University of Tasmania, Australia

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Mary Ann Hunter

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Dr Mary Ann Hunter

Senior Lecturer in Arts Education and Postgraduate Course Coordinator

PhD, Dip Ed, BA Hons

Contact Details

Contact Campus Newnham Campus
Building Building A
Room Reference A225C
Telephone +61 3 6324 3252
Fax +61 3 6324 3048
Email MaryAnn.Hunter@utas.edu.au

Publications

For a full list of Mary Ann's research, visit her WARP page

Mary Ann's research interests focus on the role of arts and creative practice in education and applied settings. She is particularly interested in interdisciplinary research and enquiry and her experience is in qualitative and arts-based methods. Mary Ann's current focus is on how engagement with creative practice can generate new and diverse 'ways of knowing'.

Examples of current projects include:

  • Performance and Peacebuilding: an investigation of the role of the theatre and performance in peacebuilding.  This is an ongoing project in association with the Center for Ethics, Justice and Public Life at Brandeis University, Boston. The project includes the development of a website, anthology, film documentary, and toolkit for artists, educators and NGOs. http://www.brandeis.edu/ethics/peacebuildingarts/actingtogether
  • Curious Schools:  An online platform for and by teachers showcasing inquiry-based teaching and learning in and through the arts. www.utas.edu.au/education/curious-schools  A partnership with Chicago Arts Partnerships in Education.
  • Education, arts and sustainability: Transforming learning in an unsustainable world.

Mary Ann's areas of teaching and available areas of research supervision include:
  • Arts education, particularly drama education 
  • Applied arts practice
  • Community cultural development
  • Creative partnerships in education
  • Contemporary theatre and performance
  • Arts and peacebuilding
  • Young people's performance 
  • Mentoring 

Mary Ann is the recipient of various teaching and research awards including: Teaching Merit Certificate (UTAS); Most Effective Teacher commendations (UQ); Australian Philip Parsons Prize for Performance as Research (ADSA); Deans’ List for Outstanding PhD Research (UQ); University Medal (Flinders).

 She has chaired various creative industry and community-based committees and was an expert advisor on the Qld Government’s cultural infrastructure program. She is the former editor of peer-reviewed journal Australasian Drama Studies (2000-2004) and is an editorial panel member of ADS and About Performance.  She is currently in the role of Drama Australia Liaison Officer for Tasmania.

Before joining UTAS, Mary Ann held lecturing positions at the National Institute of Education, Singapore, and the Faculty of Arts, University of Queensland, where she was also a research associate with the Australian Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies. Mary Ann began her career as a theatre-in-education practitioner in secondary education. Alongside national and international consultancy work in cultural policy development, mentoring, evaluation and curriculum design, she has produced feature programs for ABC Radio National, was a Queensland contributing editor for Real Time+Onscreen, and in 2008-2009 was coordinator of meenah mienne, an arts-based mentoring and literacy program founded by Aboriginal Elders and artists supporting Aboriginal young people in the justice system in Tasmania.