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Dr. Catherine Oxworth

Senior Lecturer, Education, Curriculum and Pedagogy

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Campus

Berwick Campus

Biography

Dr Catherine Oxworth is a senior lecturer in education, pedagogy and curriculum.  Catherine has had extensive experience working as a teacher, trainer, mentor, and leader in diverse fields of education.  Catherine currently works in initial teacher education courses with pre-service teachers across secondary, primary and early years’ education.

Catherine is a classically trained musician (clarinet) and an advocate for education in, and through, the Arts.  Catherine has taught, researched and volunteered in primary, secondary and tertiary educational contexts in Australia, China, Pakistan, Zambia and Kenya.  Catherine has previously worked in initial teacher education programs at Swinburne University, La Trobe University and the Melbourne Graduate School of Education.

Catherine is an advocate for embedding the knowledges, cultures, histories, languages, pedagogies and perspectives of Indigenous peoples into all aspects of education. Through Catherine’s teaching, research, work and life, Catherine’s intent is to try to make the world a better, kinder and fairer place for current and future generations. 

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More about Catherine

Qualifications

  • Doctor of Philosophy, La Trobe University 
  • Master of Art Therapy, La Trobe University 
  • Master of Education (International Education), Monash University 
  • Graduate Diploma in Education (Secondary), Monash University 
  • Graduate Diploma in Arts, Modern Languages (Chinese), The University of Melbourne 
  • Bachelor of Music (Honours), The University of Melbourne 
  • Associate in Music, Australia Diploma (Clarinet), Australian Music Examinations Board 

Areas of interest

  • Culture and creativity 
  • Gender and feminism 
  • Post-colonialism 
  • Social justice 
  • Spirituality and wisdom 
  • Storytelling 

Areas of expertise

  • Qualitative research in educational contexts that gives voice to marginalised peoples, and challenges hegemonic and neoliberal discourses.  

Current

  • PhD student, Federation University, ‘Family language ideologies, practices, and challenges in maintaining Nepali language in Australia: A linguistic ethnography of two Nepali-speaking communities’, associate supervisor. 
  • PhD student, Federation University, ‘Understanding the development of pre-service and early career outdoor education teachers’ professional identity’, associate supervisor. 
  • PhD student, Federation University, ‘Voicing the unheard: Feminist identity and creative agency among non-binary artists and white cisgender women artists in Australian music’, associate supervisor. 

  • Arts education 
  • Diversity, equity and inclusion 
  • First Nations education and advocacy 

Specialist roles

  • Academic integrity officer 

Professional association memberships

  • Association of Music Educators (aMuse) 
  • The Australian, New Zealand and Asian Creative Arts Therapies Association (ANZACATA) 
  • National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) 
  • The Victorian Institute of Teaching (VIT) 

  • Goriss-Hunter, A. & Oxworth, C. (Presenters 2021, November 13). Goriss-Hunter, A., Claughton, A., Sellings, P., Robertson, D., Oxworth, C., Griffiths, K. & Walker, A.  What we’re taking through the portal: how our experiences of remote teaching as parent-educators during COVID-19 impacted our practice, WFATE Sixth Biennial Conference, Texas, USA. 
  • Oxworth, C. (2020, July 21). When nothing is something: Gendered perceptions of work and worth by African girls (video presentation). SJIDE Virtual Conventicle 2020, Federation University Australia. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1YOxnqOm1Y 

Projects and partnerships 

  • Catherine has conducted qualitative research in school communities in Kenya and Zambia, with particular focus on giving voice to the experiences and concerns of girls.  Catherine’s research also explored the worth of work of women in postcolonial African contexts.   
  • Catherine has worked on an Australian Research Council (ARC) research project that investigated the experiences of Indigenous preservice teachers in Australia. 

Social Justice, Inclusion and Diversity in Education (SJIDE)

Catherine is part of the Social Justice, Inclusion and Diversity in Education (SJIDE) research group, which is focussed on equity, diversity, inclusion, opportunity, regionality and wellbeing in formal and non-formal educational settings.
  • Publications

Exploring experiences and impacts of creative arts therapies