Jane Sjoberg SFHEA

Jane Sjoberg

EAP Teaching Fellow

Contact details

Address
Birmingham International Academy
46 Priorsfield
University of Birmingham
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B15 2TT
UK

I am a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, a HEFi Scholar and a Distinguished Fellow of the University of Birmingham Teaching Academy. At the BIA, in addition to teaching Academic English and Study Skills, I have a key role in the development of teaching resources designed to help international students whose habitual language is not English to succeed in all five colleges and at all levels from Undergraduate to Postgraduate (Taught and by Research). I am also one of a team of staff development (CPD) coordinators.

Qualifications

Academic

  • MA TESOL (University of Manchester)
  • BA Hons in Modern Languages (University of Catania, Italy)
  • BA Hons in Italian and German (University of Exeter)

Teaching

  • RSA CELTA
  • PGCE with QTS (Sheffield Hallam University)
  • QTLS - ESOL (IFL/SET)
  • TEFLQ

Biography

From 1988 to 2006 I worked in a wide range of educational and professional environments in Sicily (Italy). This included teacher training projects for the Ministry of Education and ESP courses (e.g. English for Surveyors, Business English and English for Quality Management in Education). I did a great deal of voluntary work in this time and was project coordinator for a non-profit organisation (LILA) working with people affected by HIV/AIDs and substance abuse. From 2003 to 2006, I worked as an undergraduate English tutor at the University of Catania's Faculty of Languages and designed and delivered courses for postgraduates in Medicine and the Sciences at the Scuola di Specializzazione. Since relocating to the UK in 2006, I have taught both in Further and Higher Education contexts, including some challenging but rewarding work with refugees and asylum seekers. I am part of the BIA's CPD (teacher development) team and contribute regularly to internal and external teacher training events and publications. In addition to my university work, I also work as an EFL exam item writer.

Teaching

I have developed courses and taught on a variety of English Modules (including Foundation and Pre-Masters) and departmental insessional English programmes such as

  • Academic English for Environmental Sciences
  • Academic English for Economics
  • Academic English for Mechanical Engineering
  • Academic English for Education
  • Academic English for LCAHM
  • Academic English for Computer Science
  • Academic English for PGRs

Although I teach across all college disciplines, I have a special focus on Engineering and Science pathways, in particular Computer Science.

Other activities

I have a special interest in curriculum development and materials writing across BIA programmes. I have written numerous in-house teaching and learning materials for the BIA, including presessional course materials and the materials for the Advanced Academic Skills and Pre-Masters modules for the Foundation Programme. I have been instrumental in the creation of high quality online teaching and learning resources, including the 15-Week Online Presessional English Course, the Pre-Arrival Academic English Course and a webinar series to support students who may need to interrupt their studies for short periods. My current focus is on the development of materials to support insessional English programmes, particularly the College Embedded suite of materials, enrichment materials and Departmental classes.

I contribute regularly at internal and external conferences in EAP and teacher training and development, with a particular focus on learning and technology.

Selected Conference Papers

External

November 2017: Laying the Foundations - Intercultural Exploration as a Bridge to Academic Skills. BALEAP PIM University of Nottingham

July 2017: Engaging Foundation Learners with a Student-led Magazine, Inform, University of Reading

May 2017: ESAP for Foundation Science & Engineering. Ruhr University, Bochum

April 2017: A Student Magazine project: A Key for Many Doors. BALEAP Conference, University of Bristol (Joint Presentation with Sean Gardner)

February 2017: BALEAP Webinar Foundation Teaching: Rising to the Challenge at the BIA

April 2015: Getting them on board – effective ways to use online discussions. BALEAP Conference, University of Leicester

January 2015: Using online discussions in Canvas effectively. LLAS E-Learning Symposium, University of Southampton

November 2013: Peer review – making it work. BALEAP PIM, Oxford-Brookes University (Plenary Speaker)

July 2011: All Aboard! Being smart without a Smartboard. NATECLA National Conference, University of Warwick

November 2009: Smarten up! Use of the IWB in language teaching NATECLA Teacher Development Conference, Walsall

March 2003: Effective team teaching in secondary schools – practical suggestions. British Council National Conference, Acireale, Italy

Internal

July 2017: Continuing Presessional Development – the Role of CPD. Share & Celebrate, BIA

July 2014: Using discussion boards in Canvas. Teaching and Learning Conference, University of Birmingham

January 2014: Using Mailvu videomail to promote student interaction, E-Learning Practitioners’ Forum, University of Birmingham

June 2013: Moving beyond PowerPoint - An experience of the BFA Foundation English Module Teaching and Learning Conference, University of Birmingham (Joint presentation with Hayley Maxwell)

EFL PUBLICATIONS

  • Maxwell, H., Mottura, A., Nickalls, R., Sjoberg, J. & Nightingale, K. (2014). Developing E- and Blended Learning Approaches for International Students. Education in Practice, 1(1): 12-15.
  • McPake, N. and Sjoberg, J. (joint authors) (2012). Developing resources for community cohesion: a report on a small-scale InstituteforLearning-funded action research project, Language Issues, 23(1): 66-78.
  • Sjoberg, J. (2004). Teaching in Tandem, English Teaching Professional, 32, May 2004: 13-14 (Also published as ‘Impress your students with a class double act’, The Guardian Weekly, 171(1), June 25-July 1, 2004:4)
  • Sjoberg, J. (2004). The Checking Homework Challenge [Online]. Winning entry of ‘The OnestopEnglish Methodology Challenge’, November 2004.
  • Sjoberg, J. (2006). Outside the classroom - Join the club! Part 3, English Teaching Professional, 46, Sept 2006: 53-55.
  • Sjoberg, J. (2006) Outside the classroom - Join the club! Part 2, English Teaching Professional, 45, July 2006: 49-51.
  • Sjoberg, J. (2006).  Outside the classroom - Join the club! Part 1, English Teaching Professional, 44, May 2006: 49-51.
  • Sjoberg, J. (2013). Talking Teaching. Spotlight in the Classroom, 9: 5.
  • Sjoberg, J. (2017) Engaging Foundation Learners with a Student-led Magazine – the Experience of the BIA, University of Birmingham.  Inform (A Journal For International Foundation Programme Professionals): Issue 17, 20-22, Available at   https://www.reading.ac.uk/web/files/inform/InForm_Issue17.pdf  [Accessed 28/07/20]
  • Sjoberg,J. (2018) Review of Paltridge, B. & Starfield, S. (2016) Getting Published in Academic Journals – Navigating the Publication Process  [Online] Available at https://www.baleap.org/resources/book-reviews/paltridge-starfield-2016-getting-published [Accessed 28/07/20]
  • Sjoberg, J. (2020) Start NOW – Perfect LATER – Moving into Digital Teaching and Learning, [Blog] HEFi Big Conversation, University of Birmingham. Available at https://blog.bham.ac.uk/bigconversation/2020/03/30/start-now-perfect-later-moving-into-digital-teaching-and-learning-by-jane-sjoberg/ [Accessed 28/07/20]

OTHER PUBLICATIONS

  • NigroL.,  Larocca L.,  Celesia M., Montineri A., Sjoberg J., Caltabiano E., Fatuzzo F. & The Unit Operators Group. (2006). Prevalence of HIV and Other Sexually Transmitted Diseases among Colombian and Dominican Female Sex Workers Living in Catania, Eastern Sicily. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, 8(4): 319-323.

Publications

Peer-reviewed papers

McPake, N. & Sjoberg, J. (joint authors) (2012). Developing resources for community cohesion: a report on a small-scale IFL-funded action research project, Language Issues, 23(1): 66-78.

Nigro L, Larocca L, Celesia M, Montineri A, Sjoberg J, Caltabiano E, Fatuzzo F & The Unit Operators Group. (2006). Prevalence of HIV and Other Sexually Transmitted Diseases among Colombian and Dominican Female Sex Workers Living in Catania, Eastern Sicily. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, 8(4): 319-323.

Articles

Maxwell, H., Mottura, A., Nickalls, R., Sjoberg, J. & Nightingale, K. (2014). Developing E- and Blended Learning Approaches for International Students. Education in Practice, 1(1): 12-15.

Sjoberg, J. (2013). Talking Teaching. Spotlight in the Classroom, 9: 5.

Sjoberg, J. (2006). Outside the classroom - Join the club! Part 3, English Teaching Professional, 46, Sept 2006: 53-55.

Sjoberg, J. (2006). Outside the classroom - Join the club! Part 2, English Teaching Professional, 45, July 2006: 49-51.

Sjoberg, J. (2006). Outside the classroom - Join the club! Part 1, English Teaching Professional, 44, May 2006: 49-51.

Sjoberg, J. (2004). Teaching in Tandem, English Teaching Professional, 32, May 2004: 13-14 (Also published as ‘Impress your students with a class double act’, The Guardian Weekly, 171(1), June 25-July 1, 2004: 4)

Sjoberg, J. (2004). Un assistente davvero speciale, ScuolaInsieme 10(2): 66-69.