PGCert Higher Education student and alumni profiles

Professor Annlizé Marnewick

Annlizé is head of the Postgraduate School of Engineering at the University of Johannesburg, South Africa. She had two original drivers to do the course, firstly to build a deeper understanding of learning theories and practises and secondly to reflect on her own practises, benchmark against other attendees and leave with new ideas and actions to improve her own approaches.

The global online offering provided by Nottingham allows you to engage with a very diverse set of higher education educators. The learning opportunities you are exposed to are not just limited to a well-designed programme, but best practises used by educators from many other diverse institutions. 

Annlizé said "The course helped me to consider the challenges I experience in the role as a supervision of postgraduates, and allowed me to design enhancements to my feedback practises. On a personal note it developed my reflective action into a habit."

Annlizé felt the online module quality is of a very high standard and the learning environment created by the facilitators is kind, and engaging. During the course all applications were based on her personal practises and improvement of that. She really enjoyed the course design module because it allowed her to practise her reflective approach, and she is looking forward to seeing how the intervention impacts her students' learning.

Asked to give advice to future students, Annlizé said "To make the best of your learning, engage with all the material provided and allocate sufficient time to read all the prescribed material." 

Sayed Baheer Peerzada

Sayed is a Business Management Lecturer at the London School of Science and Technology.

The University of Nottingham boasts an outstanding reputation, exceptional academic quality among its tutors, and comprehensive support services, all of which are decisive factors in my choice to pursue this course.

 

Sayed says "With years of experience in education across various regions globally, I have developed a keen interest in enhancing my pedagogical skills and observing the impact of methodical teaching. My goal was to gain deeper insights into higher education practices, particularly within the UK. The University of Nottingham offered a valuable opportunity and platform for me to further my learning and expand my knowledge in this area. One of the most significant aspects of this course is its exceptional generalisability. This is largely attributed to its global reach and the incorporation of widely accepted methods and concepts that resonate across diverse cultural and geographic boundaries."

Asked how the course has helped in his role or career, Sayed responded "This course provided an opportunity to explore a rich literature of teaching methods, styles, frameworks, models, quality control, governing bodies, and learning styles, which offered different perspectives to evaluate my teaching practices. I was promoted to module leader and course coordinator during the course and that further enhanced my understanding of curriculum development, module design, lesson plans, assessment methods, feedback, and feed forward mechanisms. This course incorporated internationally recognised frameworks and practices, applying them across various teaching and learning contexts. This approach provided a solid foundation for my daily teaching practices."

Sayed feels the most impactful aspect of the course was the brainstorming sessions and group exercises that fostered an environment for knowledge sharing, adding that engaging in group and peer learning truly enriched the experience and empowered their growth.

Commenting on support he received during the course, Sayed said "Tutors and mentors contributed significantly to my learning experience. In particular, Dr Sweeney and Dr Claire offered consistent formative feedback and feedforward, which proved invaluable in the process of enhancing my teaching methods and overall professional development."

Sayed would recommend this course to others because "The course offered at the University of Nottingham is comprehensive, highly regarded, and interactive in nature. It presents a valuable learning opportunity for individuals committed to continuous improvement and lifelong learning." His advice to future students is to keep engaging with your mentors and tutors and seek guidance to improve your knowledge and skills and concludes with "To achieve a comprehensive understanding of this course, it is essential to dedicate adequate time to reading and conducting research. This approach not only facilitates the learning process but also ensures a more seamless educational experience." 

Martyn Barrett

Martyn is a Senior Technician in the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Nottingham,

Martyn said " I have gained an appreciation for different elements of course design and the importance of engaging with module convenors to develop taught content in a way that will best suit our diverse student audience. Having not been involved in writing module from scratch, I found it very interesting to engage with the PGCHE Global course design module and develop my understanding of local policies and factors to consider when developing content. In my daily work, I am now more critical of how I deliver content and continually engage students to ensure that they are getting the most from a session. I appreciate that every session is different and that each student and group of students must be considered in the delivery of a session and design of the content.

We asked Martyn what has been the biggest takeaway / light bulb moment and he said that during the Teaching and Supporting Learning module, he was required to write a personal teaching philosophy statement. Having never been asked to consider what his philosophy is, this encouraged him to ask questions of his own practice and critically reflect on his practice to better understand his own approach to teaching and engage with a level of self-reflection that he had previously not considered. "In our day-to-day roles we are not often asked questions that require this level of reflection, to take time to understand my own teaching narrative was a valuable exercise."

Martyn said "As technical staff, we often lead taught sessions in practical settings. This places an obligation on technical staff to deliver module content to students and make links between theoretical knowledge and practical application. I believe that it is important to continually develop and enhance the skills that we have as teaching staff in order to teach in line with institutional policy and to meet the requirements of our students. As a teaching resource, technical staff have a huge amount to offer; without developing the teaching skills of the technical community we may not be delivering all we have to offer."

This course allows an opportunity to develop many different aspects of your teaching practice. As with all higher level study, you only get out what you are willing to put in, with an emphasis on critical reflection and making study relevant to your individual role and the PGCHE Global has a lot to offer for those willing to invest the time. I am glad that I undertook the PGCHE and would recommend it to other technical staff in teaching roles.

Jason Young

Jason is a Technician in the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Nottingham

Jason says the course has enlightened him and changed him as an educator as he now has some understanding into how students learn. He now offers more resources and clarity in his practices.

For me as a student-facing technician, the PGCHE Global has really helped me empathise with the students' learning process. I have a new found understanding into the foundations of teaching and how core teaching principles are developed into learning outcomes and strategies for feedback. 

Jason's 'light bulb' moment was during a tutorial. "My personal tutor and I had a tutorial regarding my teaching philosophy, and wow it was like I was in the matrix. My tutor's explanation made all of the reading lists and research somehow gel together. After the tutorial I couldn’t stop thinking and writing - I was inspired somewhat."

Jason's advice to future students is to be prepared to be inspired adding "I you have a passion for teaching, this course will make you explore your inner self and will open your mind to the brilliant architecture of teaching."