Elena Lengthorn

Elena Lengthorn

Senior Lecturer Teacher Education

Secondary and Post Compulsory Education

Contact Details

email: e.lengthorn@worc.ac.uk
tel: 01905 542151

Elena is the PGCE Geography subject Lead. She has taught both geography and science education across the primary and secondary centres on undergraduate and postgraduate courses. She leads the Education for Sustainable Futures Special Interest Group (ESF SIG) and contributes sustainability sessions to courses across the School of Education.

She was awarded ‘Global Educator of the Year’ in 2016. Her research interests include Climate Emergency, Sustainable Futures, Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) and flood education. She has presented at BERA, Advance HE, RAISE and Geographical Association conferences, as well as having her work publishing by Discover Sustainability, the NAEE, the ASE and the Chartered College of Teaching. Elena’s 2022 Green Impact Projects, on primary and secondary ESD, were awarded Platinum and Gold Awards and she was recognised with the institutions Sustainability Staff Award. She is Co-Chair of the Our Shared World network, an advisor on the OCR Natural History Strategic Advisory Board and a fellow of the HEA and the Royal Geographical Society.

Elena began her career in higher education after 15 years in Secondary Education, where she worked in roles including Teacher of Science, Teacher of Geography, Eco-Schools Co-ordinator, Global Learning Programme Expert Centre Co-ordinator, Charities Co-ordinator and Associate Assistant Head Teacher, with responsibilities for SMSC and managing Business and ICT. 

Elena teaches both geography and science education across the primary and secondary centres on undergraduate and postgraduate courses. She is currently working on two L&T projects on ‘Embedding the SDGS in ITE’ and ‘Education at the Hereford Water Works’, as well as supporting a Flood Education Initiative in conjunction with Lancaster University, HWF&R, the Environment Agency and the Met Office.

Qualifications

  • BSc Geography
  • PGCE Secondary Geography
  • MSc Science Media Production
  • GTA Global teachers Award
  • SSAT GLP Lead Practitioner
  • CGeog (Teacher)
  • PGCLTHE

Learn Upon Training completed

  • Safer Recruitment
  • Introduction to the Prevent Duty as it affects Higher Education
  • Safeguarding Essentials

Teaching & Research

Teaching Interests

  • PITE 1004 Science
  • PITE 1007 Geography
  • PITE 3001 Professional Studies
  • PITE 3003 PRISS
  • PGCE Primary Science
  • PGCE Primary Geography
  • POED 1001 Science outdoors
  • PGCE Secondary Geography
  • Enhancement activity: Education in Climate Emergency

Research Interests

  • Education in Climate Emergency and Education for Sustainable Development
  • Global Learning/Development Education
  • Period poverty
  • Learning outside the classroom and nature connectedness
  • Natural History

Professional Bodies

  • Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society
  • Fellow of the HEA
  • Geographical Association member

Publications

Recent publications:

Lengthorn, E and Sherrard, G. (2022). Move the World: Bringing the SDGs out of hiding. Primary Geography. Geographical Association, Sheffield. 

Lengthorn, E. (2022). Chapter 9 Weather and Climate in Scoffham, S. and Rawlinson, S., 2022. Sustainability Education: A Classroom Guide. Bloomsbury Publishing. 

Lengthorn, E and Woolley, R. (2021) Editorial, Ubuntu: Project, Partnership, Principles, in Elephant Times (Issue 6) pp.3-7. Birmingham: Tide – Global Learning. 

Lengthorn, E and Evans, S. (2021) Teenagers... connecting to nature, in Elephant Times (Issue 6) pp.24-27 Birmingham: Tide – Global Learning. 

Lengthorn, E. and Asbury, M., (2021). Worcester educator climate assembly: promoting sustainability leadership through participation. A community approach to education in climate emergency. Discover Sustainability, 2(1), pp.1-23. 

Lengthorn, E and Asbury, M. (2021. Blog post Building a curriculum for a sustainable future, democratically. Available at: https://www.bera.ac.uk/blog/building-a-curriculum-for-a-sustainable-future-democratically 

Lengthorn, E. and Bailey, K., 2021. Global Learning as a Vehicle for PSHE. Teaching Personal, Social, Health and Economic and Relationships,(Sex) and Health Education in Primary Schools: Enhancing the Whole Curriculum, p.117. 

Lengthorn, E. and Russell, A., 2021. The Movement of People and PSHE. Teaching Personal, Social, Health and Economic and Relationships,(Sex) and Health Education in Primary Schools: Enhancing the Whole Curriculum, p.131. 

Lengthorn, E. and Saunders, R., 2021. Super Science and the ‘Health’in PSHE and R (S) HE. Teaching Personal, Social, Health and Economic and Relationships,(Sex) and Health Education in Primary Schools: Enhancing the Whole Curriculum, p.69. 

Lengthorn, E. (2020). IMPACT: Journal of the Chartered College of Teaching. Youth Social Action: Eco- Schools 

https://eprints.worc.ac.uk/10285/ 

Lengthorn, E. (2020) 

Green Literacy: Greening our Language. NAEE. Environmental Education, 123. pp. 6-9.   

https://eprints.worc.ac.uk/9645/ 

Recent presentations:

Geographical Association Annual Conference (April, 2022) Geography Education in Climate Emergency

Geography Teacher Educator annual conference (Jan 2022) online: Educator Climate Assembly

TEESNet Conference (Sept 2022). Education in Climate Emergency as a PGCE Enhancement Activity

University of Gloucester L&T conference (June 2021) Changing inside and out: two educational responses to the sustainability challenge

Lengthorn, Elena and Vare, Paul (2021) Changing inside and out: two educational responses to the sustainability challenge. In: Festival of Learning 2021, 7th and 8th June 2021, Online. https://eprints.worc.ac.uk/10581/ 

Period Poverty and Women’s health in education. (March, 2022, online)

Presentation for International Women’s Day is a day to celebrate women’s achievements, take action against inequality and raise awareness of unfair gender practices that exist and permeate across society. This year, the theme was #breakthebias. Invited by BEIS as part of the levelling up agenda https://eprints.worc.ac.uk/11781/

Teacher in Europe (2022)

Keynote speech: SDGs: A cause for courageous hope

BERA (2021) online  Building a Curriculum for a Sustainable Future: Secondary educator climate assembly.  https://www.bera.ac.uk/event/building-a-curriculum-for-a-sustainable-future  Online

Advance HE Sustainability Symposium (2021) online https://www.advance-he.ac.uk/knowledge-hub/sustainability-symposium-2021

Teacher in Europe (2021) online SDGs a cause for courageous hope?

TEAN conference (2021)

Education for Climate Crisis: How should we prepare teachers for our climate crisis?https://eprints.worc.ac.uk/10460/

 

External Roles

  • OCR Strategic Advisory Board – Natural History – Advisor (https://teach.ocr.org.uk/naturalhistory)
  • Co-chair – Our Shared World (https://oursharedworld.net/)
  • Education Volunteer for Beacons Development Education Centre (DEC) 
  • Eco-Schools Mentor for Worcester County Council 
  • Teachers in Development Education (TIDE~global learning) Trustee
  • External Examiner for Middlesex University