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Adam Ritchie ( centre ) and his colleagues at The Jenner Institute in Oxford . Picture : Supplied
From classroom detention to academic success
One man ’ s role in developing the AstraZeneca vaccine .
By Emilie Lauer
Lecturer and researcher Adam Ritchie spent his high school years in detention , but more recently the academic played a major role in the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine distribution , saving millions of lives .
On his school report cards , Ritchie was described as smart but unfocused , playing in class and causing trouble . Years later , he is an accomplished academic at the University of Oxford .
In high school , Ritchie didn ’ t always get along with others , getting into the habit of fighting with other boys which often landed him in detention and a few suspensions .
“ People would say I was a bit of a class clown or maybe an attention seeker who got in a little bit of trouble ,” Ritchie told Campus Review .
In addition , school bored him , and he found himself often distracted and unfocused on the lessons , hiding at the back of the classroom to read a novel .
Yet , in year 10 , things turned around for the future academic : he achieved a perfect score in science on the ICAS assessment , which aims to evaluate students on their ability to apply classroom learning in real-world scenarios using problem-solving skills .
Ritchie remembers thriving in these tests as he found them more stimulating than the ordinary classroom assessments .
“ After the school got the test results , someone came into my classroom and there was a note that I had to go and see the deputy principal and I remember thinking ‘ Oh , God , what have I done ?’
“ I really just remember the principal telling me ‘ Adam , what are we supposed to do with you ?’”
The principal went on to tell Ritchie about his perfect score in the science exam , congratulating him at the same time as being frustrated by the young man .
Later that same day , the principal saw Ritchie in detention once again , as he was picking up rubbish in the garden , he recalls the educator calling his name , looking at him , shaking his head and walking off .
“ I remember a strong sense of maybe I should be doing a little bit more .”
If Ritchie ’ s educators were somewhat exasperated with his behaviour , they believed in the young man ’ s potential and decided to enrol him in an academic program with the University of New South Wales where he was paired up with a palaeontologist .
The program gave him the opportunity to spend some time on excavation sites where the researchers were looking at the association of megafauna with early First Nations people from Australia .
Ritchie believes that his teachers knew at the time the experience might be interesting and eye opening for him .
“ Maybe , my Year 10 science teacher who took a real interest in me and the school thought that a slightly alternative activity would pique my interest .”
The school assumption turned out to be exactly what Ritchie needed as it helped him become a better student .
“ I wasn ’ t perfect but I certainly did better ; I paid more attention in class and
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