About Us

Welcome to the Durham Centre for Classics Education Research and EngagementS (CERES).

CERES is an interdisciplinary centre which fosters research on the learning and teaching of classical languages and ancient civilisations in primary, secondary, further, higher and adult/community education. Its founding director is Professor Arlene Holmes-Henderson and its deputy director is Professor Edith Hall.

Our primary purpose is to promote conversation between specialists working in areas currently relevant to ‘Classics Education’, including classroom-based practitioner researchers, policymakers, data scientists, teacher trainers, sociologists of education, archaeologists and classicists. By identifying and sharing best practice in pedagogy, policy and Classics Education research, this centre provides a forum for the consideration of the (many) strategic challenges facing the future of the discipline in schools, communities and universities, e.g. provision for teacher training in classical subjects, geographical and socio-economic disparities in access to Classics, and how to facilitate better communication between examination boards, school leaders, museum professionals, and university classicists about what is studied, by whom, when, and why.

The first Centre of its kind in the UK, CERES is the contact point for policymakers and learned societies which seek expert input on matters relating to Classics Education and Pedagogy (e.g. the £4m Latin Excellence Programme launched by England's Department of Education (DfE) in September 2022, the National Co-ordinating Centre for Languages Education launched by the DfE in June 2023). It welcomes students who wish to pursue Masters and/or Doctoral research in Classics Education, and engagement-related fields.

Contact us here if you are looking for specialist advice, or if you would like to collaborate.