Dr Graham Scott

National Teaching Fellow 2009 Graham Scott was awarded a first class zoology degree by the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne and then completed a PhD in zoology at Edinburgh University. Rather than complete a conventional biological post-doctoral research programme Graham chose to return to Newcastle and started his career as a research associate working with Professor Stewart Evans to develop student centred learning activities that would enable marine biology students to complete unsupervised field work. This experience was key to Graham's subsequent development as an HE lecturer. He taught first at University College Scarborough and then at the University of Hull, where he is currently Head of the Department of Biological Sciences. Throughout his teaching career Graham has sought to develop independence in his students by devising ways in which they might take control of elements of their own learning and to then reflect upon their attainment of learning outcomes in a way that enables them to clearly articulate their achievements. This is achieved thorough student managed learning, a style of learning that is not common in the sciences. Using engaging themes such as animal behaviour, the interactions between people and their environment, and the biology of whales, sharks and dolphins Graham encourages students to set their own learning targets and where appropriate to determine their own curriculum. This work is sometimes classroom based but most often occurs in the field. He was awarded a University Teaching Fellowship in 2006. In his spare time Graham continues to teach as a British Trust for Ornithology licensed bird ringer. He is rarely happier than when training other enthusiasts to safely handle and collect vital data from wild birds.