Daniel McKinnon

How do mob conceive of and enact success is schools?

We invite expressions of interest from prospective HDR students to join a community-led research project exploring the question: How do Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities conceive of and enact success in schools?

This project critically engages with prevailing definitions of educational "success" and instead centres community understandings, practices, and aspirations across diverse school settings. Using a mixed-methods, longitudinal case study approach, this research will foreground Indigenous voices and experiences, working in partnership with families, schools, and local knowledge holders.

Methodology Overview

1. A mixed-methods, longitudinal case study design to explore how success is defined and enacted in a community-controlled school.

2. At least 100 surveys will be conducted with school leaders, teachers, and parents, with the option for follow-up interviews involving students, families, and educators.

3. Survey data will be statistically analysed, while interviews will be thematically analysed to surface nuanced, relational understandings of success.

We strongly encourage applicants to develop their own methodological approaches within the broad framework of the project. Creative, community-embedded, and decolonial methodologies—including visual, participatory, or digital methods—are welcome. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students are especially encouraged to apply and will be supported to shape the research in culturally safe and meaningful ways.

If you’re interested in working at the intersection of Indigenous sovereignty, education justice, and community-engaged research, we’d love to hear from you.