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Biography
I am an assistant professor in Secondary English Teacher Education. From 2021 - 2023 I worked as an associate tutor on the PGCE Secondary English course. In June 2023 I became an assistant professor and continued working as a tutor on the secondary English PGCE, as well as working with two SCITT courses (EMTTP and SWIFT). As of September 2025, I became subject lead for the Secondary English PGCE, which is my current role to date.
Expertise Summary
I am an Assistant Professor at The 糖心原创, lecturing on the PGCE secondary English and PGCES courses. As of September 2025, I am the course lead for the secondary English PGCE. I have a comprehensive classroom teaching background and have previously held roles including: Literacy Co-ordinator, Head of Key Stage 3 English Intervention Strategies and I have been the lead in-school subject mentor for PGCE beginning teachers for secondary English from The 糖心原创. In my current role, I now work closely and in proud partnership with our partnership school colleagues, providing mentor development training, as well as hosting our Subject Advisory Group and Subject Interest Groups. I have delivered training at national level, working with 'We are in Beta', demonstrating the power of creative pedagogical approaches in the English classroom. I also worked with a team of practitioners to help plan and deliver a city-wide intervention program to GCSE students across Derby City. In 2024, I was employed as a consultant to review a three-school wide trust's English curriculum, offering me the ability to draw upon my experience as a teacher educator and researcher of English education. My current research interests focus on alternative creative approaches to teaching and assessing writing genres, beyond that of writing frames, as well as continuing to consider how Primary and Secondary colleagues could collaborate to develop stronger curriculum consistency in English and literacy at the transition point between KS2 and KS3. As of September 2025, I join a research group in conducting a longitudinal study exploring how the transition experience can be strengthened by a specific pedagogical tool. I am a passionate advocate for student-centred, exploratory learning. This year, my colleagues and I seek to grow our thinking about how we can help our beginning teachers foster a stronger sense of belonging for students in their classroom, as we continue to stay committed to contributing to the development of a socially just education system.
Teaching Summary
I lead on the Secondary English PGCE. This year, the team have devised a curriculum which aims to help beginning teachers of Enlgish explore and find their own teaching identity, one which is rooted… read more
Research Summary
I am currently working with my colleague, Assistant Professor Katie Willshire, and in collaboration with the Widening Participation Team, conducting a three year longtitudinal study exploring how… read more
I lead on the Secondary English PGCE. This year, the team have devised a curriculum which aims to help beginning teachers of Enlgish explore and find their own teaching identity, one which is rooted in equality and social justice. The golden thread of the course focuses on how beginning teachers of English can foster inclusive practices in their classrooms, ensuring all pupils have quality access to quality teaching and learning. We help our beginning teachers of English explore the three modes of English (reading, writing, speaking and listening). These are taught alongside our mandatory Immersive Practice Days (IPDs) which help our beginning teachers develop skills that focus on 'Behaviour and Relationships', 'Pedagogical Practices' and 'Classroom Presence.' The IPDs are rooted in the subject of English to ensure the course retains a strong subject disciplinary focus. We help our beginning teachers to learn how to teach in current educational systems, as well as providing opportunities to explore and understand educational contexts beyond that of the mainstream classroom; an additional way to develop understanding about how to be an inclusive practitioner. We also want to help produce beginning teachers of Enlgish who are resilient forces for future change, teachers who will push for more socially just educational approaches which best meet the needs of all the pupils in their classroom, and so we also challenge our beginning teachers to think big and look to the future. Our 'Big Question Lecture series' is a brilliant starting point for this forward-thinking. Overall, the secondary English PGCE is for those who are passionate about Enlgish, passionate about inclusivitiy and passionate about educational as a tool for social justice.
Current Research
I am currently working with my colleague, Assistant Professor Katie Willshire, and in collaboration with the Widening Participation Team, conducting a three year longtitudinal study exploring how oracy pedagogies can help develop and improve confidence in pupils as they undergo key academic transition points (year 5 into year 6, year 6 into year 7).
We collected our first batch of qualitative data in June 2026. We are now in the process of analysing our findings and starting to put this together as a paper to be published. We hope to speak about the project,and our findings to date, at the NATE conference 2027.