Principal Lecturer in English Language and Linguistics

My title is Principal Lecturer in English Language and Linguistics here at Bedfordshire. I teach on our undergraduate and postgraduate courses in language and linguistics.

I started teaching English in the 1980s and have worked in schools colleges and universities at home and abroad. I joined the University in 1996 as an English Language lecturer and I have managed, designed and taught our undergraduate and postgraduate courses in language and linguistics. The subjects I particularly enjoy include the language systems, phonetics & phonology, language assessment, forensic linguistics, and teacher development.

A trained linguist, my degree was in Linguistics where I did a joint major in English Syntax, Phonetics and Phonology at UCL. As I originally started out as a language teacher in the early1980s, I have maintained a keen interest in the crossover between linguistics and the classroom. The past 30 years have clearly shown the advantages of language awareness in a variety of contexts and classrooms of all levels and ages.

A regular feature of my job involves working with universities, schools and colleges, in the UK and beyond, which is always interesting. I am keen to support and develop the growth of language awareness across the curriculum.

Qualifications

• BA Linguistics – UCL
• MA Applied Linguistics
• Senior Fellow, Higher Education Academy

Research Interests

• Teacher training and teacher development
• Authenticity of Authorship & Forensic Linguistics
• Language systems and the classroom

External Roles

• Link Tutor: MSA University, Cairo
• Member of the OCR English Consultative Forum.
• External Examiner: Cranfield University, English Courses

Past Roles

• Head of Department, English Language and Communication 3 years
• Course Leader: BA English Language and Linguistics 7 years
• Senior Lecturer - wide range of modules at UG and PG level on Grammar, Phonetics, Phonology, Leadership, Management, Assessment, Accreditation

E: theo.maniski@beds.ac.uk