Dr Claire Hansen

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ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences

Synopsis

Dr Claire Hansen is a nationally recognised educator and internationally respected pedagogy scholar, specialising in Shakespeare studies and ecocriticism. With over a decade of teaching experience across regional and metropolitan Australia, she has developed and championed her award-winning passionate learning model, which places engagement, creativity, and authenticity at the heart of student learning.

Claire’s research explores the intersection of literature and the environment, with recent field-leading work on place-based approaches to teaching Shakespeare published by Cambridge University Press. Drawing on this research, she designs innovative curricula and creative assessment that connect literary studies to urgent contemporary issues, demonstrating its relevance beyond the classroom.

Her teaching practice is consistently informed by the teaching-research nexus, producing dynamic, engaging experiences for English students. This is reflected in exceptional student feedback, multiple teaching awards, and lasting impact on the discipline. Claire’s passionate learning model emphasises building supportive environments, fostering creativity in assessment, and empowering students to see how the study of literature is vital to understanding—and shaping—the world around them.

(Photo by Tangyao Zhang)