Teaching
TEACHING INTERESTS
Currently, my main focus is on teaching the history of slavery in North America and the Caribbean. However, I have broad teaching interests in American history including; early American history, the Atlantic World, American women, the history of racism and civil rights, comparative slaveries from ancient to modern, and US and UK heritage and slavery. I also contribute to the teaching on a range of core undergraduate modules besides my own modules. At Masters level I teach on modules about the 18th century and revolutions, comparative slaveries, museums and heritage. In the past and currently, I supervise MAs and PhD students working on the American slavery, the American Revolution, women’s history in the American South, the British slave trade, Abolitionism, 'free people of colour' in the 18th and 19th century, and the American Civil War. I would welcome applications from potential doctoral students with proposals in similar areas.
LEARNING AND TEACHING
I have always taken a leading role in shaping teaching and learning at the universities I have worked at. I have reformed approaches to handling plagiarism by utilizing plagiarism detection software as a teaching tool; by streamlining the process of dealing with cases, and by improving liaison between academic and administrative colleagues. I have also pioneered the embedding of ‘employability’ into the History curriculum, through such activities in seminars as role play, group work and presentations that foster self-confidence, initiative, and the ability to work with, and influence, others. As dissertation coordinator, I have revised the delivery and assessment of the unit by organizing workshops to support undergraduate research training and introducing a short formative written exercise to encourage early engagement with the course. I am committed not just to pioneering good practice but to its dissemination too and I have represented my department at institutional level on matters concerning learning and teaching strategy, misconduct procedure and practice, and during the examination period.
I am a qualified teacher (having completed the PCTHE) and also a member of the Higher Education Academy. As a member of the Teachers of American History Group, I have organised a funded symposium which included sessions on podcasting; embedding ‘employability’ in the curriculum and comparing the experience of US and UK undergraduates.
Modules for 2024-25
AFRICAN-AMERICAN ODYSSEY: SLAVERY, RACE, AND FREEDOM IN NORTH AMERICA
Module code: HIST307
Role: Module Co-ordinator
EYES ON THE PRIZE: THE LONG STRUGGLE FOR CIVIL RIGHTS
Module code: HIST299
Role: Module Co-ordinator
HISTORY DISSERTATION
Module code: HIST396
Role: Teaching
PRESENTING THE PAST
Module code: HIST106
Role: Teaching
REVOLUTION AND SOCIAL CHANGE: POLITICS, CULTURES AND SOCIETIES IN THE 18TH-CENTURY WORLD
Module code: HIST522
Role: Teaching
TRANSATLANTIC SLAVERY: HISTORIES AND AFTERLIVES
Module code: HIST530
Role: Teaching
USES OF THE PAST: HISTORY IMPACT MODULE
Module code: HIST320
Role: Module Co-ordinator
USES OF THE PAST: HISTORY IMPACT MODULE
Module code: HIST388
Role: Module Co-ordinator