HomeCollegesCollegesCollege of Humanities and Social SciencesFaculty And StaffDubaiLanguage Studies DepartmentProfilesPeter Davidson

Peter Davidson

Senior Instructor
Peter Davidson.jpg
 
 
Introduction

Peter received a BA from Canterbury University (NZ), an MA TEFL from the University of Reading (UK), and Fellowship from AdvanceHE (UK). He has taught in Japan for two years, at Bilkent University in Turkey for six years, and has taught at ZU for the past 21 years. Although based in the Language Studies Department in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, Peter has also recently taught courses in the College of Business, the College of Technological Innovation, and the College of Communications and Media Sciences, as well as providing language support for students in the College of Arts and Creative Enterprises. He has co-edited a number of books, mainly on assessment, including: Language Assessment in the Middle East and North Africa (2017, TESOL Arabia); and The Cambridge Guide to Second Language Assessment  (2012, Cambridge University Press). An experienced presenter, Peter has delivered over 110 conference papers at international and local conferences, and has given 85 workshops in 16 different countries.

Qualifications:

Fellow, AdvanceHE, UK (2018)

MA in TEFL, University of Reading, Reading, UK (1998)

BA in English and Art Theory, University of Canterbury, New Zealand (1990)

Diploma in Language Teaching Management, University of Cambridge, UK (1996)

Diploma of Teaching , Christchurch College of Education, New Zealand (1991)

Certificate in English for Academic Purposes, oxfordtefl, online (2015)

Certificate in Educational Management, University of Leicester, UK (2003)

Certificate in Testing, University of Reading, UK (1998)

Previous Positions:

1999 to date:        Zayed University, Dubai, UAE

1993-1999:              Bilkent University, Ankara, Turkey

1991-1993:              Japanese Ministry of Education, Sendai, Japan

Memberships:

Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages International (TESOL)

Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages Arabia (TESOL Arabia)

International Association of Teachers of English as a Foreign Language (IATEFL)

British Association of Lecturers in English for Academic Purposes (BALEAP)

British Association of Applied Linguistics (BAAL)

The Asia-Pacific Languages for Specific Purposes & Professional Communication Association (LSPPC)

Asia Teachers of English as a Foreign Language (Asia TEFL)

Asian Association for Language Assessment (AALA)

International Language Testers Association (ILTA)

Association of Language Testing and Assessment of Australia and New Zealand (ALTAANZ)

Research and Professional Activities

Research interests:

Language Testing

Assessment Literacy

Computerized Assessment

Learning-Oriented Assessment

Rater bias in essay grading

Technology in language learning

The nature of academic writing

The efficacy of teachers' feedback on students' writing

The efficacy of peer feedback on students' writing

Teaching Areas

(All undergraduate)

ENG 030: English for Academic Purposes 3

ENG 040/ALL 040: English for Academic Purposes 4

ENG/GEN 140: English Composition 1

ENG 240: English Composition 3

BUS 207: Business Communication

BUS 309: Introduction to Management

CIT 285/300: Technical Communication

CIT 305: IT in Global/Local Cultures

COM 209: Foundations in Media Writing

Recent Publications

Davidson, P. (2021). The case for authentic language assessment. In M.L. Bell (Ed.), Best of TEASIG, Volume 2: Newsletters 2003-2011 (pp. 25-28). Faversham: IATEFL.

Davidson, P. & Coombe, C. (2021). Setting real standards using authentic assessment in an EAP context. In M.L. Bell (Ed.), Best of TEASIG, Volume 2: Newsletters 2003-2011 (pp. 118-123). Faversham: IATEFL.

Davidson, P. (2020). A framework for testing vocabulary. In W. Zoghbor & T. Alexiou (Eds.). Advancing English Language Education (pp. 114-124). Dubai: Zayed University Press.

Davidson, P. (2020). What is academic writing? In T. Aksit & H. Mengu (Eds.), The Future of Teaching English for Academic Purposes: Standards, Provision and Practice (pp. 93-99). Newcastle upon Tyne, UK: Cambridge Scholars.

Davidson, P. (2020). Putting authenticity back into EAP assessment. In T. Aksit & H. Mengu (Eds.), The Future of Teaching English for Academic Purposes: Standards, Provision and Practice (pp. 149-157). Newcastle upon Tyne, UK: Cambridge Scholars.

Davidson, P. (2020). New perspectives on giving feedback on students’ writing. In W. Zoghbor, S. Al Alami, & T. Alexiou. (Eds.). Proceedings of the 2nd Applied Linguistics and Language Teaching (ALLT) Conference: Engaging in Change: New Perspectives of Teaching and Learning (pp. 48-62). Dubai: Zayed University Press.

Recent Conference Presentations

Davidson, P. (2021).  Creating a level playing field: Accommodating students with special needs during language tests. 9th East Asia New Directions in English Language Assessment Conference (online).

Davidson, P. & Coombe, C. (2021). Learning-Oriented Assessment: Practical applications for the language classroom. The Association of Language Testing and Assessment of Australia and New Zealand (ALTAANZ) Online Research Forum (online).

Davidson, P. & Coombe, C. (2021). Developing the Language Assessment Literacy skills of English Language Teachers. Language Testing Forum (LTF), UK Association for Language Testing and Assessment (UKALTA) (online).

Davidson, P., Ali, S.M., & Tzanni, P. (2021). Forum: Peer feedback and peer assessment of writing. The 54th IATEFL Conference (online).

Hidri, S., Davidson, P., & Barney, P. (2021). Symposium: Exploring teacher’s language assessment literacy in the MENA Region. The 42nd Language Testing Research Colloquium (LTRC) (online).

Davidson, P. (2021). Accommodating Students of Determination in the classroom and during assessment. The 3rd Applied Linguistics and Language Teaching (ALLT) Conference (online).

Davidson, P. (2021). What every teacher should know about Learning-Oriented Assessment (LOA). The 3rd Applied Linguistics and Language Teaching (ALLT) Conference (online).

Davidson, P. (2020). Featured Talk: Current trends in language assessment. The 25th TESOL Arabia Conference (online). 

Davidson, P. & Glasgow, R. (2020). Accommodating Students of Determination during assessment. The 25th TESOL Arabia Conference (online).

Davidson, P. (2020). Professional Development Course: Leadership and leadership styles. The 25th TESOL Arabia Conference (online).

Davidson, P. (2020). Implementing valid and reliable assessment online. The Applied Linguistics and Language Teaching (ALLT) Summer Forum (online).