Talking APAC APAC

David Ensor joined APAC some six months ago and has been consulting widely with our stakeholders. We sat down with him to talk about his background, what he's learned so far and his thoughts on future change.

This symposium was held at the Ausplat conference in September 2023. The symposium comprised four presentations that outlined work undertaken by AIPEP Community of Practice members.
First, a research study on what registered psychologists perceive as gaps in their tertiary education regarding Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ways of knowing and being was presented (Darnett). This was followed by a case study on effecting cultural change at the disciplinary and institutional levels (Nicholson Perry).
The third presentation described a co-design process for decolonising curricula in a 4th-year psychology course (Mackelprang, Orr, et al.). Lastly, members of the APAC Cultural Responsiveness Working Group described its process of developing the recently published Annexure to Standard 3.8 (cultural responsiveness in curriculum), and how educators can use the Annexure to guide their teaching/program design (Ohan et al.).
This symposium will be useful for educators who are keen to engage in decolonising and Indigenising work at their higher education providers. 
Co-facilitators of the symposium:
Dr Joanna Alexi, on behalf of AIPEP (PhD), Research Fellow, School of Indigenous Studies, University of Western Australia
Dr Catherine Orr (MPsych (Clinical Neuropsychology)/PhD), Lecturer, Department of Psychological Sciences, Swinburne University of Technology
Presenters (in order):
Ms Emily Darnett, BA(PsychSci), GDip(PsychSci), MPsych (Clinical) and PhD Candidate, Department of Psychological Sciences, Swinburne University of Technology"Psychologist Perspectives: Decolonising Psychological Practice and Curriculum"
Professor Kathryn Nicholson Perry, (MSc (Clinical Psychology), PhD), Associate Dean (Learning and Teaching), Australian College Of Applied Psychology, now working as Dean, ISN Psychology"Changing disciplinary and institutional cultures: A case study"
Dr Jessica L. Mackelprang (PhD Clinical Psychology), Senior Lecturer, Department of Psychological Sciences, Swinburne University of TechnologyDr Catherine Orr (MPsych (Clinical Neuropsychology)/PhD), Lecturer, Department of Psychological Sciences, Swinburne University of Technology"An initiative to codesign decolonised content in a 4th-year psychology course"
Associate Professor Jeneva Ohan (PhD Clinical Psychology), Associate Professor, Director of Clinical Psychology Programs, School of Psychological Science, University of Western AustraliaDr Joanna Alexi, on behalf of AIPEP (PhD), Research Fellow, School of Indigenous Studies, University of Western Australia"Cultural Responsiveness: Annexure to the APAC Evidence Guide on Standard 3, Criterion 3.8"
The session was sponsored by APAC, which acknowledges the cooperation of the APS Psychology Education Interest Group in making this edited recording available.
Dr Mackelprang's presentation is here.

Professional competency 3.17 of APAC's Accreditation Standards states that psychology graduates need to "Investigate a substantive individual research question relevant to the discipline of psychology". But what does that mean in practice?
Associate Professor Melissa Davis, a member of APAC's Accreditation Assessment Committee, led off a discussion at the AusPLAT conference in nipaluna/Hobart in September 2023.
The session was sponsored by APAC, which acknowledges the cooperation of the APS Psychology Education Interest Group in making this edited recording available.

Ryan Armer, a legally blind fourth-year Psychology student, Darlene McLennan, manager of the Australian Disability Clearinghouse on Education and Training, and Associate Professor Melissa Davis, a member of APAC’s Accreditation Assessment Committee, discuss the challenges facing students with disabilities and how they can be overcome.
Two online articles are mentioned in the podcast:
https://needednowlt.substack.com/p/needed-now-real-tangible-supports and https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-11-24/qld-disability-higher-education-accessibility-university-student/103108240 
Additional resources include:
https://www.adcet.edu.au/ict-procurement-guidelines
https://www.adcet.edu.au/inclusive-teaching/universal-design-for-learning
https://disabilityawareness.com.au/elearning/udl-in-tertiary-education/
https://www.adcet.edu.au/students-with-disability
https://www.adcet.edu.au/inclusive-teaching
https://acola.org/disability-responsiveness/
https://www.education.gov.au/australian-universities-accord

Secondary school teachers of psychology played an important part in the recent AusPLAT 2023 conference. Here they discuss the challenges and pleasures, as well as making better links to psychology teaching in the tertiary sector.

APAC attended AusPLAT 2023 in nipaluna/Hobart. Our Communications Advisor chatted to attendees during the breaks. Here are their voices.