Gillian Saunders

Gillian Saunders is a new ATWP instructor, but she has been working at UVic as an English and Additional Language Specialist in the Centre for Academic Communication since 2014, where she's helped hundreds of students in first-year academic writing and literature courses to become more skilled and confident writers. She has also taught English for academic purposes, English literature, business English, and TESOL in various contexts in Canada and abroad for many years.

She is currently a PhD candidate in Curriculum and Instruction at UVic, and her research focuses on the experiences of undergraduate students accessing and using different forms of academic writing support. Related interests include issues surrounding internationalization and English language learning, decolonization of academic writing instruction and writing centre work, and good old-fashioned grammar. Her published work explores dissertation genres in faculties of education in Canada. As an instructor of academic writing, her aim is to empower students from all academic and personal backgrounds and all skill levels by demystifying the writing process and giving students the tools and critical thinking skills to be able to make informed choices about their writing.