Rate My Professor Margarita Tsiros

Dr Margarita Tsiros is a Senior Lecturer in Physiotherapy at the School of Allied Health and Human Performance, College of Health, Adelaide University. As a clinician, researcher and educator with more than 25 years experience in paediatrics, she is passionate about the health and wellbeing of children and adolescents. She is co-director of Adelaide University's IIMPACT in Health Research Concentration (Innovation, IMPlementation And Clinical Translation in Health) and a member of the ARENA Research Centre (Alliance for Research in Exercise, Nutrition and Activity). A past Chair of the SA Paediatric Group of the Australian Physiotherapy Association, she remains an active member. Her academic background includes a PhD from the University of South Australia, Bachelor of Physiotherapy, Graduate Certificate in Research Methods, and Bachelor of Health Science (Honours). Eligible to supervise Masters and PhD students, she is available for media comment.

Tsiros's research focuses on optimising health, development and wellbeing of children and youth by helping them 'move well' and 'move more', particularly addressing childhood overweight and obesity, children's play, movement skills and technology-enhanced therapeutic approaches. Her expertise spans quantitative, qualitative, systematic reviews, scoping reviews and mixed methods research, examining motor skills, quality of life, balance, strength, pain, cardiorespiratory fitness, physical activity, sedentary behaviours and activity participation. In teaching, she coordinates the Honours Research Stream across six Allied Health programs, the postgraduate Allied Health Research Evidence Translation course, Physiotherapy with Children and Families, and Health Science Honours Preparation. She teaches research methods, paediatric physiotherapy and neuroscience. Awards include the ALH Teaching Innovation Award and Unstoppable Teaching Innovation Team Commendation (2025), Commendations for Sustained Excellence in Teaching (2024, 2022), Healthy Development Adelaide Women’s Mid-career Excellence in Research Award (2022), ‘Best Paper’ in paediatric research at the Australian Physiotherapy Association National Conference (2019), AMP Tomorrow-maker (2016), Team Kids Young Investigator Award finalist (2015) and Tall Poppy Science Award (2014). Key publications: Seekamp et al. (2026), Participation of parents known to child protection in service responses; Kasai et al. (2025), Ratings of perceived exertion from a submaximal 20-m shuttle-run test; Wilde et al. (2025), The relationship between postural control and adiposity in children; Dankiw et al. (2025), Australian guidance documents informing nature playspaces; Banwell et al. (2024), Textured insoles may improve gross motor balance measures.