Mr Duncan Mackrill

National Teaching Fellow 2005 Following 18 years' teaching in secondary education, Duncan Mackrill became PGCE Music Curriculum Tutor at the University of Sussex. He achieved a University Teaching Award in 2004 for his work in music education after only five years' teaching part time in HE, followed by the National Teaching Fellowship in 2005. He is now a Senior Lecturer in Education and the PGCE Convenor at Sussex. As well as his curriculum role, Duncan's main interests are in the integration, application and development of digital technologies in education, and particularly in music. He has developed the range and use of music technology equipment for use by PGCE trainees. The quality of support for his students has also been recognised by both his peers and students alike and is a key area of both interest and expertise. He has developed the use of a Virtual Learning Environment on the PGCE course, to support students more effectively and develop their own learning. This is now well-established across the whole PGCE Course. Duncan's NTFS project has brought together a number of interests and includes investigating the use of video and reflective practice in developing trainee teacher expertise. This has involved the use of webcams for online tutorials and support. In particular, he has been developing and piloting a portable e-Portfolio using portable applications running on a USB drive, specifically for use by trainee and NQT teachers. This allows trainees to integrate their teaching resources, evidence portfolio and a range of portable applications from one source without the need for Internet access; often a problem when working as a trainee in a school.  Recent research includes the use of digital technologies in Personalised Learning and 'the learner perspective and influence on demand', funded by Becta. He has also begun to research with a colleague into teacher perspectives around spirituality and music education. This has resulted in interest from around the world and there are plans to organise a conference on the subject in May or June 2010 in the UK.