Anna Lloyd is a Lecturer in Education with a background in psychology and teacher education. She completed a Bachelor of Psychology and a Graduate Entry Bachelor of Education at the University of South Australia, before working in London as a secondary teacher and leader. During this time, she served as Initial Teacher Education Coordinator, overseeing school-based training for graduate teachers, and as Head of Social Sciences, leading the delivery of GCSE and A-Level courses in Psychology and Sociology, as well as vocational qualifications in Health and Social Care.
Anna holds a Master of Science in Psychology of Education from the UCL Institute of Education, where her research examined the relationships between adolescents’ smartphone use, sleep patterns, and academic performance.
She is now based at Adelaide University, where she coordinates a large undergraduate course: The Brain and Learning. Her teaching focuses on the intersection of educational psychology, pedagogy, and critical perspectives on curriculum, with particular attention to how research on learning is translated into classroom practice. She has led major course redesigns that incorporate short-form lectures, retrieval-based learning activities, and alternative assessment approaches to improve student engagement and success.
Anna’s work sits within the context of national accreditation requirements, including the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership Strong Beginnings reforms. She has been centrally involved in implementing mandated content relating to “Brain and Learning”, navigating the tensions between policy-driven models of instruction and more holistic, student-focused approaches to education.
Her research interests focus on pedagogy and education policy, particularly the rise of neuroscientific and cognitive frameworks in policy discourse. She is currently undertaking a PhD examining “neuroliberalism” in education policy, exploring how contemporary reforms shape what counts as legitimate knowledge about teaching and learning, and how these reforms are enacted in teacher education programs.