Assistant Professor in TESOL and Digital Language Learning Technology (MLAC_01)

Working at Durham University

A globally outstanding centre of teaching and research excellence, a warm and friendly place to work, a unique and historic setting - Durham is a university like no other.

As one of the UK's leading universities, Durham is an incredible place to define your career. The University is located within a beautiful historic city, home to a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and surrounded by stunning countryside. Our talented scholars and researchers from around the world are tackling global issues and making a difference to people's lives.

We believe that inspiring our people to do outstanding things at Durham enables Durham people to do outstanding things in the world. Being a part of Durham is about more than just the success of the University, it's also about contributing to the success of the city, county and community.

Our University Strategy is built on three pillars of research, education and wider student experience, but also on our keen sense of community and of inspiring others to achieve their potential.

Our Purpose and Values

We want our university to be a place where people can be free to be themselves, no matter what their identity or background. Together, we celebrate difference, value one another and are each responsible for creating an inclusive community that is respectful and fair for all.

Find out more about the benefits of working at the University and what it is like to live and work in the Durham area on our Why Join Us? - Information Page

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The School of Modern Languages and Cultures

The successful candidate will join the School of Modern Languages and Cultures (MLAC), which is one of the largest and most successful such Schools in the UK. The School brings together research in Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Hispanic Studies, Italian, Japanese and Russian Studies. Our reach spans Europe, the Arab world, Russophone Eurasia, Hispanic America, and East Asia, and their mutual socio-cultural, intellectual and linguistic relations.

MLAC federates expertise to generate innovative practices in teaching and research that cross historical, geographical and methodological boundaries. Our expertise ranges from the medieval and early period studies through to the contemporary era, with particular strengths in visual arts and culture, the relationship between the sciences and the humanities, textual scholarship, gender and sexuality studies, critical and cultural theory, travel literature, creative writing, and translation. Indeed, translation — understood in its broad sense of transmission, interpretation and sharing of languages, ideas and histories — underpins the School's collective practices.

The depth and diversity of our expertise is reflected in a range of interdisciplinary degree programmes at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. We offer undergraduate degrees in Modern Languages and Cultures, Chinese and Japanese Studies, and Visual Art and Film. Our taught postgraduate degrees offer advanced training in Translation Studies, Visual Culture and Languages, Literatures and Cultures. Meanwhile, the Centre for Foreign Language Study (CFLS) delivers an Institution-Wide Language Programme to students across the University via credit-bearing and non-credit bearing modules, giving as many of our students as possible the opportunity to learn languages in the way and at the level best suited to them. More information on the School can be found on our webpages at: https://www.durham.ac.uk/departments/academic/modern-languages-cultures/

Reflecting our strengths in language teaching pedagogy, we are delighted that the University's well-established MA in TESOL and Applied Linguistics will be joining the School from academic year 2025/26. Currently based in the Durham Centre for Academic Development, the MA in TESOL and Applied Linguistics has a long-standing reputation for attracting and training teachers of English from around the world. We anticipate that its move to MLAC will reinforce synergies and exchanges of good practice in the domain of language learning and language pedagogy.

The School seeks to support the development of the programme by appointing a talented individual to the role of Assistant Professor in TESOL and Digital Language Learning Technology. We welcome applications from those with teaching interests in the broad field of English-language pedagogy and are particularly keen to hear from applicants with expertise in the application and integration of digital technologies into language pedagogy.

The post offers an exciting opportunity to make a major contribution to the development of internationally excellent pedagogy and teaching while allowing unrivalled opportunities to progress and embed your career in an exciting and progressive institution. The appointment will be on the

Education track and be from 1 December 2024 or as soon as possible thereafter.

Assistant Professors (Education) at Durham

Assistant Professors on the Education track contribute to teaching, innovation, and citizenship, with opportunities to enhance their own development, support their department and discipline, and contribute to the wider student experience.

Teaching quality and innovation is critical to ensure a first-class learning environment and curricula for all our students. You will be supported to develop your teaching expertise, to engage in teaching innovation, to enrich our student experience, and will be assigned a designated mentor.

You will be expected to engage in scholarship related to pedagogy, noting that any other independent research (beyond pedagogy) is not part of this post. The appointment will be on the University's 'Education Track' career path, which provides clearly defined opportunities for progression against defined criteria.

We are confident that our recruitment process allows us to attract and select the best talent to Durham. We therefore offer a reduced probation period of 1 year for our Assistant Professors (Education) and thereafter, subject to satisfactory performance, your position will be confirmed as permanent.

Applicants must demonstrate teaching excellence in the field of TESOL and digital language learning technology,, with the ability to teach our students to an exceptional standard and to fully engage in the services, citizenship and values of the University.

The University aims to provides a working and teaching environment which is inclusive and welcoming and where everyone is treated fairly with dignity and respect. Candidates will be expected to demonstrate these key principles as part of the assessment process.

Key responsibilities:

• To deliver lectures, seminars and tutorials at undergraduate and taught postgraduate levels, with the opportunity to teach more widely within the Department, as well as engaging in related activity such as assessment
• Engage in pedagogic activity at Departmental level that supports a high quality, academic professional community of practice within the Department and beyond.
• Maintain an active membership and engagement with a professional body (e.g. HEA or discipline-specific bodies).
• Contribute to ongoing curriculum development, demonstrating innovation in educational practice to enhance the quality of the educational environment in the Department and wider University in support of our continuing emphasis on international excellence as well as equality, diversity and inclusion.
• To contribute to the administrative work, citizenship and values of the Department.
• Engage in and enhance the values of the Department with regard to its commitment to its vibrant and international postgraduate culture.
• Carry out such other duties as specified by the Head of Department.

Durham University is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion

Equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) are a key component of the University's Strategy and a central part of everything we do. We also live by our Purpose and Values and our Staff Code of Conduct. At Durham we actively work towards providing an environment where our staff and students can study, work and live in a community which is supportive and inclusive. It's important to us that all colleagues undertake activities that are aligned to both our values and commitment to EDI.

We welcome and encourage applications from those who are currently under-represented in our work force, including people with disabilities and from racially minoritised ethnic groups.

If you have taken a career break or periods of leave that may have impacted on your teaching achievements or pedagogical outputs, such as maternity, adoption or parental leave, you may wish to disclose this in your application The selection committee will recognise that this may have reduced the ...