Dr. Christina O’Keeffe is an Assistant Professor in Inclusive and Special Education at the Institute of Education, DCU. She contributes to a number of programmes within the School of Inclusive and Special Education, focusing primarily on supporting postgraduate teachers working with autistic learners and learners with complex access needs.

In 2019, Christina was awarded a scholarship from DCU Educational Trust to undertake her PhD in the area of play for the inclusion of autistic learners within early childhood education. Her research aimed to address a significant gap surrounding children’s understanding of play and contribute innovative methodologies for consulting with neurotypical and neurodivergent learners, as part of a children’s rights-based approach to research. Christina has published this work in high-impact journals in education and psychology such as Autism, Child Indicators Research and the Review Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

Currently, Christina holds a Dean’s Research Fellow at the DCU Anti-Bullying Centre. In this role, she is developing evidence-informed anti-bullying curricular resources for students with additional needs, building on the existing FUSE programme. This participant-led research builds on Christina’s expertise in innovative participatory methods through the process of co-design with children and core stakeholders.