Sir James Darling Medallist 2018 Professor John Loughran
Professor John Loughran is a distinguished academic – a Sir John Monash Distinguished Professor – who has held the position of Dean of the Faculty of Education at Monash University for the last seven years.
In addition to his work as Dean, Professor Loughran has demonstrated extraordinary leadership in teacher education and professional learning for a sustained period, spanning more than 25 years. His national and international standing in this field is confirmed by numerous awards and frequent invitations to present keynote addresses at national and international conferences.
As a leader in teacher education, Professor Loughran has advocated strongly for the work of teachers to be better valued in society. He has a long-established interest in the development and articulation of teachers’ professional knowledge, particularly in science education, having striven for decades to raise professional self-awareness amongst teachers and the status of teaching more broadly.
Professor Loughran has an extensive research output in the discipline of education, published as journal articles, book chapters and books. His research has impacted the areas of teacher education pedagogy, science education, reflective practice, and teaching and learning in secondary schools.
More specifically he has focused on how teachers learn to teach and how they put that learning into practice and develop their knowledge, skills and ability over time. This is combined with his efforts to clarify what it means to be an expert teacher and how critical this understanding is to enhancing and developing student learning in meaningful ways.
Professor Loughran’s research has been supported by a remarkable track record in securing Australian Research Council grants, many of which have funded projects aimed at developing a more strategic approach to policy and practice in science education, allied to his involvement in teacher education. He has maintained a strong focus on science education at Monash University, providing the faculty with access to some of the best minds from around the world in this important aspect of education.
In his position as the Dean of the Faculty of Education at Monash University, he has been able to positively influence a generation of teachers, reflected in the professional development of teacher candidates and experienced teachers graduating from Monash University’s teacher training programs.
The Australian College of Educators acknowledges Professor John Loughran’s exceptional contribution to education over an extended period of time by bestowing him with the Sir James Darling Medal for 2018.
