Mr Mikhail Vodopyanov

Mr Mikhail Vodopyanov

Associate Lecturer in Russian

Researcher profile

Phone
+44 (0)1334 46 4387
Email
Mikhail.Vodopyanov@st-andrews.ac.uk
Office
Room 60
Location
United Colleges
Office hours
Monday 9-10, Thursday 2-3

 

Research areas

Education has always interested me as a way of connecting people, ideas, and cultures.

I believe that learning is at its best when it is intellectually challenging, genuinely enjoyable, and accessible to every student. Bringing together language education and intercultural communication, I aim to create inclusive and stimulating learning experiences that help students develop confidence, curiosity, and an ability to engage with different cultural perspectives.

My academic interests span artificial intelligence in language education and curriculum innovation, multimodal discourse analysis, translation, and cultural memory, with a particular interest in the movement of languages, ideas, and people between cultural contexts.

I teach across Russian language modules, encouraging students not only to develop linguistic competence, but also to engage critically with the cultural, historical, and social contexts in which language is used. I also supervise undergraduate dissertations in discourse analysis and related areas, deliver annual interpreting workshops introducing students to professional opportunities in interpreting and translation, and mentor students interested in developing careers in the field.

Alongside teaching, I led the redevelopment of Colloquial Russian (Routledge, 2023), incorporating inclusive approaches to language education into the core textbook for our sub-honours beginner Russian modules, now also used in university Russian-language teaching beyond St Andrews.

I also coordinate Study Abroad provision for our department, supporting students studying abroad, and act as Library Representative for the School of Modern Languages.

At a national level, I serve as Administrator of the BASEES Teaching Excellence Prizes, coordinating nominations, peer review, and prize administration for the scheme, which recognises excellence, innovation, and inclusivity in higher education teaching across Slavonic, East European and Eurasian Studies.

Selected publications

 

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