University of Tasmania, Australia

Dr Robbie Johnston

Senior Lecturer (Rural and Regional)

Contact Details

Achievements

Robbie Johnston taught in several sectors of education in Queensland and Tasmania before moving to work in higher education in 1995. Since her PhD was conferred in 2003, Robbie has worked at universities in Victoria and Tasmania. Robbie’s research in contexts of education focuses on rural and regional contexts and is informed by notions of place and space.  Recent research projects have focussed on retention of rural students in education, museums, including virtual museums for children, and small rural history rooms in Tasmania. From 2008–2010, Robbie was Editor, The Social Educator, the refereed journal of the Social Educators’ Association of Australia (SEAA). Robbie is currently a member of the Editorial Committee for this journal and a national committee member of SEAA.

Publications

• Johnston, R. (2012). Fieldwork, schooling, sustainability: A Tasmanian case. In M. Robertson (Ed.), Schooling for sustainable development: A focus on Australia, New Zealand and the Oceanic region (pp. 87 – 100). (Book series on School for Sustainable Development, Co-editors: J. Chi-Kin Lee, M. Williams and P. Stimpson) Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Springer.
• Johnston, R. (2012, in press). Reinvigorating social studies: A desire for powerful learning. In B. Down & J. Smyth (Eds.), Critical voices in teacher education: Teaching for social justice in conservative times. (Book series  Explorations of educational purpose, Series editors S. Steinberg & K. Tobin). Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Springer. 
• Johnston, R. (2009). Small community museums enabling diversity: Local history rooms in Tasmania. International Journal of the Inclusive Museum, 2(3), 41–48.
• Johnston, R. & Davis, R. (2008) Negotiating the dilemmas of community based learning in teacher education. Teaching Education, 19(4), 351–360.
• Johnston, R. (2008). Engaging children online: Is there room for the grittiness of social reality? International Journal of the Inclusive Museum, 1(1), 83–88.
• Johnston, R. (2007). Children and community: Looking beyond socialisation and the status quo. New Community Quarterly, 5(3), 45–49.
• Johnston, R. (2007). Dominant discourses and teacher education: Current curriculum or curriculum remembered? Asia Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 35(4), 351–365.
• Johnston, R. & Bradby, D. (2007). Learning online: Museum websites for SOSE. The Social Educator, 25(1), 13–18.

Conference presentations

• Johnston, R. (2008). Beyond the humdrum of daily stuff: Places and spaces for teacher educators. Paper presented at the 6th Annual Hawaii Conference on Education, Waikiki, 5–8 January, 2008.
• Johnston, R. (2007). Discourses of community: Appreciating what others do in the world. Paper presented at the Addressing Inequalities through Community conference, Caro Centre, University of Ballarat, June 20, 2007.
• Johnston, R. (2006). Online or virtually so? Cultural spaces created for children through online museums. Paper presented to the Museums Australia National Conference, Exploring dynamics: Cities, cultural spaces, communities, 14–17 May 2006, Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, Queensland Museum South Bank and Queensland Art Gallery. [Online]. 

Research interests

Robbie’s research focuses on socio-cultural dimensions of education in varied contexts: rural and regional issues in education; education spaces, community based teaching and learning; museum curricula and pedagogies, including online materials; place, space and community; social education and sustainability.

Robbie’s research is informed by understandings of place and space along with many years teaching in several states of Australia and across all sectors of education.

Research grants

• 2009 Johnston, R. Tasmanian local History Rooms: Community education, place and identity, UTas New Academic Research Grant Scheme (NARGS), $10, 483
• 2009  Johnston, R., Abbott-Chapman, J., & Jetson, T. Place, community and retention- Tasmanian rural parents’ reactions to their children leaving home for education and employment , Faculty of Education (UTas), Teaching and Research Scholarship Grants Scheme (TRSGS) $11,277.

Teaching

• ESH305 Learning and Society