Rate My Professor Martyn Mills-Bayne

Dr Martyn Mills-Bayne is a Senior Lecturer in Early Childhood Education in the School of Education, College of Education, Behavioural and Social Sciences at Adelaide University. He has over 17 years of experience teaching in initial teacher education programs across early childhood and primary levels at the University of South Australia. Before entering academia, he taught in junior primary schools and preschools across Adelaide's North and North-East suburbs. His academic background includes a PhD from the University of South Australia (2017), titled 'Fostering Children’s Capacity for Empathic Reasoning: The Role of Community of Inquiry in an Empathic Pedagogy', honours research on moral reasoning and values education in early childhood settings, and a Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood Education) with honours. He is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA) and supports early career academics through UniSA’s Teaching Academic Group in the Education Futures Unit. Identifying as AuDHD, he champions neurodiverse learners via universal design principles in teaching and learning, and co-leads the Neurodiversity@UniSA Special Interest Group.

Dr Mills-Bayne's research specializations include social emotional learning, neurodiversity in education, supporting international student teachers, and the benefits of esports in schools and communities, alongside interests in moral development, critical thinking, empathic pedagogy, and males in early childhood education. Key publications feature 'From vulnerable to valuable: a strengths based approach to international student teaching placements' (Raymond, Mills-Bayne, & Bateman, Australian Educational Researcher, 2025), 'You have to see it to be it: men as role models in ECEC' (Every Child, 2025), 'Reimagining transcultural identity: a case study of field experiences for international preservice teachers' (Soong et al., Teaching Education, 2021), 'Men who teach young children: international perspectives' (British Journal of Educational Studies, 2015), and 'Engaging with ethical understanding in the early years and beyond: the community of inquiry approach' (chapter in Making Humanities and Social Sciences Come Alive, 2019). Awards include the Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning (University of South Australia, 2015) and Apiary Fellowship (2025). He co-leads UniSA's MENtor Program for Males in ECE, participates in the Minderoo Foundation Dad's Alliance, and is a member of The Front Project's Apiary Fellowship, advocating for gender diversity in the early years workforce. He has delivered invited keynotes, such as at the 2024 Family Education and Social Support Academic Symposium in China and the NZ Office of Early Childhood Education National Summit in New Zealand, and teaches courses like Contemporary Contexts of Early Childhood Education and Early Childhood Professional Experience and Reflection. Eligible to co-supervise Masters and PhD students, he is available for media comment on early years workforce, gender diversity in ECEC, and children's social emotional needs.