On Saturday, Clarendon hosted researchED Ballarat 2025 – the largest researchED ever held in Australia. This was Clarendon’s third year hosting the event, welcoming 425 like-minded educators and researchers to connect while exploring evidence-based approaches to teaching.
researchED was founded in 2013 as a solution to frustrations about the inaccessibility of education conferences, which were often expensive and held during school hours. Since then, researchED conferences have been held around the world, on weekends, with speakers donating their time to keep ticket prices low.
This year’s keynote speaker was Clarendon’s own Deputy Principal, Dr Greg Ashman. In his presentation, The Homunculus Paradox, Dr Ashman explored a model of the mind grounded in cognitive load theory, examining its implications for how knowledge is built and the purpose of schools.
“Saturday’s event was a special day for education in Ballarat and beyond,” said Dr Ashman. “researchED presents a vital opportunity for us to share ideas about how to make teaching effective and schools a happy and productive place to be. It was humbling to see the cutting edge of the profession represented and hear from expert speakers, all who were eager to give their time for their own and others’ learning.”
The program included several speakers within our Clarendon community, including current staff, Adelle Holmes, and past staff, Trisha Jha, Reid Smith and Caiti Wade. Ms Holmes presented on teaching maths with a common curriculum at Clarendon, exploring the research behind how we encourage and enable progress in every student, as well as how our curriculum allows teachers to teach every student’s point of need.
“It is truly inspiring to be surrounded by like-minded individuals who are willing to dedicate their time to both their own learning and the growth of others,” said Ms Holmes. “As a classroom teacher with a deep interest in continuous learning, understanding the research behind the ‘why’ of our practices to improve student outcomes is very important to me. Teaching is an incredible vocation, and events like researchED serve as a powerful reminder of why I love what I do so much.”
At Clarendon, we’re a community of learners. Hosting researchED allows us to extend our commitment to continuous learning to the broader educational community locally, nationally and even internationally. The record-breaking attendance and extensive waitlist for researchED Ballarat 2025 are a testament to the shared belief in evidence-informed teaching and the collective pursuit of the most effective ways to educate future generations of learners across Australia.
Thank you to everyone who attended, presented at and assisted with the organisation of researchED Ballarat 2025.
