Ben Thomas

Profile

Biography

Prior to joining Edge Hill University, Ben taught at a range of primary school settings in Germany and England. He held a variety of teaching positions and responsibilities spanning EYFS, KS1 and KS2. Ben has extensive experience of leading and delivering on subject, departmental and whole school development initiatives in the capacity of subject lead (English, Geography and Languages), Head of Department (EYFS and KS1) and Assistant Head of Primary. 

Effective professional development for trainee and in-service teachers is something that Ben is passionate about and one of the key drivers behind his decision to complete the National Professional Qualification in Leading Teacher Development (NPQLTD) and make the transition into Initial Teacher Education. 

Research Interests

• Primary Languages: Attitudes, provision, pedagogy, curriculum, assessment, subject leadership and improvement, Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL), intercultural understanding

• English as an Additional Language (EAL): Second language acquisition, school policy, EAL assessment, EAL / SEND learners, inclusion

• Bilingualism and Multilingualism: bilingual education, immersion, translanguaging, regional and minority language representation

• Curriculum: Design, cross-curricular and thematic planning, international curricula

Teaching

Ben teaches on a range of modules across Edge Hill University’s QTS Initial Teacher Education programmes. This includes teaching BA(Hons) and PGCE students working at Levels 4 – 7. He predominantly teaches seminars and lectures on the Primary Languages, Phonics and EAL elements of the course. Ben is a Personal Academic Tutor for a group of second year undergraduate teacher trainees and Professional Practice Quality Lead for a cohort of final-year undergraduate Primary 5-11 trainees.