I am a teacher trainer and educator from Chile currently based in Scotland, as well as a trained meditation and yoga instructor.  I have worked in K-12, teaching English and Social Studies in Chile, Japan, Saudi Arabia and Myanmar, taught at under and postgraduate level in the US and the UK, and have been engaged in teacher preparation in Chile and the UK.

I currently teach in the MSc / MEd program in Education Studies as well as the Asian Religions course for undergraduate students. I collaborate with different programs across the School of Education, where I also supervise MEd / MSc dissertation students.

My research focuses primarily on nonviolence as a vehicle for educational change and whole-person formation, with a strong emphasis on using nonviolent philosophical and theoretical approaches in teacher preparation and classroom relations. Past research has focused on inclusion in education of minoritized groups; developing intercultural skills in educational contexts; teacher preparation; dialogue between different cultural traditions, with a focus on Eastern religion and philosophy, indigenous wisdom traditions and classical philosophy; compassion training.

Qualifications:

DipTESOL (Trinity College London)

M.A., TESOL (Institute of Education, UCL)

Ph.D., Education (University of Glasgow)

I am interested in research that explores:

• The educational experience of minoritized groups, with a particular focus on the role of intercultural communication in generating a sense of inclusion and interconnectedness.
  
  
• Nonviolence education and its integration into pedagogical and curricular practices. This includes the use of contemplative practices, moral education informed by diverse philosophical traditions, and holistic education (educating the whole person).
  
  
• The integration of spiritual and political perspectives - more concretely Buddhist philosophy, international wisdom traditions and decolonial studies - into nonviolence education as a way of creating individual and collective change. 
  
  
• Educational practices anchored in decolonial studies in the way they approach assessment, pedagogy and curriculum. Of particular interest is research that draws on the work of African, Asian, South American and indigenous scholars to reinform the way we think about and engage in education.

In line with the above, I favor qualitative approaches and participatory methods; my research expertise focuses prominently in the use of action research.

Key words: participatory methods; action research; decolonial studies; nonviolence education; contemplative education; holistic education; moral education; non-Western knowledge traditions; inclusive education; Buddhist philosophy in education; intercultural communication.

List by: Type | Date

I currently supervise Master students working in the areas of inclusion, nonviolence and ethical dimensions in education. I welcome PhD proposals that are in alignment with my research interests (see "Research Interests" section), in particular those using participatory approaches and action research.

If you are interested in studying with me, please email me the following:

1. CV

2. Research Proposal (See here for guidance)

3. A brief statement of how your research topic aligns with my research and why you are interested in pursuing a PhD under my supervision. 

Current:

TRS1009 - Asian Religions: Hinduism

EDUC5156 - Modern Educational Thought

EDUC5142P - Major Dissertation (Education Studies and Inclusive Education)

Past

EDUC5285 - Seminars in Contemporary Issues 

EDUC5410 - Introduction to Educational and Social Research

EDUC51049 - Sustainable Development and Education

TRS5077 - Religion and Violence

IC401 - Radical Pedagogies, Nonviolence and Change
(Universidad Catolica de Valparaiso, Chile)

AS503 - Academic Skills Development
(University of Southern California)

X2917 - Language Learning in a Multilingual World
(University of Strathclyde)

X2918 - Contemporary Issues in Language Teaching
(University of Strathclyde)

Editorial boards

• 2023: Cogent Arts and Humanities

Selected international presentations

• 2024: “A Buddhist-Christian dialogue in education: drawing on the work of Paulo Freire and Thich Nhat Hanh to build a pedagogy of nonviolence” - 15th Conference of the European Network of Buddhist-Christian Studies (St. Ottilien, Germany)
• 2024: Reinforming curriculum and pedagogy through a decolonial lens: stories and perspectives from trainee teachers enrolled in a nonviolence education course - Nonviolence in Education Conference, Oklahoma State University (Tulsa, USA)
• 2023: How much participation is “participatory”? Opportunities and challenges in doing Participatory Action Research with Latin American teachers - British Educational Research Association (BERA) conference (Birmingham, UK)
• 2023: Decolonial Care: Place, Practice, Politics (Center for Peace and Conflict Studies, University of St. Andrews (Scotland))
• 2023: “A person's wellbeing is MY wellbeing": decolonial perspectives on non- violence for teacher training - 67th Annual Meeting of the Comparative and International Education Society (Washington D.C. (USA))
• 2022: “Situating Norbert Elias’ power differential in a critical exploration of violence in Chile– International conference “Violence and its sublimation within the fantasy-reality continuum: Between psychoanalysis and the theory of civilizing process (Warsaw University, Poland)
• 2022: “Non-violence as a practice of equality: an experiment in the Global South”– The 10th European Conference in Education (London, UK)
• 2022: “Decolonial perspectives for social justice - Challenges and possibilities in Chilean higher education” - Early Career Conference “Potential and Challenges in Education in Today’s World”, British Association for Comparative and International Education (London, UK)
• 2021: “Towards a pedagogy of non-violence: a rationale for the Global South” - International Conference on Violence and Society (London Centre for Interdisciplinary Research, London, UK)
• 2021: “Developing Socially Inclusive Practices in Chilean Higher Education Classrooms Through Participatory Action Research” - The 9th European Conference on Education, (London, UK)
• 2019: Annual Language Studies PhD Conference (University of Reading, UK)

 Professional Memberships and Affiliations:

• Comparative and International Educational Society (since 2021)
  
  
• British Association for Comparative and International Education (since 2021)
  
  
• British Educational Research Association (since 2021)
  
  
• American Educational Research Association (since 2022)
  
  
• International Society for Contemplative Research (since 2023)
  
  
• European Network for Buddhist-Christian Studies (since 2024)
  
  
• International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (since 2025)