Stephen is Professor of Adult and Vocational Education in the School of Education and Professional Studies at Griffith University, Brisbane, Australia.
He is a National Teaching Fellow and Australian Research Council Future Fellow, Fellow of the Australian Academy of Social Sciences, a Fulbright scholar, who holds honorary doctorates (honoris causa) from the University of Jyvaskala, Finland and University of Geneva, Switzerlnd. In addition to his Honorary Research Fellowship at Oxford, he holds visiting professorships at the University of Stavanger and University West in Sweden. He currently leads research projects in Australia, Finland, Singapore and Norway. He is a member of the Australian Research Councils’ College of Experts and performs a similar role for the Belgium national granting authority, as well as being a specialist reviewer for the Swiss National Science Foundation and the Netherlands equivalent as well as for regional agencies and governments and conducts program evaluations in a range of countries.
After a career in garment manufacturing, Stephen has worked as a vocational educator, educational administrator, teacher educator, professional development practitioner and policy developer in the Australian vocational education system and as a teacher and researcher at Griffith University. Since 1992, he has researched learning through and for work and has published widely in fields of learning of occupations, workplace learning, work and conceptual accounts of learning for vocational purposes. His sole authored books include Learning through work: Strategies for effective practice (Allen and Unwin 2001); Work, change and workers (Springer 2006) Vocational Education (Springer 2011) and Mimetic learning at Work (2014) and Integrating Practice-based Learning in Higher Education Programs (Springer 2015).
He is the founding and Editor in Chief of Vocations and learning: Studies in vocational and professional education (Springer) and lead editor of the book series Professional and practice-based learning (Springer) the International Handbook of Research in Professional and Practice-based Learning (2014) with colleagues from Germany. He was a Fulbright Professional Scholar in 1999, awarded a 2009-2010 Australian Learning and Teaching Council National Teaching Fellowship that identified principles and practices to effectively integrate learning experiences in practice and academic settings. His four-year Australian Research Council Future Fellowship (2015-2018) on learning through practice identified a curriculum and pedagogy of practice, and his Office of Learning and Teaching Development national grant (2015-2018) examined higher education students’ post-practicum experiences. In August 2013, he was awarded an honorary doctorate by Jyvasksla University (Finland) for his contributions to educational science and elected Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences of Australia in 2015, and in 2020 was awarded his second honorary doctorate by the University of Geneva. His current research projects in Australia, Norway, Singapore and Finland are on learning across working life, confronting changes in working life, supporting adults learning across working life and the status and standing of occupations and provisions of tertiary education.
Publications
Major works of reference
Billett, S., Harteis, C & Gruber, H (2014) International Handbook on Research in Professional and Practice-based Learning, Springer international, Dordrecht, Netherlands ISBN 978-94-017-8902-8
Single authored books
Billett, S. (2015) Integrating practice-based learning experiences into higher education programs, Springer; Dordrecht, The Netherlands ISBN 978-94-017-7229-7
Billett, S. (2014) Mimetic learning at work: Learning in the circumstances of practice, Springer; Dordrecht, The Netherlands ISBN 978-3-319-09276-8
Billett, S. (2011) Vocational Education: Purposes, traditions and prospects, Springer; Dordrecht, The Netherlands ISBN 978-94-007-1953-8
Billett, S. (2006) Work, change and workers. Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands 1-4020-4643-x
Billett, S. (2001) Learning in the workplace: Strategies for effective practice, Allen and Unwin, Sydney
Recent edited books
Billett, S., Newton, J.M., Rogers, G.D. & Noble, C (2019) (eds) Augmenting health and social care students’ clinical learning experiences: Outcomes and processes, Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands
de Bruijn, E., Billett, S & Onstenk, J (2017) (eds) Enhancing teaching and learning in the Dutch vocational education system: Reforms enacted Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands ISBN 978-3-319-50732-3.
Billett, S., Dymock, D. & Choy, S (2016). Supporting learning across working life: Models, processes and practices. Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands ISBN 978-3-319-29017-1
Ortoleva, G., Betrancourt, M & Billett, S (Eds) (2016) Writing for professional development. Koninklijke Brill nv, Leiden, The Netherlands ISBN 978-90-04-26482-3
Filliettaz, L. & Billett, S. (Ed.) (2015). Francophone perspectives on learning through work: Conceptions, traditions and practices. Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands
Kennedy, M., Billett, S., Gherardi, S & Grealish, L. (2015) Practice-based learning in higher education: Jostling cultures (eds). Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands ISBN 978-94-017-9501-2
Higgs, J., Barnett, R. Billett, S. Hutchings, M. Trede, F (2012) (eds) Practice-based Education: Perspectives and Strategies, Sense Publishers, Rotterdam, The Netherlands 978-94-6209-126-9
Billett, S., & Henderson, A (2011) (eds) Developing Learning Professionals: Integrating experiences in university and practice settings, Springer; Dordrecht, The Netherlands, ISBN 978-90-481-3736-1
Recent book chapter (2015 onwards)
Billett, S (2019) Vocational Education and the Individual, in Unwin, L. & Guile, D. (eds) Handbook of Vocational Education and Training, (pp. 41-62) Wiley, United Kingdom ISBN 978-1-119-09859-1
Billett, S (2019) Securing Occupational Capacities through Workplace Experiences: Premises, Conceptions and Practices, in Bahl, A & Dietzen, A (eds) in Work–based Learning as a Pathway to Competence-based Education, (pp.25-43) UNEVOC Network Contribution, Bonn, Germany ISBN 978-3-8474-2292-1
Billett, S (2019) Augmenting post-practicum experiences: purposes and practices, in Billett, S., Newton, J.M, Rogers, G., & Noble, C. (eds) in Augmenting Health and Social Care Students’ Clinical Learning Experiences (pp. 3-25) Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands, ISBN 978-3-030-05559-2
Cain, M., Le, L., Billett, S (2019) Student preferences for purposes and processes of post practicum interventions, in Billett, S., Newton, J.M, Rogers, G., & Noble, C. (eds) in Augmenting Health and Social Care Students’ Clinical Learning Experiences (pp 27-53) Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands, ISBN 978-3-030-05559-2
Billett, S (2019) Curriculum and pedagogies principles and practices for implementing post-practicum experiences, in Billett, S., Newton, J.M, Rogers, G., & Noble, C. (eds) in Augmenting Health and Social Care Students’ Clinical Learning Experiences (pp. 333-362) Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands, ISBN 978-3-030-05559-2
Billett, S & Sweet, L (2018) Understanding and appraising medical students’ learning through clinical experiences: Participatory practices at work, In Sai Loo (ed) Multi Dimensions of Teaching and Learning for Occupational Practices. Abingdon: Routledge ISBN 9781138585713
Billett, S. Noble, C & Sweet, L (2018) Pedagogically-rich activities in hospital work: Handovers, ward rounds and team meetings, In Clare Delany and Liz Molloy (eds) ‘A Practical Guide for Learning and Teaching in a Clinical Context’ (pp. 207-220) Elsevier Australia.
Billett, S., Harteis, C, & Gruber, H. (2018) Developing occupational expertise through everyday work activities and interactions, in Ericsson, K A., Hoffman, R R., and Kozbelt, Aaron (eds) Cambridge Handbook of Expertise and Expert Performance (2nd Edition), (pp. 105-126) Cambridge University Press, New York ISBN 9781316502617
Billett, S (2018) Student readiness and the integration of experiences in practice and education settings, in Choy, S., Warvik, G-B.,Berglund, I & Kindberg,.V (eds) Integration of vocational education and training experiences: Purposes, practices and principles, (pp. 9-40). Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands
Billett, S., Warvik, G-B & Choy, S. (2018). Concepts, Purposes and Practices of Integration Across National Curriculum, in Choy, S., Warvik, G-B.,Berglund, I & Kindberg (eds),.V (eds) Integration of vocational education and training experiences: Purposes, practices and principles, (pp. 327-344) Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands
Billett, S (2018 in press) Vocational Education and the Individual, in Unwin, L. & Guile, D. (eds) Handbook of Vocational Education and Training, Wiley, United Kingdom (accepted 28th July 2016)
Billett, S (2018) Accessing and securing conceptual and symbolic knowledge required for digital era work in Harteis, C (Ed) The impact of digitization in the workplace – An educational view (pp.197-212), Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands.
Billett S. (2018) The Unanticipated Outcomes of Research: Learning and Development at Work. In: Wegener C., Meier N., Maslo E. (eds) Cultivating Creativity in Methodology and Research (pp.119-130). Palgrave Studies in Creativity and Culture. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
Palesy, D. & Billett, S (2017) Learning occupational practice in the absence of expert guidance: The agentic action of Australian home care workers, in Agency at work: An agentic perspective on professional learning and development (eds Goller, M & Paloniemi, S) (pp. 271-289)-Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands.
Billett, S & Noble, C (2017) Promoting the mediation of individuals’ learning through and for professional practice in Agency at work: An agentic perspective on professional learning and development (eds Goller, M & Paloniemi, S) (pp.205-227) the Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands (accepted 14th February 2017).
Billett, S (2017) Subjectivity and Human Resource Development: A quest for inter-subjectivity, in (Black, K., Corlett, S & Warhurst, R (eds) Identity as a foundation for Human Resource Development (pp. 39-51), Routledge, London, ISBN: 9781315671482
Barton, G and Billett, S (2017) Personal epistemologies and disciplinarity in the workplace: Implications for international students in higher education, in Barton, G and Hartwig, K (eds) Professional Learning in the Work Place for International Students(pp. 111-128), Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands
Noble, C & Billett, S (2017) Transitioning to effective medical practice: Junior doctors learning through co-working with pharmacists, Pekarek Doehler, S., Bangerter, A., de Weck, G., Filliettaz, L., González-Martínez, E & Petitjean, C (eds) Interactional competences in institutional settings: From school to the workplace (pp. 253-279) Palgrave-McMillan, London, ISBN:978-3-319-46866-2
Billett, S (2017) Theorising occupational practice and its learning: Personal, institutional and brute factors, in Grootenboer, P., Edwards-Groves, C. & Choy, S (eds) Practice theory perspectives of Education and Pedagogy (pp. 67-86). Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands ISBH 978-10-3128-1
Billett, S (2017) Personal epistemologies: Beliefs, acts and dispositions at work, in “Wissen und Lernen. Wie epistemische Überzeugungen Schule, Universität und Arbeitswelt beeinflussen, (eds) Bernholt, A., Gruber, H., & Moschner, B, Waxmann Publisher, Germany ISBN 978-3-8309-8579-2
de Bruijn, E., Billett, S, & Onstenk, J (2017) Vocational education in the Netherlands, in de Bruijn, E., Billett, S & Onstenk, J (eds) Enhancing teaching and learning in the Dutch vocational education system: Reforms enacted (pp.3-37) Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands. ISBN 978-3-319-50732-3.
Billett, S (2017) The Dutch vocational education system: Institutional focus and transformations, in de Bruijn, E., Billett, S & Onstenk, J (eds) Enhancing teaching and learning in the Dutch vocational education system: Reforms enacted (pp.269-293) Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands. ISBN 978-3-319-50732-3.
Billett, S (2017) Developing domains of occupational competence: Workplaces and learner agency in Mulder, M. (Ed.) Competence-based Vocational and Professional Education: Bridging the Worlds of Work and Education (47-66). Cham: Springer International Publishing Switzerland.
Billett, S (2017) Personal epistemologies: Beliefs, acts and dispositions at work, in Epistemological beliefs, (eds) Gruber, H., Anscheutz, A & Moschner, B, Waxmann Publisher, Germany
Billett, S (2017) Developing domains of occupational competence: Workplaces and learner agency in Mulder, M. & Winterton, J (eds) Competence-Based Vocational and Professional Education. Bridging the World of Work and Education, Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands
Billett, S., Dymock, D & Choy, S (2016) Conceptions, purposes and processes of ongoing learning across working life, in Billett, S., Dymock, D. & Choy, S (eds). (pp. 289-312) Supporting learning across working life. Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands ISBN 978-3-319-29017-1
Noble, C & Billett, S (2016) Sustaining and transforming the practice of communities: Developing professionals’ working practices, in Billett, S., Dymock, D. & Choy, S (eds). (pp. 147-167) Supporting learning across working life. Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands ISBN 978-3-319-29017-1
Choy, S., Billett, S & Dymock, D (2016) Continuing Education and Training: Needs, models and approaches, in Billett, S., Dymock, D. & Choy, S (eds). (pp. 213-229 ) Supporting learning across working life: Models, processes and practices. Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands ISBN 978-3-319-29017-1
Billett, S & Hodge, S (2016) Conceptualizing learning across working life, provisions of support and purposes, in Billett, S., Dymock, D. & Choy, S (eds). (pp. 3-25) Supporting learning across working life. Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands ISBN 978-3-319-29017
Billett, S (2015) Positioning personal mediation as being central to workplace learning. In Bound, H & Rushbrook, P (Eds) Towards a new understanding of workplace learning: The context of Singapore (pp.54-73) Institute for Adult Learning, Singapore ISBN 978-981-09-5315.
Billett, S (2015) Historical bases for appraising vocational education systems. In Kraus, M & Weil, K (eds) Berufs Bildung – Historisch – Aktuell, (pp.259-265) EUSL publishing, ISBN 978-3-940625-53-3
Billett, S., Smith, R., & Wegener, C. (2015). Understanding learning for and through work: Contributions from Francophone perspectives, In L. Filliettaz & S. Billett (Eds.), Francophone perspectives on learning through work. (pp. 347-365) Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands. ISBN 9783319186696
Filliettaz, L., & Billett, S. (2015). (pp. 1-16) Introduction to Francophone perspectives of learning through work, In L. Filliettaz & S. Billett (Ed.), Francophone perspectives on learning through work. Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands. ISBN 9783319186696
Filliettaz, L. Billett, S., Bourgeois, E., Durand, M., & Poizat, G. (2015). Conceptualising and connecting Francophone perspectives on learning through and for practice. In L. Filliettaz & S. Billett (Ed.), Francophone perspectives on learning through work (pp.19-47) Springer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands. ISBN 9783319186696
Billett, S (2015) Promoting learning through work-based experience, in Helyer, R (Ed) The Work-Based Learning Student Handbook, Palgrave-McMillan, Oxford, UK, ISBN 978 1137 403247
Papers in Refereed Journals (2016 onwards)
Grealish, L., Armit, L., Shaw, J., Frommolt, V., Mitchell, C., Mitchell, M., van de Mortel, T., & Billett, S. (in press 2019) Learning through structured peer discussion: an observational study. Nurse Education Today. Accepted 15 August 2019.
Noble, C., Billett, S., Armit, L., Collier, L., Hilder, J., Sly, C & Molloy, E. (in press 2019)“It’s yours to take”: generating learner feedback literacy in the workplace. Advanced in Healthcare Sciences, (accepted 28th July 2019)
Noble, C., Ajjawi, R., Billett, S., Hilder, J & Teodorczuk, A (in press 2019) Enriching medical trainees’ learning through practice: a video-reflexive ethnographic study, BMJ Open. (accepted 24th July 2919)
Mavin, T., Kikkawa, K & Billett, S (2018). Key contributing factors to learning through debriefings: Commercial aviation pilots’ perspectives. International Journal of Training Research, vol 16 9 (2) 122-144.
Teodorczuk, A., Ajjawi, R., Billett, S., Hilder, J & Noble, C (2018), The service/teaching tension: a window into the soul of a hospital, Medical Education 52(6) 678-678
Noble, C., Billett, S., Phang, T. Y., Siddarth, S., Hashem, F. & Rogers, G., D. (2018), Supporting resident research learning in the workplace: a rapid realist review, Academic Medicine. 93 (11), pp. 1732-1740.
Billett, S (2018) Learning about working life and occupational capacities: Integrating workplace experiences into educational programs, in Zeitschrift für Berufs- und Wirtschaftspädagogik special issue on Connectivity and integrative competence development in vocational and professional education and training (accepted March 20th 2018)
Teodorczuk, A., Yardley, S., Pate, R., Rogers, G., Billett, S., Worley, P., Hirsh, D., & Illing, J (2018, in press) Medical education research should extend further into clinical practice – A commentary Medical Education, 51, 1098-1100. doi:10.1111/medu.13527
Billett, S., Cain, M. & Le, L (2018) Augmenting higher education students’ work experiences: Preferred purposes and processes, Studies in Higher Education Vol 43(7) 1279-1294. doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2016.1250073
Billett, S. ,Pham Quang, L. & Rémery, V. (2017). Learning through work: Interest, perspectives and approaches. Recherche & formation, no 84,(1), 113-121. https://www.cairn.info/revue-recherche-et-formation-2017-1-page-113.htm
Billett, S (2017) Distinguishing lifelong learning from lifelong education. In Adult learning, knowledge and innovation, (accepted 2nd October 2017) DOI: 10.1556/2059.01.2017.3
Teodorczuk, A & Billett, S (2017) Mediating workplace situational pressures: The role of artefacts in promoting effective interprofessional work and learning. In Focus on Health Professional Education, 18(3) 80-91
Onsando, G & Billett, S (2017) Refugee immigrants’ experiences of racism and racial discrimination at Australian TAFE institutes: a transformative psychosocial approach, Journal of Vocational Education and Training 69 (3) 330-350.
Noble, C., Billett, S., Brazil, V, & Forbes, M (2017) Developing junior doctors’ prescribing practices through collaborative practice: Sustaining and transforming the practice of communities. Journal of Interprofessional Care 31(2): 263-272
Noble, C & Billett, S (2017) Learning to prescribe through co-working: the case of junior doctors and pharmacists, Medical Education Apr; 51(4):442-451
Billett, S. (2016) Beyond competence: an essay on a process approach to organising and enacting vocational education, International Journal of Training Research 14 (3) 197-214 (1st September 2016)
Palesy, D & Billett, S (2016) Learning manual handling without direct supervision or support: A case study of home care workers, Social Work Education, 36 (3) 273-288
Billett, S (2016) Apprenticeship as a mode of learning and model of education, Education & Training, 58(6)
Billett, S (2016 ) Learning through healthcare work: Premises, contributions and practices, Medical Education;50(1):124-31
