Heather Buchanan

Profile

Biography

As Director of Postgraduate Taught courses (Teaching and Learning), I work with both staff and students to make our postgraduate courses as successful and fulfilling as possible. I joined the University of York in 2019 as the MA TESOL Programme Leader, after working at Leeds Beckett University as a teacher trainer and educator for many years.

In addition to teaching and teacher training, I have co-authored Oxford University Press’s coursebook Navigate B1+ (intermediate), a series of online listening skills worksheets for Richmond’s Skills Boost series, and the primary and junior high school Success with English series for the Guangdong region of China. As a published author, I have a keen interest in all things Materials Development, and have delivered many modules, courses, workshops, webinars and conference presentations on the topic in the UK, Ireland, Switzerland and Thailand. Materials Development is also the focus of my current research.

My qualifications include an MA TESOL from the University of Leeds and the RSA dipTEFLA. I am a current Cambridge CELTA and Delta trainer and assessor. I am currently working on my PhD in the area of Materials Development.

In 2015 I was awarded Senior Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy.

External activities

Memberships

• International Association of Teachers of English as a Foreign Language (IATEFL) - Materials Writing Special Interest Group
• British Association for Applied Linguistics (BAAL)

Supervision

I supervise students on undergraduate and postgraduate programmes, and on the PhD programme as Thesis Advisory Panel member.

Editorial duties

I am currently co-editing the Routledge Handbook of Materials Development for Language Teaching with Julie Norton (University of Leicester).

Invited talks and conferences

Buchanan, H. (September, 2019) Making Principle led, Quality Materials, IATEFL Materials Writing Special Interest Group Webinar.

Buchanan, H. and Norton, J. (April, 2018) Versioning Coursebooks for Different Contexts: What, How and Why?, Materials Writing Special Interest Group Showcase, 52nd International IATEFL conference. Brighton.

Buchanan, H. and Hann, N. (September, 2017) Delta Module Three: Sharing Good Practice (workshop), Cambridge English Teaching Awards Symposium, Sheffield.

Buchanan, H. and Norton, J. (April, 2017) Collaboration, Creativity and Coursebooks, Materials Writing Special Interest Group Pre-Conference Event, International IATEFL conference, Glasgow.

Buchanan, H. and Norton, J. (January, 2016) 21st Century Skills, Materials Writing Special Interest Group Conference, London.

Buchanan, H. and Norton, J. (June, 2015) Uncovering expertise in ELT Coursebook writing, University of Leicester School of Education.

Buchanan, H. (April and October, 2015) English 24/7, Webinar sponsored by Oxford University Press.

Buchanan, H. (January, 2015) Unlock the Code: Helping Learners to Listen Better, sponsored talk at Swiss ETAS conference, Bern.

Buchanan, H. (November, 2014) Global Coursebooks: Helpful Scaffold or Debilitating Crutch? Plenary at National NATECLA Conference, Leeds.