Emmanuel Amabebe

I heard about the Brilliant club scholars programme from an email and a colleague. I was motivated to be involved due to my passion for teaching and learning and in this case teaching pupils (which I had never done). So, this was an exciting opportunity for me to gain more teaching, learning and communication skills.

It began with an application and then an interview, which interestingly entailed making a short presentation to two adults pretending to be pupils of about 13-15 years old. My success at the interview was followed with a rigorous 2-day training on how to design the course to be taught and deliver the tutorials, which effectively set me up for the task ahead. I was then commissioned to teach Key stage 4 pupils (13-15 years) a self-designed course from my PhD research – Why are babies born too soon? The tutorials started with a launch trip where the pupils visited The University of Sheffield to have a feel of the academic and social environment of a University. This was in line with the objectives of the programme to inspire the pupils to aspire to acquire a tertiary education. The subsequent tutorials were held in the pupils’ schools, which provided a more familiar learning environment and enhanced communication. The pupils were engaging, participated with great zest, and completed the programme with a clearer vision, ambition and commitment to proceed with a university education.  

On my part, it was an amazing experience to interact with the pupils telling them about my research in a way that they could relate to. This has ultimately improved my teaching, learning, communication, assessment and public engagement skills. I would love to do this again and again! The skills I gained are currently employed in my interactions with both undergraduate and postgraduate students, explaining my research to my peers, patients and lay audience. These skills are critical to my success in my career as a researcher and an academic. They are also transferable skills that are frequently employed in non-academic settings.

I think I had a great impact on the pupils from the encouraging feedback I received from them, their teachers and the administrators of the programme. I have had three placements (i.e. taught in 3 schools at Key Stage 4 level) since I became a PhD tutor with the Brilliant club. The programme also improved my time management skill, as I had to combine it with my Postdoc work. I had to learn a little more flexibility without compromising any commitment for the other. This was challenging but it paid off in the end.