With a background in classics, my research interests focus on ancient Rome, particularly:

• the Augustan family and their dynamics
• the politics and propaganda of the early principate
• Numa Pompilius
• the Ara Pacis
• the life and portrayal of Livia
• the reception of the ancient Western world in Medieval and Renaissance Europe
• the changing dynamics of gender and female power over time

I am also interested in the scholarship of learning and teaching, including:

• the pedagogical practices underpinning the learning and teaching of ancient history in higher education
• the impact and effectiveness of student support and student preparation programs, including enabling education
• the impact and potential of artificial intelligence to improve learning and teaching in higher education
• assessment reform and modernisation.

The goal of teaching, especially in enabling programs, is to provide students with the skills they require to become independent learners and achieve their personal goals. These skills will allow students who have successfully completed enabling programs to succeed in their further tertiary education. The educator’s role is to facilitate the development of these skills and provide a context in which students can observe and practice the use of these skills. A learner-centred, objective based educational approach allows the best development of student skills. It is essential that students be provided with the opportunity to use the skills they require in order to fully understand their use and application.

As an educator, I try to use a range of methodologies in an attempt to meet the individual learning styles of the students, including discussion, small-group work, co-operative learning, student research, student writing and case studies. Active participation is a vital ingredient of learning which provides opportunities for the students to utilise their knowledge, abilities and life experiences within classroom situations. This creates significance, a key component of the Quality Teaching Framework, for the students as they draw on their background and cultural knowledge to connect their content to the wider world. It also develops their confidence in their own ability. This learning, with a student emphasis, requires a quality learning environment which provides social support for student learning established by a secure relationship between myself as educator and my students where trust, dedication, loyalty and social justice principles are exemplified.

Effective teaching requires effective communication, organisation, patience, commitment, persistence and compassion. I endeavour to provide sound and relevant curriculum, clear content embedded with deep knowledge and metalanguage and specific aims and objectives in a professional manner. Teaching also requires a developed sense of ethics on the part of the educator in order to protect the privacy of students, which creates further trust in the educator. This allows them to actively participate in substantive communication and to engage academically. I constantly question and reflect upon my teaching practice and knowledge in order to ensure that students benefit from my ongoing learning.

I am working on a number of research projects at the moment.

Projects in Ancient World studies and reception

• The Ovidian accessus tradition
  Working with colleagues in the USA, we are translating and analysing previously unpublished biographies of Ovid from the Medieval manuscript tradition. These biographies provide insight into different aspects of the reception of Ovid and his exile.
• Carmentis and Motherhood in Ovid’s Fasti
  I explore how the performance of female identity intertwines with motherhood in the depiction of Carmentis (Evander’s mother; Fasti 1). Carmentis’ maternal experience is reconsidered vis-à-vis Augustan conceptualizations of motherhood. This research will be presented at the 2025 ASCS conference.

Projects in educational design and theory

• Star Trek and Trauma-informed teaching practice
  Working with colleagues in the USA, we applied a trauma-informed teaching model to the analysis of an episode of Star Trek, where a traumatised child requires care. This project is in currently under review for publication.
• Learning Design and Placement Preparation
  In conjunction with colleagues from Federation University, we explore the role of learning designers in improving placement preparation for pre-service teachers. This authethnographic paper is in progress.