Inspiring Sheffield College teacher awarded prestigious national accolade

An inspiring Sheffield College teacher has won a prestigious Technical Teaching Fellowship award.

Nick Hart (pictured left) has been awarded a Fellowship from the Education and Training Foundation (ETF) in partnership with the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851. 

Fellowships are given to outstanding practitioners who are recognised for their high impact teaching practice and the delivery of effective outcomes for learners. Nick was one of four individuals nationally awarded the fellowship.  

Nick, who is a Learning and Development Coach for Engineering and Construction at The Sheffield College, said: “I am very proud to work at The Sheffield College and be an engineer. Most of all, I am incredibly lucky to do a job I love.”

He added: “We have some incredible people at the College who inspire, challenge and build confidence and knowledge to help our students go further. It’s a real honour to be part of that and to be recognised in this way. It wouldn’t have been possible without the support of my colleagues.”

Nick received his award during an event held at The Royal Society in London on Friday 31 January. He was one of four new Technical Teaching Fellows who are all expected to share their learning and expertise across the sector as part of the award.

The ETF and the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 launched the Technical Teaching Fellowship programme in June 2018 with the aim to celebrate, develop and disseminate exceptional practice in technical teaching.

The programme supports and empowers the industrial and technical expertise of individuals, who support the progression of learners to higher levels of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) study and employment.

David Russell, Chief Executive Officer at the Education and Training Foundation, said: “Everyone at the Education and Training Foundation would like to congratulate the four expert teachers on being awarded their Technical Teaching Fellowships. They will be a benefit to Further Education by being at the forefront of improving technical education in the sector.

“Through developing opportunities for further improvement in technical education and training while encouraging and leading on collaborations between industry and FE providers, the Fellows will assist in learner advancement.”

Cerian Ayres, National Head of Technical Education at the Education and Training Foundation, commented: “Congratulations to the Technical Teaching Fellowship awardees. Their applications and supporting statements were testament to the quality of the technical teaching and learning that each of them facilitate.

“The new Fellows all showcased fantastic support to diverse groups of learners and colleagues as well as strong collaborative partnerships with employers and key stakeholders. I look forward to supporting the Technical Teaching Fellows to share their knowledge, skills, and insights widely with FE sector colleagues to maximise reach, engagement and impact.”

Nigel Williams, Secretary of the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851, added: “Education and training in science, technology and engineering are vital to building the skilled workforce needed to tackle the Grand Challenges outlined in the UK’s Industrial Strategy.

“These fellowships will help raise standards of teaching in Further Education and thus inspire the next generation of British innovators who will develop the emerging technologies that are transforming the world economy.”

The Technical Teaching Fellowship is a prestigious award only granted to applicants who have met the high standards required by the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 selection panel.

As a new Technical Teaching Fellow, Nick Hart will:

• receive an award of £5,000 – £15,000 to support knowledge transfer activity and to ensure remission time is guaranteed
• develop “Pathways to Impact”- knowledge transfer activity action plans, to maximise the benefit of their Fellowships
• attend two one-day developmental workshops over the academic year 2020/2021
• be allocated a programme mentor to support them for the duration of the programme
• be expected to disseminate their work at national conferences in January and July 2021
• contribute to the delivery of a final report, written to engage and motivate technical education in their area of practice.

The Fellowships will commence in the 2020/21 academic year. The awardees will also be made Fellows of the Society for Education and Training and will be awarded a year’s free membership during their participation in the programme.

To find out more about the programme visit the Education and Training Foundation website.