Dr. Gavin Murphy
Associate Professor, Education
Biography
Dr Gavin Murphy is an Associate Professor at the School of Education, Trinity College Dublin, where he acts as Professional Master of Education (PME) Registrar and leads the Leadership and Policy strand of the M.Ed.
Prior to this, Gavin was a Teaching Fellow in Educational Leadership at the School of Education, University College Dublin and an Honorary (Visiting) Fellow at the Melbourne Graduate School of Education, University of Melbourne. In both of these institutions his work focused on teaching and research connected to educational policy, reform and leadership, as well as work connected to initial and ongoing teacher education more broadly. Gavin also holds an M.Phil. in educational research from the Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge, where he held a Cambridge European Scholarship from the Cambridge Trust. Gavin is also a qualified and experienced post-primary school languages teacher.
Gavin's current teaching responsibilities include doctoral, M.Ed. (Leadership and Policy; M.Oid. san Oideachas Lán-Ghaeilge agus Gaeltachta), and PME programmes. Gavin has previously taught on Postgraduate Certificates in (a) 21st Century Teaching and Learning (b) Diversity and Inclusion in Further Education and Training programmes.
During 2020/ 21, Gavin established the 'In Conversation With' pubic webinar series, hosting international experts in the field to talk about educational policy and leadership issues connected to contemporary themes from research, policy and practice.
In September 2023, Gavin was a Chen Yidan Visiting Global Fellow at Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) and returned to HGSE as a Fulbright Irish Scholar in Spring 2024.
Gavin was the founding Convenor of the Teacher Education and Development Research Group at the School of Education in late 2024.
For an overview of Gavin's research interests, take a look at this short video:
Publications and Further Research Outputs
Peer-Reviewed Publications
Teacher Professional Development and Immersion Education:Spotlight on an Irish-medium teacher development programme in, editor(s)Brian Mooney , Education Matters | Ireland's Education Yearbook 2024, 2025, pp353 - 356, [Gavin Murphy]
Helen Stokes, Gavin Murphy, Pauline Thomson, Leading trauma-informed professional learning: Insights from Australian and Irish schools, International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement, Dublin, January 2024, 2024
Gavin Murphy, Developing Teachers, Developing Leaders: Relationships Between Research-Engagement, Leadership Development, and School Evaluation, Dismantling Racial Injustice and Constructing Educational Possibilities: A Call to Action, Philadelphia, April 2024, edited by American Educational Research Association , 2024
Gavin Murphy and Dympna Devine, Sensemaking in and for times of crisis and change: Irish primary school principals and the Covid-19 pandemic, School Leadership and Management, 2023
Gavin Murphy, Joanne Banks, Distributed Leadership For Inclusive Middle Leadership Practice: Exploring Gaps, Challenges and Opportunities, The Value of Diversity in Education and Educational Research , Glasgow, August, edited by European Educational Research Association , 2023
Michael Buckley, Gavin Murphy, Contemporary Roles of Chairpersons, Principals and Teachers on Boards of Management in Primary Schools in the Republic of Ireland , The Value of Diversity in Education and Educational Research , Glasgow, August, edited by European Conference of Educational Research , 2023
Devitt, Ann, Banks, Joanne, Bray, Aibhin, Murphy, Gavin, Sanchez, Sergio, Sandoval, Marta, Mapping Evidence-Based Practices Within the Universal Design for Learning Framework, Interrogating Consequential Education Research in Pursuit of Truth, Chicago, United States, 13-16th April 2023, edited by American Educational Research Association , 2023
Gavin Murphy, Marco Snoek, Zoe Robertson, Collaborative Professional Learning and the Role of Universities, The Value of Diversity in Education and Educational Research , Glasgow, August , edited by European Conference of Educational Research , 2023
Gavin Murphy, Principals' accounts of practices, system support and challenges in leading secondary immersion education in Ireland, Journal of Educational Administration and History, 2022, phttps://doi.org/10.1080/002206
Gavin Murphy and Thomas Brennan, Enacting Distributed Leadership in the Republic of Ireland: Assessing Primary School Principals' Developmental Needs Using Constructive Developmental Theory, Educational Management, Administration and Leadership, 2022, phttps://doi.org/10.1177/174114
Gavin Murphy, Dympna Devine, Sensemaking in and for times of crisis and change: Irish primary school principals and the Covid-19 pandemic, Leadership+, (124), 2022
Gavin Murphy and Melanie Ni Dhuinn, The possibilities and potential of a pedagogical partnership between university and community-based initial teacher educators for LGBTQ+-specific inclusion and diversity, Frontiers in Education | Teacher Education, 2022, phttps://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.
Gavin Murphy and Melanie Ní Dhuinn, Pedagogy, possibilities and potential of a partnership between formal and informal teacher educators for LGBTQ+-specific inclusion and diversity, Education Studies Association of Ireland, Dublin, April 2022, 2022
Gavin Murphy and Melanie Ní Dhuinn, Pedagogical practices and partnerships promoting LGBTQ+ specific inclusion and diversity approaches in an initial teacher education programme module, Association for Teacher Education in Europe Winter Conference, Sestri Levante, Italy, April 2022, 2022
Gavin Murphy and Thomas Brennan, Enacting Distributed Leadership in the Republic of Ireland: Assessing Primary School Principals' Developmental Needs Using Constructive Developmental Theory, Education Studies Association of Ireland, Dublin , April 2022, 2022
Putting research evidence into practice. Policy directions and professional futures. in, editor(s)Brian Mooney , Ireland's Yearbook of Education 2020-21 | Education Matters, Dublin, 2021, pp334 - 338, [Gavin Murphy]
Gavin Murphy, Melanie Ní Dhuinn and ShoutOut, Capacity building partnership to promote equity and justice in teacher and school leaders' education for LGBTQ+ school community members, TCD's Pride in Research, Trinity College Dublin, June 2021, 2021
Gavin Murphy, Exploring Irish-Immersion School Principals' Leadership Identities: Practices, Policy and Professionalism, The European Conference on Educational Research, Geneva (Online), September 2021, 2021
Gavin Murphy, Blake Coulter, Jo Gleeson, Quality use of research: Considerations from Ireland and Australia for Irish leaders engaged in school self-evaluation, Leadership+, 2021
Gavin Murphy, Performing or Reforming? Teacher Leaders' Perspectives of Putting Research into Practice in the Republic of Ireland, The European Conference on Educational Research, Geneva (Online), September 2021, 2021
Evidence-Informed Practice in the Context of the Republic of Ireland in, editor(s)Joel Malin and Chris Brown , The Handbook of Evidence-Informed Practice in Education: Learning from International Contexts, Emerald Publishing Limited, 2021, [Gavin Murphy and Martin Brown]
Gavin Murphy, Leadership Preparation in Initial Teacher Education, American Educational Research Association, San Francisco, 2020, 2020
A Decade of School Leadership Research Insights, Implications, Applications in, editor(s)Brian Mooney , Education Matters | Ireland's Yearbook of Education 2019-20, Dublin, 2020, pp183 - 189, [Gavin Murphy]
Gavin Murphy, Leadership preparation, career pathways and the policy context: Irish novice principals' perceptions of their experiences, Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 2020
Bryan Duarte and Gavin Murphy, Engaging With Educational Leadership Researchers Who Pursue Queer Issues: Lessons for Preparation and Development, American Educational Research Association, San Francisco, 2020, 2020
Exploring and Queer(y)ing the Subjectivity of Educational Leadership Researchers Who Pursue Queer Issues in, editor(s)Richard Niesche and Amanda Heffernan , Theorizing Identity and Subjectivity in Educational Leadership Research, Routledge, 2020, pp176 - 190, [Bryan Duarte and Gavin Murphy]
Gavin Murphy, Exploring Principals' Understandings and Cultivation of Leadership at All Levels During Initial Teacher Preparation School Placement, International Studies in Educational Administration, 47, (2), 2019, p88-106
Taking charge of accountability in, Australian Educational Leader, Australia, 2019, pp52 - 54, [Gavin Murphy and David Gurr]
Gavin Murphy, A systematic review and thematic synthesis of research on school leadership in the Republic of Ireland, Journal of Educational Administration, 57, (6), 2019, p675 - 689
Gavin Murphy, 10 years of Irish research on school leadership: What does it say? , Leadership+, (110), 2019
Bryan Duarte and Gavin Murphy, Queer(y)ing educational leadership researchers who pursue queer issues: What comes next? , University Council for Educational Administration, New Orleans, 2019, 2019
A tangled tale? Teachers making sense of school evaluation in The Republic of Ireland in, editor(s)Eli Ottesen and Fiona Stephens , School Evaluation with a Purpose: Stories from European Schools, Routledge, 2018, pp53-66 , [Gavin Murphy]
Gavin Murphy, Student Voice and Participation - A Critical Review with specific reference to the Leadership in and Administration of Irish Post-Primary Schools, European Educational Research Association, Copenhagen, 2017, 2017
Gavin Murphy, A review of leadership preparation and development for the Irish secondary school context, Education Studies Association of Ireland, Cork, 2017, 2017
Gavin Murphy, (Dis)connected Through Mentoring During School Placement? An Exploratory Case Study of Irish Secondary Schools Since 2014 Initial Teacher Education Reform, European Educational Research Association, Dublin, 2016, 2016
Non-Peer-Reviewed Publications
Gavin Murphy, Contemporary School Leadership in the Irish Context: What We've Learnt and What Lies Ahead, Boston College, 2 April 2024, 2024, Lynch School of Education and Irish Studies, Boston College
Gavin Murphy, Language and Literacy Instruction in Irish Policy and Practice Contexts, Literacy and Languages Speaker Series, Harvard Graduate School of Education, 10 April 2024, 2024, Prof. Catherine Snow and HGSE Ed.M. Literacy and Languages Concentration
Gavin Murphy, In Conversation With: Educational Policy and Leadership Experts | Quality Teaching and Quality Teaching Rounds. An Overview., February, 2023, Online
Gavin Murphy, In Conversation With: Educational Policy and Leadership Experts | Evidence Use for Educational Improvement: Integrating data-informed decision-making and research-informed teaching, March, 2023, Online
Gavin Murphy, In Conversation With: Educational Policy and Leadership Experts | School Middle Leaders' Sensemaking of a Generally Outlined Reform, February , 2023, Online
Gavin Murphy, Policy and practice of professional development in Ireland: Critically appraising contemporary issues from an educational leadership perspective, Masters in Educational Leadership and Learning, University of Edinburgh, March, 2023
Gavin Murphy, In Conversation With: Educational Policy and Leadership Experts | Rethinking School Leaders' Work, March, 2023, Online
Gavin Murphy, Joanne Banks, Distributed Leadership: Inclusive Culture and the Middle Leader, Education Scotland - Middle Leadership Development, Online, May, 2023, Education Scotland
Gavin Murphy, In Conversation With: Educational Policy and Leadership Experts, January, In:Culturally Responsive School Leadership, 2022
Murphy, G. and Brennan, T. , Leading evaluation for school and teacher development, Collective of Educational Leaders, University of Wollongong, Australia, Online, 1 June , 2022, Dr Kylie Lipscombe
Gavin Murphy, High-Leverage Practices - Refining and Reflecting on Pedagogical Practices for Real World Contexts, Kilkenny and Carlow Education and Training Board Teach Meet, Online, October, 2022, Kilkenny and Carlow Education and Training Board
Teachers' Education Review, 'School Leadership with Gavin Murphy', Australia, 2021, -
Melanie Ní Dhuinn, Gavin Murphy, Declan Fahie, Bella Fitzpatrick, 'LGBTQI+ Issues in Education', Let's Talk About Sociology of Education, Spotify, 2021, -
Gavin Murphy, Overviewing school leadership: Considerations from theory and research for the Irish context, Leadership and Management in Education, Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, 22 September , 2021, Dr T.J. Ó Ceallaigh
Gavin Murphy, Education: Putting evidence into practice (Ireland), Education: Putting evidence into practice, Mechelen, Belgium, 2021, Centre of Expertise for Effective Learning, Thomas More University of Applied Sciences
Gavin Murphy, In Conversation With: Educational Policy and Leadership Experts, December, In:Growing a diverse school leadership pipeline for educational equity, 2021
Gavin Murphy, In Conversation With: Educational Policy and Leadership Experts, November , In:Contemporary issues in educational policy and leadership research and practice, 2021
Gavin Murphy, In Conversation With: Educational Policy and Leadership Experts, November, In:Middle leadership in schools: A research overview, 2021
Centre for School Leadership, 'Newly appointed senior leaders' perceptions of their preparation in a reformed policy context', (Blogs and Fireside Chats), https://cslireland.ie/new-senior-leaders-hex/45-learning-to-be-a-school-leader/new-senior-leaders/890-new-senior-leader-research.html, Centre for School Leadership, 2020, -
Dympna Devine, Ciara Nic Cárthaigh, Gavin Murphy, So, How Was School Today?, Dublin, 2017
Research Expertise
Description
Gavin's research and teaching interests lie at the intersection of educational policy, leadership, and professional education and development. The overarching focus is on critically examining the formulation and implementation of educational reforms, facilitating research-informed change and improvement within schools, promoting educational quality and equity, and understanding how these elements manifest through leadership in applied, practical settings. Four key areas structure this agenda: 1. Professional Education and Adult Learning: Investigating the policies, programmes, and practices related to the education and ongoing professional learning of educators (teachers, school middle and senior leaders, and system leaders, such as those working in school inspection/ evaluation and in the provision of professional development). 2. Leadership of Educational Policy and Reform: Exploring the leadership and contextual factors influencing the success of educational policy implementation and reform efforts, both at the system level and within specific schools. Areas of emphasis include policies related to professional learning, school evaluation/improvement, and language/literacy development. 3. Research Engagement in Professional Practice: Examining the role of research, evidence, and data in informing professional education programs and enabling effective organisational/school leadership. Additionally, exploring how research engagement in professional practice as educators supports educational quality and equity, as well as collaborative professional enquiry and learning. 4. Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in Education: Investigating issues related to promoting equity, diversity, and inclusion through educational policy formulation and leadership approaches, specifically culturally and linguistically responsive leadership, and LGBTQ+ inclusive leadership. Gavin welcomes enquiries from prospective students for D.Ed., Ph.D. and M.Ed. studies in these areas.Projects
- Title
- FoSTER: Frameworks of School-Support For Teachers' Engagement With/In Research
- Summary
- This research project seeks to understand the breath and scope of the ways that schools support teachers to engage with and in research in the UK and Ireland.
- Funding Agency
- Oxford University
- Date From
- Nov 2021
- Date To
- Jul 2022
- Title
- QUEER(Y)ING: Asking questions of teacher and school leader education for LGBTI+ youth and schooling
- Summary
- This project maps the provision of formal and informal evidence-based education through teacher and school leader education provision nationally. Its aims are: 1. to assist in the promotion of LGBTI+ inclusive schools and society; 2. to have equal, fair and just educational experiences for the LGBTI+ community in all schools; and 3. to realise Ireland's inclusive education policy context through professional learning opportunities, including the generation of a website for this purpose from an LGBTI+ perspective. It is a government-funded project and is connected to the National LGBTI+ Youth Strategy. This project is in collaboration with Dr Declan Fahie, School of Education, University College Dublin.
- Funding Agency
- Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth
- Date From
- 2019
- Date To
- 2020
- Title
- School leader preparation, development and identity in post-primary immersion schools
- Summary
- This small-scale project, funded by An Chomhairle um Oideachas Gaeltachta agus Gaelscolaíochta, explores the educational policy and leadership context of minority language immersion schooling in Ireland, eliciting the voices and experiences of a cohort of practising principals in both Gaeltacht and non-Gaeltacht areas.
- Funding Agency
- An Chomhairle um Oideachas Gaeltachta agus Gaelscolaíochta
- Date From
- 2018
- Date To
- 2020
- Title
- Capacity Building for LGBTI+ Inclusion in Teacher & School Leaders' Education
- Summary
- Funded by the Department of Justice. Collaborative capacity-building and research project with ShoutOut and teacher education and professional learning scholars.
- Funding Agency
- Department of Justice
- Date From
- 2020
- Date To
- 2022
- Title
- Leading Trauma-Informed Practice in Schools
- Summary
- In collaboration with Prof Helen Stokes and Dr Pauline Thompson, Melbourne Graduate School of Education.
- Funding Agency
- University of Melbourne
- Date From
- 2023
- Date To
- 2024
Recognition
Representations
External Examiner, University College Cork
External Examiner, University of Glasgow
Education Studies Association of Ireland, Executive Committee
Editorial Board Member, Quality Education for All
National Representative for the International Study Association on Teachers and Teaching (ISATT)
Oide Leadership - Programme Endorsement Panellist
Editorial Board Member, Journal of Educational Administration and History
External Examiner, Queen's University Belfast
External Examiner, Ulster University
Reviewer School Leadership and Management
Research Engagement Group, Teaching Council
Board of Management, Post-Primary School
Reviewer International Journal of Leadership in Education
Reviewer Journal of Educational Administration and History
Reviewer Leadership and Policy in Schools
Reviewer for Educational Management Administration and Leadership
Awards and Honours
Fellow, Trinity College Dublin
Visiting Professor, University of Southampton, Southampton Education School.
Fulbright Irish Scholar, Harvard Graduate School of Education.
Chen Yidan Global Visiting Fellow. Harvard Graduate School of Education.
Endeavour Research Fellowship, Australia Awards. Melbourne Graduate School of Education.
Cambridge European Scholarship, Cambridge Trust. Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge.
Memberships
International Study Association on Teachers and Teaching
International Congress of School Effectiveness and Improvement
American Educational Research Association
Education Studies Association of Ireland
University Council of Educational Administration