Stewart McConnell

I obtained a Bachelors degree in Marine Biology/Zoology from Bangor University in Wales and then an MSc. in Applied Fish Biology at Plymouth University. After a year managing a fish farm in N. Thailand, I came back to the UK and obtained a PhD in Molecular Genetics applied to Aquaculture from Swansea University. Post-doctoral research in genetics followed with time spent in Nova Scotia Canada, Leicester, Swansea and Cardiff in the UK. After 10 years the arrival of twins and the relative instability of research pushed me into taking a PCGE in Secondary Science. I spent two years in an 11-16 school and then moved to my current job in an FE college 11 years ago, where I teach Biology at A level and am Medical Sciences Tutor. I started to try out Flipped Learning about 2 years ago, primarily to claim back some class time for interactive and student centred activities, when our hours were reduced. I have since become convinced of how valuable and flexible this style of teaching and learning can be. I have presented my experiences to other lecturers in the college and Flipped Learning is slowly spreading to other staff tempered really by how IT friendly staff are and the time they have available to prepare resources.