Becky Francis

Rebecca Jane Francis, CBE, FAcSS, FBA (born 7 November 1969) is a British educationalist and academic, who specialises in educational inequalities. Since January 2020, she has been Chief Executive of the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF).

Becky Francis CBE FAcSS FBA
Born	(1969-11-07) 7 November 1969 (age 55) Keynsham, Somerset, England
Academic background
Alma mater	University of Wales, Swansea University of North London
Academic work
Discipline	Educationalist
Sub-discipline	Educational inequality sex differences in education primary education educational attainment
Institutions	University of Greenwich London Metropolitan University Roehampton University King's College London Institute of Education, University College London Education Endowment Foundation

Early life and education

Francis was born on 7 November 1969 in Keynsham, Somerset, England. She was educated at the Ralph Allen School, a comprehensive school outside of Bath, Somerset. She studied English at the University of Wales, Swansea, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in 1992. She then undertook a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree in women's studies and education at the University of North London.^[1]

Career

She taught and researched at the University of Greenwich, London Metropolitan University, and Roehampton University. From 2012 to 2016, she was Professor of Education and Social Justice at King's College London.^[2] She was then director of the UCL Institute of Education at University College London.^[3][4][5][6] Since January 2020, she has been Chief Executive of the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF).^[7]

She has also been Director of Education at the Royal Society of Arts (2010–12) and an advisor to the Education Select Committee of the House of Commons since 2015.^[3]

In July 2024, it was announced that she would be chairing a Curriculum and Assessment Review for the English Department for Education.^[8]

Honours

In 2021, Francis was elected a Fellow of the British Academy (FBA).^[9] She is also an elected Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences (FAcSS).^[10][1]

Francis was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2023 New Year Honours for services to education.^[11]

Selected works

• Francis, Becky (1998). Power plays: primary school children's constructions of gender, power, and adult work. Staffordshire: Trentham Books. ISBN 978-1858560977.
• Francis, Becky (2000). Boys, girls and achievement: addressing the classroom issues. London: Routledge Falmer. ISBN 978-0415231626.
• Francis, Becky; Skelton, Christine, eds. (2001). Investigating gender: contemporary perspectives in education. Buckingham: Open University Press. ISBN 978-0335207886.
• Francis, Becky; Skelton, Christine, eds. (2003). Boys and girls in the primary classroom. Maidenhead: Open University Press. ISBN 978-0335211555.
• Francis, Becky; Skelton, Christine (2005). Reassessing gender and achievement: questioning contemporary key debates. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-0415333245.
• Skelton, Christine; Francis, Becky, eds. (2005). A feminist critique of education: fifteen years of gender education. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-0415363914.
• Leathwood, Carole; Francis, Becky, eds. (2006). Gender and lifelong learning: critical feminist engagements. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-0415374842.
• Skelton, Christine; Francis, Becky; Smulyan, Lisa, eds. (2006). The Sage Handbook of gender and education. London: SAGE. ISBN 978-1412907927.
• Archer, Louise; Francis, Becky (2006). Understanding minority ethnic achievement: race, gender, class and 'success'. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-0415372817.
• Skelton, Christine; Francis, Becky (2009). Feminism and 'the schooling scandal'. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-0415455091.
• Francis, Becky; Skelton, Christine; Read, Barbara (2012). The identities and practices of high-achieving pupils: negotiating achievement and peer cultures. London: Continuum. ISBN 978-1441157195.
• Francis, Becky; Taylor, Becky; Tereshchenko, Antonina (2020). Reassessing 'ability' grouping: improving practice for equity and attainment. Abingdon, Oxon; New York, NY: Routledge. ISBN 978-1138348837.