Theresa Clementson, FHEA

My research interests focus around HE students’ academic voice, agency, identity and peer learning. I recently completed my PhD (University of Sussex) which used a linguistics methodology to explore the pedagogic development of academic voice through peer talk. This work informs my teaching approach and my current role as Lead for Peer Communities, using evidence-informed, inclusive and sustainable approaches to encourage staff to set up peer-to-peer learning communities (such as writing groups) and near-peer mentoring schemes alongside and within academic programmes of study.

Current research projects aim to evaluate the impact of a range of peer learning communities in HE and to explore the use of free writing in an academic context. I specialise in working with students whose first language is not English, in interdisciplinary projects (such as pedagogy and linguistics), and in practitioner research.

My previous research and teaching background centred around students from a non-English speaking background. Between 2010 and 2020, I led, developed and taught pre-sessional pathway courses for UG and PG international students entering the university and ran teacher education courses for Chinese teachers of English; within the MA Teaching English as a Second Language team, I co-designed and led modules including Teaching English for Academic Purposes (which was open to external students) and Contexts, Cultures and Innovations in English Language Teaching. I have co-authored two multi-level internationally-published English language coursebook series for non-English-speaking background students, published by Cambridge University Press. In 2015, I was awarded Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy.

My current role is to help students, at all levels from Foundation to Doctoral, to maximise their learning potential. My approach incorporates dialogic and compassionate pedagogies to encourage active and transformative learning. As a Senior Lecturer specialising in Academic Literacies, I collaborate with staff and students in the School of Humanities and Social Science to improve student engagement and completion, to overcome a wide range of learning transitions and to embed academic literacies in the curriculum. As Lead for Peer Communities, I aim to develop, initiate, support and maintain innovative peer learning and mentoring schemes across the university to foster inclusivity and student-centred learning.