Last Updated on 29/08/2023 by James Barron
When creating resources, I make use of a selection of sources to inform my resource development, the first is the course/unit syllabus and I use this as a starting point in my research but also to include the specific criteria on each of the resources. This is overall an excellent source of information as it comes directly from the awarding body; however, there have been instances where the terminology on the syllabus is confusing for students, or even incorrect.
Using the information from the syllabus I will then research the requirements for the specific criteria. I will make use of websites like the British Computing Society, Institution of Engineering and Technology, Association for Computing Machinery and other websites specifically for the unit subject, e.g., php.net for a web unit. Overall, the websites I use are respected and are considered a good source of reliable information; however, not all websites are considered a good source of reliable information, such as Wikipedia. I use this information to formalise my existing knowledge and experience. The Computer Journal aims to serve all branches of the academic computer science community; it is released monthly and is the standard in terms of broad computer science journal. The Programming Journal is released quarterly and is free of charge with all articles released under the Creative Commons license; as a result, it doesn’t have the same credibility of other journals and doesn’t feature such prominent research. I will also consult my technical book collection, especially on very technical subjects which I may not have covered for several years. These books also form the basis for my reading list for each of my units. I also discuss resource material with colleagues, this can be in the form of asking for feedback on a particular resource or asking for guidance on what should go into a particular resource, I always attempt to locate a colleague who has experience in the specific area, although this is not always possible, it is also not always possible for the colleague to provide the information I require.
Author Profile
-
My first experience of teaching was in 2016, when I was asked to
deliver a talk to a group of 16-year-olds on what it was like to start
your own business. I immediately knew I wanted to become more
involved in teaching but I didn’t know where to start as I had not
previously considered a career in education. A few weeks later I
agreed to teach a class of Chinese students from the Shanghai
Technical Institute of Electronics and Information, who had travelled
to the UK to learn English and Software Engineering, after that I was
hooked. Within the next few years, I taught hundreds of students of
many different nationalities, aged from 16 to 60, and from
levels 2 to 6. I focused my time teaching with Bath University and
Bath College for several more years until I felt a change was in order.
For the last few years, I have taught remotely with several private
training organisations, provided dedicated one to one coaching
sessions, provided consultancy on teaching and assessment practices
and written about my experiences as a teacher. I plan to continue
with my current activities for the foreseeable future but I’m always
open to new teaching experiences.
Thanks, it’s so relevant.