ENroute Yearbook 2015-16
Ten Years and Counting ... William Surradge , School of Applied Sciences , Associate Fellow
Come 1 October 2016 , I will have been at Edinburgh Napier for 10 years . Starting as an undergraduate on the Forensic Biology programme , an MRes in Biochemistry , volunteering as a Demonstrator and now as a Lab Technician , I have been passionate about Edinburgh Napier ever since I walked through the doors .
Throughout my undergraduate programme , the lecturers who stood out were the people who took the time to get to know me as a person , and would give me the benefit of their experience . So upon completing my degree , I asked to be a Volunteer Demonstrator , knowing exactly how I wanted to present myself .
Safe to say , I really enjoyed giving the students the benefit of my experience . I quickly gained more experience in a variety of different roles , all of which were involved with assisting students , leading to my role as a Lab Technician , where I work with academic staff to develop and update lab protocols and practical sessions , with the aim of allowing our students to gain the absolute most they can from their time here .
I was asked if I wanted to apply for accreditation through ENroute last year , and I ’ m very pleased that I did . I ’ d never heard of the term ‘ pedagogy ’ before the process ; it was language that I never used as a technician . However , on reflection , I realised that I had spent my entire career looking at how students learned and how I could tailor my approach towards them . I was practising pedagogy and I didn ’ t even know it !
Quickly , I was looking at what I had done over those years from a new viewpoint , making the process enjoyable and enlightening as I gained a better appreciation of the skills I ’ ve learned , and a better understanding about how to improve my professional practice .
Collecting DNA from banana for visitors ’ group
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