Pauline Harris

Teaching Strengths

Early years language and literacy education
Children's active citizenship, voice, participation
Dialogic and culturally sustaining pedagogy

Prof Pauline Harris

Research Professor

School of Education

College of Education, Behavioural and Social Sciences

Eligible to supervise Masters and PhD - email supervisor to discuss availability.

Available For Media Comment.

Professor Pauline Harris is Research Professor, Early Childhood Research, in Education Futures at the University of South Australia.
Her work is informed by her expertise in children’s literacies, languages and citizenship across diverse education and community settings in Australia and overseas. 
As lead researcher of collaborative teams, Pauline has led the development of:

New knowledge and practices that foster chidlren's literacies, including those essential to their democratic participation
Culturally sustaining practices and resources for fostering children’s literacies in their home languages and English
Authentic dialogic encounters with young children that enable children to participate in civic life and decisions affecting their lives.

Pauline has authored seven books, including Children’s multilingual literacy - Fostering childhood literacy in home and community settings (Harris, Brock, Camaitoga, Carter, Diamond, McInnes, Krishna, Neill, 2018, Springer) and Children as Citizens: Engaging with the Child’s Voice in Educational Settings (Harris and Manatakis, 2013, Routledge).
Pauline's research engagement with partners, policymakers, practitioners and stakeholders has had wide-ranging impact and benefit, as evidenced in the Children’s Voices and Citizenship Research Program that she leads with colleagues in Australia and overseas.The Australian Research Council's High Impact rating of the evidenced impact and benefit of her research program is testimony to the difference her research has made in education and communities over many years.
Other recognition of Pauline's work includes the international Alan C. Purves Award for Research Impact; University of South Australia’s Distinguished Achievement Award for research leadership, influence and impact; Research Publication Excellence Award (Centre for Research in Educational & Social Inclusion); and Outstanding Achievement Award in International Engagement, University of South Australia, 2014.
Pauline was a foundation Board Member for the Australian Children's Early Childhood Quality Authority (ACECQA); and served on ACECQA’s Policy Advisory and Research Advisory Committees. She sits on a number of international advisory boards and editorial boards; and co-edited the international Journal of Early Childhood Literacy for a number of years.
She engages with educators and other professionals in the field on an ongoing basis; and gives regular keynote addresses and professional development workshops that include topics on children’s rights, voices and participation; early years language and literacy learning, pedagogy and practice; and strengthening relationships between early childhood research, policy and practice.
Prior to her first academic appointment several years ago, Pauline completed her Doctoral studies at the University of California Berkeley; and before that, completed her undergraduate studies at The University of Sydney.

Research interests fall into two broad areas:

  • Early years anguage, literacy and literary studies, with a focus on diversity, inclusion and culturally sustaining practices.
  • Children’s active citizenship participation and education, including a focus on authentic dialogic approaches to engaging with children that support andf enable their democratic participation. 

Year Citation
2025 AL Siyabi, M., Sisson, J., Whitington, V., Memon, N., & Harris, P. (2025). Educators co-constructing religiously responsive pedagogies with Muslim children and families. Journal of Research in Childhood Education, 39(2), 384-397.
DOI
2025 Harris, P., McInnes, E., Farndale, A., Aghayeva, G., Depares, L., & Evans, P. (2025). Dialogically constructing a culturally sustaining multilingual family literacies approach in early childhood Settings. Social Sciences, 14(3), 1-29.
DOI
2025 Phillips, L. G., Harris, P., Brock, C., Ritchie, J., & Peterson, A. (2025). Accessing, understanding, inquiring into and enacting human rights as central to global citizenship education literacies in Australia. Human Rights Education Review, 8(3), 390-407.
DOI
2024 Phillips, L. G., de Rivera, L., & Harris, P. (2024). Platforms and possibilities: a scoping study of curriculum resources for global citizenship education. Australian Educational Researcher, 51(4), 1503-1523.
DOI
2023 Harris, P. (2023). In the key of child major: engaging with children's voices through and about music. International Journal of Music in Early Childhood, 18(1), 25-41.
DOI
2022 Harris, P., Camaitoga, U., Brock, C., Diamond, A., McInnes, E., & Neill, B. (2022). Co-creating multilingual books with children to foster their literacies. The Reading Teacher, 75(5), 555-565.
DOI
2021 McInnes, E., Harris, P., Neill, B., Diamond, A., Brock, C., & Camaitoga, U. (2021). Supporting preschool age children's wellbeing through home-based literacy development in three Fijian communities. New Zealand International Research in Early Childhood Education Journal, 23(2), 36-51.
2020 Sisson, J. H., Giovacco Johnson, T., Harris, P., Stribling, J., & Webb Williams, J. (2020). Collaborative professional identities and continuity of practice: a narrative inquiry of preschool and primary teachers. Early years, 40(4), 319-334.
DOI
2020 Harris, P. (2020). What no 'Rug Time' sharing means: revisioning children's opportunity to enact literate identities through the lens of positioning theory. Trabalhos em Linguística Aplicada, 59(1), 10-41.
DOI
2020 Harris, P., Brock, C. H., McInnes, E., Diamond, A., Neill, B., Carter, J., & Giannakis, E. (2020). Co-constructing culturally sustaining practices for fostering young children's literacy in Fiji. Journal of Research in Childhood Education, 34(1), 127-152.
DOI
2016 Farndale, A., Harris, P., & de Courcy, M. (2016). Social, emotional, and linguistic experiences of developing bilingual preschoolers as they learn English as an Additional Language (EAL). The international journal of learning, 23, 41-58.
2015 Harris, P. (2015). 'Words and stuff': exploring children's perspectives of classroom reading in the early school years. Australian journal of language and literacy, 38(1), 27-37.
2013 Harris, P., Chinnappan, M., Castleton, G., Carter, J., de Courcy, M., & Barnett, J. (2013). Impact and consequence of Australia's National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) - using research evidence to inform improvement. TESOL in context, 23(1-2), 30-52.
2013 Harris, P., & Manatakis, H. (2013). Young children's voices about their local communities. Australasian journal of early childhood, 38(3), 68-76.
2010 Harris, P. (2010). 'At a school like this' Implementing policy in a kindergarten reading program. International research in early childhood education, 1(1), 50-59.
2010 Harris, P., Turbill, J., Kervin, L., & Harden Thew, K. (2010). Mapping the archive : an examination of research reported in AJLL 2000-2005. Australian journal of language and literacy, 33(3), 173-196.
2010 Harris, P. (2010). Mediating relationships across research, policy, and practice in teacher education. Studying teacher education, 6(1), 75-93.
DOI
2009 Chen, H., & Harris, P. (2009). Becoming school literate parents : an ESL perspective. Australian journal of language and literacy, 32(2), 118-135.
2008 Harris, P., McKenzie, B., Chen, H., Kervin, L., & Fitzsimmons, P. (2008). A Critical Examination of the Nexus Between Literacy Research, Policy and Practice. English in Australia, 43(1), 57-64.
2007 Harris, P., & Daley, J. (2007). Social capital and adult Llearning: exploring play institutional settings. Australian Journal of Adult Learning.
2007 Harris, P. (2007). Developing an integrated play-based pedagogy in preservice teacher education: a self-study. Studying teacher education, 3(2), 135-154.
DOI

Year Citation
2024 Harris, P., Fisher, R., Wickramaarachchi, T. I., & Brock, C. H. (2024). Examining varieties of positioning. In M. B. McVee, L. Langenhove, C. H. Brock, & B. A. Christensen (Eds.), Source details - Title: The Routledge International Handbook of Positioning Theory (pp. 147-182). US: Routledge.
DOI
2023 Brock, C., Exley, B., & Harris, P. (2023). What do opportunities and diversities have to do with literacies teaching and learning?: A provocation. In C. Brock, B. Exley, & L. -I. Rigney (Eds.), Source details - Title: International Perspectives on Literacies, Diversities, and Opportunities for Learning: Critical Conversations (pp. 12-30). UK: Routledge.
DOI
2023 Harris, P. (2023). Positioning and academic diversity in a first-grade literacy programme: implications for opportunities for learning. In C. Brock, B. Exley, & L. -I. Rigney (Eds.), Source details - Title: International Perspectives on Literacies, Diversities, and Opportunities for Learning: Critical Conversations (pp. 60-76). UK: Routledge.
DOI
2023 Harris, P. (2023). Child-voiced assessment for understanding children's learning and transforming pedagogic practices. In C. McLachlan (Ed.), Source details - Title: Assessment and Data Systems in Early Childhood Settings: Theory and Practice (pp. 243-264). Singapore: Springer.
DOI
2023 Harris, P. (2023). Equitable, accessible and sustainable professional learning that makes a difference: the cases of the Aboriginal Reading Project. In D. A. Harris, L. A. Hall, & C. H. Brock (Eds.), Source details - Title: Innovations in Literacy Professional Learning: Strengthening Equity, Access, and Sustainability (pp. 145-170). US: Guilford Press.
2023 Harris, P. (2023). Active citizenship education with young children: key themes, possibilities, and future research directions. In S. DeZutter (Ed.), Source details - Title: International Perspectives on Educating for Democracy in Early Childhood (pp. 105-109). UK: Routledge.
DOI
2023 Harris, P., Camaitoga, U., Krishna, M., Brock, C., McInnes, E., Diamond, A., & Neill, B. (2023). Co-constructing opportunities for shared, collective literacies learning in communities in Fiji. In C. Brock, B. Exley, & L. -I. Rigney (Eds.), Source details - Title: International Perspectives on Literacies, Diversities, and Opportunities for Learning: Critical Conversations (pp. 212-227). UK: Routledge.
DOI
2021 Harris, P., Diamond, A., Neill, B., McInnes, E., Brock, C., & Camaitoga, U. (2021). Fostering young children's literacy in home and community settings: a dialogic approach to developing culturally relevant and sustaining practices. In L. A. Henry, & N. A. Stahl (Eds.), Source details - Title: Literacy Across the Community: Research: Research, Praxis, and Trends (pp. 73-88). UK: Routledge.
DOI
2020 Green, J. L., Brock, C., Baker, W. D., & Harris, P. (2020). Positioning theory and discourse analysis: an explanatory theory and analytic lens. In N. S. Nasir (Ed.), Source details - Title: Handbook of the Cultural Foundations of Learning (pp. 119-140). UK: Routledge.
2019 Harris, P., Peterson, A., & Brock, C. (2019). Re-imagining young children's literacy education for their democratic participation. In S. Riddle, & M. W. Apple (Eds.), Source details - Title: Re-Imagining Education for Democracy (pp. 112-127). UK: Routledge.
2019 Exley, B., Brock, C., Harris, P., & Camaitoga, U. (2019). Early years EAL/D learners: proficiencies, trans-languaging and pedagogic identities. In A. Woods, & B. Exley (Eds.), Source details - Title: Literacies in Early Childhood: Foundations of Equity and Quality (pp. 1-15). Australia: Oxford University Press.
2019 Brock, C., & Harris, P. (2019). Using multiliteracies as a lens to explore young children's engagement with multimodal texts. In A. Woods, & B. Exley (Eds.), Source details - Title: Literacies in Early Childhood: Foundations of Equity and Quality (pp. 1-20). Australia: Oxford University Press.
2019 Brock, C., Harris, P., & Camaitoga, U. (2019). Working within a 'Contact Zone' to explore Indigenous Fijian epistemology. In K. T. Han, & J. Laughter (Eds.), Source details - Title: Critical Race Theory in Teacher Education: Informing Classroom Culture and Practice (pp. 126-136). US: Teachers College Press.
2018 Harris, P., Brock, C., Diamond, A., McInnes, E., Neill, B., Camaitoga, U., & Krishna, M. (2018). "You, us and a bus": exploring analysis as cross-cultural collaboration in Fiji. In S. Akpovo, M. J. Moran, & R. Brookshire (Eds.), Source details - Title: Collaborative cross-cultural research methodologies in early care and education contexts (pp. 169-186). US: Routledge.
DOI
2017 Harris, P. (2017). In dialogue with children: Exploring children's views of literacy practices in their early childhood settings. In C. J. McLachlan, & A. W. Arrow (Eds.), Source details - Title: Literacy in the early years: Reflections on international research and practice (pp. 21-42). Singapore: Springer.
DOI
2009 Chen, H., & Harris, P. (2009). Learning to become school-literate parents of ESL children. In A. Mahboob, & C. Lipovsky (Eds.), Source details - Title: Studies in applied linguistics and language learning (pp. 226-243). Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.

Year Citation
2020 McKinney de Royston, M., Pea, R., Nasir, N. S., Lee, C., Cole, M., Packer, M., . . . Darling-Hammond, L. (2020). Reconceptualizing learning: A critical task for knowledge-building and teaching. In Computer Supported Collaborative Learning Conference Cscl Vol. 1 (pp. 484-490).
Scopus1
2011 Harris, P. (2011). When you're five, things are not always easy : what children say about their classroom literacy experiences. In J. Wright (Ed.), AARE 2011 Conference proceedings (pp. 1-23). Australia: AARE.
2011 Harris, P. (2011). 'It's got exactly the same chook running in the wood' : children's sense of intertextual boundaries in the early school years. In J. Wright (Ed.), AARE 2011 conference proceedings (pp. 1-17). Australia: AARE.
2009 Harris, P. (2009). Key issues and future directions in the nexus of literacy research, policy and practice. In Proceedings of the AARE 2008 : Changing Climates : Education for Sustainable Futures (pp. 1-17). Australia: AARE.
2009 Chen, H., & Harris, P. (2009). Recontextualisation as a framework for understanding relationships among literacy research, policy and practice. In The Literacy Nexus: Exploring Relationships among Literacy Research, Policyand Practice’ Symposium: Conference proceedings 2008 (pp. 1-16). Australia: AARE.
2007 Harris, P., McKenzie, P., Chen, H., Kervin, L., & Fitzsimmons, P. (2007). Investigating relationships between literacy research, policy, and practice : a critical review of related literature. In Proceedings of the ALEA/AATE Annual Conference 2007. Australia: Australian Association for the Teaching of English & Australian Literacy Educators' Association.
2007 Harris, P. (2007). Conversations across borders: interactions between literacy research, policy and practice. In S. Simpson, & A. Alyson (Eds.), Conference Proceedings of Future Directions in Literacy: International Conversations. Sydney, Australia: Sydney University Press.

  • Implementing a Family Literacy Approach to Promoting Children's and Families' Literacy in Home Languages and English in the Early Years Phases 1 and 2, Scanlon Foundation, 30/01/2023 - 30/06/2025

  • Developing a Family Literacy Approach to Promoting English Literacy in the Early Years, Scanlon Foundation, 01/01/2022 - 31/05/2023

  • Horizon Project: Enabling young children’s global citizenship literacies, QLD Dept of Education, 01/05/2022 - 31/10/2022

  • Arapaho Language and Culture Immersion Project: Creation of a dual-language immersion school at St Stephen's Indian School (SSIS), Wyoming, St Stephen¿s Indian School, 01/05/2020 - 30/09/2020

Courses I teach

  • EDUC 5248 Learner-Centred Curriculum Leadership (2025)
  • EDUC 5248 Learner-Centred Curriculum Leadership (2024)

Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name
2022 Principal Supervisor - Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Ms Nathalia Natsias

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