Dr Mark Atlay

National Teaching Fellow 2015 Mark has responsibility for curriculum development, the use of technology to support learning and for the associated development of academic staff at the University of Bedfordshire. He has a long commitment to widening access to higher education and supporting learners to achieve their potential. He started his work in higher education lecturing in Chemistry but since then has had many roles. Nationally Mark is involved in developments in the recording of learner achievement and the use of credit where he has made a key contribution to the sectoral development of practice for many years through his involvement with the Centre for Recording Achievement (CRA) and the Southern England Consortium for Credit Accumulation and Transfer (SEEC) respectively. Comments from existing National Teaching Fellows who have fully endorsed his credentials include: "Mark's values are clear; he cares about learners and their experiences and believes passionately in the transformative potential of higher education" and "Mark is a great believer in shifting from a teacher-centric delivery of a knowledge-based curriculum to a more genuine student-centred, formative process that enables students to develop a range of skills and attributes." One of Mark's current institutional activities involves the development and implementation of a cross-University curriculum designed to engage students and support their development as life-long and life-wide learners known as CRe8. A senior academic commented that "his ideas have been adopted enthusiastically by my Department in providing students with the knowledge, skills and attributes to flourish in world of uncertainty and change driven by fast-evolving technologies."  In his teaching Mark employs creative and collaborative approaches to exploring learning and teaching issues. One new member of academic staff said: "One indicator of an effective teacher is how they challenge and inspire students to take the extra steps that put them on their own learning paths, and then enable them to share their learning with others; something Mark encouraged me to achieve personally, whilst teaching me to facilitate such experiences for others."