Professor Benson’s work on autonomy and learning beyond the classroom has won him an international reputation in the field of language teaching and learning. Since joining the HKIEd in 2005, he has developed research interests in the roles of study abroad and popular culture in language education and teacher development. His two General Research Fund projects, “Second Language Identity and Study Abroad: A Hong Kong-based Study” and “Informal Language Learning in Social Media Environments: A YouTube-based Study” are in line with his research expertise.

Professor Benson has published 16 refereed journal articles, books and book chapters, and delivered 12 plenary and keynote presentations at international conferences over the past three years. The second edition of his book Teaching and Researching Autonomy in Language Learning (2011), which has had a great impact on the field, has been cited in more than 750 academic publications.

As Director of the Centre for Popular Culture and Education, Professor Benson has initiated and led research projects in the areas of secondary school curriculum development, pre-service teacher development and online informal learning. He also plays an active role in supporting and mentoring colleagues in their research work across the Institute.