Maria F. Larrea is a PhD candidate at Griffith University in Australia with extensive practical experience in aviation training, hospitality, and higher education, which underpins her research endeavours. She is interested in exploring the learning process and competence development in service-sector jobs, with a particular focus on the aviation and hospitality sectors. 

Maria's doctoral project offers a holistic perspective on learning beyond formal training to enhance the competence of cabin crew members. She contends that their learning process transcends structured curricula as it evolves through the friction and negotiations of knowledge, values, and identity fostered in formal training and situated in work practice. This dynamic process sees cabin crew members consistently mediating their performance in routine and unexpected situations, shaping their professional competence and identity. 

Central to Maria's research is the recognition that social interactions, beyond technical skills, play a pivotal role in shaping cabin crew competence. Her study aims to make empirical contributions by offering insights into these social dynamics during training and at work, providing airlines with a more comprehensive understanding of cabin crew learning experiences from an insider's perspective. Ultimately, Maria's work aims to assist airlines in improving cabin crew performance and fostering positive attitudes toward their roles as safety compliance enforcers and service providers. 

Please follow Maria's work on LinkedIn linkedin.com/in/maria-larrea-544a5765

Welcome to this episode of Half Time Scholars. In this episode, we're joined by Carolyn Wade, an Educational Leader with over twenty years of experience in curriculum design and school-community partnerships. Carolyn began her career in primary education before advancing to senior leadership roles.

Recently, she embarked on a research project during a 12-month sabbatical to explore the impact of parent engagement on school leadership, culminating in her MEPSR study presented at education conferences from the Gold Coast to Toronto. Now pursuing a PhD at Griffith University, Carolyn is focused on enhancing educational practices and the relationship between schools and families.

We'll dive into Carolyn's research, examining how school leaders navigate parent engagement in a culture of increased consumerism. Her work, based on interviews with school leaders, highlights the spectrum of impacts that parent engagement can have, from minimal to significant pressures on school administration. Carolyn will share insights on how these dynamics could inform changes in school leader development and parent engagement strategies.

Expect a discussion that merges academic rigor with practical insights, offering valuable perspectives for educators, parents, and policymakers interested in the future of educational leadership and collaboration.

#EducationLeadership #ParentEngagement #SchoolCommunityPartnership #AcademicInsights #EducationalResearch

Her research, spanning over a decade, concentrates on embodied and emotional processes in contemporary wars, with a focus on the post-disarmament militancy of women ex-combatants. Her recent work delves into the political militancy of women ex-combatants in Nepal and Colombia, exploring leftist armed struggles' aftermath. Situated at the intersection of War and Gender Studies within Feminist International Relations, she has published extensively in prestigious journals and edited volumes, collaborating on interdisciplinary projects nationally and internationally.

Priscyll's expertise extends to teaching and supervision, having designed innovative curricula in Gender Studies, Philosophy for Peace, International Relations, and Feminist Philosophy. With over 2500 hours of teaching experience in Colombia, Canada, and Sweden, she welcomes student research in International Relations, particularly in Feminist Security Studies, war, DDR, leftist insurgencies, and Colombian politics. Fluent in Spanish, English, and French, she has lectured at various universities globally.

For more information on her work, visit https://priscyllanctil.com/about/.

On this epsiode we speak with Sarah Langman is a Ph.D. candidate at the Institute for Learning Sciences and Teacher Education at Australian Catholic University in Melbourne Australia. Prior to academia, she worked as a primary school teacher and leader in regional Victorian government schools, and holds a MEd in Educational Leadership and Management.

Sarah’s Ph.D. project examines datafication in spaces of educational leadership, with a specific focus on the digital data techniques and technologies utilised by those in positions of leadership. Her research uses poststructuralist theory, particularly assemblage theory (Deleuze & Guattari, 1987), to critically explore the logics that shape the policy landscape in Australian education as a result of the processes of data infrastructuring. She investigates digital data platforms deployed by the departments of education in the Australian states of Victoria and New South Wales and the role they play in reconfiguring school leadership, critically considering how datafication has created new possibilities for thinking and practising school leadership.

In this episode, we shine a spotlight on Dr. Shamara Wettimuny, a distinguished historian and specialist in ethno-religious conflict and discrimination, in Sri Lanka. Dr. Wettimuny's extensive research and unique perspective have shed new light on the 1915 anti-Moor pogrom, a pivotal episode in Ceylon's history.

With a background in International Relations and History from the London School of Economics, as well as a D.Phil from the University of Oxford, Dr. Wettimuny possesses a wealth of knowledge and academic expertise. As a Beit Scholar, she has honed her understanding of identity formation across majority and minority communities in Sri Lanka, focusing on the Sinhalese and Moor populations.

In her thesis, Dr. Wettimuny critically examines the roots of ethno-religious violence, drawing attention to the role of colonial policies and discourse that exacerbated tensions between the Sinhalese and Moors. By re-evaluating existing historiography and popular narratives surrounding the pogrom, she offers a fresh perspective on the outbreak, spread, and aftermath of this tragic event.

Moreover, Dr. Wettimuny's research unearths a comprehensive history of ethno-religious violence, exploring the complex interplay between indigenous practices, colonial legislation, and global influences. Through her meticulous analysis of religious, economic, and social spheres, she illuminates the evolution of ethnic and religious identities in Sri Lanka from the mid-nineteenth century onward.

As the Lead Researcher for the Minor Matters' Virtual Museum on Religious Freedom in Sri Lanka, Dr. Wettimuny not only unearths hidden narratives but also advises Sri Lankan and international organizations on countering hate speech and disinformation targeting minority communities.

Follow Shamara's interesting work @shamara4w on Twitter.

Welcome to Half Time Scholars, the podcast series that features the interesting work of independent and emerging researchers, who share their research, interests, and experiences. In this episode, we are joined by Li Xie-Carson, a PhD candidate at The University of Queensland Business School in Australia. Li's current research focuses on non-human influencer, virtual influencer, and influencer marketing in tourism. With over eight years of experience in the tourism and hospitality industry, Li brings a unique perspective to her research.

During her PhD, Li has been actively engaged in research, receiving numerous awards, including the Best Graduate 3-Minute Thesis Award at TTRA 2021 and the Best Poster Award at CAUTHE 2023. She is also open to research and teaching opportunities within and across disciplines when she graduates.

In this episode, Li will discuss her research on non-human influencers and virtual influencers, the challenges and opportunities of influencer marketing in the tourism industry, and her experience in both industry and academia.