Gillian is a Senior Lecturer in the Education Department, where until recently she was the Programme Leader for the January cohort of the Post-graduate Certificate in Higher Education (PG Cert HE).
She began her career as a teacher at the British Council, Athens and as a teacher/teacher trainer at International House, London. She then worked freelance as a teacher trainer, lexicographer and materials writer. In 2000 she became a Senior Lecturer in English for Academic Purposes/Academic Literacies at Middlesex University, working with students and collaborating with staff in Nursing, the School of Arts and Education and the School of Law. She has taught and supervised dissertations on the MA TESOL and Applied Linguistics at both Middlesex and the University of Westminster.
Gillian has a BA Honours in Comparative Literature (University of the Witwatersrand), MA in Language and Literature in Education (ESOL) (London University Institute of Education) and PhD by Public Works (Middlesex University). She also has an RSA Certificate (now CELTA) and RSA Diploma (now DELTA) in TEFL.
Gillian was appointed a Middlesex University Teaching Fellow in 2011, and is a Senior Fellow of the HEA (SFHEA). She has been an external examiner at University College London, and was an IELTS examiner from 2010 to 2012.
Gillian has been an invited speaker on using literature in language teaching, figurative language and academic literacies at conferences and teachers' associations in the UK, France, Ireland, Spain, Italy, Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Indonesia and South Africa.
French (High Intermediate), Spoken Modern Greek (Elementary).
Gillian works on the Post-graduate Certificate in Higher Education (PG Cert HE) for staff, and is the programme leader for the January cohort. As an applied linguistic, she is interested in the reciprocal relationship between theory and practice, and the ways that linguistic and educational theory can inform best practice at the Higher Education chalk face to enhance student learning.
Gillian has collaborated with academic colleagues in different disciplines to design and deliver interventions designed to improve academic language and writing, and feedback practices (see Research Outputs). She has mentored colleagues for FHEA and SFHEA, and is on the editorial board of Compass: Journal of Learning and Teaching.
Academic literacies, figurative language, the use of literature in language teaching, learning and teaching in Higher Education, multilingualism, designing educational resources
Books
-Lazar, G. (2003) Meanings and Metaphors. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
-Lazar, G. (1999) A Window on Literature. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
-Lazar, G. (1993) Literature and Language Teaching: A Guide for teachers and trainers. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
View more publications
