From theory to practice: walking the walk of learning development in higher education

Igiebor, J. (2026). Doing learning development in higher education: A practical guide for new and early career learning developers. Routledge. ISBN 9781032991726

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.47408/jldhe.vi41.2249

Keywords:

learning development, early career learning developers, third space, professional identity, professional community, higher education, impostor syndrome

Author Biographies

Matthew Clark, Manchester Metropolitan University

Matthew Clark is an Academic and Study Skills Tutor at Manchester Metropolitan University. Prior to this, he taught English in a large independent school in Leeds, during which time he was departmental mentor to a number of new teachers. His duties included teaching A-Level English Literature students, many of whom have gone on to study the subject at university. In 2022, he completed his MLitt in English Literature at Newcastle University after studying part-time.

Sophie V Ellis, University of Bristol

Sophie V Ellis is a Lecturer in French Visual Cultures at the University of Bristol and a former Academic and Study Skills Tutor at Manchester Metropolitan University. Her research focuses on contemporary art as a vehicle for welcome in France and beyond. This work, for which Sophie was awarded a PhD in French Studies from Newcastle University, culminated in We All Came Here From Somewhere (2024–2025), a large-scale exhibition at Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art. More broadly, she writes about identity, technology, and power, with her current research examining AI-generated cultural production as a site for the renegotiation of ‘Frenchness’ in the digital age.

References

Briscoe, H., & Olson, C. (2024). Who are we? An autoethnographic investigation into professional role identity of the Learning Developer. Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education, 32, 1–5. https://doi.org/10.47408/jldhe.vi32.1430

Burns, T., & Sinfield, S. (2016). Essential study skills: The complete guide to success at university (5th ed.). Sage.

Cottrell, S. (2020). Teaching study skills and supporting learning. Bloomsbury.

Grayson, N. & Syska, A. (2024). Hybrid learning developers: Between the discipline and the third space. In A. Syska & C. Buckley (Eds.), How to be a learning developer in higher education: critical perspectives, community and practice (pp. 43–50). Routledge.

Hilsdon, J. (2011). What is learning development? In P. Hartley, J. Hilsdon, C. Keenan, S. Sinfield & M. Verity (Eds.), Learning Development in Higher Education (pp. 13–27). Palgrave Macmillan.

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Published

30-09-2026

How to Cite

Clark, M., & Ellis, S. V. (2026). From theory to practice: walking the walk of learning development in higher education: Igiebor, J. (2026). Doing learning development in higher education: A practical guide for new and early career learning developers. Routledge. ISBN 9781032991726. Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education, (41). https://doi.org/10.47408/jldhe.vi41.2249

Issue

No. 41 (2026)

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