Tanya’s educational research in pedagogies of place presupposes that every place (and school, along with their teachers) is different because of their unique contexts. This theory explores the need for educators to shift their understanding of the curriculum to make new meaning of the experiences that they encounter. As an extension of this notion, Tanya’s research explores the role of place and teacher voice and social agency as they work towards accreditation.

Tanya has applied her research in many distinctive ways across her career and throughout experiential professional learning in different regional and urban schools. Her desire to enhance capacity through professional learning experiences that are forward-thinking and relevant to the varied contexts, lies at the heart of her research thesis. Most recently, Tanya co-presented at the 2022 ACEL Disability Conference and shared the professional learning experiences of her school and offered resources to enhance student resilience in a COVID-19 context as testimony of the collective efficacy of educators.

As Principal, she strongly advocates for the need to have professional learning timetabled into the workday of teachers so that it is not an addendum to their day and hence, prioritise their learning. Tanya’s response to the needs of educators is also evident in her mentorship of emerging leaders seeking professional advancement. Tanya Appleby’s ability to support cross-sectoral professional learning experiences is demonstrated in the development and implementation of Day Zero STEM Camp. Here, she positioned high quality experiential professional learning to regional teachers, responding to the needs with 17 schools across New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory. This rich opportunity to bring teachers and students together is evidence of Tanya’s innovative approach to supporting the needs of educators and students.

Her passion for entrepreneurial learning and capacity building in Boarding School Leadership has resulted in two Australian Educational Awards for her school. Tanya continued interest in Boarding schools and their complexities has resulted in the application of linking professional learning requirements to The National Boarding Standards and National Wellbeing Framework. Tanya continues to foster research that supports the notion that professional learning must centre on the transformational learning experiences that build capacity. Professional Learning needs to be, according to Tanya Appleby, “relevant, timely and an on-going process of professional engagement that inspires, motivates and encourages individuals to commit themselves to continuous improvement”. Tanya continues to apply her research of The Australian Professional Standards for Teachers to advocate for school-led professional learning experiences that strongly link to The Standards. Recently, Tanya was invited to speak at the 2022 Queensland College of Teacher 50 Year Celebrations. Here she spoke about the need to safeguard the professional standards and paid tribute to the role of educators working in a COVID-19 context. Her vision for education is connected to the transformative nature of learning and the desire to improve collective professional acumen while offering a first-class education to all students, irrespective of where they may live or attend school.

Tanya Appleby sits on the Educational Reference Group and Industrial Relations Group for the Queensland Catholic Education Commission. She is also on the committee for the Queensland Association of Secondary Schools and most recently has been invited to be a panellist for the Queensland College of Teachers (QCT) for the TEACHX Awards.