School was difficult for me. Painfully shy, withdrawn and generally fairly awkward, I was so unresponsive in class that my primary school teacher believed I was deaf and tried to move me to a school that could cope with my ‘special needs’. Later, at secondary school, I effectively dropped out, seemingly unnoticed, unable to cope…
Below are poems – penned a number of years ago – I continue to draw upon them in my lessons to stimulate discussion and encourage learners to shape their ideas and emotions through language and creativity. The poems and the themes that arise from them still resonate as dialogic resources in the classes I teach. Creativity…
Just published: our contribution to the Spring 2018 edition of IntuitionResearch. Also Dr Jim Crowther highlights teacher education pedagogy. Follow link.below: A Lesson for the Future
Happy Women’s Day Inspiring women share their stories. Their journeys gives hope Follow the link below to listen to their stories
MichelleMichelle is a qualified social worker who works in the North East. In this video, Michelle talks about her experience of returning to education as an adult. She talks about the special qualities of Access to HE tutors, about moving on to a degree and completing it despite a range of challenges in her personal…
https://www.tes.com/news/further-education/breaking-views/a-belt-and-braces-approach-english-can-inspire-gcse-resit This is the work I am involved in where we transform women’s lives- 16-18yr olds but also pre- access and access students; women on our adult and community learning course too. Our work builds their confidence and helps them find their ‘voices ‘ more powerfully & assertively – they can find and use more…
*some names have been changed Working with young people is challenging and tiring but it can also be rewarding; there is always something more that can be learned and I learn as much from them as I would hope they do from me. The biggest rewards and sometimes the most important lessons come in the…
We have had an inspiring year, listening to the voices of teachers and learners. Carrying out research in different colleges and other further education providers has offered rich insights into the amazing work of teachers, learners and others involved in further education. The stories recorded and shared on this site (and some we haven’t) have…
Scroll down for video Curtis Tappenden is a teacher who has featured already on this site. Apart from being an inspirational teacher, he was involved in the Reimagining Further Education Conference in July 2017. He has been involved in the UCU FE transforming lives and communities from early on. Curtis takes up the story: Networking…
Rithenella’s inspirational storyFurther education offers spaces for learning that accommodate people from a diverse range of backgrounds. This includes adults returning to education to move their lives and prospects forward. In this video, Rithenella, now studying Social Work at University, talks about the challenges she faced as a looked-after child and how she returned…
