Claire Jane McLachlan (sometimes McLachlan-Smith) is a New Zealand teaching academic. She is currently professor and dean at Federation University Australia. Her speciality is early-childhood literacy.^[1]

McLachlan did a M.A (Hons, 1st class) by thesis at Massey entitled 'Experience as a mother of a "crying baby": a single collaborative case study' completed in 1991,^[2] and then a PhD 'Emergent literacy in New Zealand kindergartens : an examination of policy and practices' in 1996.^[3] Between 2000 and 2006 she worked in Auckland at the University of Auckland and Auckland University of Technology before returning to Massey University,^[4] where she rose to full professor in 2013. She then moved to Waikato University as professor and head of school.^[5] She is currently professor and dean of the school of education at Federation University Australia. ^[6]

• Makin, Laurie, Criss Jones-Diaz, and Claire McLachlan, eds. Literacies in childhood: Changing views, challenging practice. Elsevier Australia, 2007.
• McLachlan, Claire, Marilyn Fleer, and Susan Edwards. Early childhood curriculum: Planning, assessment, and implementation. Cambridge University Press, 2013.
• McLachlan, Claire, Lucila Carvalho, Nicky de Lautour, and Koshila Kumar. "Literacy in early childhood settings in New Zealand: An examination of teachers' beliefs and practices." Australian Journal of Early Childhood 31, no. 2 (2006): 31–42.
• McLachlan, Claire. "An analysis of New Zealand's changing history, policies and approaches to early childhood education." Australasian Journal of Early Childhood 36, no. 3 (2011): 36.