children's human rights in informal learning environments. She employs methodologies that center children's voices in research, policy and practice while addressing ethical considerations in research with young children.
Awards:
- College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences Recognition Award 2016 for 'Excellence in External Engagement'
Dr. Konstantoni currently supervises nine PhD students working on diverse global topics in early childhood education, from Malaysia to Chile to China. Her substantial grant portfolio includes 'The Play Cafe Project' (£43,306.32) funded by The Froebel Trust, 'Froebel Trust Hub and Spoke' (£450,000), and the UKRI-GCRF funded 'Safe, Inclusive Participative Pedagogy' project (£1.8 million) spanning multiple countries. She has led numerous knowledge exchange initiatives connecting academic research with community practice.
She is actively involved with the Childhood and Youth Studies Research Group, the Early Years Research, Policy and Practice Group, and co-founded the Anti-racist Early Years Collective (AREYC). Her work with the Play Cafe Project has established pop-up play-cafés as radical public spaces for community engagement, and she is curating permanent family and play rooms at the University of Edinburgh's Moray House School.
