Charles Sturt University
Charles Sturt University

Higher Degrees by Research

The Faculty of Arts and Education has a vibrant and diverse community of doctoral candidates, both on and off campus, in Australia and around the world, pursuing a Doctor of Philosophy degree in the areas of education and information studies. The majority of our doctoral candidates study via distance education and come to campus on a regular basis to meet with their supervisors and other candidates. There are also a number of full time doctoral candidates, both on and off campus.

Prospective Higher Degree by Research candidates should read the information on this page which outlines the steps to take PRIOR to completing an application for admission to the program. 

Candidates are supported and mentored by academic staff with a broad background, and expertise in a diverse range of content areas and research methodologies. More information about expertise in the faculty is available here.

Proposed Title

TBA

Summary

TERRITORIAL ARREARS - reclaiming virtual and physical space with digitally-biased artwork

In their Capitalism and Schizophrenia treatise, Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari propose the twin ideas of deterritorialisation/reterritorialisation - concepts that analyse how territories, nation-states, cultures or even the human psyche can have their inner spaces taken away and re-gained, their borders shaped and redrawn.

Virtual reality (VR) is the latest fad in digital technology coming from Silicon Valley. VR creators claim it can reinvent human experience and create new levels of empathy between people. VR does indeed provide very uniquely immersive ways to see and interact with an environment; it also  creates new ways to gain data about its user - for example by tracking eye and body movements.

My aim is to create “fake virtual tours” in 360 stills, videos or animations made up of streets, plazas, buildings and houses, reimagined as overly idealised or decayed city/landscapes. As a practical demonstration of de/reterritorialisation, I would like to display my work to regular viewers in different settings, not exclusively in museums and galleries.

In this open dialog, I would like to propose solutions and ways in which human beings can regain some of their humanity in the digital/virtual age so that they can stride towards a post-user post-virtual Age.

Why I chose CSU

I did my Bachelor of Arts at CSU and I found that it has possibly best facilities and equipment available for students in Australia. I have kept in touch with professors from my undergraduate degree and knew we would be able to work well together in my post-graduate research.

Publications

I published my honours degree research paper on Fusion Journal: http://www.fusion-journal.com/issue/004-fusion-the-town-and-the-city/privatised-deprivation/

Proposed Title

“Singing to success: The use of song as a motivational tool for promoting writing/creative writing in the EFL/ESL classroom-tertiary education.”

Summary

In my experience as an ESL/EFL language instructor, finding ways to motivate students is paramount to success. Students need to be encouraged towards the use of every day stimuli which bring them pleasure as tools to facilitate language learning both in and out of the classroom. In my experience with advanced learners of English in tertiary environments, one such stimulus is song. Songs offer a plethora of motivational authentic material which can be used to engage students and assist them in becoming more actively in control and autonomous in their language learning endeavors. Used in a pedagogically grounded manner, song may be exploited in a number of ways to help students with vocabulary acquisition, use of context clues, specific grammatical features as well as with comprehension skills. More specifically, what I aim to research further is the use of song as a motivational tool to promote writing/creative writing/speaking and hence language learning in advanced EFL/ESL learners in tertiary education environments. Many learners voluntarily turn to music and song as a pastime, a form of entertainment as well as a means of expression in their daily lives. Tapping into this pool of authentic material can be useful in creating a springboard for writing/creative writing and speaking.

Why I chose CSU

I was very interested in studying online and found the research in higher education degree at CSU to be exactly what I was looking for.

Proposed Title

The Deutsche Christen under Hitler: Die Botschaft Gottes and the Institute for the Study and Elimination of Jewish Influence on German Church Life.

Summary

This thesis will suggest that the German State Churches co-opting of National Socialist ideology highlights the inherent danger of giving primacy to contemporary culture when undertaking theological reflection and biblical scholarship. This thesis will draw on various texts and publications which demonstrate the extent to which the German Church adapted the bible and theological tradition in order to accommodate anti-Semitism and Nazi racial policy. I will suggest throughout that contextual approaches to theological interpretation should be held in tension with the transcendent.

Why I chose CSU

I completed my BTh (Honors) in theology at Charles Sturt University.

Publications

Eremos, December 2018 No. 144. 'John Bunyan’s Cinematic Spirituality' ISSN: 1037-4922

Parity, November 2014, Vol.27 Issue 10 'Young People Seeking Asylum and Homelessness' ISSN: 1032-6170

Proposed title

Colour, Light and the Complexity of Modernity: The Life and Work of Dorothea Mackellar.

Summary

Dorothea Mackellar was an early 20th Century Australian poet who wrote the poem "My Country". First published in 1908, the second verse contains words and phrases that are still repeated today.   Words such as "sunburnt country"; "land of sweeping plains"; "droughts and flooding rains" and “wide brown land” are often heard or read in everyday speech and writing. Yet little is known of her life and literary output and the wider corpus of her poetry and fiction has passed into obscurity.  My thesis aims to redress this neglect: to describe and analyse her poetry thematically and to show it was far from being just the work of an old-fashioned nationalist. Dorothea Mackellar’s lyrics were vibrant, lively and showed a burgeoning appreciation of global contemporary literary trends — including modernism.  An accurate and holistic account of Mackellar’s life is also absent from the limited record : this thesis will examine key aspects of the poet’s life too, through the prism of her verse.

Why I chose CSU?

I successfully completed my M.Ed. (Teacher-Librarianship) at CSU in 2005. This was my first foray into  online learning and I have to say it was every bit as engaging as studying on-campus elsewhere for my B.A./Dip.Ed. and Honours in Australian Literature.  For my Honours I compared the careers of four prominent women in the arts: two painters and two poets – one of whom was Dorothea Mackellar. I chose C.S.U. to complete my Doctorate to focus solely on this important literary contributor to Australian culture.  My earlier experience at CSU ensured I felt confident studying off-campus, even though I live in country Victoria!

Engagement and memberships

Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA); Victorian Institute of Teaching (VIT); Association for the Study of Australian Literature (ASAL); Writers Victoria.

Publications

Australian Poetry Journal Vol.5, Issue 1, 2015  ‘About Town’

Professional Journal Articles

Anderson, S. (2009) ‘Library trainees are a great asset’, Connections,

Curriculum Corporation, Carlton South, Issue No.70, Term 3 2009.

Anderson, S. (2009) ‘Traineeships at Brauer’, For Your Information Journal of School Library Association of Victoria (SLAV), Carlton, Vol.13, No1.

Anderson, S. (2008) ‘Brauer College new resource centre’, For Your Information Journal of School Library Association of Victoria (SLAV), Carlton, Vol.12, Number 2 Available DRO

Anderson, S. (2008) ‘The Living Library comes to Brauer’ For Your Information Journal of School Library Association of Victoria (SLAV), Carlton, Vol.12, Number 3.  Available DRO, http://hdl.handle.net/10536/DRO/DU:30046300

Booklet: Anderson, S, Black, J 1996, Alan Marshall his life and work, Corangamite Arts Council, Terang, Vic.