New Horizons: Research Reframed
WAIER’s major event is its Annual Research Forum, which it has run since 1985. The Forum provides an opportunity for beginning and established researchers to present research and build collegial networks with researchers and educators working across Western Australia’s education sectors.
WAIER invites individuals and groups to attend, make a presentation, and participate in rigorous discussion on topics and research related to education and the Forum theme: New Horizons: Research Reframed
When
Date: Saturday 15th August, 2026
Venue
Boola Katitjin (Building 360)
Murdoch University
Discovery Drive, Murdoch
Forum Timetable
8:45am Research Forum Registration
9:30am Opening Address
9:40am Keynote Address Hon Sabine Winton BA BPS MLA Minister for Education; Early Childhood; Preventative Health; Wheatbelt.
10:00am Forum Panel
11:50am Forum Presentations
4:00pm Sundowner and award presentations
HDR Workshop
On Friday 14th August 5-7pm, we are offering a HDR Workshop (see details below). This is offered at no cost in combination with attending the Forum.
From Thesis to Contribution: Articulating Your Research Story
Facilitated by Associate Professor Sian Chapman
How do you move from describing your thesis (part 1) to clearly articulating what it contributes to educational research and practice (part 2)?
This interactive workshop supports postgraduate research candidates to reframe their research story, clarify their contribution, and practice communicating their work to different audiences. Designed for HDR students across all stages of projects, the session offers practical tools, reflective discussion, and structured writing time to help participants confidently articulate why their research matters, and to whom.
4:45 pm HDR Workshop registration opens
5pm HDR Workshop
Part 1: Share your research. An opportunity to share HDR research project with other participants through a prepared infographic. Details provided on registration and an opportunity to attend an Infographic Design workshop in July is also available.
Part 2: Move from describing research to articulating the contribution of your research.
7pm Dinner at a local venue for those who wish to continue conversations
Call for Abstracts
WAIER invites the submissions of abstracts from individuals and groups for presentations on topics and research related to education. The abstract should be approximately 200 words long and should contain the following:
- Title. Your title should include appropriate key words for search engines to find. Keep it short.
- The name/s of author/s
- Institutional affiliation of author/s
- Email addresses of each author
Abstracts are submitted at time of registration, see link below. Abstracts due July 31st, 2026
Abstracts will appear HERE as processed and accepted.
Presentations
Acceptance for presentation at the Forum requires that the author, or at least one of the authors in the case of multi-author presentations, be registered.
Presentation (25 minutes)
Presentations consist of a researcher or group of researchers presenting their work, with the aid of PowerPoint slides, for about 15 minutes, followed by 10 minutes of interaction and discussion with the audience.
Abstracts of 200 words are to be submitted.
What makes an effective presentation? http://www.garrreynolds.com/preso-tips
Abstracts will be printed in the WAIER Forum Program Booklet and posted on the WAIER website. Full written papers may also be submitted separately for peer review and publication in our journal Issues in Educational Research.
Opening Keynote and Panel Discussion
The Forum will commence with a keynote address by the Hon Sabine Winton BA BPS MLA Minister for Education; Early Childhood; Preventative Health; Wheatbelt.
Following the keynote will be a panel discussion. The panel members (below) will discuss how we might reframe educational research for the future and what our challenges might be. Each panelist will contribute to the discussion with a different research focus. This will be a thought-provoking discussion. Panel member details will appear here as confirmed.
Professor Laura Perry
Murdoch University
Professor Laura Perry conducts comparative research about educational disadvantage and inequalities, especially as they appear between schools, and the systems, structures and policies that shape them. The aim of her research is to inform policy for improving equity of educational opportunities, experiences and outcomes. Professor Perry’s specific research interests include educational marketization, school segregation and stratification, school funding, and between-school inequalities. Professor Perry draws on the disciplines of comparative education, sociology of education, and education policy to examine these topics.
Dr Garth Stahl
University of Queensland
Associate Professor Garth Stahl’s research interests focus on the relationship between education and society, socio-cultural studies of education, student identities, equity/inequality, and social change. Currently, his research projects and publications encompass theoretical and empirical studies of youth, sociology of schooling in a neoliberal age, gendered subjectivities, equity and difference as well as educational reform. Associate Professor Stahl was awarded a Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) from the Australian Research Council (2017-2019) where he researched the relationship between extreme disadvantage, masculinities and widening participation (DE170100510). In 2019, he was ranked by The Australian newspaper as one of the top 40 researchers in Australia who were less than 10 years into their career. Dr. Stahl is particularly interested in qualitative research methods, visual research methods and ethnography. At the University of Queensland, Dr. Stahl’s teaches at the Undergraduate, Masters and PhD levels.
Recently, he was awarded two ARC Discovery projects: Including the voice of boys and young men in their health and well-being education (DP250102623) and Investigating how boys and young men experience their digital lives (DP250104014).
Dr Cindy Smith
Curtin University
Cindy lectures in the area of Educational Psychology and has previous experience as a Special Education Teacher specializing in children with behavioral disorders. She has also served as a behavioral specialist, supporting children, families, and schools for success in educational and community settings. Before her current appointment at Curtin University, Cindy worked in universities in the United States and the Middle East to assist with the development of programs to train special education teachers.
Cindy’s research interest include mentoring as an intervention for adolescents at high risk, autism, teacher development, and women’s studies.
Dr Elizabeth Jackson-Barrett
Edith Cowan University
Dr Libby Jackson-Barrett is a proud Whadjuk woman, Associate Dean, Senior Indigenous Researcher and Lecturer for Kurongkurl Katitjin, Centre for Indigenous Australian Education and Research, and the School of Education at Edith Cowan University.
With a strong background in cultural leadership, Libby brings an interdisciplinary approach to her scholarship, focusing on how students can develop deep, meaningful connections to Country. Her research and teaching expertise centres on culturally responsive pedagogy within Initial Teacher Education, working to transform how future educators understand and honour Indigenous knowledge systems.
Beyond the university, Libby serves as Chair of the Aboriginal Advisory Committee at Boola Bardip, the Western Australian Museum, where she guides the institution’s engagement with Indigenous communities and cultural practice. Her leadership in this space reflects her deep commitment to ensuring Indigenous voices shape how stories are told and shared. An avid reader, Libby is passionate about the power of storytelling and literature to bridge cultures and deepen understanding. This love of reading informs her work in education, where she champions literacy as a pathway to both academic success and cultural connection. Through her teaching, research, and community leadership, Libby continues to pave the way for more inclusive, culturally grounded approaches to education in Australia.
Rachael Lehr
President ACEL WA
Rachael Lehr is the foundation Associate Principal at Dayton Primary School, a school that opened in 2023, and the WA Branch President of the Australian Council for Educational Leaders. She is passionate about empowering and supporting teachers and leaders to believe in themselves and reach their fullest potential. Rachael endeavours to ‘lead by example’, embodying lifelong learning, embracing discomfort, and constantly seeking personal growth. She is focused on the authentic integration of digital technologies and STEM learning into the classroom (the topic of her doctoral research at the University of Western Australia), believes in the power of instructional coaching to bring about effective change in teaching and learning, and upholds that positive relationships are the key to successful learning and wants every child to know that they truly matter.
WAIER Awards
Forum activities include the presentation of WAIER’s Early Career Award (ECA), and Inaugural WAIER Prize for Best Thesis in Education. We also present the WAIER Research Grant and WAIER Fellowship and Life Member awards.
Information and/or nomination forms are found here:
- Early Career Award WAIER-Early-Career-Award-information
- WAIER Research Grant here
Registration
Costs
| Member | Non-Member | |
| Early Bird (up to Friday July 31st) | $130 | $150 |
| Standard (from Sat Aug 1st) | $140 | $160 |
| Concession card holder | $85 | $115 |
| HDR & Forum (up to Friday July 31st) | $100 | $130 |
| UG & Forum | $30 | |
| UG Only | No cost |
Forum Registration & Abstract Submission
Abstract submission and registrations are to be completed via form below.
Early bird registrations and abstract submission close Friday July 31. Registration cost increase after this date.
Abstracts are preferred at registration. The Forum has space for 48 presentations. Once we reach 48, a waitlist will be created. Abstracts are accepted in order of receival.
Payment is via Paypal – either through a Paypal account or credit card.
