My teaching philosophy is grounded in a commitment to making higher education both accessible and intellectually transformative. This approach is shaped by my own experience of entering university through an Access to HE course at Blackpool & the Fylde College, where teaching that connected abstract ideas to lived experience fundamentally reshaped how I understood education. I try to recreate these conditions in my own teaching by fostering inclusive environments in which students from diverse backgrounds feel able to engage confidently with complex political ideas and begin to develop their own analytical voice.
At the core of my teaching is the aim of bridging abstract theory and historically situated political processes. Drawing on evidence-based pedagogy, I design sessions that move students from initial engagement towards critical application. In practice, this often means structuring participation incrementally – beginning with low-pressure activities such as anonymous polls, small-group discussions, and case studies, before moving into whole-class debate – so that students build confidence while developing the ability to articulate and defend their arguments.
My teaching is closely informed by my research, including ethnographic fieldwork in conflict-affected regions of Colombia and interviews with difficult-to-access actors such as former guerrilla combatants. Bringing this material into the classroom allows students to engage with perspectives they are unlikely to encounter in standard textbooks, while also showing how political processes are experienced and contested in practice. I also use archival material to introduce students to the politics of knowledge production – for example, how sources are selected and framed to support particular arguments.
As an interdisciplinary scholar, I encourage students to approach political problems by making connections across international political economy, conflict and peace, security studies, and global development. I am also committed to pluralistic and inclusive curricula, incorporating Global South perspectives and critically engaging mainstream narratives in international relations.
My teaching practice is supported by ongoing professional development in areas including assessment, inclusive curriculum design, and digital pedagogy. This commitment to reflective and evidence-informed teaching has been recognised through a Full Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA). I approach teaching as an iterative process, regularly refining my methods in response to student feedback, cohort dynamics, and developments in higher education research.
Current Position
Lecturer in International Relations and Security Studies, Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU), United Kingdom
Modules led and taught:
Politics of War and Organised Violence (Level 6)
Debating International Relations Theories (Level 5)
Being Politically Engaged (Level 4)
Study Skills in Politics and International Relations (Level 4)
Modules taught on:
Research Methods for International Relations (Level 7)
Advanced International Theories: Concepts and Perspectives’ (Level 7)
Critical Security Studies (Level 7)
Challenging Western-Centrism in International Relations (Level 6)
Previous Teaching Experience
University of Nottingham - School of Politics and International Relations
Teaching Associate
Global Security (Level 5)
International Political Economy and Global Development (Level 5)
Introduction to Political Theory (Level 4)