Doctor Tania Ferfolja

Doctor Tania Ferfolja

SENIOR LECTURER,
Primary Education (SoE)

Personal

Qualifications

  • PhD University of New South Wales
  • MA University of New South Wales
  • BA University of Sydney

UWS Organisational Unit (School / Division)

  • Primary Education (SoE)

Contact

Email:ta.ferfolja@uws.edu.au
Extension:6437
6437
Mobile:
Location:1.1.190
Bankstown
Website:

Biography

Dr Ferfolja is a Senior Lecturer in Social and Cultural Diversity. She teaches in the area of social justice and equity in education. She is the recipient of an Australian Award for University Teaching: Citation for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning (2012), UWS Vice Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Community Engagement (2011) and UWS College of Arts Citation Award for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning. Dr Ferfolja’s research interests focus on LGBTQI issues particularly in education; pre-service teacher education for disadvantaged and marginalized communities; academic service learning; and refugee youth and schooling. She is currently working on two research projects: the first examines the experiences of Australian lesbian and gay-identified teachers in the workplace; the second focuses on how anti-homophobia education is implemented in high schools in Toronto, Canada. She has numerous publications and many of these appear in highly-esteemed international journals. She is lead author on the book entitled Crossing Borders: African Refugees, Teachers and Schools (2011 ACSA/Common Ground) and is a co-editor of From Here to Diversity: The Social Impact of Lesbian and Gay Issues in Education in Australia and New Zealand (2002 Harrington Park Press). Dr Ferfolja is on the editorial board of the Journal of LGBT Youth.

 

This information has been contributed by Doctor Ferfolja.

Interests

  • LGBTQI issues in education; preservice teacher education; academic service learning; refugee youth and schooling

Awards

  • UWS VC Award for Excellence in Community Engagement 2011-10-25

Publications

Chapters in Books

  • Ferfolja, T., Naidoo, L., Mccarthy, F. and Vickers, M. (2011), 'School-university-community partnerships', Crossing Borders: African refugees, teachers and schools, Common Ground Publishing 9781875864690.
  • Ferfolja, T. (2011), 'Crossing borders: changing perspectives and practices for social justice in education', Crossing Borders; African refugees, teachers and schools, Common Ground Publishing LLC 9781875864690.
  • Ferfolja, T. (2011), 'Crossing institutional and 'Other' borders', Crossing Borders: African refugees, teachers and schools, Common Ground Publishing LLC 9781875864690.
  • Robinson, K. and Ferfolja, T. (2002), 'A reflection of resistance. Discourses of heterosexism and homophobia in teacher training classrooms', From Here to Diversity: The impact of lesbian and gay issues in education in Australia and New Zealand, Harrington Park Press 1560235500.

Journal Articles

  • Ferfolja, T. (2010), 'Lesbian teachers, harassment and the workplace', Teaching and Teacher Education, 7.
  • Ferfolja, T. and Vickers, M. (2010), 'Supporting refugee students in school education in Greater Western Sydney', Critical Studies in Education, 14.
  • Ferfolja, T., Whitton, D. and Sidoti, C. (2010), 'Classrooms without borders: using academic service learning to enhance pre-service teachers' understandings of diversity and difference', The Australian Journal of University-Community Engagement, 11.
  • Ferfolja, T. (2009), 'Stories So Far: An Overview of the Research on Lesbian Teachers', Sexualities, 19.
  • Ferfolja, T. (2009), 'The Refugee action support program: Developing understandings of diversity', Teaching Education, 13.
  • Ferfolja, T. (2008), 'Discourses that silence: teachers and anti-lesbian harassment', Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 13.
  • Ferfolja, T. (2008), 'Building Teacher Capital in Pre-Service Teachers: Reflections on a New Teacher-Education Initiative', Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 17.
  • Robinson, K. and Ferfolja, T. (2008), 'Playing it up, playing it down, playing it safe: Queering teacher education', Teaching and Teacher Education, 13.
  • Ferfolja, T. (2008), 'Beyond a command performance: reflections on Classmates as a new teacher preparation initiative', Asia Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 14.
  • Ferfolja, T. (2008), 'Making the transition into the first year of teaching: Lessons from the Classmates initiative', Australian Journal of Education, 15.
  • Ferfolja, T. (2007), 'Classmates as community engagement: A way forward for teacher preparation', The Australasian Journal of University Community Engagement, 5.
  • Ferfolja, T. (2007), 'Teacher negotiations of sexual subjectivities', Gender and Education, 18.
  • Skattebol, J. and Ferfolja, T. (2007), 'Voices from an enclave: Lesbian mothers' experiences of child care', Australian Journal of Early Childhood, 9.
  • Ferfolja, T. (2006), 'Schooling cultures : institutionalizing heteronormativity and heterosexism', International Journal of Inclusive Education, 16.
  • Ferfolja, T. (2005), 'Institutional Silence: Experiences of Australian Lesbian Teachers Working in Catholic High Schools', Journal of Gay and Lesbian Issues in Education, 16.
  • Robinson, K., Ferfolja, T. and Goldstein, T. (2004), 'Editorial - Special Issue: Anti-homophobia teacher education', Teacher Education, 6.
  • Ferfolja, T. and Robinson, K. (2004), 'Why anti-homophobia education in teacher education? perspectives from Australian teacher educators', Teaching Education, 17.
  • Robinson, K. and Ferfolja, T. (2001), 'What are we doing this for? ; Dealing with lesbian and gay issues in teacher education', British Journal of Sociology of Education, 13.

Research

Previous Projects

Title:Negotiating Sexual Subjectivities: The experiences of early childhood educators
Years:2004-08-24 - 2005-12-20
ID:P0010228
UWS Researchers:Tania Ferfolja
Funding:
  • University of Western Sydney
Title:Preparing beginning teachers for hard-to-staff schools
Years:2006-12-20 - 2008-06-30
ID:P0015440
UWS Researchers:Tania Ferfolja and Margaret Vickers
Funding:
  • University of Western Sydney
Title:Managing sexual diversity in secondary schools. Perspectives from Canada and Australia
Years:2012-05-16 - 2013-03-31
ID:P00021032
UWS Researchers:Tania Ferfolja
Funding:
  • Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada
Title:Literacy development and acculturation for refugee students in the homework centres
Years:2007-08-30 - 2009-06-30
ID:P0015661
UWS Researchers:Loshini Naidoo, Margaret Vickers and Tania Ferfolja
Funding:
  • University of Western Sydney
  • The Australian Literacy and Numeracy Foundation
Title:Anti-Homophobia Education in Teacher Training Courses in New South Wales
Years:2002-01-01 - 2002-12-31
ID:P0011510
UWS Researchers:Kerry Robinson and Tania Ferfolja
Funding:
  • University of Western Sydney
Title:Teaching to make a difference: Supporting Sudanese Refugee Students in Western Sydney
Years:2006-12-20 - 2008-03-31
ID:P0015437
UWS Researchers:Margaret Vickers, Tania Ferfolja and Rosemary Suliman
Funding:
  • University of Western Sydney
  • NSW Department of Education & Training
  • Catholic Education Office
Title:Impact Study Research on the Safe Schools Making the Links 2004 pilot project
Years:2005-09-05 - 2007-05-31
ID:P0014751
UWS Researchers:Margaret Vickers, Kerry Robinson, Tania Ferfolja and Maggie Clarke
Funding:
  • NSW Department of Education & Training
Title:Supporting Refugee Students through the RAS initiative: Programs of 'Best practice'
Years:2009-12-11 - 2011-12-31
ID:P00017435
UWS Researchers:Tania Ferfolja and Loshini Naidoo
Funding:
  • The Australian Literacy and Numeracy Foundation
Title:Lesbian and gay teachers speak: A study of the effects of schooling and institutional cultures on sexual subjectivities in metropolitan Sydney
Years:2010-11-30 - 2012-08-31
ID:P00019578
UWS Researchers:Tania Ferfolja
Funding:
  • University of Western Sydney

Supervision

Doctor Ferfolja is available to be a principal supervisor for doctoral projects

Current Supervision

Title:Pre-Service Teachers: Effects on their Identity and Self Efficacy in the Primary Mathematics Practicum Classroom
Field of Research:
Title:Rethinking Multiculturalism/Reassessing Multicultural Education
Field of Research:
Title:The Impact of Culture and Communication: Living in Immigration Detention
Field of Research:
Title:Pre-Service Teachers: Effects on their Identity and Self Efficacy in the Primary Mathematics Practicum Classroom
Field of Research:
Title:Building Ethical and Respectful Relationships for Sociocultural Diversity in School: The Space Between Parents and Pedagogy
Field of Research:

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