Educational dialogue for improving Foundation Year student outcomes

Biography

I joined  Surrey Institute of Education in January 2017. I am Postgraduate Research Director, responsible for the PhD in Higher Education.  I teach on the Postgraduate Certificate in Learning and Teaching (PGCert) and contribute to the MA in Higher Education and Continuing Professional Development (CPD) workshops and sessions. Prior to this I was Senior Lecturer in TESOL in the Sheffield Institute of Education at Sheffield Hallam University, teaching both undergraduate and postgraduate modules in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL), Second Language Acquisition, Research, and English for Academic Purposes (EAP). From 2009 - 2015 I worked as a lecturer at Zayed University, Dubai where I taught courses in the Department of English and Writing Studies and the Department of Education. From 1990 - 2009 I taught at Bilkent University, Ankara, in the School of English Language and the Graduate School of Education, working with pre-service English language teacher trainees. My doctoral research focused on the construction of teaching knowledge in pre-service trainees. This interest in the application of sociocultural theory to different learning contexts continues to be my main area of scholarly work. See the section on Research for a list of current research areas.

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Biography

Lewis is a Senior Lecturer who currently teaches both the ENG0013 - Principles of Engineering and Physical Science and ENG0015 - Physics A modules on the Foundation Year programme at the University of Surrey, achieving FHEA status in 2019, SFHEA status in 2021 and CSciTeach in 2023. For recognition of the sustained development and success of this programme, the Foundation Year team won the 2023 CATE award from AdvanceHE.

Lewis' research interests lie within the fields of ultrafast photochemistry and electronic structure theory with a growing influence on educational fields such as teaching pedagogy. Recent focuses have been on the photodeactivation mechanisms in biologically relevant ultraviolet chromophores, tackling the propagation of educational neuromyths, and the utility of distributed practice in curriculum design.

Most recently, Lewis completed a PGCE and a Master of Arts degree in Education with the University of Cumbria awarded with distinction.

Before appointment at the University of Surrey, Lewis trained as a secondary school teacher receiving qualified teacher status (QTS) in 2018, teaching Key Stage 3, G.C.S.E and A-Level groups. Prior to this, Lewis completed an MSc with distinction and a PhD in Mathematical Biology and Biophysical Chemistry at the University of Warwick over the course of 2013-2017. His thesis title was "Understanding electronic energy transport in biologically relevant systems: The photochemistry of sunscreens and the photophysics of photosynthesis", herein the focus was on the ultraviolet absorption and deactivation mechanisms present in biologically relevant systems (such as plants or sunscreens). This utilised a combination of femtosecond pump-probe laser spectroscopy and ab initio electronic structure calculations. 

Also at the University of Warwick, Lewis completed undergraduate studies in the Department of Physics gaining a first-class honours degree in Physics (BSc MPhys) during 2009-2013.

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