Current assessments of research impact have been criticized for capturing what can be easily counted not what actually counts. To empirically examine this issue, we approached measuring research impact from two directions, tracing forwards from research and backwards from policy, within a defined research-policy system (childhood obesity…

This article provides a reflexive account of the authors' experiences of the ethical challenges in conducting a higher degree by research (HDR) supervision project prompted by the ethics review process in a major Australian university. The authors also raise epistemological questions about the specific focus of the study, given the interrelations…

This part-reflective, part-conceptual article focuses on the issue of supervision models and the need to move away from the dominance of the traditional master-apprentice model which continues to persist in many social sciences and humanities contexts. Drawing on communities of practice theory, I critically reflect on my own PhD supervision…

Complaints by educational researchers about problems with the human research ethics review process are not new. In this paper, we add to the growing body of literature critiquing contemporary ethics review processes. We outline the nature and extent of scrutiny our sexuality and relationships research project was subjected to during a drawn-out…

There are many accomplished school leaders in Australia, but the profession has yet to develop credible systems for recognising their impact. This article provides a progress report on research initiated by professional associations of school principals, to provide school leaders with authentic and feasible methods for documenting their practice…

The Higher School Certificate is a certificate that recognises the successful completion of secondary education in New South Wales (NSW), Australia. The most recent enrolment information available suggests that at least 13,472 students undertaking the NSW Higher School Certificate (HSC) in 2019 conducted research projects that involved human…

Research into university study abroad programs suggests that while students may have some experience of local culture(s) and practices, they may be achieving no more than a superficial understanding of the host society. Alternatives to the standard study abroad models are thus essential to encourage students to engage more deeply with the host…

There are increasing concerns that research regulatory requirements exceed those required to manage risks, particularly for low- and negligible-risk research projects. In particular, inconsistent documentation requirements across research sites can delay the conduct of multi-site projects. For a one-year, negligible-risk project examining biobank…

The Corona Virus Disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic has imposed serious restrictions for academic institutions to maintain their research and teaching practical subjects. Universities have implemented adaptive measures to maintain educational activities and achieve the learning objectives for undergraduate and postgraduate students by shifting to…

This paper presents and analyses results from a research project on current trends in employer training in Australia. While the formal vocational education and training (VET) system is well-researched, the everyday training that happens in workplaces is relatively under-researched in Australia. Using some of the results of an employer survey…

Umbrella action research projects link together a number of small action research projects under a common organizational and thematic umbrella. This article provides an example of an umbrella action research project, which aimed for teaching quality enhancement. There are two mechanisms by which teaching quality can be enhanced. The first of these…

Research-for-development (R4D), as a mode of foreign aid, is a practical way to support developing countries. However, few studies have assessed the scientific impacts of R4D projects. Here, we applied an integrated assessment approach to evaluate the scientific impact of research projects commissioned by the Australian Centre for International…

Theory is an important element of literacy research. Research designs are informed by theories that explain what literacy is, how it develops, and how it should be taught and evaluated. Sociocultural theories emphasize the socially situated nature of literacies engagement and practices, whereas cognitive theories emphasize the underlying skills…

This study aims to unpack the reflective learning processes involved in developing a Masters' research project proposal as part of a multidisciplinary Research Design course. Using inductive analysis, we explored students' reflective blogs written over a period of a semester and defined the reflections according to an adaptation of Hatton and…

Early millennial arguments tended to regard young people's out of school literacies with enthusiasm, with school print literacies by comparison seen as lacking currency. More recent critiques of such binary positioning of home-school digital practices instead recommend seeking connections and continuities. However, with teachers rarely gaining…