By Dr Kate Smithers

Books

Smithers K, 2024, Tourism, Philanthropy and School Tours in Zimbabwe: Problematising “Win-Win” Discourses, http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781003407980

Book Chapters

Spina N; Gurr SK; Harris J; Blackmore J; Smithers K, 2025, 'Casualisation, the gig economy, and piece work in education', in Casualisation, the Gig Economy, and Piece Work in Education, Routledge, pp. 1 - 16, http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781003511144-1

Heffernan T; Smithers K; Spina N; Harris J, 2025, 'A BOURDIEUSIAN ANALYSIS OF HOW PRECARIOUSLY EMPLOYED ACADEMICS GAIN PERMANENT EMPLOYMENT', in Casualisation the Gig Economy and Piece Work in Education Dilemmas for Leaders in Times of Increasing Precarity, pp. 162 - 177, http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781003511144-14

Spina N; Gurr SK; Harris J; Blackmore J; Smithers K, 2025, 'Casualisation, The Gig Economy, and Piece Work in Education: Unpacking the ethical dilemmas of educational leaders in times of increasing precarity', in Casualisation the Gig Economy and Piece Work in Education Dilemmas for Leaders in Times of Increasing Precarity, pp. 1 - 16, http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781003511144-1

Harris J; Smithers K; Blackmore J; Gurr SK; Spina N, 2025, 'UNPACKING AND RESPONDING TO ETHICAL DILEMMAS IN A PRECARIOUS LANDSCAPE', in Casualisation the Gig Economy and Piece Work in Education Dilemmas for Leaders in Times of Increasing Precarity, pp. 242 - 258, http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781003511144-20

Smithers K, 2024, 'Breaking the fourth wall', in Tourism, Philanthropy and School Tours in Zimbabwe, Routledge, pp. 123 - 149, http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781003407980-7

Smithers K, 2024, 'Building the set and producing ‘Africa’', in Tourism, Philanthropy and School Tours in Zimbabwe, Routledge, pp. 69 - 97, http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781003407980-5

Smithers K, 2024, 'Conclusion', in Tourism, Philanthropy and School Tours in Zimbabwe, Routledge, pp. 150 - 156, http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781003407980-8

Smithers K, 2024, 'How does tourism come to be in a school?', in Tourism, Philanthropy and School Tours in Zimbabwe, Routledge, pp. 14 - 30, http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781003407980-2

Smithers K, 2024, 'Introducing Matopo School', in Tourism, Philanthropy and School Tours in Zimbabwe, Routledge, pp. 31 - 48, http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781003407980-3

Smithers K, 2024, 'Introduction', in Tourism, Philanthropy and School Tours in Zimbabwe, Routledge, pp. 1 - 13, http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781003407980-1

Smithers K, 2024, 'The starring role', in Tourism, Philanthropy and School Tours in Zimbabwe, Routledge, pp. 98 - 122, http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781003407980-6

Smithers K, 2024, 'The white saviour complex', in Tourism, Philanthropy and School Tours in Zimbabwe, Routledge, pp. 49 - 68, http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781003407980-4

Smithers K, 2024, '‘What is your name, where do you come from, what is your grade?’ Using art-based interviews to highlight the experience of children hosting school tours in Matabeleland North, Zimbabwe', in Critical Inclusive Tourism, Routledge, pp. 100 - 112, http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781003474029-9

Smithers K; Harris J; Goff M; Spina N; Bailey S, 2023, 'Ethical responsibilities of tenured academics supervising non-tenured researchers in times of neoliberalism and precarity', in Educational Leadership and Policy in a Time of Precarity, Routledge, pp. 37 - 53, http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781003451617-4

Heffernan T, 2023, 'Women in Higher Education', in The Marginalised Majority in Higher Education, Springer Nature Switzerland, pp. 129 - 153, http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-41432-9_6

Smithers K; Ailwood J, 2022, 'Developmentourism and school tours in Zimbabwe', in Handbook of Niche Tourism, pp. 345 - 356

Edited Books

Harris J; Spina N; Smithers K; Blackmore J; Gurr SK, 2025, CASUALISATION, THE GIG ECONOMY, AND PIECE WORK IN EDUCATION: Dilemmas for Leaders in Times of Increasing Precarity, http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781003511144

Journal articles

Smithers K; Gurr S; Spina N; Harris J; Heffernan T, 2026, 'Just because you are staying does not mean you are ‘stuck’: conceptualisations of academic mobility for precarious academics', Discourse, 47, pp. 112 - 125, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01596306.2025.2483193

Heffernan T; Smithers K, 2026, 'The rise of the pro-sessional: precarious employees taking on complex and faculty-critical roles', Discourse, 47, pp. 126 - 137, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01596306.2025.2493862

Smithers K; Andrews R; Cliff K; Eady M; Hay I; Hillyar K; Kohlhoff P; Monteleone C; Morrissey C; Winslade M; Gao X, 2026, 'The skills, knowledge, and attributes of the supervising teacher in initial teacher education: a framework for research and professional development', Asia Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 54, pp. 38 - 56, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/1359866X.2025.2591871

Gibbs L; Smithers K, 2026, 'What makes a sustainable career in Australian universities: advice for early career academics', Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management, 48, pp. 203 - 221, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/1360080X.2025.2598893

Monteleone C; Cliff K; Andrews R; Babic M; Smithers K; Winslade M; Hay I, 2025, 'Perspective of Supervising Teachers and Tertiary Supervisors on Professional Learning for Professional Experience', Education Sciences, 15, http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/educsci15101413

Hillyar K; Smithers K; Deehan J; MacDonald A, 2025, 'What is known about simulation technologies and their application to Initial Teacher Education: A scoping review', Australian Educational Researcher, 52, pp. 1389 - 1406, http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s13384-024-00767-4

Smithers K; Syed S, 2025, 'A review of the Australian honours student experience: a new framework for understanding research supervision', Cogent Education, 12, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2025.2588538

Smithers K; Harris J; Heffernan T; Gurr S, 2025, 'Decasualisation and the universities accord: an examination of university approaches', Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management, 47, pp. 282 - 298, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/1360080X.2025.2462128

Gamage D; Ledger S; Smithers K; Karstadt L, 2025, 'The role of service-learning in the International Baccalaureate: a scoping review, 2014–2024', Social Sciences and Humanities Open, 12, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2025.102088

Heffernan T; Smithers K, 2025, 'Working at the level above: university promotion policies as a tool for wage theft and underpayment', Higher Education Research and Development, 44, pp. 585 - 599, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/07294360.2024.2412656

Smithers K, 2024, 'School tours and philanthropy in Zimbabwe', Annals of Tourism Research Empirical Insights, 5, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.annale.2024.100140

Harper M; Smithers K, 2024, 'Fieldwork from A–Z? Exploring shifting identities in doctoral research in Australia and Zimbabwe', Australian Educational Researcher, 51, pp. 1469 - 1485, http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s13384-023-00649-1

Smithers K; Gibbs L, 2024, 'Challenges and opportunities for early career researchers: using the theory of practice architectures to unpack enabling and constraining conditions', Professional Development in Education, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/19415257.2024.2386661

Smithers K, 2024, 'Heterotopia and the ‘image of Africa’: school tours and philanthropy in a Zimbabwean school', Critical Studies in Education, 65, pp. 386 - 402, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17508487.2023.2286230

Smithers K; Hillyar K, 2024, 'Using Founder’s syndrome to explore leadership in one Zimbabwean school funded by tourism', Journal of Educational Administration and History, 56, pp. 374 - 389, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00220620.2024.2338063

Smithers K; Spina N; Harris J; Gurr S, 2023, 'Working every weekend: The paradox of time for insecurely employed academics', Time and Society, 32, pp. 101 - 122, http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0961463X221144136

Smithers K, 2023, '‘What is your name, where do you come from, what is your grade?’ Using art-based interviews to highlight the experience of children hosting school tours in Matabeleland North, Zimbabwe', Tourism Recreation Research, 48, pp. 912 - 924, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02508281.2022.2133812

Harris J; Smithers K; Spina N; Heffernan T, 2023, 'Disrupting dominant discourses of the Other: examining experiences of contract researchers in the academy', Studies in Higher Education, 48, pp. 37 - 48, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2022.2105831

Smithers K; Ailwood J, 2022, 'School Tourism in Southern Africa', , http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190264093.013.1811

Spina N; Smithers K; Harris J; Mewburn I, 2022, 'Back to zero? Precarious employment in academia amongst ‘older’ early career researchers, a life-course approach', British Journal of Sociology of Education, 43, pp. 534 - 549, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01425692.2022.2057925

Smithers K; Harris J; Goff M; Spina N; Bailey S, 2022, 'Ethical responsibilities of tenured academics supervising non-tenured researchers in times of neoliberalism and precarity', Journal of Educational Administration and History, 54, pp. 37 - 53, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00220620.2021.1881458

Media

Harris J; Smithers K; Spina N; Gurr S, 2025, From daycare through to uni, we've all had this type of teacher, https://theconversation.com/from-daycare-through-to-uni-weve-all-had-this-type-of-teacher-264111

Smithers K, 2024, Happy smiling African children: Why school tourism in Zimbabwe shouldn't be encouraged, The Conversation, https://theconversation.com/happy-smiling-african-children-why-school-tourism-in-zimbabwe-shouldnt-be-encouraged-224166

Smithers K; Harris J; Spina N, 2023, Australian unis could not function without casual staff: it is time to treat them as ‘real’ employees

Harris J; Smithers K; Spina N, 2020, More than 70% of academics at some universities are casuals. They’re losing work and are cut out of JobKeeper, https://theconversation.com/more-than-70-of-academics-at-some-universities-are-casuals-theyre-losing-work-and-are-cut-out-of-jobkeeper-137778

Back to profile page