Biography
Ben Whitburn holds the position of Senior lecturer (inclusive education) in the Faculty of Arts and Education at Deakin University. Ben's research and teaching motivations are spurred by a concern that educational participation is not made accessible to all: that participation in public and private institutions is dependent on apparent abilities and norms. Informed by critical disability studies, Ben engages multiple collaborative partnerships between people with disabilities and their families, teachers and school leaders, university educators and public policy makers, and resource developers to consider how accessibility to—and participation in—education can be advanced.
Ben's PhD by publication (conferred in 2015) concentrated specifically on the experiences of young people with disabilities enrolled in mainstream schools located in Australia and Spain. This transnational comparison drew extensively on students' perspectives to learn the effects of divergent policies and practices that seek to develop inclusive schooling systems, such as the provision of paraprofessional support, accessible resources, curriculum and pedagogies. Ben supervises research students with aligned interests, including PhD students on various national and international significance such as intercultural competence of school leaders in Australia, Migrant teacher identities in Victoria, inclusive school community development in Vietnam, practices of secondary teachers in Indonesia, and policy development and enactment in early years learning in the Maldives.
Ben coordinates the inclusive education pathway units of the Master of Teaching at Deakin University (EIE701-4). Ben uses teaching opportunities in this program to support preservice teachers to develop critical awareness of how inclusion can be developed, through an understanding of their responsibilities to design accessible and engaging learning experiences. He draws on his own experiences teaching in both special education contexts in Australian schools as well as English as a Second Language (ESL) overseas. Ben is a member of REDI (Research for Educational Impact) in the School of Education.
Research interests
Schooling experiences; disability studies; policy enactment; inclusive pedagogy; poststructural representation.
Teaching interests
Equity in education;
Studies of ableism;
Policy implementation;
Inclusive teaching and learning;
Critical inquiry;
Knowledge areas
Critical disability perspectives; poststructuralism; critical policy sociology; qualitative methods; equity.
Awards
Commended Ray Debus Award 2016
- Australian Association for Research in Education
Junior Scholar Award July 2014
-American Educational Research Association’s special interest group in Disability Studies in Education.
Publications
The plague years in Australian higher education
Matthew Thomas, Ben Whitburn
(2023), pp. 168-184, Building the Post-Pandemic University : Imagining, Contesting and Materializing Higher Education Futures, London, Eng., B1
R Lahiri-Roy, B Whitburn
(2023), Vol. 23, pp. 501-514, Qualitative Research Journal, Bingley, Eng., C1-1
Normative power in higher education: the ghost of inherent requirements
T McCandless, T Corcoran, B Whitburn
(2023), pp. 1-14, International Journal of Inclusive Education, London, Eng., C1
Re-searching Margins Ethics, Social Justice, and Education
Fida Sanjakdar, Gabrielle Fletcher, Amanda Keddie, Ben Whitburn
(2022), London, Eng., A1
Ontological Assessment Decisions in Teaching and Learning
B Whitburn, M Thomas
(2022), pp. 74-84, Assessment for Inclusion in Higher Education: Promoting Equity and Social Justice in Assessment, London, Eng., B1
The National Disability Insurance Scheme, education and funding to support the inclusion of students with disabilities across educational sectors
B Whitburn
(2022), pp. 446-452, International Encyclopedia of Education: Fourth Edition, B1
Storying disability's potential
B Whitburn, D Goodley
(2022), Vol. 26, pp. 415-428, International Journal of Inclusive Education, C1
Inherent requirements in higher education: locating You in Us
Tim Corcoran, B Whitburn, E Knight
(2022), Vol. 26, pp. 69-75, Perspectives: Policy and Practice in Higher Education, London, Eng., C1
Higher Education and Inherent Requirements: Beyond Inherency to Coherency
Tim Corcoran, Ben Whitburn, Trevor McCandless
(2022), pp. 1-23, Journal of Disability Studies in Education, Leiden, The Netherlands, C1
Teaching standards and inclusion: beyond educating the same way
Tim Corcoran, Ben Whitburn, Bethany Rice
(2022), pp. 1-16, Teaching Education, London, Eng., C1
"We appreciate the efforts, but is this enough?": Inclusive education in the Maldives
Amathullah Shakeeb, Ben Whitburn, Anna Kilderry
(2021), Vol. 47, pp. 145-157, Inclusive education is a right, right?, Leiden, The Netherlands, B1
Risks in time: to inclusive educational rights
Ben Whitburn, Matthew Thomas
(2021), Vol. 47, pp. 37-50, Inclusive education is a right, right?, Leiden, The Netherlands, B1
Relational power and communication: praxis for educational inclusivity
Peng-Sim Eng, Timothy Corcoran, Ben Whitburn
(2021), Vol. 47, pp. 172-185, Inclusive education is a right, right?, Leiden, The Netherlands, B1
A Right to be Included: The Best and Worst of Times for Learners with Disabilities
Ben Whitburn, Matthew Thomas
(2021), Vol. 23, pp. 104-113, Scandinavian Journal of Disability Research, Stockholm, Sweden, C1
Diversity training, inclusive education and our inevitable lament
B Whitburn, T Corcoran
(2021), Vol. 21, pp. 17-24, Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs, C1
Blindness/sightedness: Disability studies and the defiance of di-vision
Benjamin Whitburn, Rod Michalko
(2020), pp. 219-233, Routledge handbook of disability studies, New York, N.Y., B1
Commentary on Part 1: Messing with Inclusive Education
Timothy Corcoran, Ben Whitburn
(2020), Vol. 46, pp. 68-77, Moving Towards Inclusive Education : Diverse National Engagements with Paradoxes of Policy and Practice, Leiden, The Netherlands, B1
Time, power and education. Zeit, macht und bildung
Matthew Thomas, Ben Whitburn
(2020), pp. 187-210, Frontiers in time research – Einführung in die interdisziplinäre Zeitforschung, Wiesbaden, Germany, B1
Seven reasons to question the hegemony of visible learning
L McKnight, B Whitburn
(2020), Vol. 41, pp. 32-44, Discourse: studies in the cultural politics of education, Abingdon, Eng., C1
Melanie Wong, B Whitburn
(2019), Vol. 38, pp. 75-94, Belonging : rethinking inclusive practices to support well-being and identity, Leiden, The Netherlands, B1
Ontologies of inclusion and teacher education
B Whitburn, Tim Corcoran
(2019), pp. 1-15, Global perspectives on inclusive teacher education, Hershey, Pa., B1
Political struggle for inclusion in higher education
Benjamin Whitburn, Christopher McMaster
(2019), pp. 3-10, Disability at the university : a disabled students' manifesto, New York, N.Y., B1
M Thomas, B Whitburn
(2019), Vol. 40, pp. 159-173, British Journal of Sociology of Education, C1
Paradoxes in inclusive education: a necessary condition of relationality?
T Corcoran, L Claiborne, B Whitburn
(2019), Vol. 23, pp. 1003-1016, International journal of inclusive education, Abingdon, Eng., C1
Maree Roche, Ben Whitburn
(2019), Vol. 13, pp. 345-360, Journal of literary & cultural disability studies, Cambridge, Eng., C1
The kids are alright: they have been included for years
B Whitburn
(2018), pp. 159-175, Palgrave handbook of disabled children's childhood studies, London, Eng., B1
Making sense of everyday practice : by whom, for whom, for what?
B Whitburn, V Plows
(2017), Vol. 6, pp. 3-11, Inclusive education : making sense of everyday practice, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, B1
Inclusive education, subjectivities and the posts
B Whitburn, J Moss, J O'Mara
(2017), Vol. 6, pp. 31-44, Inclusive education: making sense of everyday practice, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, B1
Where's my comfort zone?: Reflections of two Aussie researchers abroad
K Neely, B Whitburn
(2017), pp. 207-216, Postgraduate study in Australia: surviving and succeeding, New York, N.Y., B1
The subjectivities of 'included' students with disabilities in schools
B Whitburn
(2017), Vol. 38, pp. 485-497, Discourse, C1
The fetish of the lens: persistent sexist and ableist metaphor in education research
L McKnight, B Whitburn
(2017), Vol. 30, pp. 821-831, International journal of qualitative studies in education, Abingdon, Eng., C1
B Whitburn, J Moss, J O'Mara
(2017), Vol. 32, pp. 467-479, Journal of education policy, Abingdon, Eng., C1
B Whitburn, J Moss, J O'Mara
(2017), Vol. 21, pp. 1065-1079, International journal of inclusive education, Abingdon, Eng., C1
Inclusive education: making sense of everyday practice
V Plows, B Whitburn
(2017), Rotterdam, The Netherlands, A7
Postgraduate Study in Australia Surviving and Succeeding
Christopher McMaster, Caterina Murphy, Benjamin Whitburn, Inger Mewburn
(2017), New York, N.Y., A7
Voice, post-structural representation and the subjectivity of 'included' students
B Whitburn
(2016), Vol. 39, pp. 117-130, International journal of research and method in education, Oxford, Eng., C1
The perspectives of secondary school students with special needs in Spain during the crisis
B Whitburn
(2016), Vol. 11, pp. 148-164, Research in comparative and international education, London, Eng., C1
Attending to the potholes of disability scholarship
B Whitburn
(2015), pp. 215-224, Disability studies: educating for inclusion, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, B1
A troubled identity: putting Butler to work on the comings and goings of Asperger's Syndrome
Kim Davies
(2015), Vol. 3, pp. 197-214, Disability studies: educating for inclusion, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, B1
B Whitburn
(2015), Vol. 19, pp. 518-529, International journal of inclusive education, London, Eng., C1
The indelible ink of the special stamp: an insider's research essay on imprints and erasures
B Whitburn
(2014), Vol. 29, pp. 624-637, Disability & Society, Oxford, England, C1
B Whitburn
(2014), Vol. 14, pp. 3-15, Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs, Oxford, England, C1
The "inclusion" of students with vision impairments: generational perspectives in Australia
B Whitburn
(2014), Vol. 10, pp. 1-18, International Journal of Whole Schooling, United States, C1
B Whitburn
(2014), Vol. 32, pp. 148-156, British journal of visual impairment, London, England, C1
B Whitburn
(2013), Vol. 37, pp. 147-161, Australasian Journal of Special Education, Cambridge, England, C1
B Whitburn
(2011), pp. 1-13, AARE 2011 : The proceedings of the 2011 AARE International Research in Education Conference : Researching Acrossa Boundaries, Hobart, Tas., E1
Funded Projects at Deakin
Other Public Sector Funding
Engagement to provide independent expert services in criminal proceedings.
Dr Ben Whitburn
Victorian Workcover Authority (WorkSafe Vic) - Partnership
- 2019: $13,581
Open Textbooks and Social Justice: a national scoping study
Ms Sarah Lambert, Prof Yin Paradies, Dr Ben Whitburn, Dr Kelly George, Dr Helen Walker
NCSEHE National Centre for Student Equity in Higher Research
- 2021: $10,000
- 2020: $10,679
- 2019: $15,000
Industry and Other Funding
Paid Non-local Study Leave Scheme (Australia) in the 2017/18 School Year
A/Prof Tim Corcoran, Prof Julianne Moss, Prof Louise Paatsch, Prof Dianne Toe, Dr Ben Whitburn, Dr Maria Nicholas, Dr Kim Davies, Dr Claire Spicer, Prof Christine Ure, Dr Joanne Quick
Education Bureau The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
- 2018: $160,522
Supervisions
Amathullah Shakeeb
Thesis entitled: Inclusive Early Childhood Education in the Maldives
Doctor of Philosophy (Education), School of Education
Joanne Lindelauf
Thesis entitled: Enacting psychoeducational reports for inclusive education: a relational materialist inquiry
Doctor of Philosophy (Education), School of Education
Elijah Bajao
Thesis entitled: Public Secondary Teachers' Classroom Practices in Indonesia: A Case Study
Doctor of Philosophy (Education), School of Education
Gary Robert Shaw
Thesis entitled: How might interculturality be developed in an Australian primary school?
Doctor of Philosophy (Education), School of Education