Rate My Professor Nhlanhla Mpofu

Nhlanhla Mpofu is an Associate Professor in Language Education and Chair of the Department of Curriculum Studies in the Faculty of Education at Stellenbosch University. She earned a PhD in Humanities Education (English) from the University of Pretoria in 2016, an MEd in English Language Teaching, and a BA in English with Education. Her career trajectory includes serving as Associate Professor in the Department of Education at Rhodes University from 2020 to 2022, Managing Director of the Centre for Teaching and Learning at Sol Plaatje University from 2016 to 2019, and Lecturer in the Department of Humanities Education at the University of Pretoria from 2013 to 2015. Mpofu has also held international appointments as a Fulbright Fellow at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Visiting Professor at the University of Antwerp in Belgium. She is recognized as a Y-rated National Research Foundation (NRF) researcher, member of the South African Academy of Young Scientists (SAYAS), Fulbright Alumna, COIL Alumna, and Margaret McNamara Education Alumna, and has served on the South African Council on Higher Education Accreditation Committee.

Mpofu's research focuses on problematizing understandings of English as a Language of Instruction in multilingual contexts, developing language teaching methodologies grounded in culturally sustaining pedagogy and informed by disciplinary linguistic requirements, reorienting second language education research in multilingual systems, and advancing enabling and transitional education. She leads the interdisciplinary project Exploring the preparation and experiences of teachers using English across the curriculum in five continents. Her influential publications include The innovative use of social media for teaching English as a second language (2020, with L De Jager and C Rwodzi, 79 citations), Are we there yet? A literature study of the challenges of women academics in institutions of higher education (2017, with MC Maphalala, 63 citations), Fostering critical thinking in initial teacher education curriculums: A comprehensive literature review (2017, with MC Maphalala, 40 citations), Embedding values in the South African curriculum: by design or default? (2018, with MC Maphalala, 35 citations), and A comprehensive model for assessing student teachers’ professional competence through an integrated curriculum approach (2018, with MC Maphalala, 33 citations). Recent contributions encompass Exploring teachers’ self-reported practices for fostering critical thinking skills in ESL multilingual high school settings (2024) and The implementation of English across the curriculum: An exploratory study (2024). Her work has shaped advancements in teacher education and multilingual language pedagogy.