Dr Darren Poole

I have been teaching for over 20 years and my interests focus heavily on military history.

I completed my MA in Military History at Chester in 2007-08. My dissertation focused on the Strategic Hamlet Programme implemented during the Vietnam War. I also have degrees in Geography and Development, Education and PG Certs in Management and Teaching and Learning.

My main research interests lie in counterinsurgency, British colonial history, American military history and international relations. I am particularly concerned with how counterinsurgency theory can be adapted and improved to try and reduce casualties in current and future conflicts.

My current research examines how modern counterinsurgency theory can help us analyse historical conflicts such as Malaya and Vietnam and I am also using interviews with insurgents to provide an alternative point of view to the current historical record.

My teaching is split between the University of Chester campus and University Centre, Shrewsbury. I currently teach undergraduate courses on counterinsurgency, American history and the Vietnam War. I also contribute heavily to the MA programme and teach units on the First World War, the American Civil War and postgraduate research skills.