Contrary to popular myth, teachers do not simply deliver a ready-made curriculum. Rather, they interpret and make meaning of the curriculum. The introduction of a capabilities dimension in the formal curriculum in Australia invites a case study of curriculum innovation in action. Drawing on Clandinin and Connelly's narrative inquiry approach,…

With global trends focussed on standardisation of curriculum and increased teacher accountability, it has become commonplace for curriculum to be viewed simplistically as a product. While all teachers engage in forms of classroom curriculum-making, questions remain as to what this looks like within an educational landscape that continues to…

Academics are constantly undergoing identity shifts in response to globalisation, marketisation and the impact of technology on academic work. This study investigates the impact of a Graduate Certificate of Higher Education (GCHE) on academic identity development in an Australian University. GCHE graduates and their educators were interviewed to…

The transnational movement of teachers has affected the education environment worldwide. Using a qualitative approach and conceptualising immigrant adaptation based on the differential adaptation theory, we examine the adaptation experiences of immigrant teachers in Australia. Our findings revealed that immigrant teachers' professional identity,…

Given the importance of local scholars' understanding of research in their integration into global academia, this study explored the way scholars conceptualised and perceived the meaning of research and their identities as researchers. This article reports data from a qualitative case study using semi-structured interviews to explore the…

Workforce shortages in the education sector have reached crisis levels, particularly in regional, rural and remote (RRR) communities. While teacher attrition is the subject of much critical research and public debate, understanding the reasons teachers remain in these communities is less frequently explored. Our phenomenological study, based on…

The last decade has witnessed increasing interest in the potential place of contemplative practices (such as mindfulness, meditation and yoga) in education. Regarding the lives and work of teachers, research in this area has focused almost exclusively on mindfulness-based interventions and related outcomes of stress, burnout and wellbeing,…

This article examines the marginalisation of academic cultures and knowledge of international (im)migrant students and teachers in Australian higher education, challenging dominant cultural assumptions in the sector. With over 20 years of lived experience as an English language teacher and more than a decade in tertiary education, I present a…

The global mobility and migration of teachers has affected the education environment worldwide. This study examines the professional transition of immigrant teachers and finds that teacher professional identity is a critical element in a complex process of professional transition. Using a qualitative inductive approach, this study reports on the…

Postgraduate Taught study (PGT) students are often assumed to be confident and independent learners, and many possess a strong sense of professional identity and thus are perceived as not requiring support. This paper aims to address these perceptions. This paper presents a qualitative study of the experiences of PGT students at an Australian…

Background: After decades of planning, nurses played a pivotal role in achieving the closure of large residential institutions for people with intellectual disability by 2018. This paper describes the experiences of nurses facilitating the closure of these institutions in New South Wales and Victoria, Australia. Method: An interview-based,…

Pre-service teachers are required to become reflective practitioners who can adapt their skills to a range of contexts and the diverse needs of learners. Many consider the practicum experience as critical to forming values and dispositions that are essential to a professional teacher identity. This article focuses on the experiences of five White…

The notion of "professional" is built on a concept of traditionally male professions and patriarchal social orders. ECEC (early childhood education and care), however, is a female-dominated field characterised by its unique caring practice. This study investigated how a group of Australian early childhood preservice teachers presented…

Similar to many other OECD countries, contemporary policy approaches to teacher professional learning in Australia are tied to the standardisation of the profession and characterised by compliance and performativity regimes of teacher participation in prescribed modes, types and quanta of professional learning. In this paper, we argue that such…

Dominant policy discourses in Australia define teacher professionalism as a technical accomplishment. Within this technical framing, teacher learning is largely understood as the acquisition of skills, with teacher practice helping students meet pre-determined outcomes. Despite the dominance of such discourses, teacher professionalism and learning…