Dave Watton

• Certificate in Teaching English as a Foreign Language to Adults (CELTA)
• Diploma in Teaching English as a Foreign Language to Adults
• Young Learner Extension to CELTA
• BA (Hons) Architecture (University of Nottingham)
• HEA Senior Fellowship

I taught abroad in the Basque Country and in South Korea, where I worked for the British Council as a teacher-trainer and manager of the Young Learners Centre in Seoul. I have since worked in both further and higher education in the UK and have been a member of the teaching team at Birmingham International Academy since 2008. I am an active action research practitioner and have contributed to two publications and presented at several conferences in the UK and abroad.

• Insessional Academic English
• Birmingham Foundation Pathways Academic English & Study Skills
• Presessional EAP programmes (Undergraduate & Postgraduate)

Academic interests

I have a particular interest in experimenting with more creative approaches to teaching and learning. As a CPD coordinator, I enjoy working with colleagues to harness their creativity as classroom practitioners.

Publications

Watton, D. (2018) Messing up your teaching. English Teaching Professional, Issue 115 (March 2018), Pavilion Publishing

Watton, D. & Groves, J. (2018) ‘The Discerning Student’: A framework for developing critical thinking skills with international foundation students. InForm Journal, Issue 18 (December 2018), International Study and Language Centre, University of Reading

Conferences

‘Messing up your teaching’ - Oblique strategies for EAP: Norwegian Forum for English for Academic Purposes (NFEAP) Conference, Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences, Oslo, Norway (June 2016)

DISCERN: The Discerning Student: High Education Futures institute (HEFi) Conference, University of Birmingham (June 2018) – with Jake Groves

DISCERN: The Discerning Student: InForm Conference, University of Birmingham (June 2018) – with Jake Groves

The Discerning Student: A framework for developing critical thinking skills, Forum on Critical Thinking, IATEFL Conference, Liverpool (April 2019) – with Jake Groves

‘Keep, chuck or change? Adapting Presessional CPD Provision in a Challenging Environment’. BALEAP PIM: The Future of EAP. Goldsmiths College, London (November 2019) – with Jane Sjoberg

‘Streamlining, flexibility and support: A review of presessional observation strategy in the shift to remote teaching’. BALEAP PIM: Leadership and Management in EAP: Issues, Insights and Experiences. University of Durham (June 2021) – with Jane Sjoberg