Innovating education & future-proofing Australia’s workforce – research outlines

Choose a research outline for your application

Actual & perceived challenges of women in STEM (RFO-25001)

This PhD project investigates the persistent underrepresentation of women in STEM professions, despite significant policy efforts and investment aimed at improving gender equity. Using role theory as the guiding framework, the study will explore both perceived and actual challenges faced by women in STEM industries, including cultural, organisational, and structural barriers to entry, retention, and advancement.

The research team has expertise in gender studies, organisational behaviour, and workforce diversity. We are seeking a PhD applicant with a strong interest in gender equity and STEM, and a background in social sciences, HRM, or education. Experience in qualitative or mixed methods research is desirable.

Supervisors: Dr Dharshani Thennakoon, Dr Thu-Huong Nguyen
Institute: Institute for Sustainable Industries & Liveable Cities
Course Code: UPAF
Field of Research (FoR) Code: 3507 Strategy, management and organisational behaviour

To indicate your interest and discuss your suitability, please contact: Dr Dharshani Thennakoo: [email protected]   

Beyond the frame: Governing smartglasses in education through anticipatory policy & leadership (RFO-25002)

This project critically examines how educational institutions can anticipate and govern the integration of smartglasses technologies before widespread adoption occurs. 

Using anticipatory governance frameworks, it explores how school leaders and policymakers can create proactive, ethical policies, proceedures and guidelines that manage both the risks and opportunities presented by smartglasses, including issues of privacy, equity, accessibility, and student and staff agency. 

Case studies of early adopter institutions and policy simulation scenarios would inform best practice guidelines for future use.

Supervisors: Dr Janine Arantes, Mr Andrew Welsman
Institute: Institute for Sustainable Industries & Liveable Cities    
Course Code: UPAF
Field of Research (FoR) Code: 3903 Education systems

To indicate your interest and discuss your suitability, please contact: Dr Janine Arantes,  [email protected]  

Building the best ECE workforce (RFO-25003)

Early Childhood Education at VU is currently undertaking a pilot study on the practices of expert teachers in Victorian early learning contexts. 

A larger project will emerge from this to examine what the necessary skills and attributes of graduate-ready ECTs are, how skills and professional identity are built over time. Understanding the ways in which expert teachers impact the lives of children and families, as well as policy and curriculum, will influence the design and delivery of early childhood courses in Victoria.

Supervisors: Professor Mary-Rose McLaren, Dr Siobhan Hannan, Mrs Nathalie Nehma, Dr Masud Ahmmed
Institute: Institute for Sustainable Industries & Liveable Cities
Course Code: UPAF
Field of Research (FoR) Code: 3903 Education systems

To indicate your interest and discuss your suitability, please contact: Professor Mary-Rose McLaren,  [email protected]   

Climate change curriculum development: Identifying themes & key concepts constituting the non-scientific aspects of climate change & their application to the curriculum (RFO-25004)

The research is situated in the field of climate change (CC) education. It aims to support CC curriculum development. Over the past 20 years, much progress has been made in developing the scientific aspects of the CC curriculum. Key concepts such as the carbon cycle, climate modelling, and climate scenarios have been introduced into the curricula of many countries.

However, limited research has been undertaken to identify the human, non-scientific concepts of the CC phenomenon. In most curricula, the humanity aspects appear amorphously on the edges of the science theme, lacking concept specification and thematic narratives. However, it is aspects such as economy, governance, ethics, and the media that provide inroads to understanding CC in its full complexity.

The proposed research aims to close this gap through the development of structured thematic curricular organisation, key concepts, and conceptual development progression points.

Supervisors: Associate Professor Efrat Eilam, Mr Andrew Welsman
Institute: Institute for Sustainable Industries & Liveable Cities 
Course Code: UPAF
Field of Research (FoR) Code: 3901 Curriculum and pedagogy

To indicate your interest and discuss your suitability, please contact: Associate Professor Efrat Eilam,  [email protected]  

Developing capacity to deliver LGBTQI+ inclusive education in an era of governmentality (RFO-25005)

This project explores the capabilities of in-service and pre-service teachers to provide LGBTQI+ inclusive education amidst rising governmental oversight and societal intolerance. In an era marked by a resurgence of conservative policies and an increasingly polarised social climate, educators face significant challenges in fostering inclusive environments for all students. 

The study aims to assess the preparedness, resources, and support available to teachers to implement LGBTQ+ inclusive curricula and practices effectively. Through 100 national surveys, 20 interviews with preservice teachers, and 10 classroom observations with in service teachers, the research will identify the barriers educators encounter, including legislative restrictions, lack of training, and community resistance. It will also highlight innovative strategies and best practices developed by teachers to navigate these challenges. 

Supervisors: Associate Professor Mark Vicars, Dr Janine Arantes
Institute: Institute for Sustainable Industries & Liveable Cities 
Course Code: UPAF
Field of Research (FoR) Code: 3904 Specialist studies in education

To indicate your interest and discuss your suitability, please contact: Associate Professor Mark Vicars,  [email protected]   

Developing literacy frameworks (RFO-25006)

The current educational landscape in Australia and globally is increasingly shaped by policies that entrench explicit instruction as the default approach to literacy teaching, reinforcing the belief that structured phonics-based methods are universally effective. 

This project examines how teacher education literacy programs can be modified to better realities of the complexities of contemporary classroom practice. The challenge of literacy research is to examine explicit instruction from a broader perspective, rather than framing it as an all-or-nothing approach. 

The project will identify gaps in current literacy pedagogies and explore the integrating of socio-cultural literacy learning alongside explicit instruction models.  

The research team is led by Associate Professor Mark Vicars and Dr Amanda Muscat. Potential applicants would possess a background working in primary literacy in complex classrooms.

Supervisors: Associate Professor Mark Vicars, Dr Amanda Muscat
Institute: Institute for Sustainable Industries & Liveable Cities 
Course Code: UPAF
Field of Research (FoR) Code: 3901 Curriculum and pedagogy

To indicate your interest and discuss your suitability, please contact: Associate Professor Mark Vicars,  [email protected]   

Early Childhood Education - risky play (RFO-25007)

Through VU Play (pop up play in public places), loose parts play, and post humanist understandings of place, VU is building strength in examining and understanding the role of risky play. Our research focuses on play, the ethics of play, and play in urban places. 

This project on risk and safety identifies and analyses how risk is perceived and understood in different contexts. It explores how these understandings of risk, hazard and safety in Early Childhood contexts shape the way we think about children and communities, and consequently influence policy. 

As a society, our ideas of risk are often uncritically accepted, yet influence the development of playgrounds and public spaces and children's and families' opportunities to access experiences. This project provides a close analysis of what shapes our views of risk, and a deep analysis of what risk is and how it impacts children's growth and wellbeing.

Supervisors: Professor Mary-Rose McLaren, Dr Siobhan Hannan
Institute: Institute for Sustainable Industries & Liveable Cities
Course Code: UPAF
Field of Research (FoR) Code: 3903 Education systems

To indicate your interest and discuss your suitability, please contact: Professor Mary-Rose McLaren,  [email protected]   

Factors determining student success (RFO-25008)

There are many factors that can be attributed to student success. These factors can include motivation, time management, growth mindsets, resilience, learning skills, academic ability, self-regulation, family and peer support, cultural and institutional capital, and goal setting.

A review of the literature finds that the list of factors is extensive. Many of these factors have been studied extensively, in isolation and collectively. A model for organising these factors, and their relationships with each other into 3 distinct keystone attributes has been proposed.

Supervisors: Associate Professor Thinh Nguyen, Dr Gabriele Sorrentino
Institute: Institute for Sustainable Industries & Liveable Cities 
Course Code: UPAF
Field of Research (FoR) Code: 3901 Curriculum and pedagogy

To indicate your interest and discuss your suitability, please contact: Associate Professor Thinh Nguyen,  [email protected]   

Governance at the edge: Preparing education for GenAI-powered smart glasses & wearable technologies (RFO-25009)

This project explores how GenAI-powered smart glasses and wearable technologies will reshape education, focusing on governance, policy, risk, and institutional readiness. Embedded within the Smart Glasses Lab, the research critically examines ethical, privacy, and equity challenges, supporting responsible technology integration aligned with evolving voluntary guardrails. The Lab brings together interdisciplinary expertise in education, policy, AI governance, and technology innovation, offering a collaborative, practice-led environment. We are seeking a motivated applicant with a background in education, policy, or digital technologies who is interested in critically shaping the future of emergent technologies in education. Strong analytical and communication skills, and an interest in responsible innovation and public engagement, are essential.

Supervisors: Dr Janine Arantes, Mr Andrew Welsman
Institute: Institute for Sustainable Industries & Liveable Cities
Course Code: UPAF
Field of Research (FoR) Code: 3903 Education systems

To indicate your interest and discuss your suitability, please contact: Dr Janine Arantes,  [email protected]   

Improving graduate capabilities & building health workforce through use of innovative educational models (RFO-25010)

Australia is facing a health workforce shortage due to the ever increasing demands for better health services across the population. Universities across Australia are faced with the challenge to train future workforce to combat this ongoing shortage. However, the capacity of programs to train sufficient graduates to meet this demand is often limited due to a lack of innovative training methods in current courses. Additionally, the need to provide essential work integrated learning experiences in all health courses further limits the sustainability of our work-integrated learning programs. 

This research aims to explore innovative educational interventions/models in bid to create a sustainable work-integrated learning model to future proof VU graduates for the workforce. The research team comprises of experts in the areas of work-integrated learning, higher education and implementation science. Potential applicant should have previous health professional experiences and a good understanding about the current clinical health education practices.

Supervisors: Professor Clarice Tang, Professor Melinda Craike
Institute: Institute for Health & Sport
Course Code: UPAD
Field of Research (FoR) Code: 4206 Public Health

To indicate your interest and discuss your suitability, please contact: Professor Clarice Tang,  [email protected]   

Language & communication skills of adolescents with pathological demand avoidance (RFO-25011)

The aim of the research is to determine if secondary students with demand avoidance profiles are at greater risk of imprisonment due to low literacy and language. The research will aim to answer the question of whether unaccommodated PDA profiles at a secondary level are linked to the number of children in juvenile detention and the number of adults in prison. Furthermore, it will aim to determine whether there are people with undiagnosed PDA profiles in the justice system and how a multidisciplinary team can collaborate to provide preventative and restorative communication interventions at a secondary school and imprisonment level.

Supervisors: Dr Bianca Jackson, Dr Vanessa Letico
Institute: Institute for Health & Sport 
Course Code: UPAD
Field of Research (FoR) Code: 5201 Applied and developmental psychology

To indicate your interest and discuss your suitability, please contact: Dr Bianca Jackson,  [email protected]   

Teaching with responsible AI: Governance, risk & readiness for emerging technologies in education (RFO-25012)

This project investigates how responsible AI, including GenAI-powered tools and wearable technologies like smart glasses, is reshaping educational practice. Based within the Teaching with Responsible AI Network (TRAIN), the research critically examines the governance, ethical risks, and policy challenges associated with AI integration in teaching and learning. The project explores how to prepare educators and institutions to adopt AI technologies in ways that safeguard access, privacy, academic integrity, and equity. TRAIN provides a collaborative, interdisciplinary environment, bringing together experts in education, AI ethics, and digital governance. We are seeking applicants with backgrounds in education, policy, or digital technology who are committed to advancing responsible, human-centered AI use in education. Skills in critical analysis, research, and stakeholder engagement are essential.

Supervisors: Dr Janine Arantes, Dr Amanda Muscat
Institute: Institute for Sustainable Industries & Liveable Cities
Course Code: UPAF
Field of Research (FoR) Code: 3903 Education systems

To indicate your interest and discuss your suitability, please contact: Dr Janine Arantes,  [email protected]