Lerverne Barber

Having had a very successful career as a Secondary Physical Education teacher and Physical Education Adviser/Inspector, Lerverne Barber joined the University of Worcester in 2004 as a Lecturer in the Institute of Sport and Exercise Science. Lerverne's passion for inclusive learning and teaching and her extensive experience and subject expertise, ensured that she was quickly promoted to Course Leader and then Principal Lecturer, for Learning, Teaching and the Student Experience. Throughout her career, she has always had the same overarching goal, to ensure that all students, regardless of gender, ability, ethnicity, socio-economic background or religious beliefs, are enabled to fulfil their potential. Lerverne has been recognised many times for her excellence in learning and teaching, including a number of Student Led Teaching Awards, most recently for Outstanding Innovation in Teaching. In 2011 she achieved a University of Worcester Teaching Fellow Award and became a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy in 2015. Impact of work Under Lerverne's strategic leadership of the Learning and Teaching Committee, there has been an incredible 140% increase in the number of learning and teaching outputs, including conference presentations and written papers. Significantly, this has included work by a large number of early career researchers who have been supported to evaluate aspects of their teaching and disseminate their research nationally and internationally.  Her vision for the University's first 'Realising Excellence' day in 2016 provided the opportunity for staff from all departments to work collaboratively to share ideas in relation to excellence in learning and teaching. Outputs from this event have included the establishment of a number of communities of practice on aspects such as research informed teaching and inclusive pedagogy. Plans for the future In recognition of her leadership in establishing an institutional approach to the development of inclusive learning and teaching, Lerverne was asked to share her work with the Japanese Paralympic Committee, Toin University in Tokyo and as an invited guest of the Chinese Government at Beijing Sports University. She is now in the process of developing a portfolio of professional development opportunities to support Physical Education teacher training programmes in Japan and China.