Character and Enterprise
AARE Conference 2022 – Transforming the Future of Education: The Role of Research
The Barker Institute was represented at the Australian Association of Research in Education (AARE) Conference in Adelaide last week including a presentation on the first four years of the Barker Journey. I had the opportunity to attend sessions on all four days of the conference on topics related to our Research Agenda before our own presentation on the final day.
Learning from experts and making connections
Monday included sessions on the future of STEM education and a keynote from Professor George Siemens of The University of Adelaide exploring the changing landscape of schools and universities and balancing the abundance of data with complexity research approaches.
On Tuesday I joined a lunch with fellow school-based research leads who are part of the Research Invested Schools Network following a presentation on an ongoing research project mapping the growth of Research Invested Schools in Australia. That afternoon included a symposium to understand how to address a perceived teacher shortage Australia-wide.
Wednesday sessions included networking with academics working in consent education, indigenous education and refugee education. These are three areas directly related to the Barker Institute Research Agenda. More to come in this space!
Presenting four years of research
The highlight on Thursday was the chance to present our own research to the academic community. After four years of data collection and analysis we were ready to present on the Junior School Barker Journey, demonstrating how research can present the expectations and reality of educating Generation Alpha in the third decade of the 21st Century. The interactive session was well attended, and audience members asked to learn more about various aspects of the project. Many are considering implementing a similar project at their school and have asked to be included in correspondence regarding ongoing updates for the research. A similar presentation will be made to the Barker Community at a Barker Institute event in Term 2 2023, and the publication of this work is included in the 2022 Barker Institute Journal, Learning in Practice, now available at online.
The Barker Institute is grateful for the support of Barker College to attend the AARE National Conference. It was well worth the investment for the benefit of Barker and beyond.
Key links:
The Barker Junior School Journey: Report on Year 3-6 from 2019-2022
Dr Matthew Hill
Dr Matthew Hill is the Director of The Barker Institute with a focus on professional learning, research, and innovation in the school. He teaches Physics and the new Science Extension course at the School which introduces students to scientific academic research. Matthew's doctorate reflects his passion for science education focussing on Representational Fluency amongst physics students at school and university. He has published in leadership, education, and science journals and been involved in course development and teaching at The University of Sydney and The University of Western Sydney. He has also completed a Graduate Diploma in Divinity at Ridley College in Melbourne.
