prof. dr. H.J.M. (Marleen H.J.M.) Janssen

Short biography:

After my graduation as Master in Special Education, cognitive and developmental disorders, from the Utrecht University I started a PhD- study on social interaction with deafblind children in combination with my job as GZ-Psychologist at the school for deafblind children at Royal Dutch Kentalis. I finished my PhD thesis entitled Fostering harmonious interactions between deafblind children and their educators in 2003 at the Radboud University in Nijmegen. And one year later I started as Assistant Professor at the Department of Special Needs Education and Youth Care at the Faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences in Groningen.

Since 2008 I am Professor at the University of Groningen. My domain is Congenital and Acquired Deafblindness. Five PhD students have graduated under my supervision, two will graduate soon and two have just started. One of my first PhD students Saskia Damen is appointed as Assistant Professor at this university.

Since 2006 I am Chair of the international master track Pedagogical Sciences Communication and Deafblindness, with over 80 graduated masters spread over the world. www.rug.nl/masters/communication-and-deafblindness/?lang=en

I am Editor in Chief of the Journal Deafblind Studies on Communication, an Open Acces Journal published by the University of Groningen Press. www.jdbsc.rug.nl

My area deafblindness is closely related to educational practice and I am collaborating with many institutions national and international, and have a main structural collaboration with Royal Dutch Kentalis. www.kentalis.nl

Furthermore I am collaborating with DB-Connect, a national network in which main institutions on sensory disabilities are connected such as Bartiméus, Royal Dutch Kentalis, Royal Dutch Visio and Kalorama and GGMD. www.dbconnect.info; and other organisations.

I am a board member of the worldwide organization Deafblind International and chair of the DbI Communication Network. www.deafblindinternational.org

My teaching areas in regular bachelor courses and master courses in Pedagogical Sciences are: sensory disabilities, intellectual and physical disabilities, ethical issues in education. In the international master track: Introduction to Communication and Deafblindness, Thesis writing, and Theories and Models.