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Meet the Research Fellows: 2024-2025

Girls as Agents of Their Learning

The ICGS Global Action Research Collaborative on Girls' Education brings together educators from girls’ schools around the world who are committed to deepening their practice through research and collaboration.

Educators in this cohort explored how educators can cultivate student agency in girls’ schools. Through classroom-based research, Fellows examine strategies that empower girls to take ownership of their learning, build confidence in their voices, and engage more deeply with their education.

All of the reports listed below are accessible in the ICGS Research Library.

Melissa Apthorpe: Junior Primary Teacher and Years 3-5 Coordinator
Seymour College | Australia

  • Study: From Self-Doubt to Self-Driven: The Impact of Learning Toolkits on Student Agency in Year 5 Math Students

Katie Ayers: Humanities Teacher
Miss Porter’s School | United States

  • Study: Using Diverse Discussion Protocols With Year 10 Girls to Strengthen Academic Agency in the Humanities Classroom

Kelli Crawford: Teacher
All Hallows’ School | Australia

  • Study: From AI to Agency: How Chatbots Can Empower Year 10 Girls to Take Charge of Their Learning

Samantha Duffy: Teacher
Sheffield High School for Girls GDST | United Kingdom

  • Study: Finding their Voices: How student-led discussion develops agency in Year 10 girls’ engagement with literary texts

Toby Duncan: Teacher
MLC School | Australia

  • Study: Designing Discussion-based Activities to Build Conceptual Agency in a Girls’ Pre-university Mathematics Class

Hayley Dustin: HOF Intermediate
Woodford House | New Zealand

  • Study: Female Mentors Growing Mathematical Mindsets in Year 7 and 8 Girls

Kate Faber: Teacher
St. Clement’s School | Canada

  • Study: Room for Growth: Using AI Chat Tools to Develop Grade 11 and 12 Business Students’ Self-Efficacy

Christine Facer: Teacher/Advisor/Model UN Advisor
Trinity Hall | United States

  • Study: Empowering Student Agency and Engagement: The Impact of Choice in an All-Girls Spanish III Classroom

Tara Fennell: Teacher of French
Putney High School GDST | United Kingdom

  • Study: Think, Reflect, Succeed: Using Reflective Thinking Routines to Develop Agency in Year 8 Girls in the French Classroom

Duncan Flaherty: Math Faculty
Nashoba Brooks School | United States

  • Study: Developing Self-Efficacy Through Collaboration: Building Math Confidence in Grade 6 Girls Through Academic Discussion Skills

Teifi Gale: Head of Philosophy
Kensington Prep School GDST | United Kingdom

  • Study: “Without Teacher Interference”: Developing Agency Through Student-Led Philosophy Discussions with 9- and 10-Year-Old Girls

Laurie Garland: Mental Health Lead / Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead
Wycombe High School | United Kingdom

  • Study: Developing Agency and Leadership in Year 12 Peer Mentor Girls Through the Co-Designing and Implementation of a Social Media Workshop

Katie Hannah: Head of Year
Belvedere Academy GDST  | United Kingdom

  • Study: Building Boldness: How Life Skills Education Designed by Girls for Girls Strengthens Agency

Elyse Heslop: Head of Department Visual Art
Westlake Girls High School | New Zealand

  • Study: Fostering Artistic Independence: Exploring the Impact of Creative Pedagogies on Student Agency

Young Kim: Educational Technologist
The Hewitt School | United States

  • Study: Self-Determination Theory Toolkit: Motivational Strategies to Bolster Grade 11 and 12 Girls’ Agency in Maker Education

Anna McLaren: Year 6 Teacher/Head of English/Head of Gifted Education
Saint Kentigern Girls’ School | New Zealand

  • Study: Raising Voices, Building Leaders: The Impact of Leadership Education on Agency in Year 7 Girls Māte Huruhuru ka Rere te Manu – Adorn the Bird With Feathers so it May Fly

Keamogetswe Mekgwe: Academic Support Specialitst
St Stithians Girls College | South Africa

  • Study: Improving Agency: Using a Mediated Learning Experience During Year 8 Girls’ Academic Enrichment Classes

Ky-Lee Murphy: Director of Curriculum-Junior School
Kambala | Australia

  • Study: Girls as Authors of their Learning: Using Vertical Whiteboards to Empower Year 3 Girls to be Confident, Courageous, and Curious Mathematicians

Bridget Riley: Middle School Teacher
Stone Ridge School of the Sacred Heart | United States

  • Study: “When You Are Young, They Assume You Know Nothing”: Action Civics as a Pathway to Student Voice and Agency

Shelley Salzke: Year 2 Teacher/Junior Primary House Leader
Canberra Girls Grammar School | Australia

  • Study: Seeing the Possible: How Collaborative Opportunities with a Person with a Disability Inspire Agency and Inclusion. A Journey of Year 3 Girls

Tarra Stevenson: Department Chair/Writing Center Co-Director
Westridge School | United States

  • Study: The Writing Center as a Locus for Agency: Success Through Centering the Center for Grade 10-12 Girls

Christopher Stump: Head of Careers and UCAS
Northwood College for Girls GDST | United Kingdom

  • Study: “Pop Off Queens” or Passive Participants? Employing Feminist Methodology to Explore the Impact of Team-Based Learning on the Development of Agency in Year 12 Girls

Holly Webb: Acting Head of History and GROW Coordinator
Wimbledon High School GDST | United Kingdom

  • Study: History Belongs to Us: Year 9 Girls Use Historical Significance to Craft Their Curriculum

Nicky Young: Upper Key Stage 2 Leader
South Hampstead Junior School GDST | United Kingdom

  • Study: Becoming Your Best Self: Promoting Agency in New Year 3 Girls Through a Mentoring Programme