Cassi's research interests include academic literacy, research communication, scholarly expression, genre-based pedagogy, English for Research Publication Purposes, English Medium Instruction, Systemic Functional Linguistics, Corpus Linguistics and grammatical metaphor.

Cassi is an Applied Linguist with a particular interest in social semiotics and Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL). Her research generally focusses on academic literacy and writing for research purposes (e.g., ERPP). After compiling the Chinese Learner Longitudinal Corpus (CLLC; 2009-2013), she went on to develop the Macquarie Longitudinal Learner Corpus (MQLLC; 2014-2018). Findings from these projects have informed several publications on the deployment and development of grammatical metaphor, a key linguistic resource necessary for achieving the diverse demands of academic discourse. 

Cassi's more recent research projects have explored higher degree research candidates' experiences preparing their doctoral theses and specifically, the unique challenges associated with preparing a thesis-by-publication. Her current project, Benchmarking Success, revisits undergraduate student writing, examining the benchmarks disciplinary experts employ when assessing texts as more or less successful.

Cassi currently supervises PhD students investigating Ideational Grammatical Metaphor in Japanese EFL learner writing; English as the Medium of Instruction in Saudi Arabia and Lebanon; Japanese scientists' experiences with English for Research Publication Purposes (ERPP); Arabic as a resource for teaching English as an Additional Language (EAL); the shaping of doctoral students' writing identity when co-authoring with supervisors; and, Learner Autonomy in Vietnamese undergraduate student writing.

Available for supervision in late 2021.

Supervision Areas: Systemic Functional Linguistics, academic writing, grammatical metaphor, English Medium Instruction, English for Research Publication Purposes

Current PhD Students

1. Reema Abouzeid: An Exploration of English Medium Instruction (EMI) in Lebanon: The Conceptual Imprecision of EMI and the Vagueness of Policy
2. Khatmah Alanazi: Exploring English as a Medium of Instruction for the teaching of medicine in Saudi Arabia
3. Mona Aqeel: Arabic as a Resource in English teaching
4. Leigh McDowell: Japanese scientists’ English for Research Publication Purposes: An Elaborated Error Analysis
5. Darby McGrath: Ideational Grammatical Metaphor in Japanese EFL learners’ Writing
6. Bao Tram Nguyen: Writing Strategies and Learner Autonomy for English Major Students in a University in Vietnam (supervising with Prof. Phil Benson)
7. Jiayu Wang: Shaping Writer Identity of Doctoral Students in Co-Authoring with Supervisors for Publication (supervising with Prof. Mehdi Riazi and Dr. Juliet Lum) 

Completed Master of Research Students

1. Reema Abouzeid (2019): Aligning Perceptions with Reality: Lebanese EMI Instructor Perceptions of Students’ Writing Proficiency
2. Bao Tram Nguyen (2018): Investigating Autonomy in International Students’ approaches to University Writing Assignments (supervised with Prof. Phil Benson)
3. Khatmah Alanazi (2017): Investigating First Year Science Students’ Academic Writing Development
4. Leigh McDowell (2016): An Error Analysis of Japanese Scientists’ Research Articles
5. Nur Afifi (2016) Indonesian EFL Learners’ Development of Academic Literacy: A Study of Grammatical Metaphor. (supervised with Dr. John Knox)
6. Sarah Timbs (2016) Raising learners’ metalinguistic awareness: An examination of students’ academic writing development At university. (supervised with Dr. John Knox)

Cassi serves as an Editorial Board Member for the Journal of Second Language Writing.