Professor Hugh Davis BSc MSc PhD MBCS CITP FHEA

The Short Version

Previously Hugh was Professor of Computer Science and Learning Technologies in Electronics and Computer Science (ECS) at University of Southampton UK, where he worked from 1987, retiring in November 2021.

Hugh has a long history of research in Hypertext and in Learning Technologies, with over 250 publications in these areas (h=43, i10 = 141) and more than 35 grants. He also has significant experience as an educational change-agent in HE at both a local and national level, and, until stepping down in 2016, was Director of the Institute of Learning Innovation and Development (ILIaD) at the University of Southampton. A focus of Hugh's research has been how technology changes Higher Education, He has given a number of keynote talks about on-line learning and MOOCs, and the so-called 'disruptions' they cause.

In his retirement Hugh hopes to spend increasing time touring the world by bike and by campervan with his wife and partner, Dr Su White.

Hugh is no longer accepting new PhD students and has retired from most other other extrernal academic activities including conference commitees and editorial teams.  However, he occasionally accepts suitably renumerated consultancy and examining tasks.

(CC: Please feel free to publish the above, or appropriate parts, as a Bio where needed)

Other Links

• Keynotes and Conference Responsibilities
• Grants
• Hugh on Google Scholar
• Hugh on Twitter
• Hugh on Facebook
• University Wine Club
• ECS
• University of Southampton Malaysia

The Longer Version

I joined Electronics and Computer Science (ECS) at the University of Southampton in 1987 following four years of social work, a year of running a sailing school, a Bachelors in Ship Science (Southampton) and seven years of school teaching (including a part-time teaching qualification and a Masters in CS (City University)). Early work with (now Dame Professor) Wendy Hall in the area of video disc for educational purposes and archives led to ideas about Hypertext, and the early versions of the Microcosm open hypermedia system in 1989. I was a founder member of the Multimedia Research Group (MMRG) which became the Intelligence, Agents, Multimedia Group (IAM).

For a period of 10 years or so I worked at the leading edge of Hypertext research, with interests in both open system architectures and also the educational applications of hypertext. I was one of the inventors and patent holders of the Microcosm open hypermedia system and a founding director of Multicosm Ltd in 1994 - which later became Active Navigation Ltd.

In 1999, following a period of secondment to Multicosm working much of the time in the USA, I returned to the University and to my first research area of learning technologies. I was interested in the ways in which technology can improve the learning experience, particularly in a research-led learning and teaching environment. My research focus was on personal learning environments, learning analytics, web and grid service architectures for distributed eLearning, informal learning, assessment and social applications in e-learning.

In 2003, ECS created the Learning Societies Lab (LSL), with me as group leader. This group consisted of around 50 academic staff, research assistants and PhD students, and was successful in attracting significant grant funding.  I have supervised 18 students to completion of their PhD�s and in addition have examined 18 external and international PhDs. In 2011 LSL was merged to create the Web and Internet Science group (WAIS).

Web Science looks at the technical, social, legal, economic, medical, scientific and educational changes caused by the disruption of the web and internet. Research in technology enhanced learning is a central part of web science, looking at changes in how students learn, and what they learn.

I have taught on many courses, particularly Programming Principles, Multimedia Systems, Advanced Hypertext and Web Technologies, eLearning and Learning Technologies, Personal and Professional Development, and Computational Thinking (for the Web Science MSc).  I have always believed innovation in teaching to be one of the most important features of a research-led University, and have had many responsibilities in this area. I was one of the University Directors of Education and I chaired the University's Technology Enhanced Learning and Living Board (TELL).  Between 1999 and 2003 I was Director of Learning and Teaching for the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science. I had the unique honour of having been promoted to professorial level twice, once for my contributions to education, and later gaining a personal chair for research.

In 2011, following a sabbatical in LIRMM in the wonderful city of Montpellier, I returned to take responsibility for creating the Centre for Innovation in Technologies in Education (CITE), a cross university collaboration to assist the University in improving its on-line and blended learning and to generally facilitate the digital literacy agenda.  Two of the major outputs from CITE were the Southampton MOOCs that were delivered via FutureLearn, and the Digital Champions programme which used students as partners in a bottom up effort to improve digital literacy of staff and students.

In 2012 I was also asked to also take responsibility for the Professional Development Unit, which was responsible for staff development and academic practice.

In 2014 the University created The Institute for Learning Innovation and Development with the responsibility to lead on transforming education under my direction. This Institute subsumed CITE and the PDU but also has a research and strategy leadership remit, under my Directorship.  From this date I became personally less involved in Reseach due to my significant administrative responsibilities. 

In Oct 2015 I was hit by a car while cycling and sustained injuries to my head and brain.  These injuries took longer to mend than I had hoped, so in April 2016 I stepped down as Director of ILIaD. and returned part-time to my Academic post in Web and Internet Science within ECS.

I normally live in Southampton with my partner and wife, Su White, and my other interests are camper-vanning, sailing, walking, cycle touring, wine tasting, and music festivals.  In 2012 we bicycled from Lands End to John O'Groats covering a total distance of 1013 miles in 17 days. (See incomplete LEJOG Gently Blog) and in 2015 we took our bikes to Spain and cycled back home through France to Caen (See Atlantic Coast Expedition Blog).  I believe passionately in the importance of cycling as the primary method of local transport, and the importance of making towns and cities into human scale areas owned by people, including children, rather than cars and HGVs.  I am a European.