"The University's Faculty of Education is proud of its local, national and international reach," says Dr Elizabeth Hidson, a Senior Fellow and Faculty Fellowship Champion.
"Hundreds of trainee teachers around the world study our distance learning PGCEs, PGCE with iQTS and assessment-only route to Qualified Teacher Status each year. Senior Lecturers Alison McMaster, Simon Sheard and Vikki Wynn, as well as Lecturer Paul Blacklock, have all received Senior Fellowship in recognition of their hard work in developing teachers across the globe."
A key part of the International Initial Teacher Training team's work is to quality-assure and assess trainee teachers with formal lesson observation and assessment visits from University staff. This is carried out by Professional Practice Tutors (PPTs) who live and work in the main regions where we have international trainees.
"This year, as part of our commitment to recognising our Professional Practice Tutors’ support for student learning, the first-ever group of PPTs was put forward for Associate Fellowship." (Fellowship demonstrates a personal and institutional commitment to professionalism in learning and teaching in higher education. Individuals applying for Associate Fellowship may be fairly new to a role in teaching and/or support for learning. They may be new or experienced staff with specific roles in supporting HE learning such as technicians, librarians, professional staff, learning technologists, careers advisors, etc.)
The assessment process recognises individuals whose higher education (HE) teaching and/or support for learning practice demonstrates the professional values, core knowledge and areas of practice in the UK Professional Standards Framework.
It has been a pleasure and a privilege to support this group of colleagues towards the recognition they deserve. Their work around the
world is vital to ensuring that our trainees experience a rigorous but supportive training programme.
Dr Elizabeth Hidson, a Senior Fellow and Faculty Fellowship Champion, who supported this first group of PPTs towards their successful assessment.
"Please join us in celebrating and learning more about the first seven successful (Associate Fellows: Gregory Macur, Robynne Esther De Kock, William Goldring, Silvia Natale , Dr Mark Harrison, Rachel Humphreys and Chloe Williams."
Gregory Macur, Associate Fellow
Gregory is the first University of Sunderland PPT ever to have applied for Associate Fellowship. His affiliation to Sunderland began as a student of our PGCE and AOR-QTS programmes. After graduating, he went on to support the University as a Professional Practice Tutor, education podcast guest and keynote speaker at our online international PGCE conferences. This year he is also supporting our PGCE with iQTS trainees by delivering guest lectures relating to EAL, in addition to his PPT responsibilities. Gregory is the Vice Principal for Pre-K to Grade 5 at an IB Continuum International School in China. He is the author of “Teaching Online for Kindergarten and Primary Teachers” and doubles up as a researcher with multiple peer-reviewed publications looking at EAL and online learning, and how these can be integrated practically.
Robynne Esther De Kock, Associate Fellow
Robynne Esther de Kock has 13 years’ experience in education which includes time as a pre-primary and primary school teacher, head teacher, wellbeing and team lead. She has headed several workshops, training and connecting teachers locally and globally. Robynne has been a Professional Practice Tutor for the University of Sunderland since January 2023 and has already supported over 30 trainees with their PGCE studies.
William Goldring, Associate Fellow
William Goldring completed the University of Sunderland PGCE (distance learning) himself in 2009-10 and has been a Professional Practice Tutor since early 2021. He has conducted more than 100 observations in over 30 different schools around Hong Kong and finds it an incredibly rewarding experience. He is also a full-time Head of Department in a leading international school.
Silvia Natale, Associate Fellow
As well as being a Professional Practice Tutor, Silvia Natale is also an experienced teacher and PhD researcher at a Higher Education Institution in Hong Kong. Silvia has supported more than 150 trainees with their PGCE studies.