معرفی
Professor Barbara Skinner is a Professor of TESOL and Education at Ulster University's School of Education, based at the Coleraine campus. She serves as Director of Development and Partnerships for the School of Education and is a member of the School's Senior Management Team. Dr. Skinner was the first lecturer in Ulster's Centre for English Language Teaching (CELT) and moved to the School of Education to become Course Director of MA TESOL in 2006.
Her educational background includes a Doctorate of Education from the University of Bristol (2014). Originally from Cornwall, she has extensive experience teaching ESOL and EAP, and has served as a UCLES examiner and IELTS examiner.
Professor Skinner's research focuses on language teacher education, higher education pedagogy, and intercultural competence. Her current work explores minority language pupils in Northern Ireland, examining their educational attainment, home-school partnerships between schools and migrant parents, and the socio-emotional well-being of refugee pupils. She also investigates teacher talk and second language teacher education, with particular interest in conversation analysis, threshold concepts, and teacher identity.
Her research has resulted in numerous publications in key international journals including the English Language Teaching Journal, Journal of Studies in International Education, and Journal of Education for Teaching. Professor Skinner has secured significant funding from external sources including the British Council, UKISA, and international partners in Spain, Korea, China, and Central Asia, with recent projects focusing on inclusive English language teaching across multiple countries.
- Sustained educational excellence award (2021)
- Professional Practice Innovation award (2021)
- Distinguished teaching fellowship - highly commended (2010)
- Excellence in International Partnership award (2020)
Professor Skinner is actively involved in doctoral supervision and examination, and serves as Northern Ireland representative for the British Educational Research Association (BERA). She is an Editor of the BERA Blog and a member of BERA Publications Committee. Her professional activities include reviewing for several prestigious journals and mentoring new reviewers globally. She leads multiple international projects, including the MA TESOL dual award program between Kazakhstan and Northern Ireland, demonstrating her commitment to advancing language education worldwide.
