Emma Reddy will join Wellington College Bangkok as Head of English. She has extensive experience teaching GCSE, IB and A Level, and has served as Head of English for the past three years at Oakham School in Rutland, England. 
 
Emma holds an MA in English Literature from the University of Cambridge and a PhD in American Modernism from the University of Leicester. Before becoming a teacher, she worked as a corporate lawyer in London for several years but left the City to have a family and complete a PhD. During the latter, she taught undergraduates and postgraduates at the University of Leicester, but realising her passion was for secondary school teaching, she obtained a PGCE with Distinction while working at Oakham School. She went on to be Second in Department at Uppingham School, then returned to Oakham to be Head of English. 
 
“My earliest memories are of being told stories. I am sure this is the same for most of us. Whether I was listening to my father miraculously recounting Charles Dickens from memory (even doing the scary voices) or to the French fairytales my mother read to me at bedtime, I knew that listening to stories was important. I sensed that by listening carefully to the stories of others, I might learn how best to express my own ideas, tell my own story. I am passionate about ensuring that young people benefit from the stories told by others, but also learn to articulate their own truth. The careful acquisition of language and the ability to write freely, inventively and accurately are absolutely critical for success. The study of literature is not a luxury; it is vital. Literature challenges our assumptions, broadens our capacity to think, feel and empathise. In the era of AI, helping students to understand other people's stories, appreciate human voices, and crucially express their own opinions has never been more important.”