Principal Lecturer: Learning and Teaching Development Co-ordinator – Teacher Education and Professional Development (TEPD) Division

Jane is responsible for developing teaching initiatives within the division of Teacher Education, including staff development, academic literacy development and internationalisation.  She is also cohort leader for the TESOL pathway through the MA in Education and the International teachers’ summer school, teaching modules  related to reflective teacher development, language/literature interface, second and first language writing, testing and evaluation, creative writing and storytelling.

Special interests include:

• Creative writing and literature in the language classroom
• Test writing and materials writing for teachers
• Teacher development and the role of teacher narratives
• Teacher and Learner Creativity

Contact Details

E-mail:jspiro@brookes.ac.uk
Telephone: +44(0)1865 48 (8613/3883)

Former Experience

Jane was co-ordinator of the English Language Centre at the University of Nottingham, Course manager of Cambridge Diploma in English Language Teaching for Adults (DELTA) in Switzerland, Assistant Director of Studies at the University of Pecs, Hungary, and co-ordinator of teacher development programmes with the British Council in Mexico, Poland and the Netherlands. She has been consultant on projects in materials writing, test writing, curriculum development and creative writing in India, Japan, China, Malaysia, Kenya and Sri Lanka; was UK Co-ordinator for a European Language Testing Consortium until 2002, and was co-editor of the journal Reading in a Foreign Language until 2001. She is the author of Creative Poetry Writing (2004) and Storybuilding (2007) with Oxford Universiyt Press and published plays, stories and poems both in educational, and mainstream settings.  She has also been presenter and writer of interfaith programmes for Carlton and West Country TV.

Academic Qualifications
BA English Language and Literature: UniversityCollegeLondon
PGCE in TESOL: London Institute of Education
MPhil Cultural History: Warburg Institute, University of London
MA Applied Linguistics: University of Reading

PhD Philosophy of Education: University of Bath
FHEA: Fellow of the Higher EducationAcademy

Other Professional Responsibilities
External examiner: University of  Ulster in Coleraine MA TESOL
Editorial Board: English Language Teaching Journal (ELTJ)

Recent Conference Papers
First Language Writing; Second Language Learning
Keynote speaker: Tammi Publishers’ Consortium, Helsinki, Finland
November 2004

Storybuilding in Language Learning
Keynote speaker: First International Materials Writing Conference
Hotel Equatorial, Melaka, Malaysia: sponsored by Pearson Malaysia
May 2005

Learner poetry, learner story
Keynote speaker: Teachers’ Club, Dublin, Ireland: sponsored by OxfordUniversity Press
March 2006

Task authenticity in language teaching. Teaching and Learning conference: HETA June 2007. Heart of England Teachers' Association: Birmingham.

Research and consultancy
Jane has recently completed  PhD research into the role of creativity in teacher development at the University of Bath.
She has also been involved in an AHRC funded project with the Open University and NottinghamUniversity researching creativity in teaching and learning; and is currently involved in research projects exploring the experience of students educated outside the UK in British schools and universities.   

Recent Publications
Spiro, J. (in press ) Assessing creativity in Paran, A. and L. Siercu (eds.) Testing the Untestable. Multilingual Matters. MacMillan

Spiro, J. (2007) Teaching Poetry: writing poetry - teaching as a writer in English in Education  Vol. 41, no. 3 Autumn 2007, NATE (National Association of Teachers if English) pp. 78 - 93
Spiro, Jane (2007) Storybuilding Oxford: Oxford University Press
Spiro, Jane (2004) Finding Voices: Making Strange in Anglo files, September 2004 Vol. 133 Journal of English Teaching: Danish Association of Teachers of English pp. 44 – 56
Spiro, Jane (2004) Creative Writing in the Language Classroom Anglo files, November 2004, Vol. 134, Journal of English Teaching: Danish Association for Teachers of English pp. 44 - 53
Spiro, Jane (2004) Creative Poetry Writing Oxford: Oxford University Press
Spiro, Jane (2002) Nothing I Touch Stands Still Crucible Press (novel)