Staff
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Professional Background
Fiona Cotton (BA, Dip Ed, Cert TESOL, M App Ling) is senior lecturer in English Communication in the School of HASS and coordinator of the Academic Language and Learning (ALL) Unit at UNSW@ADFA. She is a graduate of Flinders University in South Australia, the University of Adelaide and Macquarie University. Her background is in Applied Linguistics, teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) and academic skills advising in university contexts. Over the past twenty years, she has taught at the British Council in Singapore, the University of Canberra, the University of Tasmania, the Canberra Institute of Technology and the Australian National University.
She is past president of ATESOL, ACT, 1999-2000 and TasTESOL (Tasmanian Association of Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages) in 1997; Secretary of ATESOL ACT and LUAC project reference group member in 1993 as well as ATESOL representative on the ACT government's ESL Advisory Committee in the same year.
Courses Taught
- ZHSS 8119 Academic Discourse: Analysis and Writing
- ZHSS 8120 Academic Practice: Critical Reading and Writing
- Pre-sessional Academic Preparation Courses for postgraduate international and mature age students
- Coordination of the Academic Language and Learning (ALL) Unit program of courses, workshops and individual consultations.
Research Interests / Projects
- Academic writing
- Discourse analysis
- Inter-cultural communication
- Language proficiency assessment
- Pedagogical approaches to the teaching of pronunciation
Current projects:
- Cultural perceptions of teaching and learning in academic contexts and pedagogic approaches to the development of cross-cultural understanding
- The role of peer and self-assessment in learning development
Consulting / Professional Activities
- Sub-editor, Journal of Academic Language and Learning
- Member, Teaching and Learning Committee, UNSW@ADFA
Publications
Cotton, F. (forthcoming) ‘Critical Thinking and Evaluative Language Use in Academic Writing: A Comparative Cross-Cultural Study’ in Blue, G. (ed.), Developing Academic Literacies, Peter Lang, UK.
Cotton, F. & Gibson, J. (2006) ‘Old perceptions: new perceptions. Self-assessment as a learning tool in changing student perceptions of academic writing’ in Gray, E. & Emerson, L. (eds.) Proceedings of Tertiary Writing Network Colloquium 2006, Napier, New Zealand.
Cotton, F. (2005) Book review: ‘Study Skills in English’, Journal of English for Academic Purposes, vol 4, no 3, 279-283.
Cotton, F. (2004) ‘ “The Lecturer Doesn’t Want My Opinion”: Mismatched Expectations, Pedagogical Approaches’ in Sheldon, L. (ed.), EAP: Directions for the Future, Peter Lang, UK, 91-100.
Cotton, F. (2002) ‘Post-IELTS Feedback: Implications for ESL/EAP Curriculum Development’. Proceedings of the 15th annual EA Education Conference, Canberra, Australia.
Cotton, F. (1999) ‘Performance Assessment in Second Language Learning: Some Problems and Issues in the Adult Sector’ in Falk, I. (ed.), Language, Culture and Work: Teaching in Diversity, Language Australia, Australia 147-155.
Cotton, F. & Conrow, F. (1998) 'An Investigation of the Predictive Validity of IELTS Amongst a Sample of International Students Studying at the University of Tasmania' in Wood, S. (ed.), IELTS Research Reports, Volume 1, ELICOS Association/IELTS Australia, Australia, 72-115.
Areas of Potential Postgraduate Supervision
- Applied Linguistics
- Discourse analysis
- Inter-cultural communication
- Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL)