[1] The public impact of his research work has been reported over the last 35 years in national and international newspapers[2][3][4] and on radio,[5] television [6] and in news media online.

[7] He is a professor of educational and social research at the University of Dundee, and an author of 26 books and over 400 academic peer reviewed journal papers, distance learning resources and other publications.

[10] His main research interests are language and literacy, peer tutoring and other forms of peer learning, parents as educators, problematic behavior and social competence, computer assisted learning and assessment, and inclusion.

[1][8] He developed a suite of literacy interventions: Paired Reading, Cued Spelling, and Paired Writing, which are disseminated by the English government as part of its evidence-based Wave 3 literacy intervention initiative.

[14] A distance learning resource on tutoring created for UNESCO has been translated into Mandarin, Spanish and Catalan and distributed to Education Ministers in 190  countries, 5,000 copies by the University of Illinois to academic staff in 17 US universities, and 10,000 by Cabrini to voluntary organizations in the Chicago area[15] A large scale (125 schools) randomised controlled trial has been undertaken, funded by ESRC in collaboration with Fife Council and the University of Durham[16] He was cited as an "outstanding researcher" by President Bill Clinton during his time in office for his input to the "America Reads" initiative, which was later replicated under his supervision in Scotland.