QUT | Staff Profiles | Hilary Hughes

Name: Associate Professor Hilary Hughes
Position(s): Research Assistant
Science and Engineering Faculty,
School of Built Environment; Adjunct Associate Professor
Faculty of Education,
School of Teacher Education and Leadership
Discipline *: Curriculum and Pedagogy, Library and Information Studies
Phone: +61 7 3138 3336
Email: h.hughes@qut.edu.au
Location: View location details (QUT staff and student access only)
Identifiers and profiles
Qualifications: Doctor of Philosophy (Queensland University of Technology), Master of Arts in Librarianship (University of Sheffield), BA(CombHons) (University of Birmingham)
Keywords: International student experience, Learning space design, Higher education pedagogy, Informed learning, Connected learning, Teacher-librarianship, School libraries, Cultural diversity, Information experience, Information literacy

* Field of Research code, Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification (ANZSRC), 2008

Dr Hilary Hughes is a passionate-educator researcher with a commitment to informed, connected learning. Through her teaching and research, Hilary promotes innovative, participatory practice in learning space design that enhances learning and wellbeing in schools and libraries. She also seeks to support the transition and academic success of international students.

As Adjunct Associate Professor, Hilary currently conducts research consultancies and professional learning programs in learning space design for schools and libraries.
In 2019 she is teaching the Designing Spaces for Learning unit in the MEd program.

Hilary was a full-time academic in QUT’s Education Faculty from November 2004 until her retirement in December 2018. She mainly coordinated and taught units in the Master of Education and for several years year coordinated the MEd(Teacher-Librarianship) program.

In her academic work, Hilary draws on extensive previous experience as librarian/information professional and information literacy educator.

Hilary’s qualifications include:

PhD (QUT)
Master of Librarianship (University of Sheffield, UK)
BA Combined Honours in Spanish and Romance Linguistics (University of Birmingham, UK)
NAATI accredited translator (Spanish-English)
Cert IV Workplace training & Assessment (Northpoint Institute of TAFE, Brisbane).
AALIA (Associate of Australian Library and Information Association)

Awards

2010: Fulbright Scholar in Residence at University of Colorado, Denver
2014, 2012, 2009, 2008: QUT Vice-Chancellor’s Performance Fund Award
2013, 2012: QUT Education Faculty teaching award (individual)
2006: QUT Education Faculty teaching award (for an individual teacher who has shown personal development and outcomes through reflective practice in teaching)
2006: QUT OLT innovative teaching award (nominated by students).

Research (ORCID: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5123-1552)
Hilary’s interdisciplinary research interests include:

Learning space design
School libraries and teacher-librarianship
International student experience
Information literacy and informed learning
Information experience

Hilary has led and contributed as CI to several major projects supported by: ARC (2 Linkage), ALTC, QCSSI and Queensland Department of Education.

Hilary’s doctoral study (2009) about international students using online information led to her Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence award at Colorado University Denver, USA in 2010. Building on this work, she advances the theory and practice of inclusive informed learning through her research and teaching. Recognising the influence of environment on information use and learning, her related research explores the design of learning spaces, especially in school and academic libraries.

Hilary has particular expertise in the following research methodologies:

Expanded critical incident technique (Hughes, 2012)
Qualitative case study
Qualitative interviewing
Thematic analysis

Professional experience

In her teaching and research Hilary draws upon professional experience as librarian and information literacy educator at:

Central Queensland University (Brisbane International Campus)
QUT
Education Queensland Corporate Library
Northpoint Institute of TAFE (Brisbane)
Glenden Town Library (Nebo Shire, Queensland)
Longlands College of Further Education (Middlesbrough, UK).

This information has been contributed by Associate Professor Hilary Hughes.

Teaching: My innovative, student-centred, scholarly approach to learning and teaching has been recognised by several QUT teaching awards and consistently high student evaluations. I promote connected learning pedagogy across physical and virtual spaces, mediated by contemporary technologies. The units I have taught include:

LCN600 Connected Learning (Coordinator & lecturer)
LCN601: Designing Spaces for Learning (Coordinator & lecturer)
LCN615: Learning Hubs (Coordinator & lecturer)
CLN617: Personalised Language Development (Coordinator & lecturer)
EDB006: Learning Networks (Tutor)
EDB001: Teaching in New Times (Tutor)

HDR supervision: As a Level 3 Supervisor, I am privileged to supervise students conducting HDR research across Education, Learning environment and Information Science disciplines.

Successful HDR students and their topics:

Kay Oddone, 2019, PhD (Principal supervisor) – Professional learning through personal learning networks (PLNs) – connected learning for educators supported by social media; qualitative case study
Annie Rolfe, 2019, MPhil (Principal supervisor) – School design and procurement and educational goals; Qualitative case study of two Australian schools
Vanessa Miller, 2018, EdD (Principal supervisor) – Learning space design, school teachers; participatory action research
Yin Yue, (International), PhD (Associate supervisor) – Alternative teacher recruitment program for university graduates to disadvantaged schools in China; sociological case Study
Kylie Andrews, 2016, MEd Research (Principal supervisor) – Learning space experience, school students
Kate Davis, 2015, PhD (Associate Supervisor) – Information experience of new mothers in social media
Tashi Gyeltshen, 2015, PhD, (Associate supervisor) – Academic leadership in Bhutan
Katherine Howard, 2015, PhD (Associate Supervisor) – Professional education of GLAM information professionals
Nicole Johnston, 2014, PhD (Associate supervsior) -Information literacy of EFL students in UAE
Ann Gillespie, 2013, PhD (Associate supervisor) – Teacher-librarians as evidence based practitioners – scholarship
Sonal Nakar, 2013, MEd Research (Principal supervisor) – Dilemmas of TAFE teachers working with international students
Yaxing Zhang, 2012, PhD (Associate Supervisor)– Academic learsership in China -Faculty thesis award
Li Wang, 2011, PhD (Associate Supervisor) – Information literacy integration model for HE
Xiong Xang, 2008, MEd Research (Associate Supervisor) – Academics’ use of CALL at a Chinese university

Current HDR student :

Lynn McAllister, EdD (associate supervisor) – Reflective learning through eportfolios in higher education; phenomenography

Scholarship of teaching
My research in the areas of informed learning and international student experience informs my teaching. It also underpinned my Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence program at Colorado University Denver, USA in 2010. Publications include: Hughes & Bruce (2013) ‘International students’ experiences of informed learning: A pedagogical case study’ and Bruce & Hughes (2010) ‘Informed learning: A pedagogical construct attending simultaneously to information use and learning’.

This information has been contributed by Associate Professor Hilary Hughes.

In my teaching and research I draw upon extensive experience as information professional/librarian and information literacy educator, especially with international students and in culturally diverse higher education contexts.

This information has been contributed by Associate Professor Hilary Hughes.

Hughes H, Franz J, Willis J, (2019) School spaces for student wellbeing and learning: Insights from research and practice, Springer
Dezuanni M, Foth M, Mallan K, Hughes H, (2018) Digital participation through social living labs: Valuing local knowledge, enhancing engagement, Chandos Publishing
Hughes H, (2018) Charrette as context and process for academic discourse in contemporary higher education: A case study, The value of academic discourse: Conversations that matter p79-102
Hughes H, Foth M, Dezuanni M, Mallan K, Allan C, (2018) Fostering digital participation and communication through social living labs: a qualitative case study from regional Australia, Communication Research and Practice p183-206
Hughes H, Cooper L, Flierl M, Somerville M, Chaudhary N, (2018) The role of the university library in supporting international student transition: Insights from an Australian-American case study, Journal of Academic Librarianship p582-594
Hughes H, (2014) Researching information experience: methodological snapshots, Information experience: Approaches to theory and practice [Library and Information Science Series, Volume 10] p33-50
Hughes H, (2014) School libraries, teacher-librarians and student outcomes: Presenting and using the evidence, School Libraries Worldwide p29-50
Hughes H, (2013) International students using online information resources to learn: complex experience and learning needs, Journal of Further and Higher Education p126-146
Hughes H, (2012) An expanded critical incident approach for exploring information use and learning, Library and Information Research p72-95
Bruce C, Hughes H, (2010) Informed learning: A pedagogical construct attending simultaneously to information use and learning, Library & Information Science Research pA2-A8

For more publications by this staff member, visit QUT ePrints, the University's research repository.

Associate Professor Hilary Hughes

Grants and projects (Category 1: Australian Competitive Grants only)

Completed supervisions (Doctorate)

Completed supervisions (Masters by Research)