Before coming to Oxford, Jo-Anne held academic posts at the Institute of Education, University of London and the University of Bristol.

Jo-Anne previously held the position of Head of Research at the Assessment and Qualifications Alliance, where she managed the research programme and was responsible for the standard-setting systems for public examinations. Her first degree and doctorate were in psychology and she has an MBA. Her current research projects include Setting and Maintaining Standards in national examinations, Examination reform: the impact of modular and linear examinations at GCSE, Assessment for Learning in Africa (AFLA), intelligent accountability and the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study England national centre.

Her research interests are in educational assessment, including system-wide structures and processes, examination standards, marking and assessment design. Jo-Anne conducts a lot of work with government and industry partners, including acting as the Standing Adviser to the House of Commons Education Select Committee, a member of Ofqual’s Standing Advisory Group and membership of the Welsh Government’s Curriculum and Assessment Group. She is a member of the Editorial Board of the Oxford Review of Education journal and the International Advisory Board of Assessment in Education: principles, policy & practice. She has been a Visiting Professor at the universities of Bergen, Queen’s (Belfast) and Umea. From 2013 to 2015 she was President of the Association for Educational Assessment – Europe.