Assoc. Prof. Belinda von Mengersen

Belinda von Mengersen holds dual roles at ACU, as Campus Dean in Strathfield and Associate Professor, Discipline Lead in Design, Innovation, and Technologies in the Department of Creative Arts (NSW), National School of Arts and Humanities, Faculty of Education and Arts. In her teaching and research role she works across both the Schools of Art and Education to support the undergraduate Initial Teacher Education programs in Design and Technologies. Belinda is also the Course Coordinator for the Diploma in Design and Technologies Education, a course designed to bring out-of-field teachers into the Design and Technologies key learning area, an area of high demand nationally. Belinda's multi-disciplinary background in Design Thinking, STEM education, Visual Arts, research-led creative practice (in Textiles and Fashion) and Education has given her a broad perspective as an academic educator and researcher. In Design and Technologies education she is known internationally for the adaptation of Signature Pedagogies from Visual Arts and Design for Technologies education, and for using critical, creative, and reflective writing practices in speculative and preferred futures thinking contexts with students through a series of publications. Many of Belinda's research projects have been undertaken in partnership with external and not-for-profit organizations in professional settings including Art, Health, Gallery, Museum environments. In both roles, Belinda is currently contributing towards the development of the STEM Centre for Educational Excellence on Strathfield campus.

• Williams, P. J., & von Mengersen, B. (2022). Applications of Research in Technology Education: Helping Teachers Develop Research-Informed Practice. Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore.
• von Mengersen, B. (due late 2023) 'Textiles in STEM'. In Locating Technology Education in STEM Teaching and Learning. Edited by John. P. Williams and Wendy Fox-Turnbull. Book Series: Contemporary Issues in Technology Education.
• von Mengersen, B. (2023). Thinking: Nurturing Independent Design Thinking and DecisionMaking. In D. Gill, D. Irving-Bell, M. McLain & D. Wooff (Editors), The Bloomsbury Handbook of Technology Education (pp. 101&ndash121). London: Bloomsbury Academic.
• von Mengersen. (2021). Stitching Alive by Marjorie Coleman. Textile: The Journal of Cloth and Culture, 19(3), 292-296.
• von Mengersen, B., & Wilkinson, T. (2020). Question-think-learn: A pedagogy for understanding the material world. In Pedagogy for Technology Education in Secondary Schools: Research Informed Perspectives for Classroom Teachers, 151-175.
• von Mengersen, B. (2018). Textiles, a Dynamic Exchange: Challenges and Opportunities. In: de Vries, M. (eds) Handbook of Technology Education. Springer International Handbooks of Education. Springer, Cham.

https://acu-au.academia.edu/BelindavonMengersen

Belinda von Mengersen is Associate Professor and Discipline Lead in Design, Innovation and Technologies in the National School of Arts and Humanities, Faculty of Education and Arts at ACU. She is practice-led researcher with a specialisation in contemporary textiles, a textile artist, theorist, curator, and educator. She designs and develops initial teacher education state-based undergraduate and national post-graduate higher education programs and curricula. Specialising in traditional, current, and emerging textile technologies, her background in textiles, visual art, fashion, and theatre design inform her teaching and research. Her research interests include reflective, creative, and speculative writing in design practice, practice-led research in design, comparisons between signature pedagogies in visual arts, evolving design and technologies curricula, and the inherently interdisciplinary and dynamic nature of design related fields.  She is curious to see how the rapid emergence of new textiles technologies will continue to influence all fields of design and influence material thinking and inform ethical sustainable design strategies. Belinda is an experienced HDR research supervisor and assessor in Textiles and Fashion theory and practice, specifically practice-led creative research projects.  Belinda's research outputs are multifaceted often including combinations of traditional theoretical scholarship, alongside creative outputs, and curriculum development in Design, Technologies, and STEM education. She has recently published a series of book chapters in Design and Technologies Education and co-edited an international book and is a leading curriculum advisor in the Design and Technologies education discipline.

ORCID ID: Belinda von Mengersen (0000-0003-4513-2771) (orcid.org)

Belinda von Mengersen | Australian Catholic University - Academia.edu

Belinda is curious to see how the rapid emergence of new textiles technologies will continue to influence all fields of design and influence material thinking and inform ethical sustainable design strategies and her interests include: 

• Design and Innovation

• Traditional, current, and emerging Technologies, especially Textile technologies

• Reflective, creative, and speculative writing in design practice

• Creative practice-led research in visual arts and design

• Signature pedagogies in visual arts, evolving design and technologies curricula

• STEM the inherently interdisciplinary and dynamic nature of design related fields  

• Ethical practice and value propositions in design

• Sustainabilty design strategies

Belinda's multi-disciplinary background in Design, Visual Arts, Fashion & Textiles and STEM Education has given her a broad perspective on a variety of research outputs, types of research, and research methodologies.  As an academic, creative practitioner, and theorist her experience and scope is diverse. Her traditional research outputs draw widely from theoretical perspectives across the humanities disciplines including philosophy, sociology, poetry, and literature. 

• International Journal of Technology and Design Education
• Journal of Fashion Technology & Textile Engineering
• Textile: Journal of Cloth and Culture

• Curriculum Technological Advisor for NESA (New South Wales Education and Standars Authority)
• Curriculum consultant for VCE Product Design and Technology, VCAA (Victorian Curriculum Assessment Authority)