Barbara teaches in the School of Policy and Implementation at the College of Education, Victoria University of Wellington. She offers courses on the policy and usage of Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) in education and community/family settings. Her current research interests include examining the use of Web 2.0 tools in teaching and learning, evaluating aggregated learning networks (the Wellington Loop that connects city schools and tertiary institutions) and research into family and community responses to new technologies including social networking. She has long been involved in research projects evaluating community ICT projects and through this work is connected to the international Community Informatics Research Network. Through this network she has been involved in developing evaluation frameworks for measuring social, educational and economic benefits of digital connections.
Barbara has a BA from Canterbury University and an M Ed from Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts where she first became involved in research in educational computing working with early education software developers. She is currently completing a PhD at the Centre for Community Networking Research, Monash University, Melbourne.
Barbara has been a Trustee since 1998 and part of the team that developed Computers in Homes in 2000 with continuing interest in this project.
