Megan Kelly

Biography

Megan is a Lecturer in the Faculty of Education with a deep interest in improving student engagement and inclusion through the implementation of effective pedagogies in both primary and secondary classrooms. She has taught in secondary schools, as a specialist teacher in primary schools both in Australia and abroad, and at a number of universities. She is the Secondary Course Coordinator in the Faculty of Education.

Megan’s work contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals

Research

Megan's PhD in Education is titled Secondary Teachers' Understandings of Student Engagement: The (Mis)Alignment between Understanding and Practice. This mixed methods study collected data from teachers around Australia, including lesson observations and interviews to explore teachers' understandings of behavioural, emotional and cognitive engagement. The study sought to establish the (mis)alignment between teachers' understandings and practice.

In another project, she has also explored factors that impact student retention at university with a specific interest in students' sense of belonging. A key finding was that students with a low sense of belonging are more likely to consider leaving their studies.

Megan has been awarded the Faculty of Education Excellence Award for publications for three consecutive years (2020-2022).

Teaching

Megan teaches both undergraduate and postgraduate students and is especially interested in developing pre-service teachers’ understandings of how to engage all students. She is currently the Unit Assessor for the Secondary English Curriculum and Pedagogy units, supporting future secondary English teachers to develop their understanding of the English curriculum, effective pedagogies, planning, assessment and teaching a variety of text types.