Dr John Canning, BA MSc PhD FHEA

Senior Academic Coordinator (Area Studies)

John has background in geography and became interested in languages and area studies through his work on national identity in Quebec. He is an experienced academic developer with particular interests in area studies, pedagogic research and interdisciplinarity.

John can be contacted by
Email: llas@soton.ac.uk | Tel: +44 (0)23 8059 4814 | Fax: +44 (0)23 8059 4815

Biography

John did his first degree in geography at Aberystwyth University, followed by an MSc and PhD at the University of Bristol. His thesis examined national identity in the Eastern Townships (Cantons de l’Est) region of Quebec. John joined the then Subject Centre for Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies in 2003 as Academic Coordinator for Area Studies and became Senior Academic Coordinator in 2009. John has expertise in a wide variety of areas including student employability, education for sustainable development, social science research methods and interdisciplinary teaching and learning and has published research in these areas. He is currently Acting Academic Coordinator for the HEA Islamic Studies Network.

Expertise

• Organising workshops and developing resources for early career staff and Heads of Department.
• Carrying out research and development projects concerning teaching and learning in higher education
• Interests include area studies, academic identities, interdisciplinary teaching and learning, sustainable development and employability.
• Editor of Début: the undergraduate journal of languages, linguistics and area studies
• Using the National Student Survey

Key achievements

Projects
HEA Islamic Studies Network (HEFCE-funded) 2009-
Survey of non-specialist language learners (Department of Business, Innovation and Skills) 2010/11
Higher Education Academy Interdisciplinary Teaching and Learning Group (HEA funded) 2005/07
Enterprise in the humanities (HEA funded) 2007/08
Discover American Studies (United States Embassy, London) 2007/08

Resources
Canning, J. (2011) Shaping your department’s success: an audit for language departments in higher education (Southampton: UCML)

Papers/articles
Gallagher-Brett, A. and J. Canning (2011) Disciplinary disjunctures in the transition from secondary school to higher education study of Modern Foreign Languages: A case study from the UK. Arts and Humanities in Higher Education, 10, (2), 171-188
Canning, J. and A. Gallagher-Brett (2010) Building a bridge to pedagogic research: teaching social science research methods to humanities practitioners. Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education, 2, (2), 3-9
Canning, J (2010) Translating words into action and actions into words: Sustainability in Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies curricula,” In P. Jones, D. Selby and S. Sterling (eds.) Sustainability Education: Perspectives and Practice Across Higher Education (London: Earthscan).
Canning, J. (2010). The invisible developers? Academic coordinators in the UK Subject Centre Network. Teaching in Higher Education, 15 (4), 461-466.
Bernasek, L and Canning, J. (2009) Influences on the Teaching of Arabic and Islamic Studies in UK Higher Education: connections and disconnections. Arts and Humanities in Higher Education 8 (3), 259-275.
Canning, J. (2009) A skill or a discipline? An examination of employability and the study of modern foreign languages. Journal of Employability and the Humanities 3.
Canning, J. (2008) Five years on: the language landscape in 2007. Southampton, UK, Subject Centre for Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies, 16pp
Canning, J. (2007) Pedagogy as a discipline: emergence, sustainability and professionalisation. Teaching in Higher Education, 12(3), 393-403.
Croucher, K., J. Canning, and J. Gawthrope (2007) Here be dragons? Enterprising graduates in the humanities. (Southampton: Subject Centre for Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies).
Canning, J. (2005) Disciplinarity: a barrier to quality assurance? The UK experience of area studies, Quality in Higher Education 11 (1), pp.37-46.
Canning, J. (2005) Placing Quebec nationalisms: Constructing English identities in Quebec’s Eastern Townships, British Journal of Canadian Studies 18 (1), pp. 120-136.
Canning, J. (2005) Building the Quebec nation: A geographical approach. In C. Morgan and C. Rolfe, (eds.) Focus on Quebec 3: Essays on Quebecois Culture and Society (Edinburgh: BACS/ Le Grefc) pp.20-29
Canning, J. (2004) Nationalism(s) as local practice(s). Re-examining Quebec nationalisms in the Eastern Townships. In D. Ramsey & C. Bryant, (eds.) The Structure and Dynamics of Rural Territories: Geographical Perspectives. (Brandon MB: Rural Development Institute) pp. 43-61.