Role
Dr Lia Blaj-Ward (SFHEA) designs and facilitates academic literacy provision for international students in the School of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment and the School of Art and Design.
Lia supports NTU's in-house Advance HE professional recognition scheme through mentoring colleagues and assessing applications. She also mentors colleagues on the Advance HE Aurora programme (see a reflective piece on her experience as an Aurora mentor here).
Lia contributes to NTU's TILT through reviewing funding applications and co-chairing, with Dr Rose Gann, a TILT Practice and Scholarship Group focused on advancing recognition for learning, teaching and scholarship careers in higher education. Lia recently benefited from TILT sabbatical funding for two projects (with Charlie Pratley, Sarah Johnson, Andy Love, Aneka Bartley and Paul Havelin), focused on student-staff co-creation of life-relevant learning resources and experiences. A number of published outputs from the projects are forthcoming.
Currently, Lia co-supervises one EdD student (Faith Nightingale).
In 2021 Lia received a Vice-Chancellor's Teaching Award.
Research areas
Lia's research and publications focus on academic literacy and practice in higher education.
External activity
Lia is an assessor for the BALEAP Accreditation Scheme and currently the accreditation scheme Chair (2022-2025). She set up and coordinated BALEAP's funding scheme for 2020 (Narratives of Innovation and Resilience) and the 2019 Collaborative Practice initiative. Previously, Lia held various roles on the BALEAP Executive Committee (most recently Treasurer, April 2017 - April 2020).
Lia peer reviews book proposals and journal article manuscripts and is Associate Editor for Higher Education Research and Development (https://www.tandfonline.com/journals/cher20).
Lia was external examiner for Coventry University's MA in Academic Writing Development and Research (2017-2021).
Since 2019 Lia has designed and facilitated bespoke week-long work experience programmes for pre-18 students from a local girls' school (see account by 2020 participant here).
Publications
Blaj-Ward, L., 2022. Academic Literacies Provision for International Students: Evaluating Impact and Quality. Palgrave Macmillan.
Molthan-Hill, P. and Blaj-Ward, L., 2022. Assessing climate solutions and taking climate leadership: how can universities prepare their students for challenging times? Teaching in Higher Education. ISSN 1356-2517
Blaj-Ward, L., 2021. Impactful teaching and learning in the slow lane. Wonkhe Ltd.
SDGs
The main UN Sustainable Development Goals which inform Lia's work are: 4 Quality education, 5 Gender equality, 13 Climate change, and 17 Partnership for the goals.
