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Professor

Linda Hobbs

(She/Her)

Associate Head of School, Research

Faculty of Arts and Education/School of Education/Research for Educational Impact

BIO

My work focuses on science and STEM education, teacher workforce issues in to teachers' teaching out-of-field, and research culture in institutions. I am passionate about impacting educational practice and systems, and creating researcher communities that enable educational change. 

Since 2004, my career has focused strongly on generating new insights and informing new directions in STEM education through targeted research and building capacity of practicing and pre-service teachers in STEM teaching and learning. I have designed, implemented and evaluated professional learning for primary and secondary teachers of science and STEM for over 15 years. As part of an agenda focused on gender and STEM, I currently lead the Girls As Leaders in STEM (GALS) program, which provides girls in years 5-8 with an experience of solving authentic STEM-related problems while being mentored by university and industry mentors.

I have developed an international reputation in researching the OOF teaching phenomenon through analyses of teacher learning that re-conceptualised OOF teaching in a way that can inform policy, practice and research.My research into teaching OOF has followed a trajectory of funded research exploring the complexity of this issue, attracting Category 1 and 2 funding, with my latest project being an ARC Discovery Project called "Shifting the Culture of Out-of-field Professional Education for Teachers (SCOPE-T). Understandings about the complex nature of out-of-field teaching and the culture around professional education are central to this ARC application.

In addition to this research I am co-leading the Out-of-field Teaching Across Specialisations (OOFTAS) Collective, an international group focusing on research and practice relating to out-of-field teaching. My leadership of this group demonstrates my capacity to establish research partnerships that contribute to our understanding of the out-of-field phenomenon.

DEAKIN UNIVERSITY CURRENT APPOINTMENT

  • Associate Head of School, Research
    Deakin University, School of Education

MEDIA

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ACADEMIC POSITIONS

  • Professor of Education
    Deakin University, Geelong, Australia1 Jan 2024 - present
  • Associate Professor of Education
    Deakin University, Geelong, Australia1 Jan 2017 - 31 Dec 2023
  • , Senior Lecturer of Science Education
    Deakin University, Geelong, Australia1 Feb 2012 - 31 Dec 2016
  • Lecturer/Senior Lecturer
    RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia1 Jan 2008 - 31 Jan 2012

DEGREES

  • Doctor of Philosophy
    Deakin University
  • Master of Education
    University of Ballarat
  • Bachelor of Applied Science (Environmental Resource Management)
    University of Ballarat, Ballarat1992 - 1994
  • GCHE Exempt
    Deakin University

FIELDS OF RESEARCH (2020)

  • Curriculum and pedagogy
  • Education systems
  • Specialist studies in education

AVAILABILITY FOR SUPERVISION

  • Masters by Research and PhD supervision

AREA/FACULTY

  • Faculty of Arts and Education

DEPARTMENT/SCHOOL/INSTITUTE

  • School of Education

STRATEGIC RESEARCH AND INNOVATION CENTRE

  • Research for Educational Impact

RESEARCH STRENGTHS