Associate Professor Christine Ure coordinates all undergraduate and graduate courses in the Faculty of Education for preschool, primary, secondary and adult and vocational education. She contributes to teaching in a number of these programs in the areas of human development, assessment and evaluation and special needs. She also teaches research methods and supervises research students at Masters and Doctoral levels.

Associate Professor Ure has conducted extensive research concerning teacher’s perspectives on curriculum and classroom organisation and issues related to professional development for teachers and early childhood staff. Currently she is a member of the research team for an ARC-Linkage project, funded by DEST and supported by the Victorian Institute of Teaching and the Victorian Department of Education. The project entitled “Evaluating professional experience and mentoring in the preparation and induction of teaching for the teaching profession” will examine critical issues concerning student experiences in professional practice placements. Christine is also consultant for the Best Start Evaluation project currently being conducted by the Department of Human Services, Victoria. Her previous research activities have included the Victorian First Steps Pilot Project which reviewed student progress in the first years of school, the Preschool Literacy Research Project an action-based project designed to increase opportunities for literacy and numeracy in the preschool curriculum and a project examining children’s transition to school.

Associate Professor Ure consults widely in the field. Over the past five years she has been consultant to: KPV (Kindergarten Parents Victoria) for a DEST funded project designed to develop parent/community and teacher partnerships and continuity for children’s experiences from home to preschool and school and as a member of the Steering Committee for the National Nutrition Program; UNESCO for a project designed to enhance children’s pre-literacy experiences in the home through improved parent education; AUS-AID for a project designed to improve the integration of children with special needs into mainstream services in India and the Singapore Institute of Management for the development of diploma programs for preschool professionals in Singapore. Associate Professor Ure actively represents preschool and teacher education in a number of forums including the Victorian Council of Deans of Education, the Australian Council of Deans of Education, the Accreditation Committee of the Victorian Institute of Education, the Teacher Supply and Demand Task Force, Board of Kindergarten Parents of Victoria and Academic Board, AIT, Singapore.