Deidre works with leaders and teachers focusing on both the cognitive and affective aspects of learning and educational change that influence the development of professional capability and schooling improvement.  Her recent work focuses on supporting school leaders interpersonal capabilities for building relational trust, understanding perceptions of risk in learning and change, identifying effective professional learning facilitation practices and supporting the development of adaptive expertise in schools.

Claire’s research focuses on educational improvement, and deals with five main strands— curriculum, networks, educational leadership, practitioner inquiry and standards. Her research is concerned with understanding how teachers and educational leaders, including system leaders, can improve their practice and the role of policy in improvement efforts. She regularly contributes to advisory bodies and evaluations on education policy and practice initiatives, particularly those related to curriculum and leadership, in New Zealand and multiple international jurisdictions.

Megan specialises in school improvement and leadership and how research in these fields can be put to good use in schools to improve outcomes for all students. Megan engages with practitioners through teaching on the Masters of Educational Leadership, consulting and writing. Her research focuses on coherence, particularly how schools muster an organisational response to improvement priorities when pressured by the busyness of schooling and competing demands from many directions. Megan is programme leader for the Masters of Educational Leadership.

Frauke’s academic teaching and research focus on educational leadership and leadership practices. Her current research is concerned with school leadership, interpersonal leadership practices, and school improvement. The immediate focus of her research is the analysis, assessment, and development of interpersonal behaviours that promote relational trust. Another area of research is equity and bias. Her expertise lies in qualitative as well as some quantitative research methodologies and mixed methods designs.

Camilla is Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Education. Her research, teaching and supervision focus on leadership and equity. She has a background as a visual arts teacher and leader in secondary schools, Ministry of Education official and director of a large professional development organisation. Her recent research focusses on culturally responsive teaching and leadership to raise outcomes for Māori students and has she also worked on projects investigating intercultural supervision and women and leadership.

Jo began her education career as an English and ESL teacher at an Islamic secondary school in Melbourne, Australia, where she earned a Graduate Diploma in Education from the University of Melbourne. Jo’s research employs a systems-level theory of education to explore the links between education policy, leadership, and the improvement of schools and school systems.

Viv brings years of teaching and leadership experience across a wide range of contexts to her work.  She was the National Lead Mentor for the Enhanced Induction and Mentoring Programme, supporting initial teacher education graduates impacted by COVID restrictions. Viv is a mentor and collaborator with UiT The Arctic University of Norway on a project developing new and jointly beneficial models of university-school collaboration. Her teaching currently focusses on strategies that support responsive teaching, effective learning and the development of self-regulating learners and teachers.

Kaye brings many years of experience in schools as a school leader and teacher to her academic teaching and research work, connecting theory and practice. Her research highlights the importance of understanding the role of emotion and the negative impact of uncertainty and vulnerability on learning. She advocates for leading through a complexity- informed lens focussed on improving equitable learner outcomes, reframing teacher resistance to consider perceived risk, and the value of working collaboratively.