Rate My Professor Carla Valerio

Dr Carla Valerio is a Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Education at Southern Cross University on the Gold Coast campus. With a background as an elite gymnast and sprint canoeist from Portugal, she pursued sports science studies, discovering her passion for sport pedagogy. She holds a Bachelor of Sports Science, Master of Physical Education, and PhD from the Faculty of Sport, University of Porto, completed in 2022. Her doctoral research employed an ethnographic approach to examine social learning strategies, including communities of practice, in the professional development of pre-service physical education teachers, emphasizing their role in fostering student-centred approaches within teacher education programs. Joining Southern Cross University in October 2022, Dr Valerio contributes to the TeachLab research group, investigating initial teacher education, the impacts of social learning strategies, and the translation of outdoor education practices into school-based settings. She teaches Personal Development, Health and Physical Education (PDHPE), delivering game-based, inclusive gymnastics lessons that promote creativity and student voice for learners of all abilities and interests. Her research is underpinned by student-centred pedagogy and social learning theory, supporting United Nations Sustainable Development Goals related to quality education.

Dr Valerio maintains an active publication record through international collaborations with researchers from Portugal, Spain, and Australia in peer-reviewed journals and international conferences. Notable publications include 'Sport education as a curriculum approach to student learning of invasion games: Effects on game performance and game involvement' (2018), 'Pre-service teachers' learning and implementation of student-centred models in physical education: a systematic review' (2021), 'Does Sport Education promote equitable game-play participation? Effects of learning context and students’ sex and skill-level' (2022), 'Becoming an ethnographer in a Physical Education Teacher Education culture: a challenging self-knowledge journey' (2022), 'The head coach as a coach developer: a coach education case study inside a world champion futsal team' (2023), and '‘He isn’t a teacher. He is our friend’: understanding the challenges and opportunities of conducting ethnographic research with children' (2024). In recognition of her contributions, she received the 2024 Early Career Researcher of the Year award from the Faculty of Education at Southern Cross University. Dr Valerio is interested in supervising postgraduate students in health and physical education, sport pedagogy, ethnographic research, and qualitative social studies.