Developing Excellence in Teaching, Learning, and Assessment Conference Ignites Inspiration amongst Educators

January 26, 2024

St Helens College and Knowsley Community College were proud to host their first ‘Developing Excellence in Teaching, Learning, and Assessment Conference’, which brought together curriculum staff to engage in open discussions, explore practical strategies, and gain access to classroom-ready resources – all aimed at enhancing teaching and learning.

The College had the privilege of welcoming three outstanding guest speakers – Isabella Wallace, Harriet Harper, and Damian Rollinson Small, all of whom, brought a wealth of knowledge and experience from their hugely successful careers in education.

Isabella Wallace, Co-author of the best-selling teaching guides, ‘Pimp Your Lesson!’, ‘Talk-Less Teaching’, and the new ‘Best of the Best’ Classroom Guides for Teachers, is an experienced and award-winning educator who presents nationally and internationally on outstanding teaching and learning.

Isabella led a captivating session on ‘Visible Progress’, which spotlighted the significance of peer teaching and memory techniques to enhance information retention and student engagement, as well as time-saving techniques for written feedback that foster meaningful student-teacher dialogues.

Second guest speaker and Education Specialist, Harriet Harper, guided participants through a range of diverse learning approaches, highlighting ways to elevate the student learning experience, and how to tailor teaching techniques to individual students.

Harriet has extensive experience in a variety of teaching and management roles in Further and Higher Education, including as a Teacher Educator at the University of Greenwich and one of Her Majesty’s Inspectors (HMI). Harriet’s research interests focus on teaching excellence, and her book on “Outstanding Teaching in Lifelong Learning” has been widely used to inform CPD in the FE sector.

Finally, Damian Rollinson Small, the Director of Partnerships, Teaching and Learning of the successful teacher development platform, Teaching HOW2s, introduced staff to the platform, giving them access to a collaborative space, which encourages the sharing of ideas and teaching methods amongst tutors, fostering a community of educators dedicated to professional growth and excellence.

Damian specialises in working with departments to enhance retention, achievement, and curriculum delivery, which leads to the very best outcomes for students. With over 12 years’ experience using the HOW2 app, as a teacher, advanced practitioner and manager, Damian has a proven track record of helping staff to reach outstanding teaching, learning and assessment.

Helen Young, Head of Teaching, Learning and Development at the College said, “I am delighted by the feedback we received from our first Teaching and Learning Conference. This event marked a pivotal step towards achieving excellence at our college. The event was centred around the College’s core values of Ambition, Excellence, Collaboration, and Innovation – focusing on raising aspirations, striving for excellence, fostering collaboration, and embracing innovation.”

The College is committed to providing educators with the tools and knowledge for fostering teaching excellence in the classroom and we look forward to planning our next conference later in the year.