Cris Edmonds-Wathen

Dr Cris Edmonds-Wathen is a Senior Lecturer in Education at Charles Darwin University's Faculty of Arts and Society. She specializes in Mathematics Education with a focus on Indigenous languages and cultural contexts. Her research explores how non-Indo-European languages, particularly Australian Indigenous languages, express mathematical concepts and how these can be integrated into education systems.

Education:

• PhD in Mathematics Education, RMIT University (2013)
• Graduate Diploma in Primary Education, Charles Darwin University (2005)
• Bachelor of Arts (First Class Honours), University of Western Sydney (1998)
• Bachelor of Arts (Linguistics & Mathematics), University of Melbourne (1995)

Research Interests:

Dr Edmonds-Wathen investigates mathematical expression in Indigenous languages, policies for language-in-education, and culturally responsive mathematics curricula. She has conducted fieldwork in Australia and Papua New Guinea, focusing on spatial cognition, bilingual education, and Indigenous knowledge systems. Her work contributes to the UN Sustainable Development Goal on Quality Education (SDG4).

Awards:

• 2023 Award for Excellence and Impact in Education from the Australian Council of Deans of Education

Grants & Programs:

• Principal Investigator for the MiIL Project (2021–2023), identifying mathematical expression in Indigenous languages
• Coordinates the Growing Our Own program, training Indigenous teachers in NT
• Recipient of ARC Centre of Excellence funding for language dynamics research

Labs & Networks:

Active in international networks including the Umeå Mathematics Education Research Centre (Sweden) and the Research Unit for Indigenous Language (Melbourne). Collaborates with Catholic Education NT and PNG elementary schools.