The Dean of the UTAS Faculty of Education, Professor Ian Hay, will soon step down from that role after almost five years, and will start a transition into retirement.
Prof Hay will, however, remain in the Faculty for a period in a research capacity to work with his research higher degree students and complete a number of significant national and Tasmanian educational projects.
Before joining UTAS, Prof Hay was Professor and Head of the School of Education, University of New England. He has also held Associate Professor positions at the University of Queensland and Griffith University. He is both a qualified teacher and Psychologist.
Prof Hay has published more than 200 book chapters, refereed journal articles, reports, conference papers and other articles in a range of international and national peer review publications. As a chief investigator, he has been awarded competitive research funds in excess of 1.8 million dollars, and has supervised more than 20 higher degree research students.
His main research interests are in the domain of students with literacy and academic difficulties, the role of motivation in learning, and students' cognitive development.
Read about Professor Ian Hay’s latest research project to boost numeracy and literacy.
Professor John Williamson, Faculty of Education, will move into the role of Acting Dean.
Prof Williamson, who recently completed several terms as Chair of the Academic Senate said that he was 'looking forward to working with Faculty of Education colleagues, external stakeholders, and the wider University to further Education's reputation as a provider of choice.' When discussing the local and national context of educational policy and practice, he said, 'while there are challenges, I have no doubt the Faculty of Education will help the University to achieve its Vision and Mission statements and make a significant and valued contribution to the Tasmanian community and beyond.'
He praised Prof Hay's term as Dean and said that, 'Ian's leadership and contribution to the research strength of the Faculty will be a proud legacy.'
Prof. Williamson is a Fellow of the Australian Teacher Education Association and the Royal Society of Arts. He was the recipient of an Australian College of Educators Tasmanian award for significant contributions to education. He was awarded an inaugural UTAS Graduate Research Award for significant contributions to graduate research and education.
He has a deep relationship with the teaching profession and served two terms as a member of the Teacher Registration Board Tasmania; first, as an inaugural member and again more recently. He also chaired the Higher Education Expert Advisory Group, which advised the Tasmanian Qualifications Authority on matters relating to non-self-accrediting institutions of higher education in Tasmania.
Prof. Williamson is currently working with colleagues on an international project which is investigating how principals and teachers see the leadership role and decision-making in schools and how teachers may be more involved in decision-making. With colleagues in England he is examining how teachers' pedagogical practices may be extended to facilitate more student-student interaction and student-centred learning.