Dr Kate Smithers
Honorary Lecturer
School of Education
- Email:kate.smithers@newcastle.edu.au
- Phone:(02) 4055 3385
Career Summary
Biography
Kathleen's doctoral research examined in the intersection of tourism and education in Zimbabwe. In particular, her research explores the phenomenon of philanthropic tourism in Matabeleland North.
Kathleen also works as a casual academic in the School of Education and as a Research Officer. This has extended her work to research on Virtual Reality and Artificial Intelligence in schooling. In 2019, she began work as a research assistant with Associate Professor Jess Harris on the nature of Contract research in Higher Education. Kathleen is now a Research Officer in the Teachers and Teaching Research Centre.
Kathleen has also spent time developing the social and support networks in the School of Education, through the formation of the 'School of Education HDR Club'. The club runs multiple events throughout the year and has allowed students to network and socialise within the faculty. Through the club, Kathleen has presented a workshop for students: 'Time Management and Organisation'. Kathleen has also been an invited guest speaker for a faculty workshop entitled, 'Making the most of your HDR', in which she outlined the benefits of making a HDR about more than just a thesis. n late 2019, she was appointed as a Student Peer Advisor for the Office of Graduate Studies. A role which has allowed her to expand her understanding of the current issues that student's face. This role enables her to work one-on-one with students to provide access to resources, or a friendly supportive chat. In 2020, Kathleen was elected to the role of Vice President for the Newcastle University Postgraduate Association (NUPSA). This is a role in which she hopes to advocate for students and work to make changes to increase the social supports and activities for students on campus. She hopes this will allow all students to feel welcome during their time at the University of Newcastle.
In 2021, Kathleen was appointed as co-coordinator of the Students and Staff Talking about Research program. As part of this program, she is responsible for HDR events, research training and the annual HDR conference for the School of Education.
Qualifications
- Doctor of Philosophy, University of Newcastle
- Bachelor of Teaching (Honours), University of Newcastle
- Graduate Certificate in Tertiary Teaching, University of Wollongong
Keywords
- Zimbabwe
- developmentourism
- foucault
- higher education
- sociology of education
- virtual reality
Fields of Research
| Code | Description | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| 390303 | Higher education | 30 |
| 390203 | Sociology of education | 30 |
| 399999 | Other education not elsewhere classified | 40 |
Awards
Award
| Year | Award |
|---|---|
| 2020 |
Dean's HDR Excellence Award University of Newcastle |
| 2020 |
FEDU HDR Student Engagement Award Faculty of Education and Arts, The University of Newcastle, Australia |
Distinction
| Year | Award |
|---|---|
| 2018 |
Three Minute Thesis Faculty Finalist Faculty of Education and Arts, The University of Newcastle, Australia |
Scholarship
| Year | Award |
|---|---|
| 2018 |
Alison Lee ‘Theory in Educational Research’ Scholarship Australian Association for Research in Education [AARE] |
Teaching
| Code | Course | Role | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| EDUC4940 |
Research design and critique The University of Newcastle |
Marker | 1/3/2019 - 30/6/2021 |
| EDUC6785 |
Educational Foundations The University of Newcastle |
Sessional Tutor | 26/1/2021 - 1/8/2021 |
| EDUC3800 |
Intercultural Understanding for Educators The University of Newcastle |
Sessional Academic | 1/8/2018 - 1/12/2018 |
| EDUC1103 |
Schooling, Identity and Society The University of Newcastle |
Sessional Tutor and Lecturer | 1/8/2018 - 1/12/2021 |
| EDUC1038 |
Foundations of secondary education The University of Newcastle |
Marker | 1/3/2019 - 30/6/2021 |
Publications
For publications that are currently unpublished or in-press, details are shown in italics.
Chapter (5 outputs)
| Year | Citation | Altmetrics | Link | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 |
Heffernan T, 'Women in Higher Education', The Marginalised Majority in Higher Education, Springer Nature Switzerland 129-153 (2023)
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| 2023 |
Smithers K, Harris J, Goff M, Spina N, Bailey S, 'Ethical responsibilities of tenured academics supervising non-tenured researchers in times of neoliberalism and precarity', Educational Leadership and Policy in a Time of Precarity, Routledge 37-53 (2023)
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| 2022 |
Smithers K, Ailwood J, 'Developmentourism and school tours in Zimbabwe', Handbook of Niche Tourism 345-356 (2022)
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| 2022 |
Smithers K, Ailwood J, 'School Tourism in Southern Africa', Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Education, Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK (2022) [B1]
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| Show 2 more chapters | ||||||||
Journal article (7 outputs)
| Year | Citation | Altmetrics | Link | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 |
Smithers K, 'Heterotopia and the image of Africa : school tours and philanthropy in a Zimbabwean school', Critical Studies in Education, 1-17 [C1]
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| 2023 |
Harper M, Smithers K, 'Fieldwork from A Z? Exploring shifting identities in doctoral research in Australia and Zimbabwe', The Australian Educational Researcher, [C1]
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| 2023 |
Smithers K, ''What is your name, where do you come from, what is your grade?' Using art-based interviews to highlight the experience of children hosting school tours in Matabeleland North, Zimbabwe', TOURISM RECREATION RESEARCH, 48 912-924 (2023) [C1]
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| 2023 |
Smithers K, Spina N, Harris J, Gurr S, 'Working every weekend: The paradox of time for insecurely employed academics', TIME & SOCIETY, 32 101-122 (2023) [C1]
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| 2023 |
Harris J, Smithers K, Spina N, Heffernan T, 'Disrupting dominant discourses of the Other: examining experiences of contract researchers in the academy', STUDIES IN HIGHER EDUCATION, 48 37-48 (2023) [C1]
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| 2022 |
Spina N, Smithers K, Harris J, Mewburn I, 'Back to zero? Precarious employment in academia amongst older early career researchers, a life-course approach', British Journal of Sociology of Education, 43 534-549 (2022) [C1]
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| 2022 |
Smithers K, Harris J, Goff M, Spina N, Bailey S, 'Ethical responsibilities of tenured academics supervising non-tenured researchers in times of neoliberalism and precarity', Journal of Educational Administration and History, 54 37-53 (2022) [C1] Neoliberal reform of the university sector has resulted in increasing numbers of academics employed on casual or fixed-term contracts. While there is an emergent body of literatur... [more] Neoliberal reform of the university sector has resulted in increasing numbers of academics employed on casual or fixed-term contracts. While there is an emergent body of literature on issues of precarity in the academy, relatively little attention has been paid to the roles and responsibilities of those tenured academics who employ and manage non-tenured researchers. The work involved in hiring and managing a contract researcher is rarely acknowledged or supported, and managers receive little to no training. In this paper, we draw on Dorothy Smith¿s feminist sociological approach to analyse interviews with 22 non-tenured researchers to examine how managerial relationships shape the employment experiences of those working precariously. We argue that tenured academics have ethical responsibilities to provide a working environment that is fair, supports the ongoing development and wellbeing of non-tenured staff, and challenges dominant discourses of precarious academics as ¿other¿.
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| Show 4 more journal articles | |||||||||||
Software / Code (2 outputs)
| Year | Citation | Altmetrics | Link | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 |
Smith S, Southgate E, Langridge R, Gruppetta M, Smithers K, 'Robo WordQuest (Android)', 1.1, Google, Google Play App Store (2019)
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| 2018 |
Smith S, Southgate E, Langridge R, Gruppetta M, Smithers K, 'Robo WordQuest (iOS)', 1.1, Apple, iTunes App Store (2018)
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Other (2 outputs)
| Year | Citation | Altmetrics | Link | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 |
Smithers K, Harris J, Spina N, 'Australian unis could not function without casual staff: it is time to treat them as real employees', : The Conversation (2023)
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| 2020 |
Harris J, Smithers K, Spina N, 'More than 70% of academics at some universities are casuals. They re losing work and are cut out of JobKeeper', : The Conversation (2020)
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Report (4 outputs)
| Year | Citation | Altmetrics | Link | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 |
Harris J, Knipe S, Smithers K, Ross AM, 'Transitions from remote delivery to reopening: A review of evidence on school improvement for schools impacted by COVID', Victorian Department of Education and Training, 50 (2020)
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| 2019 |
Southgate E, Blackmore K, Pieschl S, Grimes S, Smithers K, McGuire J, 'Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technologies in Schools Research Report', Australian Department of Education (2019) [R1]
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| 2017 |
Langridge R, Smith S, Smithers K, Southgate E, 'Participatory design with children and young people: An annotated bibliography', DICE Report Series (2017)
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| Show 1 more report | |||||
Research Collaborations
The map is a representation of a researchers co-authorship with collaborators across the globe. The map displays the number of publications against a country, where there is at least one co-author based in that country. Data is sourced from the University of Newcastle research publication management system (NURO) and may not fully represent the authors complete body of work.
| Country | Count of Publications | |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | 11 | |
| United Kingdom | 2 |
Dr Kate Smithers
Position
Honorary Lecturer
School of Education
College of Human and Social Futures