1. Transforming Assessment Mindsets: Professional development through a blended MOOC

(TAM-bMOOC Project) 2024-2027I am part of a group of researchers from CETAPS (Universidade Nova de Lisboa) and LE@D (Universidade Aberta) who are involved in creating a blended MOOC course which aims to upgrade the assessment literacy of primary English teachers, and investigate the effectiveness of the instructional design features of a blended Massive Open Online Course (bMOOC) to be used in hybrid environments to: 

a) stimulate change in mindsets and classroom practices and 

b) foster a sense of community amongst teachers of English in primary education in Portugal.

2. Assessment in primary English education in Portugal: Attitudes, approaches and constraints. October 2017-2021.

https://peep-network.com/index.php/assessment-in-primary-english-education-in-portugal-teachers-perceptions-and-practices/

I am one of 4 researchers involved in a national, non-funded, inter-institutional research project (Universidade Nova and Universidade do Minho) the aim of which is to:

• Characterise attitudes towards assessment in primary English education in Portugal
• Describe approaches and practices related to assessment in primary English education.
• Identify constraints in adhering to national standards and a transformative vision of language education.

3. A-PLACE (2018-2023)

A-Place is a project co-financed by the Creative Europe programme(2019-2023), dedicated to strengthening the bonds between people and places. A programme of placemaking activities took place  in six European cities: Barcelona, Bologna, Brussels, Lisbon, Ljubljana, and Nicosia. I was involved in the assessment process of the project.

https://a-place.eu/about

I hold a Ph.D in the area of foreign language didatics and currently coordinate two Master's degrees related to this area:

a) MA in Teaching English in the First Cycle of Basic education.

b) MA in English Teaching Didactics (in collaboration with the  Portuguese Open University).

The first of these degree courses qualifies participants to teach English in primary education in Portugal and is a pre-service MA. The second is an online, asynchronous degree course designed to provide professional development for in-service teachers. 

In the former, I teach foreign language didactics for young learners and also supervise students during their teaching practice and in the writing of their final reports. In the latter I teach modules on methods and approaches, assessment, learning materials and interculturality. 

My research interests revolve around the teaching of English to young learners in the areas of coursebook evaluation, assessment, peer interaction and teachers' professional development. Some recent publications are:

Leslie, C., Mourão, S., Hanžić Deda, S &  Pérez-Segura, J.J. (accepted, 2025).  Support for Listening Development in Primary EFL Coursebooks: A Comparative Study of Portugal, Croatia, and Spain A comparative study of Portugal, Croatia, and Spain. In B.Tomlinson (Ed.), Materials for helping L2 learners to develop communicative ability: Theory and practice . Bloomsbury.

Leslie, C. (2025). Primary and lower secondary EFL learners’ oral collaboration: A comparison. In L. Lopriore & D. Karoulla-Vrikki (Eds.), Oracy acquisition and development in early secondary language learners: Voices from diverse international contexts (pp. 98-116). Multilingual Matters. https://doi.org/10.2307/jj.23925649.10

Leslie, C. (2024). Now you’re talking! Peer interaction in primary English education. e-TEALS 13-14, pg137-155. https://doi.org/10.34619/j0ay-7hpl

Mourão, S & Leslie,  C. (Eds.). (2024). Researching educational practices, teacher education and professional development for early language learning and multiculturalism in Europe. Routledge https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003289043